St Elizabeth of Portugal Church is a Grade II listed Roman Catholic parish church in The Vineyard, Richmond in the

London Borough of Richmond upon Thames The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames () in southwest London forms part of Outer London and is the only London borough on both sides of the River Thames. It was created in 1965 when three smaller council areas amalgamated under the London ...

, south west London. It is adjacent to The Vineyard Life Church. Dedicated to a 14th-century

queen consort of Portugal Portugal had only two queens regnant: Maria I of Portugal, Maria I and Maria II of Portugal, Maria II (and, arguably, two more: Beatrice of Portugal, Beatriz for a short period of time in the 14th century; and Teresa of León, Countess of Portu ...

, it claims to be oldest standing Catholic Church in the

Archdiocese of Southwark The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Southvarcensis'') is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in England. It is headed by the Archbishop of Southwark. The archdiocese is part of the Ecclesiastical ...

History

The church dates from the 1790s. The present building in yellow and red brick, which is

Grade II listed 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 ...

and dates from 1824, was the gift of Elizabeth Doughty. It was designed by

Thomas Hardwick Thomas Hardwick (1752–1829) was an English architect and a founding member of the Architects' Club in 1791. Early life and career Hardwick was born in Brentford, Middlesex the son of a master mason turned architect also named Thomas Hard ...

. A gallery was added in 1851. 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 ...

, presbytery and tower were rebuilt in 1903 according to plans drawn up by the architect

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 ...

. The representations of the

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The station ...

around the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

were designed by Don Pavey in the 1950s and painted by Jo Ledger. Famous worshippers at the church include ex-King Manoel II of Portugal in the early 20th century.

Events

Marriages

Phil Lynott Philip Parris Lynott (, ; 20 August 1949 – 4 January 1986) was an Irish singer, bassist, and songwriter. His most commercially successful group was Thin Lizzy, of which he was a founding member, the principal songwriter, lead vocalist and ba ...

, rock musician, married Caroline Crowther, daughter of British comedian

Leslie Crowther Leslie Douglas Sargent Crowther, CBE (6 February 1933 – 29 September 1996) was an English comedian, actor, TV presenter, and game show host. Biography Crowther was born on Monday, 6 February, 1933 in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, son of ...

, on 14 February 1980 *

Barbara Dickson Barbara Ruth Dickson (born 27 September 1947) is a Scottish singer and actress whose hits include 'I Know Him So Well', 'Answer Me' and 'January February'. Dickson has placed fifteen albums on the UK Albums Chart from 1977 to date, and had a n ...

, singer-songwriter and actress, married Oliver Cookson, TV producer, in August 1984

Funerals

* Phil Lynott, rock musician (1949–1986), on 9 January 1986

Current activities

The

parish priest 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 ...

is Father Stephen Langridge.

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

is held daily. Other activities are listed in the church's weekly newsletter.

Gallery

File:St Elizabeth of Portugal Church, Richmond, Statue outside.jpg File:St Elizabeth of Portugal Church, sculpture over entrance porch.jpg File:Richmond St Elizabeth of Portugal RC Church 003 interior.jpg File:Richmond St Elizabeth of Portugal RC Church 005 interior.jpg File:St Elizabeth of Portugal Church, Richmond, Lady chapel and war memorial.jpg, Lady chapel and war memorial File:St Elizabeth of Portugal Church, Richmond, war memorial.jpg, War memorial File:St Elizabeth of Portugal Church, Richmond, John Maxwell memorial.jpg, Memorial to John Maxwell (1824–1895) of Lichfield House

References

External links

Official websiteListing in ''Taking Stock, Catholic Churches of England & Wales''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Richmond, Saint Elizabeth of Portugal 1790s establishments in England 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United Kingdom Frederick Walters buildings Grade II listed churches in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Saint Elizabeth Churches in the Diocese of Southwark Roman Catholic churches completed in 1903 Roman Catholic churches in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Saint Elizabeth