In 1838 a young priest named Cornelius Coles, London-born but probably of Irish or Belgian origin, was stationed in Woolwich.

In September of that year the commission for the design of the new church was given to the young architect Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin (1812-1852).

It is possible that Coles knew Pugin from his previous post at Holy Trinity in Bermondsey, where the architect had built a monastery in 1838.

However, his published correspondence includes extracts from letters of Father Cole, indicating Pugin's keen interest in the furnishings.

[4] The foundation stone of the Catholic church was laid on 26 October 1842, the first time in London that such a ceremony was performed openly since the Reformation.

Only a year before, the foundation stone for St George's Cathedral in Southwark had been laid in secrecy at 7 in the morning, since a Protestant backlash was feared.

Perhaps the knowledge that there would be a large number of Irish soldiers attending the ceremony in Woolwich gave the priest and the congregation confidence.

The initial cost for building the nave and aisles was £4,000, of which Thomas Griffiths, Vicar Apostolic of London, paid £1,000.

The chancel and south chapel, in keeping with Pugin's plans and manner, were added in 1887-89 by the Scottish architect Frederick Walters (1849-1931), who also did further work on St George's Cathedral, Southwark.

Pugin believed Gothic architecture celebrated asymmetry, and for that reason he planned the tower at a corner rather than in the centre of the western façade.

In an attempt to counterbalance this, the interior has been painted white and mint green, described in Volume 44 of the Survey of London as "gaudy" and "alien to Pugin's aesthetic".

The 1850 Lady Chapel is smaller than Pugin had planned, but it has an original ensemble of altar, reredos, tiles by Mintons and a stained glass window by Hardman & Co.