Monsignor Thomas John Capel (born 28 October 1836, Ireland – died 23 October 1911, Sacramento, California) was a Roman Catholic priest, elevated to Monsignor.
Early life
Born in either Waterford or Ardmore in Ireland, by 1881 he gives his place of birth as Ramsgate in Kent; this was either done for social reasons or represents a genuine error. His father John Capel was a Chief Boatman with the Coast Guard. In 1854 he helped to establish St Mary's Training College in Hammersmith and became its vice-principal where he remained until 1858 when ill health forced him to resign and go to France to recover. While in France he established the English Catholic Mission at Pau.
The Apostle to the Genteel
On his return to England he received into the Catholic Church the Marquis of Bute and many high-profile Anglicans. This led to Capel being satirised by Disraeli in his novel Lothair where he appears as Mgr Catesby. The identification of Thomas Capel as Catesby was fairly widespread as a letter of John Cashel Hoey to Archbishop Manning of 2 May 1870, the day of the book's publication, shows. In 1873, possibly as a result of this and other conversions, he was created Domestic Prelate to the Pope.
Catholic University College
In 1874 Archbishop Manning established a Catholic University College in Kensington and Mgr Capel was appointed Rector. The College was established to provide higher education to Catholics who were forbidden by Papal Decree to attend Oxford or Cambridge. The College faced problems from the outset, the principle one being that of finance; the theory was that the rich Catholic families who would benefit from the College would help to fund it during the first few years. In practice however these families preferred to send their sons to Oxford or Cambridge and seek a dispensation for doing so. This situation was worsened by Mgr Capel's financial mismanagement which left the College in debt and Mgr Capel bankrupt.
Diocesan Investigation
On 27 January 1879 a Commission of Investigation was set up to investigate the following charges: To acts of criminal intercourse alleged to have taken place periodically between you (Capel) and Mrs Bellew from 1875 to September 1878 To indecent liberties offered to Mrs Bellew's servant girl in the autumn of 1878 To acts of criminal intercourse with Miss Mary Stourton in 1875, soon afterwards related by her to the Cardinal Archbishop. This relation she was believed to have subsequently retracted. But she had repeatedly since then affirmed ... that the letter which was supposed to be a retraction was written at your dictation and was untrue At the time when you took liberties, as alleged, with Mrs Bellew's servant, you were, as it is asserted, under the influence of liquor.
The Commission met in February 1879 and began an exhaustive series of interviews with just about everyone involved however slightly with the case, the exception being Mrs Bellew who declined to attend.
Mgr Capel's defence attacked the character of Mrs Bellew describing her as drunken, immoral and with a character that was "tarnished in no small degree".
However the Commission found against Mgr Capel on the first three counts. Following this verdict Manning suspended Capel; he responded by appealing to Rome.
Kensington Confession Case
In August 1880 Mr Rutherford-Smith received an anonymous letter that said: