Fulneck Moravian Church

Representatives of the Moravian Church, descended from the Bohemian Brethren's Church of 1457 and renewed in 1722 in Saxony under the leadership of Count Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf, first came to England in 1728 and 1734 to establish good relations with the Church of England and to help organise missionary work in the American colonies. In 1738, a Moravian Society was established at Fetter Lane, London. With this Society were associated for a while John Wesley and his brother Charles. In Yorkshire, Benjamin Ingham, an evangelical priest of the Church of England, had created many small groups of fervent Christians. Unable to support them all himself, he sought help from the Moravians. Br…

The settlement was built on land given to the Moravians by Benjamin Ingham. The land was acquired in January 1744 and the decision to build there was taken in May 1745. Building of the Congregation House, known as ‘Grace Hall’ and which included the chapel, began in 1746. The edifice was consecrated on 2 June 1748. The building followed a style that was then typical of the Moravians. There was no clear distinction between residential accommodation for congregation labourers and the chapel. Rather, a hall in the centre of the residence served as a space for communal worship. The hall occupied the central part of the first and second floors of the building and was distinguished by a single…

On 12 October 1808, a theological seminary was established in the Brethren's House at Fulneck. The principal was Henry Steinhauer and there were five students. Before then, candidates for ordained ministry had to attend schools in Germany for training. Br John Hartley, the Head of the Schools at Fulneck, had made a proposal in 1795 at a provincial conference in Fulneck for the school to provide collegiate studies for future Ministers. However, this was pronounced to be impracticable by Bishop Samuel Liebisch from the Unity Elders’ Conference. Br Liebisch's pessimism seemed justified when the Fulneck seminary had to be closed in 1828. Ordinands then had to go again to Niesky or Gnadenfeld…