King's College Chapel is the chapel to King's College of the University of Cambridge, and is one of the finest examples of late Gothic (Perpendicular) English architecture.
Henry VI planned a university counterpart to Eton College (whose chapel is very similar, although unfinished), the chapel being the only portion that was built. The King decided the dimensions of the Chapel. The architect was Reginald Ely, who was commissioned in 1444. The fir...
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King's College Chapel is the chapel to King's College of the University of Cambridge, and is one of the finest examples of late Gothic (Perpendicular) English architecture.
Henry VI planned a university counterpart to Eton College (whose chapel is very similar, although unfinished), the chapel being the only portion that was built. The King decided the dimensions of the Chapel. The architect was Reginald Ely, who was commissioned in 1444. The first stone of the Chapel was laid on St James' Day, July 25, 1446, the College having been begun in 1441. By the end of the reign of Richard III (1485), despite the Wars of the Roses, five bays had been completed and a timber roof erected. Henry VII visited in 1506, paying for the work to resume and even leaving money so that the work could continue after his death. In 1515, under Henry VIII, the building was complete but the great windows had yet to be made.
The Chapel has a total length of 289 feet, and the width of the main vault is 40 feet....
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