page_title: Priest hole
section_title: Location and use
hierarchical_section_title: Priest hole / Location and use
caption_attribution_description: English: A "priest hole" (hiding) in the staitcase in 16th c. manor house, Harvington Hall, Worcestershire,UK. It was made by St Nicholas Owen ("Little John").
context_page_description: A priest hole is a hiding place for a priest built into many of the principal Catholic houses of England during the period when Catholics were persecuted by law in England. When Queen Elizabeth I came to the throne in 1558, there were several Catholic plots designed to remove her and severe measures were taken against Catholic priests. Many great houses had a priest hole built so that the presence of a priest could be concealed when searches were made of the building. They were concealed in walls, under floors, behind wainscoting and other locations and were often successful in concealing their occupant.
  Many priest holes were designed by Jesuit lay brother Nicholas Owen, who spent much of his life building priest holes to protect the lives of persecuted priests. After the Gunpowder Plot, Owen himself was captured, taken to the Tower of London and tortured to death on the rack. He was canonised as a martyr by Pope Paul VI in 1970.
context_section_description: England's castles and country houses commonly had some precaution in the event of a surprise, such as a secret means of concealment or escape that could be used at a moment's notice. However, in the time of legal persecution the number of secret chambers and hiding-places increased in the houses of the old Catholic families. These often took the form of apartments or chapels in secluded parts of the houses, or in the roof space, where Mass could be celebrated with the utmost privacy and safety. Nearby there was usually an artfully contrived hiding-place, not only for the officiating priest to slip into in case of emergency, but also to provide a place where the vestments, sacred vessels, and altar furniture could be stored on short notice.  Priest's holes were built in fireplaces, attics and staircases and were largely constructed between the 1550s and 1605.
caption: One of the hides at Harvington Hall, accessed by tilting a step on the Grand Staircase.
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