Rome split the diocese of Bardstown and created the Diocese of Vincennes, Indiana in 1834, the year after the Treaty of Tippecanoe caused many Potawatomi to relocate across the Mississippi River. However, others remained, particularly the assimilated metis. In 1834, despite his protest of ill health, melancholy, and some difficulty to easily converse in English ("I lose the half of it and I am not understood"), Bruté accepted the position of Bishop of Vincennes and crossed the Appalachian mountains to serve in the newly created diocese, which encompassed all of modern-day Indiana plus eastern Illinois. He became the new diocese's first bishop and was consecrated in the same year at the Cathedral of St. Louis. On March 7, 1835, Bruté became a U.S. citizen, partly because of land ownership requirements.