THE LORETO NUNS - ST. MICHAEL’S PROTECTION OF THE LORETO CONVENT, YORK.
THE LORETO NUNS - ST. MICHAEL’S PROTECTION OF THE LORETO CONVENT, YORK. The Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, (the Loreto nuns), were founded by Mary Ward, (1585-1645), who came from a recusant family in the turbulent period of Catholic persecution in England in the years following Elizabeth I. From the time of the Act of Uniformity, (1559), it was illegal to practice the Catholic faith in England. The Act of Supremacy required an oath swearing allegiance to the Queen as the head of the Church of England – excluding Catholics from all office - judges, justices, mayors, royal officials, clergy and all universities. The initial penalty for refusal to take the oath was loss of office. Four years later, however, the penalty had been increased to loss of goods and imprisonment for a first offence, with a second offence counted as treason and punishable with death together with forfeiture of all property to the Crown . The Act of Uniformity, (1558), had set the order of prayer to be that...