St. Mary le Savoy Chapel

[St. John the Baptist, in the Savoy.] The Precinct [of the Savoy] is peculiarly under the Government of the Master of the Savoy, and the Chapel belonging to the Precinct is called the Chapel of St. John Baptist in the Precinct of the Savoy; which is made use of for the Parish Church.

St. Mary-le-Savoy, the church of, is situated on the south side of the Strand, in the district called the Savoy. It was formerly the ancient chapel of St. John the Baptist, but when the old church of St. Mary-le-Strand was destroyed by the Protector Somerset [See St. John the Baptist, in the Savoy] the inhabitants of that parish procured this chapel for their parish church, in union with that of St. John in the Savoy. It was thoroughly repaired and restored in 1721, at the private expense of George I., and it has been repaired and beautified within these few years.

It is an extra parochial chapelry, in the county and archdeaconry of Middlesex, in the diocese of London, and in the patronage of the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. The present chaplain is the Rev. A. Brandram, who was instituted in 1826.

St. John the Baptist, in the Savoy, is the ancient chapel of the priory of the Savoy, which was originally dedicated to that saint; but when the old church of St. Mary-le Strand was destroyed by the Protector Somerset, for the building of his palace of Somerset-house, the inhabitants of that parish united themselves to those of the precinct of the Savoy, and used this church for their united purposes, till the new church was built.—[See St. Mary-le-Strand.

Mary (St.) Le Savoy, the chapel of the Hospital of St. John the Baptist, in the Savoy, built in 1505. It is now a precinct, and called (but improperly) St. Mary-le-Savoy, but as part of the Duchy of Lancaster is the property of the Crown, and hence is commonly known as the Chapel Royal of the Savoy. [See The Savoy.] The building is of late Perpendicular date, and stands north and south, and the north end was originally ornamented with rich tabernacle work, but much of it had been cut away to make place for modern monuments. Several of the monuments were interesting, the following particularly:—"Small recumbent figure, with female kneeling figure in the background, to Sir Robert and Lady Douglas (temp. James I.) Small kneeling figure, under part of the ancient tabernacle work, to the Countess of Dalhousie, daughter of Sir Allen Apsley, Lieutenant of the Tower, and sister to Mrs. Hutchinson (d. 1663). Small brass of William Chaworth (d. 1582), of the Chaworths of Nottingham. Recumbent figure of a Countess-Dowager of Nottingham. Tablet to Mrs. Anne Killigrew (d. 1685). Altar-tomb of Sir Richard and Lady Rokeby (d 1523). Small kneeling figure, over door, with skull in her hand, of Alicia Steward (d. 1572.) Brass, on floor, in the centre of the chapel, marking the grave of Gawain Douglas, Bishop of Dunkeld (d. of the plague in London, 1522), the translator of Virgil; the brass serving also for Bishop Halsal. Monument by M.L. Watson, erected 1846, to Dr. Cameron, the last person executed on account of the rebellion of 1745. Tablet, erected by his widow, to Richard Lander, the African traveller (d. 1834). Eminent Persons interred here without monuments.—"George, third Earl of Cumberland, father of Lady Anne Clifford (Anne Dorset, Pembroke, and Montgomery); died in the Duchy House in 1605; bowels alone buried here. George Wither, the poet (d. 1667), "between the east door and south end of the church."¹ Lewis de Duras, Earl of Faversham (d. 1709); he commanded King James II.'s troops at the battle of Sedgemoor.

The Savoy Chapel was restored 1505–1508; almost rebuilt in 1721; again repaired in 1820; again under Mr. Sidney Smirke in 1843 and 1860. On July 4, 1864, it was entirely destroyed by fire, the walls alone remaining. Her Majesty, who had previously taken much interest in the church, at once notified her intention to restore it at her own cost. This was accordingly done in the most complete and careful manner, under the supervision of Mr. Sidney Smirke, R.A., and the church was reopened by Dean Stanley on November 26, 1865. In its main features it is much as it was before the fire, minus the monuments, but the interior has been more richly embellished. The Queen filled with painted glass the great north window—a representation of the Crucifixion by Willement—as a memorial of the Prince Consort, in place of one erected by the parishioners for the same purpose in 1843, but destroyed by the fire of 1864; and another fine painted glass window of six lights in place of the Cameron monument. A window has been filled with painted glass by the parishioners in commemoration of the recovery of the Prince of Wales in 1872; and another by the Geographical Society in memory of the traveller Lander, whose monument was destroyed in the fire. A new brass plate has also been laid to mark the grave of Gawain Douglas. The handsome pulpit is an offering by the Burgess family of the Strand; and the font and cover are a memorial to William Hilton, R.A., and Peter de Wint, the eminent painter in water-colours, who were interred here. In 1878 the Queen further embellished the interior, and added a new sacristy and porch to the building. The new roof—an enriched copy of the old one—has its 138 panels filled with the arms of the Dukes of Lancaster, and other emblazoned devices.

Prior to the Act of 1754 the Savoy Chapel was one of the places notorious for clandestine marriages.

By authority.—Marriages performed with the utmost privacy, decency and regularity, at the Ancient Royal Chapel of St. John the Baptist in the Savoy, where regular and authentic registers have been kept from the time of the Reformation (being two hundred years and upwards) to this day. The expense not more than one guinea, the five shilling stamp included. There are five private ways by land to this chapel, and two by water.—The Public Advertiser of January 2, 1754.

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¹ Wood's Ath. Ox. ed. 1721, vol. ii. p. 396.