13 May - A King's chapel

chirp54
May 18, 2024
3 min read

Being so close to Cambridge it somehow didn't seem right that we had spent so little time in the city. Besides, there was still one sight on my not-to-miss list. So, off we walked to the bus shelter in Barrington. I was disappointed to see that the Joseph, the young man we had chatted with on our other bus rides, was not there but, happily, James was driving the bus. (And happily driving the bus; he hums and whistles and is so friendly and welcoming to everyone who boards, especially the old ladies.)

We arrived at the bus station and made the short walk to King's College Chapel which has a long history. The foundation stone was laid on July 25, 1446 by King Henry VI. It was the first step in his plan for a great court, of which the Chapel was to form the north side. Henry explained everything in his 'wille and entent' of 1448, but only the Chapel was ever completed. It took approximately 100 years to build. Construction of the chapel started in 1446 and forced the relocation of Christ's College – known then as God’s House, which was on the site where King’s chapel now stands. During the time it took to build, a number of English Kings came and went, as did the master stone masons responsible for building it. Construction was interrupted by the Henry’s VI’s capture during the War of the Roses in 1461.

Work began again in earnest after the death of Edward IV in 1483, thanks to Richard III. However it was not until the reign of Henry VIII, thanks to money provided by Henry VII, that work on the chapel was completed. I encourage you to read all about it at the King's College website.

Since the majesty of the building lies not in reading about but in seeing it, there's a marvelous 360° tour of the antechapel here that you might enjoy. Here are some photos as well.

The organ, complete with herald trumpets:

Above the alter hangs Peter Paul Rubens' 1641 painting, The Adoration of the Magi. (photo from the King's College website)

The greyhound is the symbol of the Beaufort family; the dragon is the emblem of the Tudors. Henry VII's mother was Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond, and his father Edmund Tudor. The Tudor rose is pictured to the left and to the right is another symbol of the Beauforts. I am clearly plebian, it reminded me of a Belgian waffle.

Another Tudor rose on the ceiling:

There are smaller chapels off to the side of the main one.

All souls chapel:

St. Edward's chapel:

Founders Chapel:

The garden looking toward the River Cam is so lovely.

The border of one of the buildings of King's College is designed specifically to conserve water and/or withstand drought (xeriscaped). Cambridge seems really mindful of environmental issues. King's College Chapel even has newly-installed solar panels.

Punting on the Cam:

Leaving King's College, Bruce went off on a pub crawl, I walked through town. On the lawn outside King's College students were protesting the treatment of Palestinians in Gaza.

Across the street, outside the Taylor Library is the Corpus Clock, aka the Grasshopper Clock. According to Wikipedia, it is believed to the the largest grasshopper escapement of any clock in the world. The escapement wheel is made from a single sheet of steel, plated in gold, created by a series of explosions in a vacuum. The radiating ripples that this creates allude to the Big Bang. Here's a link if you want to see it in action and learn more about it.

I decided to walk near the river and came upon the Mathematical Bridge. It was designed by William Etheridge and built by James Essex in 1749 (though it has been subsequently rebuilt.) Although it appears to be an arch, it is composed entirely of straight timbers built to an unusually sophisticated engineering design, hence the name.

I just love strolling along the river. I was a bit disappointed not to see the cows that usually graze there, but one certainly can't complain about the scenery.