Campion Hall, Oxford

The origins of Campion Hall began on 9 September 1896 when Fr Richard Clarke, who was a former member of St. John's College, Oxford, opened a private hall called Clarke's Hall. He was sent by his superiors from the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street, in London to St. Aloysius Church in Oxford to set up a hall for Jesuit undergraduates. He founded a small house at 40 St Giles', Oxford, and was the first master of the hall. On 10 September 1896 the hall had its first four students. The hall allowed Jesuits to study for degrees from the University of Oxford.[1][2]

The rented accommodation that was originally used was too small and 15 months later the hall was moved to Middleton Hall at 11 St Giles', which was leased to the Society of Jesus until 1936.[3]

In 1900, Fr Clarke died suddenly at York and, with his death, the hall ceased to exist. That year the hall was reopened as Pope's Hall under Fr O'Fallon Pope as master who continued to be master until 1915. In 1902, he purchased 14 and 15 St Giles' and, in 1903, 13 St Giles' was also bought.

Campion Hall

Fr O'Fallon Pope was succeeded by Fr Charles Plater and the hall again changed its name, this time to Plater's Hall.[4]

In 1918, the hall was granted permanent status[5] and changed its name to Campion Hall after St Edmund Campion, an English Jesuit and martyr who had been a fellow at St John's College. Permanent private halls (PPH) within the University of Oxford were established for the reception of students on the condition that they are not for purposes of profit. Apart from Campion Hall, the other early permanent private halls were St Benet's Hall from 1918 and St Peter's Hall from 1929 to 1947. Permanent private halls have the same privileges as members of colleges.

In 1921, Fr Plater died and Fr Henry Keane was appointed master, until his retirement in 1926. He was succeeded by Fr Ernest G. Vignaux, who was master until 1933. At that time, there were plans for the building of a new hall in Giles'. He was succeeded as master by Fr Martin D'Arcy until1945.

External view of Campion Hall with the chapel (right), from Brewer Street

In 1933, when Fr. D'Arcy became Master, the lease of the St. Giles property had only three years to run,[6] so in 1935 a project of building in St. Giles was dropped and a new home was found in Brewer Street.[4] The properties in St. Giles's were subsequently sold to St. John's College.

Brewer Street, also known as 'Sleying Lane' was occupied in the medieval period by brewers and butchers.[7] There is a long history of brewing in Oxford. Several of the colleges had private breweries, one of which, Brasenose College, survived until 1889.[8] In the 16th century, brewing and malting appeared to have been the most popular trades in the city. By 1874 there were nine breweries in Oxford and 13 brewers' agents in Oxford shipping beer in from elsewhere, Brewer Street was no exception.[9]

At Brewer Street, Campion Hall bought two buildings, one a large and ancient lodging house, known as 'Micklem Hall', which in the past belonged to Hall's Brewery. It was owned by a brewer named Micklem (1820–1870). The second building was a garage which had once been the stables for the horses which pulled the Oxford trams. The garage was demolished, as well as some of the rooms of Micklem Hall, with others incorporated into the new building.[10]

The new building was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and completed in 1936. The building was opened in June 1936, by the Duke of Alba, Spanish ambassador to London, alongside Alban Goodier S.J., the former Archbishop of Bombay, and Julian Asquith, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Asquith.[11]

The building was Grade II* listed in 1954.[12] It is the only building in Oxford designed by Lutyens, although in 1928 he did design the fountain in Tom Quad at nearby Christ Church.[13] The style of Lutyens's exterior has been compared to 17th-century Cotswold architecture.[14] The chapel has a semi-circular apse with a baldachin,[15] and Lutyens provided chapel light fittings having red tassels like those on a cardinal's hat.[14]

In 1912 Lutyens had laid out New Delhi as the new capital of India.[16] He devised an architectural Delhi Order there, with small bells hanging from the capitals of the columns,[17] and subsequently made use of it in his design for Campion Hall, including in the columns supporting the baldachin in the chapel.[15]

Fr. D'Arcy continued as Master of Campion Hall until 1945, when he was succeeded by Fr. Thomas Corbishley. In 2001, the Jesuit spirituality journal, The Way, began to operate from Campion Hall.

Campion Hall hosts the Jesuit academic community within University of Oxford and has an international student body, admitting graduate students in Humanities and Social Science subjects, and occasionally in other disciplines.

In 2018, the Laudato Si' Research Institute was started at Campion Hall. It has the aim of conducting and fostering inter-disciplinary research on issues relating to integral ecology.[18]

Possible Michelangelo Crucifixion of Christ, 1540

In 2011, a painting "The Crucifixion of Jesus" which had been hanging in a hall of Campion Hall, was thought to have been a long-lost Michelangelo masterpiece worth £100 million. The painting was bought by Fr. Martin D'Arcy when he was Master of Campion Hall at a Sotheby's auction in the 1930s. Some experts argue that the painting dates from towards the end of Michelangelo's life when his eyesight was failing, so is more likely to be a painting by Marcello Venusti.

The painting was removed from its position on a wall in Campion Hall and sent to the Ashmolean Museum where it is on display.[19]