St Aldhelm's Roman Catholic Church in

Malmesbury Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the upp ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, England 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 ...

Church built in 1875. The church is dedicated to St Aldhelm who lived in Malmesbury and was the

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

at nearby

Malmesbury Abbey Malmesbury Abbey, at Malmesbury in Wiltshire, England, is a former Benedictine abbey dedicated to Saint Peter and Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul. It was one of the few English religious houses with a continuous history from the 7th century throug ...

. The attached presbytery 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 ...

Buildings

St Aldhelm's Roman Catholic Church is built in uncoursed stone with

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

dressings, in 14th-century gothic style. It is set back from Cross Hayes, the town's former marketplace (now a car park), to which it presents its west façade where a large two-light

trefoil A trefoil () is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings, used in architecture, Pagan and Christian symbolism, among other areas. The term is also applied to other symbols with a threefold shape. A similar shape with f ...

-headed window is flanked by two plain lancets. Immediately south of the courtyard is the presbytery. The Grade II

incorporates a single-storey 19th-century former stable to Cross Hayes House, built in squared limestone, with a later rear extension in limestone rubble. In 2022, a

stained-glass window 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 ...

dedicated to Blessed

Carlo Acutis Carlo Acutis (3 May 1991 – 12 October 2006) was a British-born teenager, primarily of Italian ancestry, known for his devotion to the Eucharist, with him creating a website documenting Eucharistic miracles prior to his death from leukemia at ...

was installed in the church, with the aim of connecting with younger parishioners. The church has seen an increase in visitors since May 2024, when it was announced that Acutis would be

canonised Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sai ...

. In 2023, planning permission was requested to demolish the outbuildings located to the north of the church's courtyard and replace them with a new parish hall. The planned building is intended to replace the existing clubroom, modernise the facilities and provide more space for the growing church community. Full planning permission was granted by

Wiltshire Council Wiltshire Council, known between 1889 and 2009 as Wiltshire County Council, is the Local government in England, local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Wiltshire (district), Wiltshire in South West England, and has its headquarters a ...

in April 2024, with building to begin within three years of this decision.

History

The church was founded in 1875 by French priest Francois Larive MSFS, who was the first Missionary of St Francis de Sales to work in England. The idea of founding a church in Malmesbury was given to him by Captain Charles Goddard Dewell of the 91st Argyllshire Regiment of Foot, who was born and raised in Malmesbury. The two met in 1858 while Captain Dewell was posted to the village of Kamptee in India. Dewell had recently been

baptised Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

into 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 ...

after being converted to Catholicism following falling ill while serving in Italy. He wanted to start a church in his home town, so after much discussion with Father Larive, the two decided to set up a church in Malmesbury. In 1861, Father Larive and Dewell came to Malmesbury, and they decided on a site for the church: Cross Hayes House, which was owned by Dewell. There were delays with the transfer of the lease of the house, so it did not become available until 1867. It was in that year that Captain Dewell became a

lay brother Lay brother is a largely extinct term referring to religious brothers, particularly in the Catholic Church, who focused upon manual service and secular matters, and were distinguished from choir monks or friars in that they did not pray in choi ...

in the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

and opened a school, despite fierce local opposition, including from the local member of parliament. A temporary church was set up on newly purchased adjoining land in 1869, and used until the present church was opened on 1 July 1875. Father Larive dedicated the church to St Aldhelm, who was the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

of the town and was the founder and first abbot at the nearby

from 675 to 705. The site of the old church became St. Joseph's Primary School, run by and named after the Sisters of St Joseph of Annecy with whom Father Larive had previously worked. The school remained there until 1933 when it moved to its current site on Holloway Hill.

References

{{Diocese of Clifton Malmesbury