| King's College Chapel | |
|---|---|
 King's College Chapel (partly obscured by the Gibbs' Building) seen fromThe Backs | |
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| 52°12′17″N0°06′59″E / 52.2048°N 0.1165°E /52.2048; 0.1165 | |
| Location | Cambridge |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Previous denomination | Roman Catholic |
| History | |
| Status | Collegiate chapel |
| Dedication | Our Lady andSaint Nicholas |
| Consecrated | 1443 |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade I listed |
| Designated | 26 April 1950[1] |
| Architect(s) | Disputed |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Style | English Gothic |
| Years built | 1446–1515 |
| Specifications | |
| Length | 289 feet (88 m)[2] |
| Width | Vault: 40 feet (12 m)[2] |
| Height | Interior: 80 feet (24 m) Exterior: 94 feet (29 m)[2] |
| Number ofspires | 4 |
| Clergy | |
| Dean | The Revd Stephen Cherry |
| Chaplain(s) | The Revd Mary Kells |
| Laity | |
| Organist/Director of music | Daniel Hyde |
| Music group(s) | King's College Choir,King's Voices |
King's College Chapel is thechapel ofKing's College in theUniversity of Cambridge. It is considered one of the finest examples of latePerpendicular GothicEnglish architecture and features the world's largestfan vault.[3] The Chapel was built in phases by a succession of kings ofEngland from 1446 to 1515, a period which spanned theWars of the Roses and three subsequent decades. The Chapel's largestained glass windows were completed by 1531, and its earlyRenaissancerood screen was erected in 1532–36. The Chapel is an active house of worship, and home of theKing's College Choir. It is a landmark and a commonly used symbol of the city ofCambridge.[4][5]
Henry VI planned a university counterpart toEton College (whoseChapel is very similar, but not on the scale intended by Henry). The King decided the dimensions of the Chapel.Reginald Ely was most likely the architect and worked on the site since 1446.[6] Two years earlier Reginald was charged with sourcing craftsmen for the Chapel's construction.[6] He continued to work on the site until building was interrupted in 1461, having probably designed theelevations.[6] The original plans called forlierne vaulting, and thepiers of thechoir were built to conform with them.[6] Ultimately, a complexfan vault was constructed instead.[6] Reginald probably designed the windowtracery at the extreme east of the church's north side: the east window of the easternmost side chapel, which unlike the Perpendicular style of the others is incurvilinear Gothic style.[6] The priest and later bishopNicholas Close (or Cloos) was recorded as the "surveyor", having been thecurate ofSt John Zachary, a church demolished to make way for the Chapel.[7][8][9]
The first stone of the Chapel was laid, by Henry himself, on the Feast of St James the Apostle, 25 July 1446, the College having been begun in 1441. By the end of the reign ofRichard III (1485), despite theWars of the Roses, five bays had been completed and a timber roof erected.Henry VII visited in 1506, paying for the work to resume and even leaving money so that the work could continue after his death. In 1515, underHenry VIII, the building was complete but the great windows had yet to be made.
The Chapel features the world's largest fan vault, constructed between 1512 and 1515 by master masonJohn Wastell. It also features fine medieval stained glass.
Above the altar isThe Adoration of the Magi byRubens, painted in 1634 for the Convent of the White Nuns atLouvain in Belgium. The painting was installed in the Chapel in 1968 amid national controversy;[10] this involved the lowering of theSanctuary floor leading up to the High Altar. It had been believed that gradations were created in 1774 byJames Essex, when Essex had in factlowered the floor by 5 1/2 inches,[11] but at the demolition of these steps, it was found that the floor instead rested on Tudor brick arches.[12]
During the removal of these Tudor steps, built at the Founder's specific request that the high altar should be 3 ft above the choir floor, human remains in intact lead coffins with brass plaques were discovered, dating from the 15th to 18th centuries, and were disinterred.[13]
The eventual installation of the Rubens was also not without problems: once seen beneath the east window, a conflict was felt between the picture's swirling colours and those of the stained glass.[14] The Rubens was also a similar shape to the window, which "dwarfed it and made it look rather like a dependent postage stamp".[15] Plain shutters were proposed, one on each side, to give it atriptych shape (although the picture was never part of a triptych) and lend it independence of form, which is how one sees the Rubens today. The installation was designed by architect Sir Martyn Beckett, who was "philosophical about the furore this inevitably occasioned - which quickly became acceptance of a solution to a difficult problem."[16]
Many religious sites suffered damage during theEnglish Civil War asPuritans sought to remove or deface iconography they considered inappropriate. AlthoughParliamentarian troops stationed in Cambridge used the chapel as a training ground, the building was largely untouched. Some sources suggest thatOliver Cromwell, who had studied at Cambridge, ordered its protection. Near the altar, on the north and south walls, there is still graffiti left by the soldiers.[17] During theSecond World War, most of the chapel's stained glass was placed in storage as a precautionary measure, but the chapel again avoided damage.[18]
The windows of King's College Chapel are some of the finest in the world from their era. There are 12 large windows on each side of the Chapel, and larger windows at the east and west ends. With the exception of the west window, they are byFlemish hands and date from 1515 to 1531.Barnard Flower, the first non-Englishman appointed as the King's Glazier, completed four windows.Galyon Hone and three partners (two English and one Flemish) are responsible for the east window and 16 others between 1526 and 1531. The final four were made byFrancis Williamson andSymon Symondes. The one modern window is that in the west wall, which was donated by King's alumnusFrancis Stacey and is by theClayton and Bell company and dates from 1879.
This large wooden screen, which separates theante-chapel from thechoir and supports theorgan, was erected in 1532–36 by Henry VIII in celebration of his marriage toAnne Boleyn. The screen is an example of early Renaissance architecture: a striking contrast to thePerpendicular Gothic Chapel;Sir Nikolaus Pevsner said it is "the most exquisite piece of Italian decoration surviving in England".[19]
The Chapel is actively used as a place of worship and also for some concerts and college events. Notable college events include the annual King's College Music Society May Week Concert, held on the Monday ofMay Week. The event is popular with students, alumni, and visitors to the city.
The Chapel is noted for its splendidacoustics. The world-famousChoir of King's College, Cambridge, consists of choral scholars, organ scholars[20] (male students at the college), and choristers (boys educated at the nearbyKing's College School). From 1982 until shortly before his death on 22 November 2019 the director of music for the choir was SirStephen Cleobury. It is currentlyDaniel Hyde. The choir sings services on most days in term-time, and also performs concerts and makes recordings and broadcasts.
TheBBC has broadcast the Choir'sNine Lessons and Carols from the chapel onChristmas Eve, during which a solotreble sings the first verse ofOnce in Royal David's City. There is also a chapel choir of male and female students,King's Voices, which singsEvensong on Mondays during term-time.
The chapel is widely seen as a symbol of Cambridge (for example in the logo ofCambridge City Council).
The Dean of the Chapel is responsible to the College Council and the Governing Body for the conduct of services within the Chapel. King's College Chapel, like other Cambridge colleges, is not formally part of the structure of the Church of England, but the Dean is customarily licensed by theBishop of Ely. Both he and the Chaplain take a regular part in chapel services: each is normally present at services six days a week duringFull Term, and each preaches once or twice a term. The Chapel is run by a Chapel Committee chaired by the Dean. A Use of Choirs Committee, also chaired by the Dean, organises the engagements of the Chapel choir.[21]
The current Chaplain is Revd Mary Kells, who has been in the post since September 2021. She was preceded in the post by Revd Ayla Lepine (2020–2021). Revd Tom McLean served as Interim Chaplain in 2020. He followed the Revd Andrew Hammond, who held the role of Chaplain from 2015 to 2019, after the Revd Richard Lloyd Morgan who served from 2003 to 2014.[22]
Source:[23]
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