Salford Diocese was one of the original diocese established when the Hierarchy of England and Wales was restored in 1850. Catholic dioceses had ceased to exist after the Reformation. After many decades, Rome appointed a Vicar Apostolic, a bishop who reported directly to Rome, to oversee the Catholics remaining in England, often in geographical clusters around recusant gentry families. The country was later divided into four Apostolic Districts, each with its own Vicar Apostolic. After the socalled Glorious Revolution, Catholics were suspected of being Jacobite supporters, especially in 1715 and 1745. The Hanoverian kings slowly shed this fear. Toleration became acceptable, especially in the light of the French Revolution. The two Catholic Relief Acts of 1778 and 1791 and the Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829 restored freedom of worship and education to Catholics, although by now deep suspicion of Catholicism had infiltrated the English psyche, and led to occasional riots and more frequently discrimination. However the number of English Catholics continued to increase, especially in the new industrial centres, aided by the arrival of many Irish working on canal and railway construction and in the new industries. In 1840 the four Apostolic Districts were divided into eight, and the Lancashire District under Bishop Brown was established.

Website: http://www.salforddiocese.org.uk/cathedral/choir/