page_title: St Etheldreda's Church
section_title: 18th century
hierarchical_section_title: St Etheldreda's Church / History / 18th century
caption_attribution_description: A wood engraving of Ely House in London, including St. Etheldreda's chapel, the only part of the building still standing. Originally produced by William Henry Prior for the part-work "Old and New London" (1873-1878), based on a 1772 drawing.
context_page_description: St Etheldreda's Church is a Roman Catholic church in Ely Place, off Charterhouse Street in Holborn, London. The building is one of only two surviving in London from the reign of Edward I, and dates from between 1250-1290. It is dedicated to Æthelthryth, or Etheldreda, the Anglo-Saxon saint who founded the monastery at Ely in 673. It was the chapel of the London residence of the Bishops of Ely.
  In the early 17th century it served briefly as an embassy chapel for the Spanish Ambassador, and a haven for English Catholics.
  The chapel was purchased by the Catholic Church in 1874 and opened in 1878 and is one of the oldest churches in England to be in current use by the Catholic Church.
context_section_description: In 1772, an Act of Parliament allowed the Bishops of Ely to sell the property to the Crown. The site, including the chapel, was sold on to Charles Cole, a surveyor and architect. He demolished all the buildings on the site apart from the chapel and built Ely Place. The chapel was extensively refurbished in the Georgian style before it re-opened in 1786.
caption: Engraving from a 1772 drawing of Ely House (including St Etheldreda's chapel)
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