New mystery over Cardinal's remains
The remains of Cardinal Newman may never have been buried in his Worcestershire grave because of Victorian concerns over his sexuality, experts have claimed.
The remains of Cardinal Newman may never have been buried in his Worcestershire grave because of Victorian concerns over his sexuality, experts have claimed.
The coffin of John Henry Newman, one of the best known English churchmen of the 19th century, was opened last month but all that was inside were pieces of tassel from his hat and a brass plaque. Catholic church authorities said the disappearance of the body from the casket was due to acidity in the soil at the grave in Rednal, Worcestershire.
They said this had caused the remains to disintegrate.
But now tests show the ground was not acidic enough for this to happen.
The pieces from the coffin have now gone on display at Birmingham Oratory in Edgbaston, which was founded by the cardinal.
His coffin had been buried in a shallow grave above his friend, Father Ambrose St John, with whom he had shared a house.
Cardinal Newman's casket had been exhumed ahead of his expected beautification, the first step to becoming a saint.
But conspiracy theorists have claimed his body had disappeared in order to avoid making him a saint, following rumours that he was a homosexual.
Professor John Hunter, from Birmingham University, said he tested the soil at the graveyard and insisted it was not acidic enough to have disintegrated a body since the burial in 1890.
He said that if the body had dissolved then the brass coffin plate would have gone as well.
"There has to be another explanation to why those remains weren't found," he said. "They were either missed or they weren't there in the first place."
Gay rights campaigners claim that the cardinal's dying wish to be buried with his friend were ignored because it was thought they may have been in a homesexual relationship.
It is thought Professor Hunter's findings may lead to demands for a fresh excavation of the grave to determine whether or not his burial had been faked.
One theory is that his coffin was weighed down with rocks.
Father Ian Ker, an Oxford University theologian and author of the definitive biography of Cardinal Newman, said he believed it was now necessary to determine the wheareabouts of the body.
