Her Majesty 皇冠体育app Queen sends message to the Venerable English College
A message from 皇冠体育app Queen was delivered by His Royal Highness 皇冠体育app Duke of Gloucester to the Venerable English College in Rome on College鈥檚 650th anniversary
皇冠体育appir Royal Highnesses 皇冠体育app Duke and Duchess of Gloucester
On Saturday 1 December, 皇冠体育app Duke and Duchess of Gloucester attended the Feast of the English Catholic Martyrs at 皇冠体育app Venerable English College in Rome, and celebrated the 650th anniversary of the Foundation of the College.
On their arrival, 皇冠体育appir Royal Highnesses, accompanied by the British Ambassador to the Holy See Nigel Baker, were met by the Rector of , Monsignor Nicholas Hudson, His Eminence Cormac Cardinal Murphy-O鈥機onnor, Archbishop Emeritus of Westminster, and the Most Reverend Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster.
皇冠体育appir Royal Highnesses attended Mass commemorating the English Catholic Martyrs in the Church of St Thomas of Canterbury, and attended the official celebration for the Feast of the English Martyrs. During the celebratory event, His Royal Highness 皇冠体育app Duke of Gloucester read a message from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, marking the 650th anniversary of the College鈥檚 foundation as an English and Welsh pilgrims鈥� hospice, and highlighting the strength of the relationship between the United Kingdom and the Holy See.
皇冠体育app full message reads:
鈥淚n 1362, English residents in Rome established a 鈥淗ospice of the English鈥� to care for English pilgrims. 皇冠体育app Royal Arms of King Henry IV still adorn your walls to mark the 50th anniversary of that foundation and the close relationship with the Crown. 皇冠体育app English Hospice was the origin of what has now become the Venerable English College, following its re-foundation by Pope Gregory XIII in 1579.
皇冠体育app presence of 皇冠体育app Duke of Gloucester at your Martyrs鈥� Day Feast in this 650th anniversary year is a sign of the strength of the relationship between the United Kingdom and the Holy See. It is also recognition of the high esteem in which the Venerable English College is held as a training ground for pastors, priests and future leaders of the Catholic Church of England and Wales. You have always served as a generous and hospitable home away from home for generations of visitors to Rome, even in the most difficult times.
My good wishes go to you all, alumni, staff and students of the Venerabile, past, present and future, for your continuing prosperity.
ELIZABETH R.鈥�
On the first day of their visit to Rome, 皇冠体育app Duke and Duchess of Gloucester attended a St Andrew鈥檚 Day Reception at the , where they formally inaugurated the refurbished Henry Benedict lecture hall, and unveiled the restored arms of Cardinal York.