Founding and History

The original community of six English Benedictine monks from Lorraine was founded in Paris in 1615 by Dom Gabriel Gifford who later became Archbishop of Reims and Primate of France. The Patron of the community is St Edmund, King and Martyr. He gives his name to the city of Bury St Edmunds.Edmund was the patron saint of England until replaced with St George (Who had absolutely nothing to do with England or even Europe) by the French Plantagenets who ruled England. The Earthly Patron was Princess Marie of Lorraine, the abbess of the royal abbey of Celles.

Many of the early monks studied at the Sorbonne. St Edmunds, as it was then known, struggled financially in its early days but with the help of various wealthy people eventually became stable when they were allowed to receive benifices.

As a result of the French Revolution the community moved to Douai in Northern France in 1818. There they founded a school for English boys who were destined for the priesthood. This was a great success and in 1899 the priory was raised to the status of abbey and the first abbot, Lawrence Larkin was elected.

As a result of the French Laws of Association the community left France in 1903 and settled at Woolhampton, where the abbey is still situated.

The Abbey church

The abbey at Woolhampton is approximately half way between Reading and Newbury in Southern England. At the time of the community's expulsion from France, the property had been known as St Mary's college. With the help of the catholic bishop of Portsmouth, the site was eventually puchased by Douai in 1912.

There was allready a school setup at Woolhampton so the continuation of the community's mission was relatively easy.

The abbey church as it stands today is a combination of two buildings, one older, one more modern. However, they fit together very well and give the observant visitor quite a lot to consider.

Whether by accident or design, the accoustics of the church are very good and a number of important recordings of classical music have been recorded there.

The whole atmosphere of the church is very calm. The combination of the older eastern end of the church and the newer part work together very well. There are some very interesting features in the ceiling of the chancel, it you can see them

The two chapels: the lady chapel and the Pax chapel add to the atmosphere. It is a lovely place to visit.