Corpus Christi Church, Boscombe

Corpus Christi Church is a Roman Catholic church in Boscombe, on the outskirts of Bournemouth in Dorset. It in the Diocese of Portsmouth and is served by the Society of Jesus. It is situated on St. James' Square, on the corner of Parkwood Road and Christchurch Road. It was founded in 1895 and from its 108 ft tall bell tower, it is possible see the Isle of Wight.HistoryFoundingThe first Catholic place of worship in Boscombe was created in 1887 when the Religious of the Cross moved into the area to make a foundation there. They purchased four and a half acres of land on which John Vertue, the first Bishop of Portsmouth, erected a small public chapel, an iron building bought from Lord Petre. This iron chapel was formally opened on New Year's Day 1888 and was served from Bournemouth by the Jesuit priest there, Father Charles de Lapasture SJ. The building of the convent itself started on 6 September 1888. A year later, a school was built next door, Corpus Christi Primary School.If Corpus Christi church could be said to have had a founder, it would have to be Baroness Pauline von Hugel. She was the daughter of the Austrian nobleman, army officer and botanist Charles von Hügel (1795-1870) and sister of the theologian Friedrich von Hügel (1852-1925), and anthropologist Anatole von Hügel (1854-1928). With the school being built, there arose the need for a permanent church. The Baroness resolved to build a church that would meet the needs of both parishioners and the nearby Sisters, and to this end bought a property known as 'Holyrood' and two acres of land stretching from Christchurch Road to the Convent garden.