Whitehall Chapel

Map

The overlays that highlight 17th century London features are approximate and derived from Wenceslaus Hollar’s maps:

Open location in Google Maps: 51.504869, -0.124690

Summary

The map location is based on this 1680 map and pp.480-1 of the Latham & Matthews Companion.

5 Annotations

First Reading

Second Reading

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

A description of Whitehall Chapel is given by Cosmo, the future Grand Duke of Turin, on May 29, 1669.

I've standardized spelling, corrected scanning errors I could, and increased the number of paragraphs. Sometimes I got confused making the N.S./O.S. date conversions, so I apologize if they are wrong:

The chapel in which the king assisted the ceremonies of the Anglican religion is called The Lord's Chapel;

it joins the vast, but ill-arranged building of Whitehall Palace, is exempt from the jurisdiction of the bishop, and immediately subject to the visitation of the king, who appoints a dean to superintend it.

This dignitary is at present the Bishop of Hereford, Herbert Croft, who has a yearly stipend of 200/.s sterling and a table.

To him belongs the nomination of the subdean, or canon of the chapel (an office filled by Dr. Jones, whose stipend is 100/.s) and 230 gentlemen of the chapel, with each a yearly pension of 70/.s; 12 of these are ecclesiastics.
It is their office every morning to perform the service appointed by their religion, to examine, catechize, advise, reply to scruples of conscience, and explain the respective dogmas of their religion.

To regulate the ceremonies of the chapel, there are 2 masters of the ceremonies, if they may be so called, who carry silver wands.

12 times a-year, on the great festivals of the Nativity, Easter, Whitsuntide, All Saints (called household days), the Epiphany (when the king, in imitation of the 3 Magi, offers at the altar in 3 vessels, gold, silver, and myrrh), the Conversion of St. Paul, the Purification, the Annunciation, the Ascension, the Trinity, St. John's, and Michaelmas, the king attends at the chapel, accompanied by the peers who are at court, and the Knights of the Garter wearing the insignia of their order.

For the service of the chapel the king maintains 84 chaplains in ordinary, besides extraordinary ones, the greater part of whom are persons of considerable reputation, and Doctors of Divinity.
Some of these read prayers throughout the year in his majesty's private oratory, and others preach before him in the chapel on Sundays and holidays, except in Lent; during which season, on appointed days, the dean of the chapel, beginning with Ash Wednesday, the bishops, deans of the cathedrals, and chaplains of his majesty, perform the service, and Easter Sunday is always reserved for the Bishop of London, Dr. Henchman, the king's grand almoner.

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From:
TRAVELS OF COSMO THE THIRD, GRAND DUKE OF TUSCANY,
THROUGH ENGLAND,
DURING THE REIGN OF KING CHARLES THE SECOND (1669)
TRANSLATED FROM THE ITALIAN MANUSCRIPT
https://archive.org/stream/travel…

His highness, Cosmo, must be considered only as a traveler. The narrator of the records was Count Lorenzo Magalotti, later Secretary to the Academy del Cimento, and one of the most eminent characters of the court of Ferdinand II.

Third Reading

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References

Chart showing the number of references in each month of the diary’s entries.

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