King's College Chapel
A Tudor-era Gothic chapel with a fan vault, Flemish glass and a Rubens above the altar.
The Chapel of King's College is a landmark of the city. The college's own site calls it "the most instantly recognizable and iconic building in Cambridge". It fronts King's Parade, a minute from Great St Mary's.
Building the chapel
Henry VI laid the first stone on 25 July 1446, but the work stalled after he lost the throne in 1461, and a timber roof replaced the planned stone vault. The shell was finished in 1515 under Henry VIII. The fan vault, built 1512-1515 by the master mason John Wastell, is often described as the world's largest. The glazing followed between 1515 and 1531, mostly by Flemish glaziers, with the west window added in 1879.
Inside
- The screen. The carved wooden pulpitum of 1532-36 separates the ante-chapel from the choir. Nikolaus Pevsner called it "the most exquisite piece of Italian decoration surviving in England".
- The Rubens. The Adoration of the Magi, painted in 1634 for a convent at Louvain, was hung above the altar in the 1960s after the sanctuary floor was lowered.
- The wartime story. Soldiers' graffiti from the Civil War survives near the altar, and most of the glass was put into storage during the Second World War.
Practical notes
This is a working place of worship, home to the King's College Choir, which sings services on most days in term. The BBC has broadcast the college's Nine Lessons and Carols on Christmas Eve. Visiting arrangements, service times and concert details change through the year, so check the college website before you set out.
Nearby
Within a few minutes' walk
