St Anne's Church, Birmingham
St Anne's Church | |
---|---|
Roman Catholic | |
Website | www |
History | |
Status | Active |
Founded | 1849 |
Founder(s) | John Henry Newman |
Dedication | Saint Anne |
Architecture | |
Functional status | Parish church |
Heritage designation | Grade II listed |
Designated | 22 March 2021 |
Architect(s) |
|
Birmingham | |
Deanery | Birmingham (Cathedral)[1] |
St Anne's Church is a
The building is Grade II listed.[3]
History
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/St_Anne%27s_Church%2C_Birmingham_by_Geoff_Pick_Geograph_2145660.jpg/220px-St_Anne%27s_Church%2C_Birmingham_by_Geoff_Pick_Geograph_2145660.jpg)
Foundation
In 1847, John Henry Newman came back from Rome to Birmingham after getting permission from Pope Pius IX to create an Oratory of Saint Philip Neri in England. In 1849, he had gathered a group of followers and they initially founded the church in an old gin distillery in Deritend. The area contained poor housing, with many back-to-back rows of houses, intermixed with industry and suffering the social conditions that the country sought to remove decades later. The nature of the housing meant that it was mainly occupied by migrants, in this case workers from Ireland.[2]
In 1852, Newman took his community to
Construction
The Irish community continued to increase in Birmingham and Catholic churches were built to accommodate the expanding congregations. St Catherine of Siena Church was built on the Horse Fair in 1874 and St Francis of Assisi church was built in Handsworth in 1894.[2]
In 1859, Fr John P. Dowling became the new parish priest. He provided the land upon which the church stands. In 1884, a new St Anne's church was built on Alcester Street, designed by the London architectural firm Vicars and O'Neill.[2] It was opened by Cardinal Manning. The former distillery that John Henry Newman turned into a church became a school.[5]
Administration
In 1903, Canon Villiers replaced Fr Dowling. When he died on 19 October 1938, the
In 2010, the Oblates handed the church back to the
Parish
In 1952, the first Birmingham St Patrick's Day Parade was held. It goes right through the centre of the parish, along Deritend High Street and up to Digbeth. It happens on the Sunday before 17 March and it is the world's largest
The church has a close relationship with the nearby St Anne's Primary School, whose mission statement says that, "At Saint Anne's we look to Jesus as our guide as we pray and learn, so that we can grow as friends together. Each one of us is special and we accept and respect one another as children of God.'[8]
The church has three Sunday Masses every week. There is a
List of parish priests
The priests in charge of the parish were:[5]
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See also
- St Catherine of Siena Church, Birmingham
- St Francis of Assisi Church, Handsworth
- Birmingham Oratory
- John Henry Newman
- Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
References
- Archdiocese of Birminghamretrieved 17 September 2013
- ^ a b c d e f The Irish Quarter from William Dargue: A History of Birmingham, Places and Placenames retrieved 16 September 2013
- ^ Historic England. "Roman Catholic Church of St Anne (1473053)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
- ^ "St Anne's Catholic Church, Birmingham". St Anne's Catholic Church, Birmingham. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
- ^ a b c d Parish history from St Anne's Birmingham retrieved 22 June 2014
- ^ Tolkien and the Oratory from Birmingham Oratory retrieved 17 September 2013
- ^ St Patrick's Birmingham retrieved 17 September 2013
- ^ Our Faith from St Anne's Catholic Primary School, retrieved 17 September 2013
- ^ Liturgy times from St Anne's Birmingham retrieved 22 June 2014