St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle Explained

St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle
Fullname:The King's Free Chapel of the College of St George, Windsor Castle
Location:Windsor
Country:England
Denomination:Church of England
Previous Denomination:Roman Catholicism
Churchmanship:High Church
Founded Date:1475
Dedication:St George
Status:Chapel
Functional Status:Active
Heritage Designation:Grade I listed
Style:Gothic
Years Built:1475
Completed Date:1511
Capacity:800
Deanery:Dean and Canons of Windsor
Diocese:Jurisdiction: Royal Peculiar
Location: Oxford
Dean:Christopher Cocksworth (dean-designate)
Canon:Mark Powell (Steward)
Canontreasurer:Hueston Finlay (Vice-Dean)
Precentor:Martin Poll (Chaplain)
Organistdom:James Vivian
Musicgroup:Choir of St George's Chapel

St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in England is a castle chapel built in the late-medieval Perpendicular Gothic style. It is a Royal Peculiar (a church under the direct jurisdiction of the monarch), and the Chapel of the Order of the Garter. St George's Chapel was founded in the 14th century by King Edward III and extensively enlarged in the late 15th century. It is located in the Lower Ward of the castle.[1]

The castle has belonged to the monarchy for almost 1,000 years. The chapel has been the scene of many royal services, weddings and burials – in the 19th century, St George's Chapel and the nearby Frogmore Gardens superseded Westminster Abbey as the chosen burial place for the British royal family.[2] The running of the chapel is the responsibility of the dean and Canons of Windsor who make up the College of Saint George. They are assisted by a clerk, verger and other staff. The Society of the Friends of St George's and Descendants of the Knights of the Garter, a registered charity, was established in 1931 to assist the college in maintaining the chapel.

History

Development of the building

In 1348, King Edward III founded two religious colleges: St Stephen's at Westminster and St George's at Windsor. The new college at Windsor was attached to the Chapel of St Edward the Confessor which had been constructed by Henry III in the early thirteenth century. The chapel was then re-dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, George the Martyr and Edward the Confessor, but soon became known only by its dedication to St George.[3] Edward III also built the Aerary Porch in 1353–54.[4]

The period 1475–1528 saw a radical redevelopment of St George's Chapel set in motion by Edward IV and continued by Henry VII under the supervision of his most esteemed counsellor, Sir Reginald Bray, and by Henry VIII. The thirteenth-century Chapel of St Edward the Confessor was enlarged into a cathedral-like space under the direction of Richard Beauchamp, Bishop of Salisbury, and the master mason, Henry Janyns.[5]

The Chapel suffered a great deal of destruction during the English Civil War. Parliamentary forces broke into and plundered the chapel and treasury on 23 October 1642. Further pillage occurred in 1643 when the fifteenth-century chapter house was destroyed, lead was stripped off the chapel roofs, and elements of Henry VIII's unfinished funeral monument were stolen. Following his execution in 1649, Charles I was buried in a small vault in the centre of the choir at St George's Chapel, which also contained the coffins of Henry VIII and Queen Jane (née Seymour).[6]

During his life and reign, King George III was responsible for reigniting royal interest in Windsor Castle, which had been much overlooked after the House of Hanover came to the throne of the Great Britain in 1714. On 12 August 1776 the royal family first attended the Sunday morning service at St George's Chapel – which they called "the Cathedral". George III was committed to St George's Chapel; he inspired and in large part funded an extensive restoration of the chapel from 1780 to 1790.[7]

The reign of Queen Victoria saw further changes made to the structure of the chapel. The east end of the choir was reworked in memory of Prince Albert. The Lady Chapel, which had been abandoned by Henry VII, was completed and renamed the Albert Memorial Chapel.[8]

By the early twentieth century, the bowing walls, cracked vaulting, decayed stone and stripped lead required urgent attention. In 1920 a much needed ten-year restoration project began at George's Chapel, overseen by the consulting architect Sir Harold Brakspear.[9] As part of this programme, Mahomet Thomas Phillips – an Anglo-Congolese sculptor – produced a falcon and a unicorn in 1923.[10]

The King George VI Memorial Chapel was constructed in 1969 between the Rutland Chapel and the north choir of St George's Chapel to a design by George Pace.[11]

The Royal Beasts

On the roof of the chapel, standing on the pinnacles, and also on pinnacles at the sides, are seventy-six heraldic statues representing the Royal Beasts. They represent fourteen of the heraldic animals: the lion of England, the red dragon of Wales, the panther of Jane Seymour, the falcon of York, the black bull of Clarence, the yale of Beaufort, the white lion of Mortimer, the greyhound of Richmond, the white hart of Richard II, the collared silver antelope of Bohun, the black dragon of Ulster, the white swan of Hereford, the unicorn of Edward III and the golden hind of Kent.[12]

The original beasts dated from the sixteenth century, but were removed in 1682 on the advice of Sir Christopher Wren. Wren had criticised the Reigate Stone, the calcareous sandstone from which they were constructed. The present statues date from 1925 when the chapel was restored.[13] [14]

The choir of St George's Chapel

The choristers of St George's Chapel are boarders at St George's School, Windsor Castle.[15]

Order of the Garter

Garter Service

Members of the Order of the Garter meet at Windsor Castle every June for the annual Garter Service. After lunch in the State Apartments (Upper Ward of the Castle), they process on foot in their robes and insignia, down to St George's Chapel for the service. The Garter Service was revived in 1948 by King George VI for the 600th anniversary of the founding of the Order and has since become an annual event.[16]

Heraldry

After their installation, members are each assigned a stall in the chapel choir above which his or her heraldic devices are displayed. A member's sword is placed beneath a helmet which is decorated with a mantling and topped with a crest, coronet or crown. Above this, a member's heraldic banner is hoisted emblazoned with his arms.[17]

A Garter stall plate, a small elaborately enamelled plate of brass, is affixed to the back of the stall displaying its member's name and arms with other inscriptions. On a member's death, the sword, helmet, mantling, crest, coronet or crown, and banner are removed. A service marking the death of a late member must be held before the stall can be assigned to anyone else. The ceremony takes place in the chapel, during which the Military Knights of Windsor carry the banner of the deceased member and offer it to the Dean of Windsor, who places it on the altar. The stall plates, however, are not removed. They remain permanently affixed to the stall, so the stalls of the chapel are emblazoned with a collection of 800 plates of the members throughout history.[18]

Chantries

St George's Chapel is among the most important medieval chantry foundations to have survived in England. The college was itself part of a medieval chantry, and there are a number of other chantry elements in the form of altars and small chapels in memory of various English monarchs and of a number of prominent courtiers, deans and canons. Special services and prayers would also be offered in memory of the founder. Henry VIII had originally intended another chantry to be set up in the chapel, despite the fact that his ecclesiastical changes led to the Reformation in England and the eventual suppression of chantries.[19]

The much-admired iron gates in the sanctuary of the chapel as well as the locks on the doors of the chapel are the work of the medieval Cornish metalsmith John Tresilian.[20]

Rutland Chantry

The Rutland Chantry chapel, forming the northern transept of St George's Chapel, was founded in 1491 in honour of Sir Thomas St Leger (–1483) and Anne of York (1439–1476).[21] Sir Thomas was Anne's second husband. She was the eldest surviving daughter of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, and thus elder sister of kings Edward IV (1442–1483) and Richard III (1452–1485). A monumental brass in memory of Anne and Sir Thomas survives on the east wall of the Rutland Chantry, the inscription of which records that the chantry was founded "with two priests singing forevermore":

"Wythin thys Chappell lyethe beryed Anne Duchess of Exetur suster unto the noble kyng Edward the forte. And also the body of syr Thomas Sellynger knyght her husband which hathe funde within thys College a Chauntre with too prestys sy’gyng for ev’more. On whose soule god have mercy. The wych Anne duchess dyed in the yere of oure lorde M Thowsande CCCCl xxv"[22]

The chantry received its current name in honour of the Earls of Rutland, descendants of Anne and Sir Thomas: their daughter, also Anne, married George Manners, 11th Baron Ros, and their son was Thomas Manners, 1st Earl of Rutland. The tomb of George and Anne Manners is a prominent feature of the chantry. Their effigies are carved in English alabaster.

The chantry comprises five panels which represent the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Adoration of the Magi, the Temptations of Christ in the wilderness and the Miracle at Cana. They were commissioned from embroiderer Beryl Dean and took five years to complete. Only one panel is normally on display to the public, but the others may be seen on request.[23]

Weddings

The chapel has been the site of many royal weddings, particularly of the children of Queen Victoria. They have included:

YearGroomBride
1863Albert Edward, Prince of WalesPrincess Alexandra of Denmark
1866Prince Christian of Schleswig-HolsteinThe Princess Helena
1871John Campbell, Marquess of LorneThe Princess Louise
1879Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and StrathearnPrincess Louise Margaret of Prussia
1880Alphons, Baron von Pawel-RammingenPrincess Frederica of Hanover
1882Prince Leopold, Duke of AlbanyPrincess Helen of Waldeck and Pyrmont
1891Prince Aribert of AnhaltPrincess Marie Louise of Schleswig-Holstein
1904 Prince Alexander of TeckPrincess Alice of Albany
1905Prince Gustaf Adolf of SwedenPrincess Margaret of Connaught
1919Major John GibbsLady Helena Cambridge
1957David Liddell-GraingerAnne Abel Smith
1992Timothy TaylorLady Helen Windsor
1999The Prince EdwardSophie Rhys-Jones[24]
2008Peter PhillipsAutumn Kelly[25]
2018Prince Henry of WalesMeghan Markle[26]
Jack BrooksbankPrincess Eugenie of York[27]
2019Thomas KingstonLady Gabriella Windsor[28]
Charles III, then-Prince of Wales, and Queen Camilla, then-Duchess of Cornwall received a blessing from the Archbishop of Canterbury following their marriage in 2005.[29]

Burials

The chapel has been the site of many royal funerals and interments. People interred in the Chapel include:

Altar

Quire

Royal Vault

Near West Door

King George VI Memorial Chapel

See main article: King George VI Memorial Chapel.

Albert Memorial Chapel

Gloucester Vault

Others

Former burials

In literature

See also

References

Sources

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Harry and Meghan to wed at Windsor in May. 28 November 2017. 28 November 2017. BBC News.
  2. Web site: What will happen when the Queen dies and where will she be buried. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220524/https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/queen-elizabeth-death-dies-what-happens-uk-london-bridge-down-a8444526.html . 24 May 2022 . subscription . live. The Independent. Olivia. Petter. 16 October 2020. 11 April 2021.
  3. Book: Collegiate churches: Windsor (St George's chapel). A History of the County of Berkshire: Volume 2. P H Ditchfield . William Page. Victoria County History. 1907. 106.
  4. Web site: The Aerary Porch. https://web.archive.org/web/20060915035637/http://www.stgeorges-windsor.org/tour/tour_aerary.asp . 2006-09-15 . St. George's Chapel website. 1 October 2022.
  5. Book: James, Sara N. . Art in England: The Saxons to the Tudors: 600–1600. 2016. 216. Oxbow Books. 978-1785702266.
  6. Web site: 12 November 1537 – Jane Seymour's remains moved to Windsor. 12 November 2015 . The Tudor Society. 1 October 2022.
  7. Web site: The legacy of King George III. St George's Chapel. 1 October 2022.
  8. Web site: The Wolsey Chapel. St George's Chapel. 1 October 2022.
  9. The Restoration of St George's Chapel, Windsor. Journal of the Royal Society of Arts. 79. 13 February 1931. 306–319. 41358709 . 1 October 2022. Baillie . Albert . 4082 .
  10. Web site: Hughes . H . 17 October 2022 . Mahomet Thomas Phillips Part 2 . University of Lincoln.
  11. News: Keay. Douglas. Princess Margaret's ashes to rest by her father. 14 September 2022. The Times. 67375. 15 February 2002. 3.
  12. Web site: Windsor Royal Beasts on St George's Chapel roof. 6 July 2008. Wordpress. 10 October 2014.
  13. Book: London, H. Stanford. "The" Queen's Beasts: An Account with New Drawings of the Heraldic Animals Witch Stood at the Entrance to Westminster Abbey on the Occasion of the Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II., 2. June 1953. 1953. Newman Neame. 15.
  14. News: Sir Frederick Minter . . 19 . 15 July 1976.
  15. Book: Wridgway, Neville . The Choristers of St George's Chapel . Chas. Luff & Co. . 1980 . 132.
  16. Web site: Order of the Garter Timeline. The Companion. 2015. 3. 1 October 2022.
  17. Web site: St George's Chapel Banners of Arms Hand-Painted by Flagmakers. Flagmakers. 1 October 2022.
  18. Web site: Register of Stall Plates in St George's Chapel. 18. The Companion. 1 October 2022.
  19. 'Pickpurse' Purgatory, the Dissolution of the Chantries and the Suppression of Intercession for the Dead. 18 July 2013. Journal of the British Archaeological Association. 164. 10.1179/174767011X13184281108289 . 1 October 2022. Lindley . Phillip . 277–304 . 194045544 .
  20. Book: Blackburne, Harry W. . The Romance of St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle. 2008. Wildside Press. 978-1434474285. 14–.
  21. Web site: The Rutland Chantry. Eleanor Cracknell. College of St George. 15 July 2011. 19 May 2018.
  22. Web site: The Roos Monument in the Rutland Chantry Chapel. 10 September 2010 . St George's Chapel. 1 October 2022.
  23. Web site: Beryl Dean Panels. College of St George. en-GB. 2019-10-28.
  24. News: Britain's Prince Edward, Sophie Rhys-Jones marry as royals look on . CNN. 19 June 1999. 3 May 2011.
  25. News: Royal marries in Windsor wedding. BBC News. 17 May 2008. 17 May 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080518081959/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7406008.stm. 18 May 2008. live.
  26. News: Yeginsu . Ceylan . 2018-03-02 . Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Invite Members of Public to Wedding Day . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-09-18 . 0362-4331.
  27. News: Prince Andrew says Princess Eugenie will have more guests at her wedding than Duke and Duchess of Sussex did. The Daily Telegraph. Hannah. Furness. Helena. Horton. 12 October 2018. 12 October 2018.
  28. News: Royals at Lady Gabriella Windsor wedding . en-GB . BBC News . 2022-12-04.
  29. News: Timetable of Royal wedding day, 9 April 2005 . BBC News . 28 April 2016 .
  30. Web site: Royal Burials in the Chapel since 1805 . College of St George . 2017 . 2018-05-19 .
  31. Web site: The Roos Monument in the Rutland Chantry Chapel. College of St George. 10 September 2010.
  32. Web site: View and Ground Plan of St. George's Chapel, Windsor – Wenceslaus Hollar. 21 June 2016.
  33. Web site: View and Ground Plan of St. George's Chapel, Windsor – Wenceslaus Hollar. 8 May 2015.
  34. Web site: View and Ground Plan of St. George's Chapel, Windsor – Wenceslaus Hollar. 21 June 2016.
  35. Web site: Picture . www.antiqueprints.co. JPG.
  36. Web site: Free stock images for genealogy and ancestry researchers. www.ancestryimages.com.