| Administrative History | The Company was founded by Rev. Osmund Victor while he was working in South Africa. In England its origins lay in a gathering of the Girls’ Diocesan Association, chaplained by Rev. Victor, in 1919, when it consisted of a Chaplain, a Scribe and eleven ‘Companions’ (members). The first ‘Company Weekend’, was spent at Pleshey, Chelmsford, in 1920. The annual gatherings became known as ‘Mansion Weekends’ which, in some ways, were precursors of present day retreats. The Company met for corporate prayer, meditation and discussion, led by their Chaplain. Rev. Edmund Keble Talbot was the original Chaplain, until his death in the 1940s.
It was an Anglican women’s association and deliberately kept itself fairly small; 27 attended the weekend gathering in 1927 and 44 in 1956, and it was noted in 1968 that about 35 usually attended. By 1950, a number of branches or ‘Daughter Companies’ were in existence, both in England and abroad (India and South Africa), receiving advice and support from designated Companions or ‘Godmothers’.
Other aspects of Company organisation included:-
- ‘Wayfarers’, who usually became full Companions after a probationary period.
- ‘Watchers’, who spent additional time praying for the Company.
- ‘Hearths’, houses where two or more Companions lived together, using the Company Rule as the foundation for their lives.
The ‘Company Rule’ was based upon ‘Ideals’, defined in 1924 as Love, Joy, Peace, Humility, Hiddenness, Simplicity and Perseverance. Emphasis was placed on the importance of meditation. Recruitment was a selective, rigorous and lengthy process; publicity was shunned and prospective Companions approached through personal contact by existing members. |