Wren's Cathedral, properly the Church of St Leonard and now a cathedral of the

Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches The Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches (CEEC) is a Christian convergence communion established in 1995 within the United States of America. With a large international presence in six autocephalous provinces, and six dioceses within the U ...

, was originally the Lady Chapel of Wroxall Priory. Wroxall Priory was founded in 1141 as the

Priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of ...

St. Leonard Leonard of Noblac (also Leonard of Limoges or Leonard of Noblet; also known as Lienard, Linhart, Leonhard, Léonard, Leonardo, Annard; died 559), is a Franks, Frankish saint closely associated with the town and abbey of Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat, ...

for nuns at

Wroxall, Warwickshire Wroxall is a small village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Beausale, Haseley, Honiley and Wroxall, in the Warwick district, in the county of Warwickshire, England. It is from Kenilworth, and from Coventry on the A4141 road. Acco ...

by Sir Hugh-Hatton, eldest son of the

Earl of Warwick Earl of Warwick is one of the most prestigious titles in the peerages of the United Kingdom. The title has been created four times in English history, and the name refers to Warwick Castle and the town of Warwick. Overview The first creation ...

. He fought in the

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were ...

and was released after being held prisoner for seven years in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

and having a vision of St. Leonard, the patron saint of prisoners. He so appreciated the intervention of the saint that he gave 3,000 acres of land to the church in Wroxall to form a monastery for nuns after the Order of St. Benedict which was named the Priory of St. Leonard at Wroxall. A list of the Prioresses up to 1535 and further list of ministers from 1538 circa to the present can be found on the official website. A Charter issued by

Pope Alexander III Pope Alexander III (c. 1100/1105 – 30 August 1181), born Roland ( it, Rolando), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 September 1159 until his death in 1181. A native of Siena, Alexander became pope after a con ...

to the Priory of St. Leonard will also be found on the same web site.

History

With the separation of the Church from Rome in 1535,

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

allowed Robert Burgoyne to purchase the estate for just under £600 after he had demolished the Monastery and Church adjacent to the present Wren's Cathedral. With the rubble he built an

Elizabethan The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personific ...

house. The Lady Chapel was kept and designated St. Leonard Parish Church of Wroxall (

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...

). Some of the ruins of the larger Church and traces of the Priory can be seen across the present driveway. Chaplains (ministers) were appointed by the owner of the Estate from about 1538c. The estate at this time also took the title of Abbey i.e. Wroxall Abbey. The red brick tower and three bells in the church date from 1663–1664. Richard Shakespeare, the grandfather of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

, was

bailiff A bailiff (from Middle English baillif, Old French ''baillis'', ''bail'' "custody") is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their o ...

for the church in 1534, according to Michael Wood in his documentary ''In Search of Shakespeare'' (2003). One of the Prioresses, Isabella (1501), was William Shakespeare's great-aunt. Joan Shakespeare (1524) was his aunt. In 1713,

Sir Christopher Wren Sir Christopher Wren PRS FRS (; – ) was one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history, as well as an anatomist, astronomer, geometer, and mathematician-physicist. He was accorded responsibility for rebuilding 52 churche ...

purchased the estate as his country residence. While he is buried at

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglicanism, Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London ...

, his wife and family are buried at Wroxall. His coat of arms is displayed on the south side of the present cathedral. In 1861 the Dugdale family purchased the estate and had the present Mansion House built after demolishing the previous house. The church was also internally renovated by the architect who designed the house. His name was Ryland. He later wrote a ''History of Wroxall Abbey'' (1903). Much of the information contained here is described in this publication. A girls' school, the Wroxall Abbey Girls School, was founded in the Mansion House in 1936, when the proprietors of the School leased 27 acres of the property, including the church. Ministers continued to be appointed during this period. The school closed together with the church in 1995.

Present use

In 2001 the church was re-opened by the new owners and a large

Free Methodist Church The Free Methodist Church (FMC) is a Methodist Christian denomination within the holiness movement, based in the United States. It is evangelical in nature and is Wesleyan–Arminian in theology. The Free Methodist Church has members in over 100 ...

, the Renewal Christian Centre in Solihull agreed to provide the ministry. The church was renamed Wren’s Chapel in honour of its former illustrious owner. Regular Sunday services were commenced, and marriages, wedding blessings, child dedications and funerals were conducted by two designated ministers. In 2009 the

(CEEC) were wishing to establish a fellowship diocese in the United Kingdom and based its headquarters in Wroxall Abbey. The ministers at the Abbey were re-consecrated into the CEEC, and later that year a bishop was appointed to oversee the diocese. At the same time the Order of St. Leonard (OSL) was established with the aim of bringing together

Laity In religious organizations, the laity () consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non- ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. In both religious and wider secular usage, a lay ...

and ordained ministers from all over the world. The order has in two years developed into several countries in Europe and Africa so that an Arch-diocese of Wroxall Abbey has now been established at Wroxall.

References

External links

Official websiteOrder of St. Leonard
{{coord, 52.3342, -1.6758, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Churches in Warwickshire Grade I listed churches in Warwickshire