Intercontinental Church Society
The Intercontinental Church Society is a global mission organisation connected to the Church of England that provides a ministry to English speaking people through Anglican churches around the world.
The organisation was founded in 1823. There are 55 chaplains in 65 locations both on permanent and temporary bases.
ICS Has patronage, the historic right of appointment in 23 chaplaincies.
Christ Church Amsterdam
St George’s Barcelona
St Nicholas’ Basle/Basel
St Peter’s Brugge
Holy Trinity Cannes
St Peter’s Chantilly
St Willibrord’s Arnhem
St Marc’s Grenoble
Christ Church Lille
Lyon Anglican Church
Holy Trinity Maisons-Laffitte
English Church of Ostend
St Michael’s Paris
St Mary’s Rotterdam
St Paul's Tervuren
St John and St Philip’s The Hague
Holy Trinity Utrecht
St Mark’s Versailles
All Saint’s Vevey
St Peter’s Château d’Oex
St James’ Voorschoten
In the Paris area there are five ICS churches:
- St.Peter's, Chantilly
- Fontainebleau Anglican Church
- Holy Trinity, Maisons-Laffitte
- St.Michael's, Paris
- St. Mark's, Versailles
1. History
The Newfoundland School Society was established, following a meeting on 30 June 1823, called by a Newfoundland fish merchant, Samuel Codner in a coffee house in Ludgate Hill to discuss the education of children of poor British settlers in the New World. By 1846 the society was responsible for 116 schools in Newfoundland and Canada.
William Wilberforce became a vice-president. William IV was the first royal patron. This honour has been continued by succeeding monarchs.
Another society was formed to support welfare and missionary work amongst settlers in Australia. With a million people emigrating from Britain between 1815 and 1840, it expanded quickly to other countries. In 1838 it adopted the name The Colonial Church Society.
The Newfoundland School Society and the Colonial Church Society merged in 1851 to form the Colonial Church and School Society. The title was changed in 1861 to the Colonial and Continental Church Society (Col and Con) due to increasing activity in Europe.
Subsequently the Society became involved in the training of theological students in Canada for service in the Arctic and the Far West, worked in Australia with the Bush Church Aid Society, and in many parts of Africa and Asia.
The name of the Society was changed in 1958 to the Commonwealth and Continental Church Society and to the Intercontinental Church Society in 1979 as virtually all the Society’s work was by then being carried on outside Commonwealth countries.
ICS, along with other mission agencies, including South American Mission Society (SAMS), Church Society and Crosslinks has worked in continental Europe for over 150 years. The Diocese in Europe was set up in 1981. ICS was involved in the development of Continental chaplaincies from 1839, beginning at Bagni di Lucca, near Pisa, in Italy. The Colonial and Continental Church Society nominated and financially supported the first Bishop of the Suffragan See of Fulham. Over the years grants were made to both the Bishop of Gibraltar and the Bishop of Fulham. The second Bishop of Fulham (W M Selwyn) was a sitting member of the Colonial and Continental Church Society committee at the time of his consecration.