Church of the English Martyrs

Introduction

The church is dedicated to the English Martyrs and was dedicated by Cardinal Manning on 22 June 1876.

History

The church was built in neo-perpendicular Gothic style with a facade of buff brick and Portland stone. The church was damaged by a 500-kilo bomb on 29 December 1940, which did not explode but demolished the pulpit. The church was repaired and in use again on Passion Sunday, 30 March 1941. The church was shortened by a parish priest who placed a glass partition at the rear, creating a porch and new sacristy.

In 1991, a parish priest removed the sanctuary extension and returned the altar to the original sanctuary. The foundation stone of the church was laid in 1873.

Architecture and furnishings

A stained glass window designed by William Early and made by his Dublin firm was erected in 1930. The Shrine of Our Lady of Graces is in the Lady Chapel, east of the transept. To the left of the facade, a small tower culminates in a slender pinnacle.

The church has a gallery at the west end and to the aisles supported on shallow arches, with polished granite piers in two stages. The interior has a gallery supported on massive granite columns with fine foliage carvings on the capitals, and a ribbed stone ceiling over nave and chancel. The balcony has a proportionate groined ceiling giving an inward cloister effect. The interior design has a complete absence of timber, a rare un-Pugin-like feature.

The sanctuary is apsed beneath a large window which is repeated at the west end. The incomplete transept is carried from a lofty slender arch on the west side to the Lady Chapel on the east side. Statues of Our Lady Help of Christians and St Joseph, set in domed niches on elaborately carved pedestals, stand on either side of the sanctuary arch. The Holy Spirit altar on the south of the transept is particularly rich in its execution.

The reredos, in Portland stone, depicts in three panels the Descent of the Holy Spirit, with Our Lady and St Peter in the centre panel and the other apostles in groups of five in the side panels. In 1930, group statuary presenting twelve martyrs was erected on either side of the high altar, which is simple in design of stone and marble with monograms of the Passion and the Oblate escutcheon. The high altar is tastefully relieved with colourful gradine in mosaic and gold leaf emblazoning the tracery on the frontal. The Sacred Heart altar on the gospel side has a reredos with a mystic presentation of King David with St Margaret Mary.

Music and liturgy

The choir also sings at weddings and the annual carol service. In 1890, a crowd of some 2,000 people walked from English Martyrs Church to the Tower. Formal processions in honour of Our Lady, with banners, began at Tower Hill in 1892. In 1893, a more formal pilgrimage through the streets to venerate local places hallowed to the memory of the Martyrs almost certainly marked a coming of age for the Guild. In 1878, Father Robert Cooke was officially appointed RC chaplain of the Tower of London, and in April 1880 he was permitted to say Mass inside the Tower.

Parish life

Fr William Ring organised the first national pilgrimage to Lourdes in 1883. In 1887, Fr Philip Fletcher formed The Guild of Our Lady of Ransom with co-founder Fr James O'Reilly OMI, parish priest at English Martyrs.

The parish organises an International Mass, a Carol Service, a Senior Parishioners lunch and a Volunteers Day Barbecue. The parish runs weekly Christian meditation sessions.

The parish serves the Tower of London and is round the corner from where the scaffolds would have been. The parish serves a diverse community including students, families, and tourists.