Sister's 150th Anniversary in the UK

The Sisters of Sion celebrated their 150th Anniversary in the UK by holding a service of celebration and thanksgiving in St. Mary of the Angels Church in Bayswater. The service was attended by many of the Sisters, from Europe as well as from the UK, and by many other people who have links with the Sisters, including four members of staff from our Worthing School. After the service, a reception for all those who had attended, was held in the nearby Westbourne Grove Church. It was a wonderful day; the service was inspiring, and it was a real privilege to be able to join the Sisters in their celebration.

The Sisters first came to the UK in 1860. Father Theodore Ratisbonne visited England in 1858, at the invitation of Cardinal Wiseman. During his visit, he became a good friend of Cardinal Manning, who was parish priest of St Mary of the Angels church at that time. Cardinal Manning asked Father Theodore to send over some of the Sisters to establish schools in England, and in 1860, three Sisters, two English and one French, came to Bayswater. They set up the first school in England, in Chepstow Villas, Bayswater. This school was soon followed by our school in Worthing, which opened in 1862, and in 1870, by the school in Holloway.
The school in Chepstow Villas amalgamated with Cardinal Manning School, in Charles Square, Islington in 1968, and the Holloway School, in Eden Grove, amalgamated with Sainte Union School in Highgate in 1967. Our School in Worthing, is now the only Sion school in the UK, although there are still eighteen schools around the world.
The Sisters of Sion still have ten communities in the UK and Ireland, and in 23 other countries around the world.

One of the tapestries created by the Sisters to show their history in the UK

See also the Sisters of Sion website http://www.sistersofsion.org./jubilee/JubileeYear.html

Sisters of Sion 150th Anniversary