London - St. Etheldreda's Church, Ely Place, Holborn - real photo postcard c.60s

Postcard
• Picture / Image:  Roman-British Church built 310 AD beneath St. Etheldreda's, Ely Place, London EC - possibly real photo
• Publisher:  none given
• Postally used:  no
• Stamp:  n/a
• Postmark(s): n/a
• Sent to:  n/a
• Notes / condition: 

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Text from the free encyclopedia WIKIPEDIA may appear below to give a little background information (internal links may not  work) :

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St Etheldreda's Church is located in Ely Place, off Charterhouse Street, Holborn, London. It is dedicated to Æthelthryth, or Etheldreda, an Anglo-Saxon saint who founded the monastery at Ely in 673. The building was the chapel of the London residence of the Bishops of Ely.

The chapel was purchased in 1873 and opened as a Roman Catholic church in 1878. It is one of the oldest Roman Catholic church buildings in England, and one of only two surviving buildings in London dating from Edward I's reign. It consists of a chapel, or Upper Church, and a crypt, or undercroft.

St Etheldreda's is active to this day and often used for Masses, baptisms, weddings, and funerals. Six elected commissioners manage the church and area.

Because Etheldreda was often invoked for help with infections of the throat, the Blessing of the Throats is held annually at the chapel.

The Catholic chapel at the United States Military Academy, West Point, is modelled on St Etheldreda's.

St Etheldreda's was built some time between 1250 and 1290 as the town chapel for the Bishops of Ely. It was part of Ely Palace or Ely House, their London residence.

In 1302, John, Earl of Warenne, swore his loyalty to Edward II in the chapel.

In 1381 John of Gaunt moved to the palace, after the Savoy Palace was destroyed during the Peasants' Revolt.

In 1534, Catholic masses were outlawed in England. The Bishops of Ely continued to oversee the chapel which was used for Church of England worship after the Reformation.

In 1576 a lease on a portion of the house and lands surrounding the chapel was granted by Richard Cox, Bishop of Ely, to Sir Christopher Hatton, a favourite of Elizabeth I. The rent was £10, ten loads of hay and one red rose per year, a small enough sum to give rise to suspicion that Elizabeth had put pressure on the bishop. Hatton borrowed extensively from the crown to pay for refurbishment and upkeep of the property. During his tenancy, the crypt was used as a tavern.

Ely Palace is mentioned in two of Shakespeare's plays, Richard II and Richard III.

In 1620, the Upper Church was granted to Count Gondomar, the Spanish ambassador, to use as a private chapel. The chapel was therefore considered to be Spanish soil and Roman Catholic worship, still illegal in England, was allowed in the church. Two years later, during a diplomatic dispute between England and Spain, Gondomar was recalled to Spain and use of the chapel was not given to his successor.

Matthew Wren, Bishop of Ely and uncle of Christopher Wren, practised at St Etheldreda's chapel for a time before his imprisonment in 1641.

In 1642, the church and surrounding palace was requisitioned by Parliament for use as a prison and hospital during the English Civil War. During Oliver Cromwell's Commonwealth (1649–1660) most of the palace was demolished and the gardens were destroyed.

type=real photographic (rp)

theme=topographical: british

sub-theme=england

county/ country=london

number of items=single

period=1945 - present

postage condition=unposted