Identity area
Type of entity
Authorized form of name
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
History
There has been a place of worship on Bryanston Street, Marble Arch since 1787 when a chapel of ease, known as the Quebec Chapel, was founded as a non-parochial place of worship. Believed to have been converted from the riding school of the Portman Barracks, the chapel was built by Lord Henry William Portman to commemorate the British victory at the Battle of Quebec in 1775. It formed a key part of the Portman Estate which from 1764 developed into one of the most desirable place to live in London. As the congregation grew, the converted riding school became dilapidated leading to its demolition in 1911, and the building of the current Edwardian gothic-revival style church by Sir William Tapper in 1912.
The Church of the Annunciation has always had a close association with the Anglo-Catholic movement and became a leading force in the opposition to the growing ecumenical movement of the mid-20th century. The church became the base for the 'Annunciation Group', a gathering of Anglican clergymen and lay people who felt that they could not compromise on their Catholic faith, and who did not agree with the bishops of the Church of England sharing a platform with Baptists, Methodists and other Non-Conformist churches.
Both the chapel, and later the church, produced parish magazines and administered to the various parochial schools, such as the Hampton-Guerney School, and district institutions such as the High School for girls, founded in 1877.