Our Lady of Ransom Church is a
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
Parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...
in
Eastbourne
Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
, East Sussex. It was founded as a
mission
Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to:
Organised activities Religion
*Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity
*Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...
in 1869, built from 1900 to 1903, and had extensions completed in 1926. It is situated on the corner of Meads Road and Grange Road, opposite
Eastbourne Town F.C.
Eastbourne Town Football Club is an English football club based in Eastbourne, East Sussex, and are currently members of the and play at The Saffrons.
Founded on 19 October 1881 as Devonshire Park F.C., they are founding members of the Sus ...
in the centre of the town. It was designed by
Frederick Walters Frederick Arthur Walters (1849–1931) was a Scottish architect working in the Victorian and Edwardian eras, notable for his Roman Catholic churches.
Life
Walters was born on 5 February 1849 at 6 South Terrace, Brompton, London, the son of the ar ...
and is a Grade II listed building.
[
]
History
Foundation
On 29 May 1867, a mission
Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to:
Organised activities Religion
*Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity
*Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...
started in the town to serve the local Roman Catholic population. It was in 42 Ceylon Place in the town. The first priest was Fr Charles P. King. In less than a year after the mission began, Fr King paid for a chapel, made of brick, to be built on Junction Road. On 1 April 1869, it was opened. It was dedicated to Stella Maris.[Eastbourne - Our Lady of Ransom]
from English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
, retrieved 16 February 2016
On 14 April 1890, the old Our Lady of Ransom Church was opened by Fr Charles Stapley.[ It was a temporary church close to Grove Road. It was previously the market hall and it became a garage for the police station. For the next ten years attempts were made to build a permanent church in the town. In February 1893, Fr King left Eastbourne. On 23 September 1895, St Joseph's Catholic School was opened.][
]
Construction
Before 1900, the site of the present church was bought. On 11 December 1900, the foundation stone of the church was laid. The architect was Frederick Walters Frederick Arthur Walters (1849–1931) was a Scottish architect working in the Victorian and Edwardian eras, notable for his Roman Catholic churches.
Life
Walters was born on 5 February 1849 at 6 South Terrace, Brompton, London, the son of the ar ...
and he designed the church in the Gothic Revival style
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
. The total cost of the construction of the church came to £11,000. On 15 December 1901, the church was opened by the Bishop of Southwark, Francis Bourne
Francis Alphonsus Bourne (1861–1935) was an English prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the fourth Archbishop of Westminster from 1903 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1911.
Biography
Early life
Francis Bo ...
, who went on to become a cardinal and Archbishop of Westminster. In 1903, the church was completed, with the exception of the tower. By that time, the priest of the church was Fr Paul Lynch. In 1912, the church's tower and spire were completed. On 11 February 1926, various church extensions, such as the chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse.
Ove ...
, lady chapel
A Lady chapel or lady chapel is a traditional British term for a chapel dedicated to "Our Lady", Mary, mother of Jesus, particularly those inside a cathedral or other large church. The chapels are also known as a Mary chapel or a Marian chapel, an ...
and sacristy, were completed and the church was reopened. On 8 July 1926, the church was consecrated
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
.[
In 1995, further work on the church was completed after a new ]altar
An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...
was installed and the sanctuary
A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a sa ...
refurbished.[
]
Parish
Our Lady of Ransom Church is part of the same Eastbourne parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
as St Agnes Church on Whitley Road in Roselands, Eastbourne, and St Gregory's Church on Victoria Drive in Downside, Eastbourne. St Agnes Church was founded in 1895 as a mission in St Joseph’s School. In 1906, Agnes Zimmermann
Agnes Zimmermann (5 July 184714 November 1925) was a German concert pianist and composer who lived in England.
Biography
Agnes Marie Jacobina Zimmermann was born in Cologne, Germany. Her family moved to England, and she was enrolled at the Royal ...
gave £1,500 to build the church. On 28 September 1906, the foundation stone was laid. On 6 March 1907, the church was opened. The architect was Percy Dulvey Stonham (1877-1942). With the opening of St Richard's Catholic College in Bexhill-on-Sea
Bexhill-on-Sea (often shortened to Bexhill) is a seaside town and civil parish situated in the county of East Sussex in South East England. An ancient town and part of the local government district of Rother, Bexhill is home to a number of arc ...
in 1959 and St Thomas a Becket infant and junior schools from 1973 to 1974, St Joseph's School closed and became a centre for St Agnes' church.[
St Gregory's Church was originally built in 1934 as a timber church at a cost of £1,000. In 1965, building work on the present church started. Construction cost £43,000. It was designed by Gordon Robins of the architectural firm B. Stevens & Partners, headed by A. J. M. McDonough, and the builders were C. Bainbridge & Sons Ltd. On 8 December 1966, the church was opened. The old timber church still exists to the north of the present church.
Our Lady of Ransom Church has three Sunday Masses at 6:00pm on Saturday and 10:15am and 5:30pm on Sunday. St Agnes Church has one Sunday Mass at 11:30am. St Gregory's Church has one Sunday Mass at 9:00am.Mass times]
from OurLadyofRansom.org.uk, retrieved 07 October 2022
File:St Agnes RC Church, Eastbourne.JPG, St Agnes Church, Eastbourne
File:St Gregory's RC Church (Present Building), Victoria Drive, Downside, Eastbourne (October 2012).JPG, St Gregory's Church, Eastbourne
See also
* Listed buildings in Eastbourne
There are more than 130 listed buildings in the town and borough of Eastbourne, a seaside resort on the coast of East Sussex in England. Eastbourne, whose estimated population in 2011 was 99,400, grew from a collection of farming hamlets into ...
* List of places of worship in Eastbourne
The borough of Eastbourne, one of six local government districts in the English county of East Sussex, has more than 50 current and former churches and other places of worship. Several other former places of worship are still in existence but ...
* Roman Catholic Diocese of Arundel and Brighton
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Arundel and Brighton (in la, Dioecesis Arundeliensis-Brichtelmestunensis) is a Latin Church Roman Catholic diocese in southern England covering the counties of Sussex and Surrey (excluding Spelthorne, which is part ...
References
External links
*
*
*
Eastbourne Catholic Churches site
{{Diocese of Arundel and Brighton
Our Lady of Ransom
Roman Catholic churches in East Sussex
Grade II listed churches in East Sussex
Grade II listed Roman Catholic churches in England
Roman Catholic churches completed in 1903
1869 establishments in England
Gothic Revival church buildings in England
Gothic Revival architecture in East Sussex
19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United Kingdom
Frederick Walters buildings