Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. This book is intended to supply information about the history of the Roman liturgy. The dogmatic side of the Mass is discussed by the Bishop of Newport in the same series.1 The title shows that it is a study of the Roman rite. It is only in the Roman (or Gallican) rite that the Eucharistic service can correctly be called Mass. The chapter about other liturgies and the frequent references to them throughout are meant only to put our Roman Mass in its proper perspective and to illustrate its elements by com parison. In spite of the risk of repetition, the clearest plan seemed to be to discuss first the origin and development of the Mass in general and then to go through the service as it stands now, adding notes to each prayer and ceremony.