Our History
Bury St Edmunds is steeped in history. The town is known as the ‘Shrine of the King and Cradle of the Law’ for being both the burial place of the martyred king, St Edmund, in the 9th century and also the starting ground for what was to become the Magna Carta in the 13th century.
Despite the Reformation in the 16th century, with its destruction of St Edmund’s Abbey during the dissolution of the monasteries, the Catholic Faith has always been practised in this area and even managed to flourish under difficult circumstances.
St Edmund’s Church in the town itself, Coldham Hall, Coldham Cottage and their neighbouring Church of Our Lady Immaculate and St Joseph at Lawshall, together with Hengrave Hall, all have interesting histories taking us through those penal times when it was illegal to practise Catholicism in England to the late 18th and early 19th centuries when finally Catholics were granted the freedom to live their faith more publicly.
St Edmund’s Parish has a vibrant history group which, working with other local historians, has made major contributions to our understanding of the history of Catholicism within the area.
In 2012 they published The Present from Our Past: the History of the Church of St Edmund King and Martyr.
In 20218 (updated in 2020) they produced an online resource called Years of Faith: Catholic History in and around Bury St Edmunds.
This has now been updated once more and is re-titled St Edmund’s Catholic Parish Chronicle. This Chronicle, rather than being a static piece of written history, is a living document, able to be constantly updated as the group makes further progress in their historical understanding of our parish and surrounding area.
If you would like to find out more about the History Group’s work please contact John Saunders
e: jes767894@btinternet.com