⛪ Bar Convent

The Bar Convent Living Heritage Centre, at Micklegate Bar in York, England, was established in 1686 and is the oldest surviving Catholic convent in the British Isles. The laws of England at the time prohibited the foundation of Catholic convents, and as a result the community was both established and operated in secret. While pretending to be widows, the founders opened the first school for girls in the country in Hammersmith, London, in 1679, and the second at the Bar Convent. Today, the Bar Convent is a popular destination for visitors to York and offers bed and breakfast accommodation, meeting rooms, a gift shop, café, and a museum exhibition about the convent's history.