"This story is one of the strangest and most fantastic religious movements to be found in the whole range of what may be described as the erratic "goings on" of the ecclesiastical underworld." -ADAPTED from the INTRODUCTION. The independent Catholic movement has branches all over the world. It constitutes one of the most interesting and diverse movements in Christian history, one worthy of greater visibility and academic attention. Here is the classic history of the various successions claimed by most independent jurisdictions. This is the most sought-after book in the movement's history, now back in print after forty years from the Apocryphile Press.