St Catharine's Convent or St Catharine’s Mercy Centre is a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglic ...

of the

Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy is a religious institute of Catholic women founded in 1831 in Dublin, Ireland, by Catherine McAuley. As of 2019, the institute had about 6200 sisters worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations. They a ...

and a centre for the homeless in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland. It was built in 1860 and originally designed by

David Cousin David Cousin (19 May 1809 – 14 August 1878) was a Scottish architect, landscape architect and planner, closely associated with early cemetery design and many prominent buildings in Edinburgh. From 1841 to 1872 he operated as Edinburgh’s ...

, with additions made in 1887 and 1892. It is located on the corner of Lauriston Gardens and Lauriston Place in the

Lauriston Lauriston ( ) is an area of central Edinburgh, Scotland, and home to a number of significant historic buildings. It lies south of Edinburgh Castle and the Grassmarket, and north of The Meadows public park. Lauriston is the former locatio ...

area of Edinburgh. In 1992, it became a Mercy Centre with the mission of helping the local homeless. In 1989, it was designated a

category B listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

Foundation

In 1831, the

were founded in Dublin, Ireland, by

Catherine McAuley Catherine McAuley, RSM (29 September 1778 – 11 November 1841) was an Irish Catholic religious sister who founded the Sisters of Mercy in 1831.Austin, Mary Stanislas"Sisters of Mercy."''The Catholic Encyclopedia''. Vol. 10. New York: Robert Ap ...

. In 1849, Sisters of Mercy from Limerick came to Glasgow to found a community in

Garnethill Garnethill is a predominantly residential area of the city of Glasgow, Scotland with a number of important public buildings. Geography Located in the city centre, the area borders Cowcaddens to its north, Sauchiehall Street to its south, Cambr ...

(now part of St Aloysius' College). They were invited by the Bishop James Gillis, the Apostolic Vicar of the Eastern District of Scotland to found a convent in Edinburgh. In 1860, they moved into

Construction

The building was originally designed by

. It was built in 1860. In 1887, the convent was expanded and a church was added. It was called St Catharine's Church. The extensions and church were designed by the architect Archibald Macpherson (1851–1927). He was an ecclesiastical architect who mainly worked on Catholic churches and schools such as

Sacred Heart, Edinburgh Sacred Heart, Edinburgh, formally known as the Catholic Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, is a Roman Catholic church run by the Society of Jesus, close to the city centre of Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom. It is situated in Lauriston, m ...

, St Aloysius Church, Glasgow,

St Aloysius' College, Glasgow St Aloysius' College is a selective fee-paying, independent, Jesuit day school in Glasgow, Scotland. It was founded in 1859 by the Jesuits, who previously staffed the college, and named after Saint Aloysius Gonzaga. Its strong Jesuit ethos emp ...

and

St David's Church, Dalkeith St David's Church is a Roman Catholic Parish church in Dalkeith, Midlothian. It was founded in 1854 by Cecil Chetwynd Kerr, Marchioness of Lothian. It was designed by Joseph Hansom and is a category A listed building.St Catharine's Convent, 4 Lauriston Gardens
from British Listed Buildings, retrieved 17 September 2022

Works

In 1865, sisters from the convent founded a training college for Catholic teachers that would later become

St Thomas of Aquin's High School St Thomas of Aquin's High School is a state-funded Catholic secondary school in the Tollcross area of Edinburgh. History St Thomas of Aquin’s College for the training of Catholic teachers was formally established in 1865 by the Sisters of Merc ...

. In 1886, it became an all-girl school, called St Thomas of Aquin's College. In 1975, boys were admitted to the college. In 2002, the college moved to a new building and became St Thomas of Aquin's High School. In 1891, the Sisters of Mercy in Scotland expanded and bought the ruined remains of a pre-Reformation Franciscan monastery in Elgin, Moray, they restored them and it became Greyfriars Sisters of Mercy Convent in Elgin. In 1992, the

general chapter A chapter ( la, capitulum or ') is one of several bodies of clergy in Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, Anglican, and Nordic Lutheran churches or their gatherings. Name The name derives from the habit of convening monks or canons for the re ...

of the

designated St Catharine's Convent a Mercy Centre. It has the mission of supporting the local homeless and disadvantaged population of the city. As of 2022, it welcomes up to 200 people a day. On 11 July 2022, its director Sister Aelred Timmins was given an honorary doctorate by the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

in recognition of the centre's work.Summer Graduations
from

, 4 July 2022, retrieved 17 September 2022

References

External links