Seafield Convent Grammar

Infobox School
name = Seafield Convent Grammar School
established = 1908 (amalgamated 1976)
affiliation = Roman Catholic
type = Direct Grant Grammar School
principle = Mother Superior (various)
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free_label2 =
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athletics =
campus type = Suburban
location = Seafield Convent Grammar School
Liverpool Road
Crosby
Liverpool
L23
country = United Kingdom

Seafield Convent "Of the Sacred Heart of Mary (1908-1976)" was a former Convent school for girls run by the Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Mary. Construction of the building began on Liverpool Road Crosby in 1905, with the school entering the premises before work was completed in 1908. The Building is constructed of Accrington red brick around a steel frame, with a Welsh slate roof. It is now Sacred Heart Catholic College owing to an amalgamation with St Bede's Secondary Modern in 1976.

There is fresh evidence to show that Seafield Convent was in fact forced into the amalgamation owing to the reallocation of educational resources in the Borough of Sefton in 1974.

History Part I - Born out of Revolution

Many will be surprised that in order to start our journey into Seafield’s history, we must first travel back in time to France in 1789. The Revolution of that year, whilst having immense repercussions for all classes and institutions, brought about a massive shift of power from the Roman Catholic Church to the state, and sent shockwaves around Europe.

The newly formed French National Assembly began imposing its will over the Church with the abolition of the Church’s right to collect tithes (4th August 1789). However the ferocity of the legislation was to increase rapidly when the Assembly discovered that the French Government was virtually bankrupt. To no small extent, the Assembly addressed the financial crisis by having the nation take over the property of the Church (while taking on the Church's expenses), through the law of 2nd December 1789. The Catholic Church had been the largest landowner in the country, controlling between 10-15% of the land in France and the forced re-possession was seen to be a wise decision, enabling the government to introduce a new paper currency, assignats, backed by the confiscated church lands. Further legislation on 13 February 1790 abolished monastic vows. The consequent closing of Monasteries and Convents turned adrift some 2,500 Monks and 30,000 Nuns.

Even now the hammer blow was yet to fall, but fall it did. The Law of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, passed on 12th July 1790 subordinated the Roman Catholic Church in France to the French government. Under the Law all remaining clergy were classed as “state employees” and were obliged to take an oath of loyalty to the constitution. The result was a great divide between Church and State. Out of one hundred and thirty four Bishops only four accepted the Civil Constitution – two in every three priests rejected it.

In response to this legislation, the Archbishop of Aix and the bishop of Clermont led a walkout of clergy from the National Constituent Assembly. The Pope never accepted the new arrangement, and it led to a schism between those clergy who swore the required oath and accepted the new arrangement ("jurors" or "constitutional clergy") and the "non-jurors" or "refractory priests" who refused to do so. The ensuing years saw violent repression of the clergy, including the imprisonment and massacre of priests and the closure of churches throughout France.

In 1799 the new Consulate of France, appointed Napoleon I First Consul. In his new position Napoleon quickly realized that the revolution was threatened if he could not win favour with the majority of the peasants and stabilize France. It was obvious that Catholicism was still the most widespread religion in France, and that he could secure a strong base of support by pacifying the continuing religious strife in western France. Napoleon thus agreed a Concordant with Pope Pius VII in 1801. Unusually the Vatican was forced into accepting terms more favorable to Napoleon. The terms of the Concordant were that: -

“The Catholic Religion is to be freely practiced in France. Church property is not to be returned to the Church, however the state will pay the salaries of the Clergy. Bishops are to be appointed by the First Consul but the Pope will retain control over their investiture. The Parish clergy are to take an oath of loyalty to the French state.”

The relaxation of the harsh Civil Constitution lead to the reopening of many churches and the vendetta against religion eased. The Parish Church of St. Aphrodise in Béziers was “redeemed” and Abbé Martin – formerly a non-juror priest of revolutionary times took control of the parish. The very first child baptized in the church was one Jean Gailhac – the future founder of the Institute of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary.

As he was the first baptized child, Abbé Martin followed the progress of the young Jean intently, and later encouraged and gave his guidance and help in nurturing the young boy’s desire to become a priest. Gailhac entered the seminary at Montpellier in 1821 aged 19. It was here that he met his great friend and fellow student Eugéne Cure. Cure and his wife later became Jean’s spiritual and financial support in all his charitable projects.

Five years later, on 23rd September 1926 Jean Gailhac was finally ordained a priest for the Diocese of Montpellier by Bishop Nicolas Fournier. His dedication and hard work was rewarded with the position of the Seminary’s Professor. On 12th September 1828 however, at his own request, he was transferred to Chaplain of the Civil and Military Hospital of the city of Béziers – one of the lowest paid jobs at the time. It was here that Gailhac’s work brought him into contact with the Nursing Sisters. Their help in looking after the sick, teaching the illiterate and aiding the needy was invaluable, but as he found was not always properly directed. The Sisters belonged to various Orders and this lead to clashes in duty between their own Order and Gailhac’s own charity projects. He eventually felt the need to create an institute to further his charity projects, and his increasing desire to focus upon education (let us not forget that during the years of the Revolution 1789-1799 some 22,000 Primary schools were closed).

So it was that on 24th February 1849 Father Gailhac and Appollonie Cure (the widow of his good friend Eugéne Cure) together with five other women: Eulalie Vidal, Rosalie Gibbal, Rose Jeantet, Cécile Cambon, and Marie Roques, founded the Institute of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary. Father Gailhac acted as their spiritual director and formator for these women. The little group began their work in the Good Shepherd Refuge for Women and in a local orphanage. Appollonie Cure, now Mother Saint Jean, was named the general superior of the new community. In the following year the rule of life of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary, the “RSHM Constitution”, was approved on a diocesan level, and on the canonical level in 1880. The Constitution - the mission of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary, is defined: "to know and love God, to make God known and loved, to proclaim that Jesus Christ has come in order that all may have life."

The Institute grew rapidly and by the time the original group made their first profession (religious) in May 1851 their number had grown to ten. As intended by Father Gailhac education formed the focus of their work, and the Institute took on the education of orphans as well as opening their first fee-paying Day school and Boarding School. Over the following years the foundation spread – first to Lisburn near Belfast, second to Porto in Portugal and then to Bootle in Liverpool.

History Part II - Early Days

Liverpool was never actually a target area for the Institute – it was purely by chance that the Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Mary actually formed a base there. One sister, Madame St. Thomas Hennessy, who had been instrumental in forming the Institute’s base in Ireland was returning home with a sick novice. Unfortunately she was delayed and missed the boat at Liverpool leaving for Belfast. Unable to find alternative passage she was forced to stay a few days in the city, and fate lead her to meet the Reverend Thomas Kelly, the Parish Priest of St. James’ Bootle. Father Kelly had for many months been desperately seeking a religious order to cater for the spiritual and educational needs of the children in his parish. After consultation with Father Gailhac it was agreed to seek the Bishop’s approval for a foundation to be made. Permission was duly granted. A translation from the French copy of the letter received by the Reverend Mother from Mgr. Goss, Second Bishop of Liverpool3, is printed below:

:Liverpool,December 21st, 1871

Dear Reverend Mother,

:I am ordered by his Lordship, the Bishop of Liverpool to inform you that he gives his approval and sanction to your making a foundation in his diocese in order that you may take care of the classes for the poor children of Bootle, that you may start a fee-paying day-school and boarding school in the Parish of St. James Bootle as was stated in your letter of 20th September last.

I am always your devoted servant in J.C.

(Signed) John Augustine Fisher

Vicar General

The order founded its Liverpool base in Sea View Road Bootle on 21st June 1872. Madame Eugéne, the niece of Father Gailhac became the Reverend Mother of the small community of eight. The foundation was a victim of its own success and soon found that it could no longer adequately provide for the increasing number of borders. A search began for a more suitable property, and this was when the Sisters discovered Seafield house in Seaforth, and the name which would remain with them for the next 93 years.

Seafield House in Seaforth was the home of James Fernie, a wealthy businessman who had made his fortune in shipping. He had helped form the International Marine Hydro Company, and with the money from this venture, planned to extend his house and property to create a first class hotel for transatlantic voyagers. The house was opened to great applause by the Earl of Lathom on 25th September 1882. An article in the Daily Express on 14th September 1967 described the new hotel:

“The house with the conservatories, winter gardens and recreation grounds, covers an area of 10 acres which has been carefully laid out in the most approved style, the hotel - an imposing structure with its three coronial towers, contains about 250 bedrooms all substantially, and many very elegantly, furnished, while the baths and all other conveniences are as near perfection as possible. It is said that there are 365 windows, one for each day of the year.”

Unfortunately the Hotel had been opened during a decline in the number of transatlantic passengers and so suffered from poor business. The house became known as its originator’s folly - “Fernie’s Folly” in this instance. The decline in Atlantic trade and shipping is marked by the fact that the Sisters purchased the property in 1884 - just two years after its triumphant opening.

There was little chance of the school outgrowing the new property or seeking more modern facilities and so it was expected that Seafield would remain the Institute’s home in Liverpool for good. However the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board (now Company under Peel Holdings) wished to purchase the property envisaging the need to enlarge the docks in the future. The offer, the value of which is still not entirely known, was to construct a purpose built convent of fully modern facilities and design somewhere close to Bootle. Despite rapidly expanding towns and great urbanization there were many areas, often close to the heart of local towns that were proposed, including a spacious plot off Moor Lane. The suggestion to build the new convent on land where Marldon Avenue now stands was quickly dropped on advice of one solicitor to the Nuns who pointed out the “problems” which could occur in building a girls school opposite Merchant Taylor’s Boy’s. For reasons unknown the Moor Lane site was brushed aside in favour of the Liverpool Road site, now called “New Hey”.

After the Order vacated Seafield house completely in 1908 it remained empty until 1912 when the Lancashire Asylum Board, under the West Derby Union leased it. Early on the morning of September 22nd 1913 a great fire (not the first at the property it should be noted) destroyed two stories of the house, resulting in the re-construction of the North Wing. No one was charged in connection with the fire, although action by the suffragette movement was suspected. From this time onwards Seafield House catered for mentally deficient children, its coastal location believed to be of help to its patients. With the arrival of war in 1939 the house was turned over to treating casualties of the Battle of the Atlantic. The many rooms and facilities suited it to this need, and it remained a hospital until 1947. The house then remained empty until 1950 when the Government used it to house offices. The building was sadly demolished on 5th February 1970, having served many varied uses. One eyewitness who was connected to the school in Crosby on seeing the demolition remarked “Though I was never in the building, I felt as if someone I had known was receiving that battering”.

Headmistresses of Seafield Convent

Madame Eugéne 1872- Miss Winifred Muriel Cooper 1911-1917 Madame M. Anthony 1917-1928 Madame St. Edward 1928-1959 surname Forestel (maaybe family name? Sister Francoise 1959-1970 Sister Scholastica 1970-1975 originally Moyra Murphy, who used to teach drawing - left in about 1932 to become a nunSister Bernadine 1975-1977

External links

* [http://www-users.york.ac.uk/~scm505/index.html History of Seafield Convent website, featuring much more content]

References