St Anthony of Padua 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 ...

Rye, East Sussex Rye is a town and civil parish in the Rother District, Rother district of East Sussex, England, from the sea at the confluence of three rivers: the River Rother (Eastern), Rother, the River Tillingham, Tillingham and the River Brede, Brede. An ...

, England. It was constructed from 1927 to 1929 and replaced a church built in 1900. It is situated on Watchbell Street to the south of

Lamb House Lamb House is a Grade II* listed 18th-century house situated in Rye, East Sussex, England, and in the ownership of the National Trust. The house is run as a writer's house museum. It has been the home of many writers, including Henry James f ...

. It is served by the

Conventual Franciscans The Order of Friars Minor Conventual (O.F.M. Conv.) is a male religious fraternity in the Catholic Church and a branch of the Franciscan Order. Conventual Franciscan Friars are identified by the affix O.F.M. Conv. after their names. They are ...

and is a Grade II listed building.

History

Foundation

Originally, there was another church on the site of the present one. St Walburga's Church. The church dedicated to

Saint Walburga Walpurga or Walburga (; ; ; 71025 February 777 or 779) was an Anglo-Saxon missionary to the Frankish Empire. She was canonized on 1 May c. 870 by Pope Adrian II. Saint Walpurgis Night (or "Sankt Walpurgisnacht") is the name for the eve of her ...

was built in 1900 and was immediately made a

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 ...

. In 1906, the

came to Rye. A Fr Bonaventure M. Scebberas OFM Conv began to minister in the area. He was the superior of the Conventual Franciscans in England and chaplain to Colonel Frederick Sedley, 5th Marquis of Taflia. Colonel Sedley lived with his family in the house situated between the friary and the church. In 1907, Fr Scebberas was invited to administer St Joseph's Church in

Portishead, Somerset Portishead ( ) is a town and civil parish in the North Somerset unitary authority area, in the county of Somerset, England. With a population of 26,366 at the 2021 Census, the town is located on the Severn Estuary opposite Cardiff and Newport, W ...

.St Anthony of Padua and the Sedley Family
from

Rye Castle Rye Castle, also known as Ypres Tower, was built in the 13th or 14th centuries, and is situated in Rye, East Sussex, England. It is a Grade I listed building and has been scheduled as an ancient monument. History The exact date of construction ...

, retrieved 2 April 2016 In 1910, administration of St Walburga's Church also was given to the Conventual Franciscans, making the St Anthony of Padua Friary one of the first Conventual Franciscan locations in England since the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

. In 1926, the church was too small for the increasing

congregation Congregation may refer to: Religion *Church (congregation), a religious organization that meets in a particular location *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administrative body of the Catholic Church *Religious congregation, a type of religious instit ...

and plans were drawn up to replace St Walburga's Church with a larger one.

Construction

On 13 July 1927, demolition started on St Walburga's Church. On 9 August 1927, the first brick was laid by Fr Scebberas. On 11 October 1927, the foundation stone for St Anthony of Padua Church was blessed by the

Auxiliary Auxiliary may refer to: In language * Auxiliary language (disambiguation) * Auxiliary verb In military and law enforcement * Auxiliary police * Auxiliaries, civilians or quasi-military personnel who provide support of some kind to a military se ...

Bishop of Southwark, William Francis Brown. The church was designed by John Bernard Mendham (1888–1951). He was born in

St Leonards-on-Sea St Leonards-on-Sea (commonly known as St Leonards) is a town and seaside resort in the borough of Hastings in East Sussex, England. It has been part of the borough since the late 19th century and lies to the west of central Hastings. The origin ...

and grew up in Argentina. Before World War I he worked as a surveyor and architect for the

Bournville Village Trust Bournville Village Trust is an organisation created to maintain and improve the Birmingham suburb of Bournville. During the 20th century it expanded its geographical coverage to include developments in Shenley Green, Lightmoor in Telford, Bloomsb ...

. From 1922 to 1939, he worked out of London and later worked on

Coventry Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Michael, commonly known as Coventry Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry within the Church of England. The cathedral is located in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midla ...

. In 1939, he was behind the building of St Wilfrid's Church in

Burgess Hill Burgess Hill () is a town and civil parish in West Sussex, England, close to the border with East Sussex, on the edge of the South Downs National Park, south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and northeast of the county town, Chichester. ...

. St Anthony of Padua Church was built in the

Romanesque Revival style Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a Architectural style, style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Reviv ...

with 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 ...

in the Byzantine Revival style; in the shape of a

Greek Cross The Christian cross, with or without a figure of Jesus, Christ included, is the main religious symbol of Christianity. A cross with a figure of Christ affixed to it is termed a crucifix and the figure is often referred to as the ''corpus'' (La ...

. On 30 June 1929, the church was opened.

Parish

The church is its own parish and has three Sunday Masses they are at 6:00pm on Saturday, and 8:00am and 10:45am on Sunday. There is a weekday Mass at 9:00am on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.St. Anthony of Padua Friary – Rye
from

, retrieved 2 April 2016

References

External links