St Thomas of Canterbury Church is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), 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 com ...

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

, Kent, England. It was built from 1874 to 1875 in the

Gothic Revival style Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

. It is situated on the corner of Burgate and Canterbury Lane, west of Lower Bridge Street, opposite the grounds of

Canterbury Cathedral Canterbury Cathedral is the cathedral of the archbishop of Canterbury, the spiritual leader of the Church of England and symbolic leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Located in Canterbury, Kent, it is one of the oldest Christianity, Ch ...

in the centre of the city. It is the only Roman Catholic church in Canterbury, built on the site of a medieval church (demolished in 1870); the old St Mary Magdalen’s Tower was retained. The church contains

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...

s of

Thomas Becket Thomas Becket (), also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London and later Thomas à Becket (21 December 1119 or 1120 – 29 December 1170), served as Lord Chancellor from 1155 to 1162, and then as Archbishop of Canterbury fr ...

.Canterbury - St Thomas of Canterbury
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, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

, retrieved 29 January 2016

History

Origin

After the

English Reformation The English Reformation began in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away first from the authority of the pope and bishops Oath_of_Supremacy, over the King and then from some doctrines and practices of the Catholic Church ...

, the Catholic community in Canterbury survived through the

Hales baronets The Hales Baronetcy, is a title in the Baronetage of England. There were three Hales baronetcies. The oldest was created in 1611 for Edward Hales. He was a member of a Kent family. The second was created in 1660 for Robert Hales, MP for Hythe ...

Sir Thomas Hales, 2nd Baronet Sir Thomas Hales, 2nd Baronet (24 February 1665/66 – 7 January 1748) was an English politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons between 1701 and 1747. Hales was the eldest son of Thomas Hales of Howletts, Bekesbourne and ...

helped Catholics after the 1688 Revolution. They had Masses said for them at their chapel in Hales Place. Masses were said at the chapel until 1923. It was then sold by the Jesuits in 1928.

Foundation

In 1859, a

mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

was started in the city. It was founded when a Mary Ann Wood gave 59 Burgate Street, the current presbytery, for the use of a Catholic priest. The land around the house was later purchased for the construction of a church and school. The land included a medieval chapel dedicated to St Mary Magdalene. In 1871, the chapel was demolished, but its tower remains standing.

Construction

In 1874, building work on the

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High Middle Ages, High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved f ...

style church started. It was designed by John Green Hall, a local architect. The design of the church was influenced by E. W. Pugin who died in 1875 and worked at Hales Place in the 1860s. The high

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

and Lady Chapel altar were designed by A. E. Purdie. On 13 April 1875, the church was opened. The preaching at the Mass was done by the

Archbishop of Westminster The archbishop of Westminster heads the Roman Catholic Diocese of Westminster, in England. The incumbent is the metropolitan of the Province of Westminster, chief metropolitan of England and Wales and, as a matter of custom, is elected presid ...

Cardinal Henry Manning Henry Edward Manning (15 July 1808 – 14 January 1892) was an English prelate of the Catholic Church, and the second Archbishop of Westminster from 1865 until his death in 1892. He was ordained in the Church of England as a young man, but co ...

. Significant structural changes to the interior were made in 1962/63. In the current era, a double rose stained-glass window under a Gothic arch is located above the altar. Major modifications to the interior were completed in the 1980s, including the installation of a new octagonal altar of limestone with marble pillars. (The high altar remains in place.) A Baptismal font made in 1865 by George Horan was added in the sanctuary. Beside the sanctuary is the Lady Chapel with pieta, a sculpture of St. Constance and of St George, and an altar donated in 1905. The Martyrs’ Chapel contains the shrine with the relics of St Thomas of Canterbury. According to the church's web site, the "pedigree of the relics is well authenticated". An extension to the church added in 1963 contains the Canterbury Saints Chapel with a mural, The Canterbury Saints created by Helen Grunwald. The organ loft at the west end contains a two manual and pedal organ, rebuilt in 1990.

Developments

In June 1942, the buildings around church were damaged in

The Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...

. In 1953, relics and the

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

were donated to the church. They had previously come from

Westminster Cathedral Westminster Cathedral, officially the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Most Precious Blood, is the largest Catholic Church in England and Wales, Roman Catholic church in England and Wales. The shrine is dedicated to the Blood of Jesus Ch ...

. They were donated by Cardinal Bernard Griffin after the

Eric Gill Arthur Eric Rowton Gill (22 February 1882 – 17 November 1940) was an English sculptor, letter cutter, typeface designer, and printmaker. Although the ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' describes Gill as "the greatest artist-craftsma ...

stations of the cross were installed in the cathedral. In the early 1960s, when the parish priest was Canon de Laubenque, extensions and reordering were done to the church. The north side of the church was extended with a modern flat-roofed two storeys high, structure. A Martyrs Chapel was built on the south side. It contains the relics of St Thomas of Canterbury. In 1989, the

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine, protected by ecclesiastical immunity. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This seconda ...

was re-ordered. The architect was Richard Fulbrook. In 1997, a mosaic was installed in the north aisle. It depicts St Augustine of Canterbury.

Relics

In the Martyrs Chapel in the church there is a

reliquary A reliquary (also referred to as a ''shrine'', ''Chasse (casket), chasse'', or ''phylactery'') is a container for relics. A portable reliquary, or the room in which one is stored, may also be called a ''feretory''. Relics may be the purported ...

over the altar. It contains a piece of Becket’s vestment and a piece of a bone from his body. In the late 19th century, these were given to the church by Mary Hales, of the

. The relics came from Gubbio in Umbria, where, since the 1220s, they had been held. In 1953, the Prior of

Chevetogne Abbey Chevetogne Abbey (), also known as the Monastery of the Holy Cross, is a Catholic Benedictine monastery dedicated to Christian unity located in the Belgian village of Chevetogne in the municipality of Ciney, province of Namur, halfway between Br ...

, called Fr Thomas Becquet, a descendant of family of the martyr, gave a piece of Becket’s finger to the church. Either side of the reliquary are statues of St John Fisher and St Thomas More. The chapel has a stained glass window showing the martyrdom of St Thomas Becket,

St Gregory the Great Pope Gregory I (; ; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great (; ), was the 64th Bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 until his death on 12 March 604. He is known for instituting the first recorded large-scale mission from Rom ...

and

St Augustine of Canterbury Augustine of Canterbury (early 6th century – most likely 26 May 604) was a Christian monk who became the first archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597. He is considered the "Apostle to the English". Augustine was the prior of a mon ...

. There is a reliquary set into the wall to the left of the windows. It contains parts of the Mass vestments of

Óscar Romero Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (15 August 1917 – 24 March 1980) was a prelate of the Catholic Church in El Salvador. He served as Auxiliary Bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Salvador, Archdiocese of San Salvador, the Titular ...

, Archbishop of San Salvador. In 1997, these were given to the church. On west wall of the Martyrs' Chapel is a statue of St John Stone.

Parish

Masses are held every weekday at Noon; on Saturdays at Noon and 6pm and on Sundays at 8am, 9:30am, 11am & 6pm.Events at StThomasofCanterbury.com
retrieved 02 September 2020

References

External links

St Thomas of Canterbury Parish site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Thomas of Canterbury Church, Canterbury Saint Thomas Roman Catholic churches in Kent Roman Catholic churches completed in 1875 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United Kingdom Gothic Revival church buildings in England Gothic Revival architecture in Kent 1859 establishments in England English churches dedicated to St Thomas Becket