A chapel royal is an establishment in the British and Canadian royal households serving the spiritual needs of the sovereign and the royal family.
Historically, the chapel royal was a body of priests and singers that travelled with the monarch. The term is now also applied to the chapels within royal palaces, [1] or a title granted to churches by the monarch. In the Church of England, working royal chapels may also be referred to as royal peculiars, an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the monarch. The dean of His Majesty's chapels royal is a royal household office in the United Kingdom that, in modern times, is usually held by the Bishop of London. [2] In Canada, the three chapels royal are affiliated with some of the country's First Nations.
A British chapel royal's most public role is to perform choral liturgical service. [3] The British chapels royal have played a significant role in the musical life of the nation, with composers such as Tallis, Byrd, Bull, Gibbons, and Purcell all having been members of the choir. [4] The choir consists of gentlemen of the chapel royal singing the lower parts alongside the boy choristers known as the children of the chapel.
Outside the United Kingdom and Canada, there is also another royal chapel, St. Peter's Church - Their Majesties Chappell, located in St. George's Parish, Bermuda.
In its early history, the English Chapel Royal travelled, like the rest of the court, with the monarch and performed its functions wherever he or she was residing at the time. The earliest written record of the Chapel dates from c. 1135, in the reign of Henry I. Specified in this document of household regulations are two gentlemen and four servants; although, there may have been other people within the Chapel at that time. [5] An ordinance from the reign of Henry VI sets out the full membership of the Chapel as of 1455: one dean, 20 chaplains and clerks, seven children, one chaplain confessor for the household, and one yeoman. However, in the same year, the clerks petitioned the King asking that their number be increased to 24 singing men, due to "the grete labour that thei have daily in your chapell". [5] The master of the children of the Chapel Royal had, until at least 1684, the power to impress promising boy trebles from provincial choirs for service in the Chapel.
From the reign of Edward IV in the late 1400s, further details survive: There were 26 chaplains and clerks, who were to be "cleare voysid" in their singing and "suffisaunt in Organes playing". The children were supervised by a master of song, chosen by the dean from among the gentlemen of the Chapel Royal. They were allocated supplies of meat and ale and their own servant. [5] Additionally, there were two yeoman of the Chapel, who acted as epistlers, reading from the bible during services. These were appointed from children of the Chapel whose voices had recently broken. [5] [6]
The Chapel remained stable throughout the reign of Henry VIII and the dissolution of the monasteries. The number of singers did vary during this period, however, without apparent reason, from between 20 to 30 gentlemen and eight to 10 children. [5] The Chapel travelled with the King to the Field of the Cloth of Gold and during the second invasion of France. [5]
The Chapel increasingly took on another, unofficial function that grew in importance into the 17th century –performing in dramas. The affiliated theatre company, known as the Children of the Chapel, produced plays by playwrights including John Lyly, Ben Jonson, and George Chapman, and performed them at court and then commercially until the 1620s. Both the gentlemen and the children would act in pageants and plays for the royal family, held in court on feast days such as Christmas. For example, at Christmas 1514, the play The Triumph of Love and Beauty was written and presented by William Cornysh, then-Master of the Children, and was performed to the King by members of the Chapel, including the children. [7]
In music, the Chapel achieved its greatest eminence during the reign of Elizabeth I, when William Byrd and Thomas Tallis were joint organists.
In the 17th century, the Chapel Royal had its own building in Whitehall, which burned in 1698; since 1702, it has been based at St James's Palace. The English Chapel Royal became increasingly associated with Westminster Abbey, so that, by 1625, over half of the gentlemen of the English Chapel Royal were also members of the Westminster Abbey choir. [8] In the 18th century, the choristers sang the soprano parts in performances of Handel's oratorios and other works. Under Charles II, the choir was often augmented by violinists from the royal consort; at various times, the Chapel has also employed composers, lutenists, and viol players.
The Chapel Royal in the United Kingdom is a department of the Ecclesiastical Household, which was established in 1483, under Edward IV, as the Royal Free Chapel of the Household. [9] The Chapel Royal, in this sense, is a grouping of clerics and musicians, rather than a physical building. [9] Traditionally, the members of the Chapel Royal are divided into clerics, choristers, and gentlemen of the Chapel. [9] The Chapel Royal is a royal peculiar –a church institute outside the usual diocesan structure of the Churches of England and Scotland. It is one of the three major royal peculiars, the others being Westminster Abbey and St George's Chapel, which includes the Royal Chapel of All Saints. [10] The members of the ecclesiastical household in Scotland are supplied by the Church of Scotland, while the members of ecclesiastical household in England are supplied by the Church of England. [11]
Since the 18th century, the dean of the Chapel Royal in England has been the sitting Bishop of London, with control of music vested in the sub-dean (currently Paul Wright). [9] The Chapel Royal conducts the Service of Remembrance at the Cenotaph in Whitehall and combines with the choir of the host abbey or cathedral at the Royal Maundy service. The choir was among those selected to sing at the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in 2023. [12]
The location of the United Kingdom's Chapel Royal has varied over the years. For example, in the early Tudor period and in Elizabeth I's reign, the Chapel's activity was often centred on the Greenwich Palace and the Palace of Whitehall. [13] During and since the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, the Chapel's primary location is at St James's Palace.
The chapel at St James's has been regularly used by the canons and singers since 1702, after the loss of the Chapel Royal at Whitehall Palace to fire, and is the most commonly used facility today. Located in the main block of the palace, it was built around 1540 and has been altered since, most notably by Sir Robert Smirke in 1837. The large window to the right of the palace gatehouse is in the north wall of this chapel, which is laid out on a north-south, rather than the usual east-west, axis. Its ceiling is decorated with royal initials and coats of arms and is said to have been painted by Holbein.
The separate Queen's Chapel, once also physically connected to the main building of St James's Palace, was built between 1623 and 1625 as a Roman Catholic chapel for Queen Henrietta Maria, consort of Charles I, at a time when the construction of Roman Catholic churches was otherwise prohibited in England. From the 1690s, it was used by continental Lutheran courtiers and became known as the German chapel. The "Minister for many years" of the "royal French chapel" [14] at St James's Palace was Pierre Rival (d. 1730), one of whose sermons is published as no: Sermon prononcé le 7 de Juillet 1713 jour d'action de graces pour la paix dans la chapelle royale françoise du palais de Saint James. The adjacent palace apartments burnt down in 1809; but, they were not rebuilt and, between 1856 and 1857, Marlborough Road was laid out between the palace and the Queen's Chapel.
At Windsor Castle is one of the largest royal peculiars, St George's Chapel. However, it is governed by its own college, separate from St. James's Chapel Royal. Near the royal apartments, there is also the smaller private chapel. In the grounds of Windsor's Royal Lodge is the Royal Chapel of All Saints.
In the 15th century, it is believed that the Chapel Royal referred to a prebend in the Church of St Mary on the Rock, at St Andrews. In 1501, James IV founded a new Chapel Royal in Stirling Castle; but, from 1504 onwards, the deanery of the Chapel Royal was held by successive Bishops of Galloway with the title Bishop of the Chapel Royal and authority over all the royal palaces within Scotland. The deanery was annexed to the bishopric of Dunblane in 1621, and the Chapel Royal was moved to Holyrood. Following the Glorious Revolution in 1688, a mob in Edinburgh broke into the abbey, entered the Chapel Royal, and desecrated the royal tombs. From then on, the building fell into decay and became a roofless ruin. The restoration of the abbey has been proposed several times since the 18th century –in 1835, by the architect James Gillespie Graham as a meeting place for the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, and in 1906, as a chapel for the Knights of the Thistle –but both proposals were rejected.
At the Chapel Royal at Hampton Court Palace, a permanent chorus was created in 1868. The chorus, which sings on Sundays and major feast days, consists of 14 boy members and six gentlemen members. [15] An organ was built in 1712 and, most recently, restored in 2013. [16] [15]
Two patronised chapels royal almost never attended by the monarch are the Chapels of St John the Evangelist and St Peter ad Vincula in the Tower of London, having their own chaplains and choirs. In 2012, Roger Hall, the Chaplain of the Tower of London, was made canon of the Chapel Royal at the Tower of London, the first such appointment since the 16th century. [17] In 2016, the King's Chapel of the Savoy in Westminster, London, which is the monarch's by right of the Duchy of Lancaster, was brought for ecclesiastical purposes within the jurisdiction of the chapels royal. [2] [18] Chapels with a royal original purpose, but currently without royal patronage, include the Royal Chapel of St Katherine-upon-the-Hoe in the Royal Citadel in Plymouth. However, in 1927, King George V re-granted the title royal chapel to the Garrison Church.
Several other locations have formerly hosted the Chapel Royal, including the former Chapel Royal in Brighton. This was used by visiting royalty and as the primary chapel of ease to St Peter's Church. [19] The chapel was formally separated from St. Peter's parish in 2010 and became a parish in its own right. Another former chapel royal was situated in Dublin, prior to the independence of Ireland in the 1920s. The Chapel Royal in Dublin operated within Dublin Castle, which served as the official seat for the lord lieutenant of Ireland. Buckingham Palace had a royal chapel designed by John Nash for Queen Victoria but it was damaged by enemy bombing in World War II and what was left was eventually incorporated into the Queen's Gallery. [20]
Chapels royal in Canada are religious establishments which have been granted a rare honorific distinction by the monarch in recognition of their unique role or place. [21] Three sanctuaries in Canada, all located in the province of Ontario, have been designated as chapels royal. All have associations with First Nations communities and the connection between them and the Canadian Crown.
Mohawk Chapel in Brantford was designated as a chapel royal in 1904 by King Edward VII. [22] This was done in recognition of the historic alliance between the Mohawk people and the Crown, referred to as the Covenant Chain. In 2004, Queen Elizabeth II designated Christ Church, near Deseronto, as a chapel royal. [23] The chapel served as the church for the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory and was designated as a chapel royal in recognition of the community's military service. [24]
The first two chapels royal are situated within Mohawk communities that were established in Canada after the American Revolutionary War. [25] Several gifts from the Crown were bestowed on these chapels royal, including silver communion services and a Bible from Queen Anne, a triptych from King George III, a Bible from Queen Victoria, and a bicentennial chalice from Queen Elizabeth II. [22] In 2010, Elizabeth II presented to the Mohawk Chapel a set of silver hand bells engraved with the words Silver Chain of Friendship, 1710–2010, to commemorate the tricentennial of the first meeting between Mohawk representatives and the Crown. [25] [23]
In April 2016, the Queen approved in principle that St Catherine's Chapel in Toronto be designated a chapel royal. The chapel itself is situated within Massey College, a college of the University of Toronto, conceived by Vincent Massey, a former governor general of Canada. It became Canada's third chapel royal on 21 June, National Indigenous Peoples Day, 2017. [26] [27] St Catherine's Chapel is the first interfaith and interdenominational chapel royal and the only one with its own title in an Indigenous language. [21] It was designated as a chapel royal in recognition of the sesquicentennial of Canada, the relationship between Massey College and the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, [26] and as a gesture of reconciliation. The chapel acknowledge the history of the Royal Proclamation of 1763 and its ratification by the Treaty of Niagara in 1764 [27]
Their Majesties Chappell is located in St. George's Parish, Bermuda. It was first designated as such in a royal warrant dated 18 March 1697 during the joint reign of King William and Queen Mary, and reconfirmed by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on 18 March 2012. St. Peter's - Their Majesties Chappell stands as the oldest surviving Anglican church in continuous use outside the British Isles. [28]
Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British monarchs and a burial site for 18 English, Scottish, and British monarchs. At least 16 royal weddings have taken place at the abbey since 1100.
Royal Maundy is a religious service in the Church of England held on Maundy Thursday, the day before Good Friday. At the service, the British monarch or a royal official ceremonially distributes small silver coins known as "Maundy money" as symbolic alms to elderly recipients. The coins are technically legal tender, but typically do not circulate due to their silver content and numismatic value. A small sum of ordinary money is also given in lieu of gifts of clothing and food that the sovereign once bestowed on Maundy recipients.
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the monarch. The present monarch, King Charles III, is the sovereign of the order. The order's motto is Victoria. The order's official day is 20 June. The order's chapel is the Savoy Chapel in London.
The coronation of the monarch of the United Kingdom is an initiation ceremony in which they are formally invested with regalia and crowned at Westminster Abbey. It corresponds to the coronations that formerly took place in other European monarchies, which have all abandoned coronations in favour of inauguration or enthronement ceremonies. A coronation is a symbolic formality and does not signify the official beginning of the monarch's reign; de jure and de facto his or her reign commences from the moment of the preceding monarch's death or abdication, maintaining legal continuity of the monarchy.
'I was glad' is an English text drawn from selected verses of Psalm 122. It has been used at Westminster Abbey in the coronation ceremonies of British monarchs since those of King Charles I in 1626.
The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey.
A royal peculiar is a Church of England parish or church exempt from the jurisdiction of the diocese and the province in which it lies, and subject to the direct jurisdiction of the monarch.
The Dean of the Chapel Royal, in any kingdom, can be the title of an official charged with oversight of that kingdom's chapel royal, the ecclesiastical establishment which is part of the royal household and ministers to it.
Christ Church, His Majesty's Chapel Royal of the Mohawk is located on the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory near Deseronto, Ontario, Canada. It is owned by the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte First Nation and is associated with the Anglican Parish of Tyendinaga, Diocese of Ontario. It was designated as a National Historic Site in 1995 and is one of only three Chapels Royal in Canada, elevated by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004.
The association between the monarchy of Canada and Indigenous peoples in Canada stretches back to the first interactions between North American Indigenous peoples and European colonialists and, over centuries of interface, treaties were established concerning the monarch and Indigenous nations. First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples in Canada have a unique relationship with the reigning monarch and, like the Māori and the Treaty of Waitangi in New Zealand, generally view the affiliation as being not between them and the ever-changing Cabinet, but instead with the continuous Crown of Canada, as embodied in the reigning sovereign.
The King's Chapel of St John the Baptist in the Precinct of the Savoy, also known as the King's Chapel of the Savoy, is a church in the City of Westminster, London. Facing it are 111 Strand, the Savoy Hotel, the Institution of Engineering and Technology and – across the green to its side – the east side of Savoy Street. The chapel is designated as a Grade II* listed building.
The coronation of Elizabeth II as queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. She acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon the death of her father, George VI, on 6 February 1952, being proclaimed queen by her privy and executive councils shortly afterwards. The coronation was held more than one year later because of the tradition of allowing an appropriate length of time to pass after a monarch dies. It also gave the planning committees adequate time to make preparations for the ceremony. During the service, Elizabeth took an oath, was anointed with holy oil, was invested with robes and regalia, and was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon.
In the United Kingdom, state funerals are usually reserved for monarchs. The most recent was the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on 19 September 2022.
The coronation of George VI and his wife, Elizabeth, as king and queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, Emperor and Empress consort of India took place at Westminster Abbey, London, on Wednesday 12 May 1937. George VI ascended the throne upon the abdication of his brother, Edward VIII, on 11 December 1936, three days before his 41st birthday. Edward's coronation had been planned for 12 May and it was decided to continue with his brother and sister-in-law's coronation on the same date.
The coronation of George III and his wife Charlotte as king and queen of Great Britain and Ireland took place at Westminster Abbey, London, on Tuesday, 22 September 1761, about two weeks after they were married in the Chapel Royal, St James's Palace. The day was marked by errors and omissions; a delayed procession from Westminster Hall to the abbey was followed by a six-hour coronation service and then a banquet that finally ended at ten o'clock at night.
A national service of thanksgiving in the United Kingdom is an act of Christian worship, generally attended by the British monarch, Great Officers of State and Ministers of the Crown, which celebrates an event of national importance. Originally it started with the intention to give thanks for victory in battle. However it evolved to celebrate occasions such as a royal jubilee, a royal wedding anniversary, or the end of a conflict. These services are usually held at St Paul's Cathedral in the City of London.
Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, died on 8 September 2022 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, at the age of 96. Elizabeth's reign of 70 years and 214 days was the longest of any British monarch. She was succeeded by her eldest son, Charles III.
The coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as king and queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, took place on Saturday, 6 May 2023 at Westminster Abbey. Charles acceded to the throne on 8 September 2022 upon the death of his mother, Elizabeth II. It was the first coronation held since Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953 nearly 70 years prior.
The Chapel Royal at Massey College, also known as St. Catherine's Chapel, is the chapel of Massey College, a graduate residential college at the University of Toronto. Founded in 1963, it was made the third Chapel Royal in Canada by Queen Elizabeth II in 2017. It is the first ecumenical and interfaith worship space to be given the designation.
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