The Church of St Mary and St Nicholas is a

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

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 ...

Littlemore Littlemore is a district and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Oxford, England. The civil parish includes part of Rose Hill, Oxfordshire, Rose Hill. It is about southeast of the city centre of Oxford, between Rose Hill, Blackbird Ley ...

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

. The church is a

grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

. The church was founded by

John Henry Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English Catholic theologian, academic, philosopher, historian, writer, and poet. He was previously an Anglican priest and after his conversion became a cardinal. He was an ...

, later

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

Newman of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, and it became a centre of

Anglo-Catholicism Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholicism, Catholic heritage (especially pre-English Reformation, Reformation roots) and identity of the Church of England and various churches within Anglicanism. Anglo-Ca ...

History

The church was built from 1835 to 1836 by H. J. Underwood for

(later Cardinal Newman of the Roman Catholic Church). The

foundation stone A cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry Foundation (engineering), foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entir ...

was laid in 1835 by Jemima, mother of Newman, and the church was

consecrated Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

on 22 September 1836. In 1848, the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

and tower were added by Joseph Clarke. The church had originally been built as a

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

in the parish of the University Church of St Mary the Virgin, Oxford. In 1847, Littlemore became its own

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

and the chapel was renamed the Church of St Mary and St Nicholas. A new east window was added to the church in approximately 1900. The

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

had been designed by

Louis Davis Louis Davis may refer to: * Chip Davis (born 1947), born Louis F. Davis, American musician * Louis Davis (architect) (1884–1962), American architect * Louis Davis (painter) (1860–1941), British artist See also * Lou Davis (1881–1961), Americ ...

and was in memory of Vernon Green, a former vicar. The American poet

Louise Imogen Guiney Louise Imogen Guiney (January 7, 1861 – November 2, 1920) was an American poet, essayist and editor, born in Roxbury, Massachusetts. Biography The daughter of Gen. Patrick R. Guiney, an Irish-born American Civil War officer and lawyer,''The ...

gave a crucifix sculpture to the church to mark the centenary of Cardinal Newman's birth in 1901. On 18 July 1963, the church was designated a

Present day

The

of Littlemore is in the Archdeaconry of Oxford of the

Diocese of Oxford The Diocese of Oxford is a Church of England diocese that forms part of the Province of Canterbury. The diocese is led by the Bishop of Oxford (currently Steven Croft (bishop), Steven Croft), and the bishop's seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, ...

Notable clergy

* John Rouse Bloxam, curate from 1837 to 1840 * Sarah Coakley, honorary curate from 2000 to 2007 * William John Copeland, curate from 1840 to 184? * Helen-Ann Hartley, later Bishop of Waikato, and then Bishop of Ripon,

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () of souls of a parish. In this sense, ''curate'' means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy who are as ...

from 2007 to 2012 *

Teresa Morgan Teresa Morgan is an English academic and cleric, best known as the author of ''Literate Education in the Hellenistic and Roman Worlds'' and ''Roman Faith and Christian Faith''. Early life and education Teresa Morgan attended Oxford High School ...

, professor at Oxford University, non-stipendiary minister (NSM) from 2002 to present *

John Muddiman John Muddiman (1947 – 5 December 2020) was a British academic and Anglican priest. He was the G. B. Caird Fellow in New Testament Theology at Mansfield College, Oxford, from 1990 until his retirement in 2012. Early life and education Muddima ...

, NSM from 1997 to 2012 * Isaac Williams, curate in 1836

List of vicars

The

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position. In an election, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the position that is up for election, regardless of whether they are seeking re-election. There may or may not be ...

of the parish is the

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English p ...

. The following have been vicar, or otherwise stated, of the parish: * 1836–1845:

* 1847–1848: C. L. Cornish * 1848–1851: C. Walters * 1851–1870: George W. Huntingford;

perpetual curate Perpetual curate was a class of resident parish priest or incumbent curate within the United Church of England and Ireland (name of the combined Anglican churches of England and Ireland from 1800 to 1871). The term is found in common use mainly ...

(1851–1864) * 1872–1896: Vernon T. Green * 1897–1908: H. Irvine * 1908–1930: George Champion * 1931–1951: Buckwell * 1951–1964: Martin Young * 1964–1971: Valentine Fletcher * 1972–1978: Raymond Crouch;

priest-in-charge A priest in charge or priest-in-charge (previously also curate-in-charge) in the Church of England is a priest in charge of a parish who is not its incumbent; they will normally work on a short-term contract and have less freedom to act within the ...

* 1978–1996: David Nicholls; priest-in-charge (1978–1986) * 1997–2006: Bernhard Schünemann; priest-in-charge * 2006–present: Margreet Armitstead; priest-in-charge

Gallery

Littlemore SSMary&Nicholas TowerEast.jpg , Tower Littlemore SSMary&Nicholas west.jpg , Church from the west St Mary and St Nicholas, Littlemore, Oxon - East end - geograph.org.uk - 1607515.jpg ,

Rood screen The rood screen (also choir screen, chancel screen, or jubé) is a common feature in late medieval church architecture. It is typically an ornate partition between the chancel and nave, of more or less open tracery constructed of wood, stone, o ...

St Mary and St Nicholas, Littlemore, Oxon - Chancel - geograph.org.uk - 1607513.jpg ,

Chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

with

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

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

St Mary and St Nicholas, Littlemore, Oxon - Window - geograph.org.uk - 1607511.jpg , East window St Mary and St Nicholas, Littlemore, Oxon - Font - geograph.org.uk - 1607509.jpg ,

Font In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a ''typeface'', defined as the set of fonts that share an overall design. For instance, the typeface Bauer Bodoni (shown in the figure) includes fonts " Roman" (or "regul ...

References

External links

{{commons category, St Mary and St Nicholas' church, Littlemore
Church website

A Church Near You entry