St Marys Convent Church

LEEDS

SE3133 CHURCH ROAD, Richmond Hill 714-1/36/1039 (East side) 05/08/76 St Mary's Convent Church

GV II*

Also known as: Mount St Mary's Church CHURCH ROAD Richmond Hill. Roman Catholic church. 1852. By Joseph Hansom and W Wardell, chancel and transepts added 1866, by Edward Welby Pugin. Gothic Revival style. Coursed rock-faced masonry, steep-pitched slate roof. PLAN: tall nave and chancel, N and S transepts, tall N and S aisles with 4-light Decorated windows, no clerestory. EXTERIOR: high gables over aisle windows and gables over tall narrow windows to the polygonal apse. Decorated window tracery; rose window in transepts; very large 2 x 4-light west window with geometric tracery and wide moulded arch entrance below. Hoodmould stops and column capitals remain uncarved. Greek crosses at apices of gables. INTERIOR: many fittings stripped out and church not in use at time of survey, but fine proportions and remains of important features survive. Very high 7-bay nave, clustered columns, capitals uncarved; arched recesses for side chapels in S aisle, one with marble altar and reredos; in N aisle triple-arched confessionals with trefoil decoration. 2-bay transepts with polychrome tiled floors and remains of altars on E walls. Wooden floor and arch-braced roof to nave, 7 steps up to choir, rib-vaulting, attached columns with elaborate carved capitals, tiled floor, altar with plaster frieze on frontal, 3 crocketed arched niches in windows, plaster frieze depicts church and lay leaders worshipping the Blessed Sacrament. Windows boarded but stained glass by John Hardman Powell survives. An important building on a prominent site.

Listing NGR: SE3130433169