The University of Glasgow Memorial Chapel is a

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common type ...

at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. It was

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different gro ...

on 4 October 1929, and is dedicated to the memory of the former students and staff of the university who died in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. It is located in the West Quadrangle of the Main Building of the university, and was designed by

John James Burnet Sir John James Burnet (31 May 1857 – 2 July 1938) was a Scottish Edwardian architect who was noted for a number of prominent buildings in Glasgow and London. He was the son of the architect John Burnet, and later went into partnership with ...

. The chapel is protected as a

category A listed building Category, plural categories, may refer to: Philosophy and general uses *Categorization, categories in cognitive science, information science and generally *Category of being * ''Categories'' (Aristotle) *Category (Kant) * Categories (Peirce) * ...

History

The university's former premises on the

High Street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...

were on the site of an old Dominican monastery, known as the Black Friars, and the university used the friars' old church for services. The university subsequently relocated to Gilmorehill in 1870, although the New College was not finished for many years after, and there was at the time no chapel. The West Quadrangle of the new building was not enclosed on its west side originally; instead, staircases at either end of the court led onto The Square, where the professors and principal had their houses. The southern of these staircases was the Lion and Unicorn Staircase, which was relocated from its site in the Outer Court of the Old College. By 1900, the accommodation was already proving too small, and in 1914 it was decided to build a new wing enclosing the West Quadrangle, providing additional rooms and a chapel.

Construction

was commissioned to draw up plans for the extension, and construction began in August 1914 but was halted by

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. Work resumed in 1923 but was delayed by bad weather and economic conditions, and the buildings were not completed until 1929. The inside was fitted with wooden stalls and carvings by

Archibald Dawson Archibald C. Dawson ARSA (16 April 1892 – 15 April 1938) was a Scottish sculptor, specialising in architectural carving.stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

windows, designed and made by

Douglas Strachan Douglas Strachan (26 May 1875, Aberdeen, Scotland – 20 November 1950) is considered the most significant Scottish designer of stained glass windows in the 20th century. He is best known for his windows at the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherl ...

and representing the entirety of human life as a spiritual enterprise, was installed in 1931. Amongst subsequent additions was the Benedicite Window, which is above the altar at the East end of the building. It was designed by

Lawrence Lee Lawrence Stanley Lee (18 September 1909 – 25 April 2011) was a British stained glass artist whose work spanned the latter half of the 20th century. He was best known for leading the project to create ten windows for the nave of t ...

and installed in 1962.

Dedication

After World War I, it was decided that the new chapel should be dedicated to the memory of those seven hundred and fifty-five men connected with the university who had died in the conflict. The principal,

Donald MacAlister Sir Donald MacAlister, 1st Baronet of Tarbet (17 May 1854 – 15 January 1934) was a Scottish physician who was Principal and Vice-Chancellor and, later, Chancellor of the University of Glasgow. He was a member of the Cambridge Apostles intelle ...

, said: The chapel was dedicated to their memory in a service on 4 October 1929, led by the Right Reverend John White. Tablets on the wall behind the Communion Table list the names of those who died, while other tablets besides the stalls record the 405 members of the university community who gave their lives in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Services

Daily services are held in the chapel during term-time, as well as seasonal events. Before Christmas, there is a Service of

Nine Lessons and Carols Nine Lessons and Carols, also known as the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols and Service of Nine Lessons and Carols, is a service of Christian worship traditionally celebrated on or near Christmas Eve. The story of the fall of humanity, the ...

on the last Sunday of term, and a

Watchnight service A watchnight service (also called Watchnight Mass) is a late-night Christian church service A church service (or a service of worship) is a formalized period of Christian communal worship, often held in a church building. It often but not ex ...

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...

. Graduates, students, members of staff and the children of members of staff are entitled to be

married Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

in the chapel, which is also used for

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

s and

funeral A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect ...

Civil marriage A civil marriage is a marriage performed, recorded, and recognized by a government official. Such a marriage may be performed by a religious body and recognized by the state, or it may be entirely secular. History Every country maintaining a ...

s and

civil partnerships A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...

may be blessed in the chapel, although under UK law may not be performed there. The current chaplain of the university is the Reverend Dr Carolyn Kelly, and the university appoints honorary chaplains of other denominations and faiths.

Organ

The chapel's organ was constructed by

Henry Willis & Sons Henry Willis & Sons is a British firm of pipe organ builders founded in 1845. Although most of their installations have been in the UK, examples can be found in other countries. Five generations of the Willis family served as principals of th ...

in 1927 and refurbished by Harrison & Harrison in 2005. It was a gift to the university from Joseph Paton Maclay, Lord Maclay, in memory of two of his sons, who had died in the war. The organist is Kevin Bowyer, an acclaimed performer and prolific recorder, who is artistic director of the Glasgow International Organ Festival, which is held in the chapel and has been running annually since June 2006.

Chapel Choir

The Chapel Choir sings at services and concerts every Tuesday evening at 6pm during term-time, and at other events in the chapel, such as the

Remembrance Sunday Remembrance Sunday is held in the United Kingdom as a day to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts. It is held on the second Sunday in Nov ...

service, Service of

, and weddings. The choir is composed of between twenty-eight to thirty-two singers, including students, staff and graduates, and takes

SATB SATB is an initialism that describes the scoring of compositions for choirs, and also choirs (or consorts) of instruments. The initials are for the voice types: S for soprano, A for alto, T for tenor and B for bass. Choral music Four-part harm ...

form. The choir has recorded widely and completed a number of tours, including the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

(2002), when it sang at the Sunday morning service in Saint Thomas Church on

Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major and prominent thoroughfare in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It stretches north from Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village to West 143rd Street in Harlem. It is one of the most expensive shopping ...

; Germany (1999, 2000, 2004, 2010); the

Baltic states The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone ...

(2007);

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

(2009);

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

(2012);

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

(2016); and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

(2018). The director of chapel music is Katy Lavinia Cooper, who was appointed in April 2015 after James Grossmith left to become chorusmaster of the

Royal Swedish Opera Royal Swedish Opera ( sv, Kungliga Operan) is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden. Location and environment The building is located in the center of Sweden's capital Stockholm in the borough of Norrmalm, on the eastern sid ...

References

External links

A collection of images of the Chapel at The Glasgow Story
{{coord, 55.87157, N, 4.28971, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Memorial Chapel Churches in Glasgow

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...

Category A listed buildings in Glasgow Listed churches in Glasgow Listed educational buildings in Scotland Chapels in Scotland Hillhead