Christ's Chapel of God's Gift at Dulwich
Chapel Openings
You can enter Christ's Chapel of Alleyn's College of
God's Gift from Dulwich Picture Gallery's cloister. The
chapel was consecrated in 1616 by George Abbot, Archbishop of
Canterbury, as part of the Dulwich College Foundation.
Every Tuesday 1:30 - 3:30pm
The Chapel is still an active place of worship with services
every Sunday. Holy Communion Service is
celebrated every Sunday at 8am, Matins every first and
third Sundays at 10.a.m. and Evensong on every second and fourth
Sunday at 6:30pm.
It is a place of beauty and It is a vital piece of Dulwich and
London heritage. It offers great scope for social and
educational activities and there is an established programme
of Chapel events and is open to visitors every Tuesday
afternoon and on other occasions. On Tuesday
afternoon you may enter the chapel via the Dulwich Picture
Gallery cloister.
Christ's Chapel was consecrated in 1616 by George Abbot,
Archbishop of Canterbury, as part of the Dulwich College
foundation. The Elizabethan actor Edward Alleyn built his College
of God's Gift on Dulwich Green as an act of thanksgiving to God for
his talents as an actor and his ability in business. Since then it
has been in use continually as a spiritual focus for the almshouses
and three Dulwich Schools of the Foundation: Dulwich College, James
Allen's Girls' School and Alleyn's School.
By Alleyn's specific provision it has also been available as a
place of worship for the inhabitants
of Dulwich Village. This was important when Dulwich was a far-flung
outpost of the Parish of
Camberwell. The establishment in 1915 of the Parish of St.
Barnabas, Dulwich made possible a
closer association between the Chapel and the wider Church. This
was further consolidated in
1957 when the Vicar of St Barnabas was also licensed as Foundation
Chaplain of Alleyn's College
of God's Gift.
A service of thanksgiving and celebration was
held on Sunday 5 March 2000 to mark the reopening
of Christ's Chapel of Alleyn's College of God's Gift in Gallery
Road, Dulwich following major
refurbishment of the Dulwich Picture Gallery and the chapel by
Architect Rick Mather.
Although the original design round three sides
of a quadrangle remains, both the interior and
exterior of the building have been considerably altered over the
years. Severe bomb damage
during the Second World War necessitated major rebuilding of the
main roof structure and other
parts of the building. Some reordering was carried out in 1976.
A completely new Vestry area, including robing
area, WC and kitchen, has been created in
conjunction with Dulwich Picture Gallery which shares some of the
facilities. Users of the Chapel
also have shared use of new lavatory facilities for the disabled
and a second Vestry, in the
Picture Gallery's adjoining buildings.
The copy of Raphael's Transfiguration which
hangs on the north wall, thought to have been painted by one of his
assistants, has been cleaned by Richard Pelter at the International
Fine Arts Conservation Studio in Bristol, courtesy of Dulwich
Picture Gallery.
The organ, built by George England in 1759 and
thought to be the oldest surviving example of this famous
organ-builder's work, has been cleaned and further refurbishment of
the instrument is to follow in 2007. It was built by George
England. This replaced the first one of 1618 built by Mr Gibbs of
Powles and a second one built by George Dallam in 1669. The George
England organ is currently being restored by William Drake of
Buckfastleigh, Devon. Much of the original England pipework still
remains. Between 1760 and the present day, additional work was done
by Lewis of Brixton in 1880, by Norman and Beard in 1908. It was
cared for and added to byArthur Coombs, a Dulwich grocer in the
1940's. In 1969, Mander Organ Builders made moremodifications to
the organ. As a result it became less like the original instrument.
The organ was reinstalled in the summer of 2009 and rededicated at
a special service on Sunday 27th September. It is already
fulfilling everyone's highest expectations.
In addition to normal Sunday services where
the emphasis is on congregational singing of the
hymns, psalms, canticles and responses, Choral Evensong, led by
Christ's Chapel Chorale is sung
three times a year. The same choral group also leads the singing at
the Good Friday and Christmas Eve services. The Dulwich College
Chapel choristers also sign at some services. Although
singers come from well beyond the parish boundaries, anyone with
good sight reading skills and experience is welcome to join in any
of our services, both the musically more elaborate as well as the
more congregational ones. Anyone interested in taking part should
contact the Chapel Organist for more information.
The Gallery is not responsible for the
Chapel opening times. Opening hours are subject to change at any
given time.
T: 020 8693 1524
F: 020 8693 0203