The Parish of Marylebone is situated in the Marylebone Deanery. It was founded in 1855. The new church was built in 1963.
Founding of the Parish
Following Catholic Emancipation in 1830 there was greater freedom of worship and ease for Catholics in practicing their faith more openly. This led to greater demand for Catholic churches within London. In 1848 the beginnings of Marylebone parish began to take form, thanks to the generosity of Count de Torre Diaz, a Spanish nobleman connected to the parish of St James in Spanish Place. A plaque, recounting his and other donors generosity, is still visible in the church. He hired a hall in Cato Street and appointed Father Hodgson, a devoted priest to celebrate Mass there. Sunday after Sunday he preached the gospel to a growing congregation of people from the slums and alleyways of the neighbourhood. When the hall became unsafe for use, Fr Hodgson conducted open-air sermons in the courts behind Portland Street and in the homes of the people
In 1849 the Count de Torre Diaz along with some Catholic gentlemen bought a piece of land in Homer Row, Marylebone Road on which a church and school would be built. Over the next six years the work was completed. A quote from a journal said ” The little church, whose architect was Mr, Blount, raised its head nobly in the Marylebone Road with a life-size Madonna, under a canopy, holding a rosary and the Divine Infant raising His hand to bless the passers by.” On 9 August 1855 the church was blessed and dedicated to Our Lady of the Holy Rosary by His Eminence Cardinal Wiseman , the first Archbishop of Westminster.
The church was hugely popular from the beginning. It was a place of prayer and worship for a congregation of up to 2500. The architect of the Church, completed in 1855, was a man by the name of Blount. The building it was said was “carried out under his able and kindly care and was well and strongly founded”. Great pride was taken in the gothic style church which from the “outside had the appearance of great strength and a touch of the American skyscraper; while inside it had a sombre mystic air which formed an apt atmosphere for prayer and devotion, fervour and piety”. A portion of the building was also used as a Catholic school for the children of the parish. The church at Marylebone continued to be served by the priests of St James’, Spanish Place, until 1861 when the size and stability of the community meant that it was erected as a separate parish.
The Original Church
In the decades following its opening, the church continued to have investment in art and architecture, impressive due to its mission to one of the poorest areas of London. Indeed, the new parish’s success brought its own challenges with great difficulty in accommodating the large numbers of parishioners. As a result, parish priests were repeatedly tasked by the archbishop to build a new, larger church for the congregation. The task was finally achieved by Rev. Roche who bought the adjoining building to the church for £16,100 in 1929. The difficulties of fundraising in the interwar and WW2 period meant that no work was done on the new church in 1959.
Architectural Design of the New Church
The church was built in 1963 by Goodhart-Rendel, and is understood to be a fine example of his work, in particular in its use of space. The exterior is a combination of brown and red brick diapering to tower. The Church is a traditional romanesque structure, with the original altar against the east wall, with a blue, white and gold decorative tester suspended above the altar and tabernacle. An additional altar set in a forward position within the sanctuary was later installed and is where Mass is celebrated. The east wall of the sanctuary is tiled and depicts the joyful, sorrowful and glorious mysteries of the rosary.
The nave of the church has a centre and two side aisles with timber benches. Of particular note are the transverse arches that cross the nave as well as the decorative pendant lights and the six pointed metal chandelier that hangs in the crossing. The church also has side altars to the Sacred Heart, Our lady of the Rosary, St Joseph and the English martyrs. These side altars retain the original black marble altar rails that were removed from the sanctuary in the reordering of the church.
The church also has an organ built in 1865 by Bishop & Starr and containing over 1,500 pipes. This was installed in the new church and has undergone extensive renovations, both in 1960s and the late 1990s. The organ is used at Sunday Mass
For the short parish history slideshow created by Growing in Faith, please click the link: Case for Support – Marylebone – 22 7 13