St Mary Magdalen Roman Catholic Church, Mortlake

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St Mary Magdalen Roman Catholic Church, Mortlake
St Mary Magdalen's Church, Mortlake.jpg
St Mary Magdalen Roman Catholic Church, Mortlake
Location61 North Worple Way, Mortlake, London SW14 8PR
CountryEngland, United Kingdom
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website www.stmarymags.org.uk
Architecture
Architect(s) Gilbert Blount
Style Gothic Revival
Years built1852
Administration
Province Southwark
Diocese Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark
Deanery Mortlake
Parish Mortlake
Clergy
Priest(s) Fr Adrian McKenna-Whyte

St Mary Magdalen Roman Catholic Church, Mortlake, is a Roman Catholic church in North Worple Way, Mortlake, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. The church is dedicated to Jesus' companion Mary Magdalene. It is located just south of Mortlake High Street and the Anglican St Mary the Virgin Church. St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School is just north of the churchyard.

Contents

The church building, in Gothic Revival style, was designed by Gilbert Blount, architect to the first Archbishop of Westminster, Nicholas Wiseman, and dates from 1852. [1] [2] [3]

History

The church's first parish priest, Fr John Wenham, was a convert from the Oxford Movement, [1] who had studied at Magdalen College, Oxford, [4] and had been an Anglican army chaplain in Ceylon. [5] He is buried in the churchyard. [6]

Stained-glass windows

The east window, by William Wailes (c.1850), shows St Mary Magdalen, centre, with the Noli me tangere scene to the right and, in the left two lights, a scene from Luke's Gospel. [7]

The west window is 20th century with the theme "Through Cross to Crown". It depicts Noli me tangere, the Crucifixion, Our Lady Queen of Heaven, and the Ascension.

In the Lady Chapel the east window depicts St Catherine of Siena, St Mary and St Robert of Arbrissel. It was a gift of Catherine Strickland-Standish (d.1863). The north window depicts the Annunciation.

The Sacred Heart window depicts Mary receiving Communion, with the Sacred Heart in the centre; on the right is St Margaret Mary Alacoque. Below is a scene from the Last Supper.

The Law memorial window (c.1886), depicts St William, Our Lady, Star of the Sea, and St Francis Xavier. It commemorates the Hon. William Towry Law (1809–86), a former Chancellor of the Diocese of Bath and Wells, who converted to Catholicism in 1851. His son, Rev. Augustus Henry Law SJ (1833–80), died in Rhodesia as a missionary priest. [8] [9] Below is a representation of William Towry Law at prayer and his son during his last illness. Law is buried in the cemetery. [10]

The First World War memorial window depicts St George and St Patrick either side of St Michael the Archangel.

The Burton window depicts St Mary Magdalen, St Joseph (Richard Burton was born on his feast day), and St Agnes. Below, Sir Richard Burton is depicted as a knight at prayer.

Burials

The first burial took place in 1853 but records for burials in the churchyard only survive from 1892. Frances Margaret Taylor (1832–1900), who was founder of the Roman Catholic religious congregation the Poor Servants of the Mother of God, was buried in the churchyard. Her remains were transferred in 1959 to the chapel at Maryfield Convent, Roehampton. Over 80 sisters of the order are buried in the churchyard.

Other burials include:

Sir Richard and Lady Burton

The cemetery includes a Grade II* listed [27] tent-shaped mausoleum of Carrara marble and Forest of Dean stone, [27] containing the tombs of the Victorian explorer Sir Richard Burton (1821–1890) and his wife, Isabel, Lady Burton (née Arundell; 1831–1896), who designed it; [2] she also erected the memorial stained-glass window to Burton, which is next to the lady chapel in the church. [28]

Comte de Vezlo Mausoleum

The cemetery includes another mausoleum, commemorating the very young Comte de Vezlo, Guilaume Henri (1894–1901). A plaque near the mauseolum's entrance also commemorates his mother, Annette Rosamonde Blasio, the Comtesse de Vezlo, who died in 1938. [29] The architect is not known.

Sir James Marshall

Sir James Marshall (1829–1889), a British colonial judge who helped the spread of Roman Catholicism in Ghana and Nigeria, is buried in the churchyard cemetery. [1] [30] His wife Alice (née Young) died in 1926 and is also buried in the churchyard. A memorial plaque inside the church was unveiled on 11 August 1999, 100 years after his death. [7]

The Knights and Ladies of Marshall, a lay association of Ghanaian Catholics, visit the church in Mortlake annually to celebrate a Mass in his memory. [1] [7]

War graves

The cemetery contains war graves of four service personnel of World War I and two of World War II. [31] [32] [33]

See also

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References

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51°28′06″N0°15′42″W / 51.4683°N 0.2618°W / 51.4683; -0.2618