After a year of total separation, Pierce arrived unannounced at the convent to see his wife. Cornelia was upset and told him not to repeat his visit. He wrote her a letter of reproach, and she replied with bitterness, acknowledging his continued physical attraction for her and her difficulties in overcoming it. In December 1847 she took her perpetual vows as a nun and was formally installed as superior general of the society. Pierce did not attend the ceremony, being jealous of Bishop Wiseman's jurisdiction over his wife. In January 1848 he removed the children from their schools without informing their mother. He put 6-year-old Frank in a secret home while taking Mercer and Adeline with him to Europe, hoping that Cornelia would follow. Instead, she vowed to remain faithful to her obligations as Superior of the new community. Pierce went to Rome, posing as the founder of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, presenting to the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith his version of the society, in the hope that this would help him gain control over his wife. His efforts were thwarted when Cornelia heard of them, but he remained registered as the society's co-founder, which was to cause considerable confusion in the future. Upon his return, Pierce called on Cornelia, bringing her a gift from Pope Pius IX; but she refused to see him unless he agreed to return Adeline to her care. He was livid when Bishop Wiseman, unable to meet expenses connected with the schools, had Cornelia move her nuns to his district at St. Leonard's-on-Sea in Sussex. Pierce was convinced that this was a ploy by the bishop to gain greater control over her.