Anglican Chapel, Brompton Cemetery. [Click on this image and those below to enlarge them.] Like the other structures in the cemetery, the octagonal basilica-style chapel (1839-40) was designed by architect Benjamin Baud (1807-1875), and built in warm Bath stone. It has a lead dome, with a a geometric and part-glazed interior. Both impressive and colourful, it reflects the idea that this is the very heart of a splendid place of worship. The chapels' wings, not prominent from the front, discreetly house the cemetery offices (see Brompton Cemetery: An Illustrated Guide, 9). It a Grade II* listed building.
Even if other chapels had been built, as originally planned, this would still have been the principal one, to which the main carriage drive directly leads (see Rutherford 22). In this way, the idea of making the cemetery a kind of open-air cathedral is carried to its highest point: coming after the colonnades, the chapel occupies the space of the high altar at the top of a nave (see Brompton Cemetery: An Illustrated Guide, 7). From now on, cemetery chapels were more likely to be in a Gothic style (see Rutherford 38).
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Photographs by Robert Freidus and Jacqueline Banerjee, who provided the text. Formatting and perspective correction by George P. Landow. You may use these images without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the photographer and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.
Bibliography
Church of England Chapel, Chelsea." British Listed Buildings. Web. 22 May 2012.
Brompton Cemetery. Leaflet available in the cemetery office. Print.
Brompton Cemetery: An Illustrated Guide. London: Royal Parks, 2002. Print.
Rutherford, Sarah. The Victorian Cemetery. Botley, Oxford: Shire, 2008. Print.
"Windsor People" (gives details of Baud). Royal Windsor Website." Web. 22 May 2012.
Last modified 22 May 2012