The Friary, formally known as Blessed Agnellus of Pisa Friary, formerly All Saints Convent or St John's Home is a centre of

formation Formation may refer to: Linguistics * Back-formation, the process of creating a new lexeme by removing or affixes * Word formation, the creation of a new word by adding affixes Mathematics and science * Cave formation or speleothem, a secondar ...

for the

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

Order of Friars Minor Conventual The Order of Friars Minor Conventual (OFM Conv) is a male religious fraternity in the Roman Catholic Church that is a branch of the Franciscans. The friars in OFM CONV are also known as Conventual Franciscans, or Minorites. Dating back to ...

in Cowley,

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, England. The building was constructed in 1873 as the convent of the Anglican Society of All Saints Sisters of the Poor. It is situated between St Mary's Road and

Cowley Road __NOTOC__ Cowley Road is an arterial road in the city of Oxford, England, running southeast from near the city centre at The Plain near Magdalen Bridge, through the inner city area of East Oxford, and to the industrial suburb of Cowley. The ...

, next to St John's Care Home and

Helen & Douglas House Helen & Douglas House is a registered hospice charity (no. 1085951) based in Oxford, England, providing palliative, respite, end-of-life and bereavement care to life-limited children and their families. History Helen House was the world' ...

. The friary and its chapel are Grade II listed buildings.

History

Construction

In 1869, the Society of All Saints Sisters of the Poor were invited to Oxford by the founder of the

Society of St John the Evangelist The Society of St John the Evangelist (SSJE) is an Anglican religious order for men. The members live under a rule of life and, at profession, make monastic vows of poverty, celibacy and obedience. SSJE was founded in 1866 at Cowley, Oxford, Eng ...

Richard Meux Benson Richard Meux Benson (6 July 1824 – 14 January 1915) was a priest in the Church of England and founder of the Society of St. John the Evangelist, the first religious order of monks in the Anglican Communion since the Reformation. He is commem ...

to run the St John's Home hospital. A convent was needed to house the sisters working in the hospital. In 1873, the foundation stone was laid by

Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, (Leopold George Duncan Albert; 7 April 185328 March 1884) was the eighth child and youngest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Leopold was later created Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence, and Baron Arklow. ...

, for the adjacent

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 Anglican ...

to the south of the hospital. The building was designed by

Charles Buckeridge Charles Buckeridge (''circa'' 1832–73) was a British Gothic Revival architect who trained as a pupil of Sir George Gilbert Scott. He practised in Oxford 1856–68 and in London from 1869. He was made an Associate of the Royal Institute of ...

. From 1882 to 1891, further work was done to the building, overseen by the architect

John Loughborough Pearson John Loughborough Pearson (5 July 1817 – 11 December 1897) was a British Gothic Revival architect renowned for his work on churches and cathedrals. Pearson revived and practised largely the art of vaulting, and acquired in it a proficiency ...

. In 1906, the present chapel, designed by

Ninian Comper Sir John Ninian Comper (10 June 1864 – 22 December 1960) was a Scottish architect; one of the last of the great Gothic Revival architects. His work almost entirely focused on the design, restoration and embellishment of churches, and the des ...

, was built. In 1982, Sister Frances Ritchie of the All Saints Sisters founded

next door.

Conventual Franciscans

In 2013, the

returned to work in Oxford for the first time since the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

. They started a centre for

in Holton. In July 2014, they moved to All Saints Convent after the All Saints sisters moved into a smaller residence.Matt Oliver
Greyfriars ‘truly blessed’ by warm welcome at new home
''

Oxford Mail ''Oxford Mail'' is a daily tabloid newspaper in Oxford, England, owned by Newsquest. It is published six days a week. It is a sister paper to the weekly tabloid ''The Oxford Times''. History The ''Oxford Mail'' was founded in 1928 as a success ...

'', 27 August 2014, retrieved 22 May 2021 The Friary chapel west end, Oxford.jpg, West end of chapel

References

External links

*
The Friary, Oxford
from TheGreyFriars.org {{Archdiocese of Birmingham Friaries in England Order of Friars Minor Conventual Grade II listed buildings in Oxford Grade II listed churches in Oxfordshire Religious buildings and structures in Oxford 1873 establishments in England Gothic Revival architecture in Oxfordshire Roman Catholic chapels in England 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United Kingdom Former Church of England church buildings Gothic Revival church buildings in England

History

Construction

Conventual Franciscans

See also

References

External links