St Mary Immaculate is an active

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 in the town of

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. It lies to the south west of the town on West Street outside the West Gate. The church was opened on . The architect was

Edward Welby Pugin Edward Welby Pugin (11 March 1834 – 5 June 1875) was an English architect, the eldest son of architect Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin and Louisa Barton. His father was an architect in the Gothic Revival style, and after his early death in 1 ...

, eldest son of

Augustus Pugin Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin ( ; 1 March 1812 – 14 September 1852) was an English architect, designer, artist and critic with French and Swiss origins. He is principally remembered for his pioneering role in the Gothic Revival architecture ...

. The church is built in red brick and Bath stone in the

Decorated Gothic English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture's defining features are pointed a ...

style and 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 builder was William Gascoyne (1827–1902) of Leamington. St Mary Immaculate was one of the first churches in England to be dedicated to the

Immaculate Conception The Immaculate Conception is the doctrine that the Virgin Mary was free of original sin from the moment of her conception. It is one of the four Mariology, Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Debated by medieval theologians, it was not def ...

after the definition of the dogma in 1854. It was the first permanent Roman Catholic church in Warwick. The church was consecrated on 15 June 1939. The presbytery was built at the same time as the church but has been altered. During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

(1914–1918)

J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...

, the author of over 56 books, including ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high fantasy novel written by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's book ''The Hobbit'' but eventually d ...

'', married parishioner Edith Mary Bratt in the church on . A blue plaque commemorating the marriage was unveiled in July 2018. The church is linked to St Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School which was originally in the building next to the church, built in 1905. This building is now the church hall. Since 1973 St Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School occupies a much larger site next to Priory Park. Glass The three stained glass windows in the centre of the east window in the apse were completed in 1861 by Hardman & Co of Birmingham. The West Window, a rose window above the gallery, was designed and produced by John Hardman Studios in the 1960s. A large round window depicting Christ the King is surrounded by eight small windows depicting saints. All of the other stained glass windows were by designed by a parishioner who was at the time living and working in Smith Street, Warwick, the French-born artist, Tony (Antoine) Dury (1819–96). The Sanctuary The painting of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour in the centre and 18 other roundels were painted by Thomas Fisher Norman (previously thought to be by Alphege Pippet) of Hardman & Co in 1893. Font The stone baptismal font dated bears two brass plates, dated 1860, in memory of parishioners John and Elizabeth Norman, the parents of Thomas Fisher Norman of Hardman & Co. Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross consist of 14 paintings on canvas in decorated blind openings, painted by Rebecca Dulcibella Orpen (1830–1923) of Baddesley Clinton Hall and installed in 1897. Bell Turret The bell turret behind the west gable consists of a timber bellcote with a slate spire and a wrought iron cross. In front of the turret is a stone cross. On the east gable is a wrought iron cross. Taylor's of Leicester, a bell foundry since the 14th century, have records showing that the bell had been cast in 1860 by John Murphy of Dublin. Church Hall Bell The bell in the Hall's bellcote is inscribed John Taylor & Co and with the words ‘Ave Maria’. Taylor's records say that it was15 inches in diameter, sounded the note ‘C’ and weighed ‘2 quarters and 2 pounds’, and that it had been ordered on 27 September 1904 and despatched by the company on 14 October. Taylor's restored it in 2019.

References

External links

Parish website

Taking Stock
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Mary Immaculate Roman Catholic Church, Warwick Grade II listed churches in Warwickshire Buildings and structures in Warwick Roman Catholic churches in Warwickshire Grade II listed Roman Catholic churches in England