Media pack for the Christening of Prince George 23 October 2013

Transcription

1 Media pack for the Christening of Prince George 23 October

2 Contents Page 3. Previous Royal Christenings Page 5. Royal Christening Robe Page 5 The Lily Font Page 6 History of Chapel Royal St James s Palace - 2 -

3 Previous Royal Christenings The Queen (b. 21 April 1926), was christened Elizabeth Alexandra Mary on 29 May 1926 in the private chapel at Buckingham Palace, by the Archbishop of York, Cosmo Gordon Lang. Her godparents were: her paternal grandparents King George V and Queen Mary; her maternal grandfather the Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne; her aunts Mary, Princess Royal, and Lady Elphinstone; and her great-great-uncle Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught. The Prince of Wales (b. 14 November 1948) was christened Charles Philip Arthur George on 15 December 1948 in the Music Room at Buckingham Palace, by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Geoffrey Fisher. His godparents were: his grandfather King George VI; his great-grandmother Queen Mary; his aunt Princess Margaret; his paternal great-grandmother Victoria, Dowager Marchioness of Milford Haven; his great-uncle the Hon. David Bowes-Lyon; Lady Brabourne, daughter of Earl Mountbatten of Burma; and his great-uncles King Haakon of Norway and Prince George of Greece. The Duke of Cambridge: (b. 21 June 1982) was christened William Arthur Philip Louis on 4 August 1982 in the Music Room at Buckingham Palace, by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Robert Runcie. His godparents were: King Constantine II of the Hellenes; Lord Romsey; Sir Laurens van der Post; Princess Alexandra; the Duchess of Westminster; and Lady Susan Hussey, Lady in Waiting to The Queen. Prince Harry (b. 15 September 1984) was christened Henry Charles Albert David on 21 December 1984 in St George s Chapel, Windsor, by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Robert Runcie. His godparents were: his uncle the Duke of York; Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones; Lady Vestey; Mrs William Bartholomew; Mr Bryan Organ; and Mr Gerald Ward. The Duke of York (b. 19 February 1960) was christened Andrew Albert Christian Edward on 8 April 1960 in the Music Room at Buckingham Palace, by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Geoffrey Fisher. His godparents were: his great-uncle Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester; Princess Alexandra; Lord Elphinstone; the Earl of Euston; and Mrs Harold Phillips. Princess Beatrice (b. 8 August 1988) was christened Beatrice Elizabeth Mary on 20 December 1988 in the Chapel Royal at St James's Palace, by the Archbishop of York, John Habgood. Her godparents were: Viscount Linley; Peter Palumbo; the Duchess of Roxburghe; Mrs Harry Cottrell; and Mrs John Greenall. Princess Eugenie (b. 23 March 1990) was christened Eugenie Victoria Helena on 23 December 1990 at the church of St Mary Magdalene, Sandringham, by the Bishop of Norwich. Her godparents were: James Ogilvy; Captain Alastair Ross; Mrs Ronald Ferguson; Mrs Patrick Dodd-Noble; and Miss Louise Blacker

4 The Earl of Wessex (b. 10 March 1964) was christened Edward Antony Richard Louis on 2 May 1964 in the private chapel at Windsor Castle, by the Dean of Windsor, Robert Woods. His godparents were: The Duke of Gloucester; the Duchess of Kent; his uncle the Earl of Snowdon; Princess George of Hanover; and Prince Louis of Hesse. James Viscount Severn (b. 17 December 2007) was christened James Alexander Philip Theo on 19 April 2008 in the private chapel at Windsor Castle, by the Dean of Windsor Bishop, David Conner. His godparents were: Mr Alistair Bruce, Mr Duncan Bullivant, Mr Thomas Hill, Mrs Mark Poulton and Mrs Jeanye Irwin. Lady Louise Windsor (b. 8 November 2003) was christened Louise Alice Elizabeth Mary on 2 April 2004 in the private chapel at Windsor Castle, by the Dean of Windsor Bishop David Conner. Her godparents were: Lady Sarah Chatto, Lord Ivar Mountbatten, Lady Alexandra Etherington, Mrs Urs Schwarzenbach and Mr Rupert Elliott. The Princess Royal (b. 15 August 1950) was christened Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise on 21 October 1950 in the Music Room at Buckingham Palace, by the Archbishop of York, Cyril Forster Garbett. Her godparents were: her grandmother Queen Elizabeth; her paternal grandmother Princess Andrew of Greece; her aunt Princess Margarita of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (elder sister of the Duke of Edinburgh); Earl Mountbatten of Burma; and the Rev. the Hon. Andrew Elphinstone. Peter Phillips (b. 15 November 1977) was christened Peter Mark Andrew Phillips on 22 December 1977 in the Music Room at Buckingham Palace by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Donald Coggan. His godparents were: his uncle The Prince of Wales; the Rt Rev. Geoffrey Tiarks; Captain Hamish Lochare; Lady Cecil Cameron of Lochiel; and Mrs Timothy Holderness-Roddam. Zara Tindall (b. 15 May 1981) was christened Zara Anne Elizabeth on 27 July 1981 in the private chapel at Windsor Castle, by the Dean of Windsor, the Rt Rev. Michael Mann. Her godparents were: her uncle the Duke of York; the Countess of Lichfield; Mrs Jackie Stewart; Colonel Andrew Parker- Bowles; and Mr Hugh Thomas. Also of interest, The Duchess of Cambridge was christened at the parish church of St. Andrew s Bradfield in Berkshire on 20 June

5 Royal Christening Robe The Royal Christening Robe of fine lace lined with white satin, was commissioned by The Queen and made by Angela Kelly and Buckingham Palace's team of dressmakers in It is a hand made replica of the Honiton lace christening robe made in 1841 for the christening of Queen Victoria's eldest daughter, Victoria, Princess Royal. The original gown was subsequently worn for Royal christenings, including The Queen, her children and her grandchildren, with the exception of James Viscount Severn. James Viscount Severn was the first member of Royal Family to wear the replica gown at his christening at the private chapel at Windsor Castle on 19 April The original Victorian lace and satin gown has now been preserved. The Lily Font The silver baptismal font known as the Lily font was commissioned by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert through the firm Barnard & Co in 1840, for the birth of their first child Victoria, Princess Royal. The font is decorated with water lilies and harping putti. Although secular images, these were deemed appropriate for a piece of christening plate as lilies were considered to represent purity and water lilies were associated with new life. It was first used in the christening of Victoria, Princess Royal in 1841, which was conducted in the Throne Room of Buckingham Palace by the Archbishop of Canterbury. A painting by C.R. Leslie shows that the font was placed on a circular centre table for the occasion. At the Prince of Wales's christening, which took place at Windsor a year later in 1842, a second English silver font made for Charles II in 1660, was also used as a stand. The Lily font has been a traditional feature of Royal christening since

6 History of the Chapel Royal at St James s Palace. The existence of a Chapel Royal dates back to the first millennium. In the earliest times the Chapel Royal was not a building but an establishment: a body of priests and singers to serve the spiritual needs of the Sovereign. Its earliest permanent homes as buildings were at the Norman Tower of London, and at Westminster and Eltham Palaces. In Stuart times it came to rest largely at Greenwich, St James's, Whitehall and Hampton Court Palaces. In the late 17th century the choral headquarters of the Chapel Royal came to be based at St James's Palace, where two consecrated buildings survive and remain in use by the Chapel Royal today the Chapel Royal and the Queen s Chapel across the road. The Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace was constructed during the reign of Henry VIII; work began in 1831 and was completed by The ceiling is decorated by Hans Holbein in honour of the King's short-lived fourth marriage to Anne of Cleves in The Chapel Royal has witnessed many historical events. Mary Tudor's heart was buried beneath the chancel step in It was also here, in the Royal Closet of the Chapel Royal, that Elizabeth I said her prayers for the defence of the realm against the threat of the Spanish Armada in 1588, having chosen to remain at St James's Palace to receive messages of its progress by fire beacons from Cornwall. At the end of the Civil War, Charles I received the Sacrament of Holy Communion in the Gatehouse adjoining the Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace before his execution in Whitehall in Queen Victoria was married in the chapel in 1840, and a contemporary unfolded 'Spooner' panorama of that wedding can be found in the vestibule to the Chapel. In 1997, the coffin of Diana, Princess of Wales lay before the altar where her family and friends could pay their respects in private, before the Princess's funeral in Westminster Abbey. The building has evolved over the years. In particular, a number of alterations to the building were carried out in The side galleries were added by reducing the size of the Royal Closet, and a new ceiling was put in place at the 'West' end. This ceiling was in tribute to William IV and Adelaide and its design complemented the existing 1540 ciphers of Holbein's ceiling. The oak panelling also dates from 1836, and replica pews were installed in 1876 to replace the old decayed Tudor ones

7 The Chapel Royal also has a long musical history, and is considered to be the 'cradle of English church music'. Among its many noted organists and composers were Thomas Tallis, William Byrd, Orlando Gibbons and Henry Purcell. Purcell lived in a suite of apartments over the Gatehouse in St James's Palace where the poet Dryden, who was frequently in debt, used to take refuge with Purcell to avoid persistent creditors. The Book of Common Prayer was introduced here first in 1664, and Chapel Royal composers wrote music to accompany it. One of the Chapel's most notable organists and composers was George Frederick Handel, who was appointed by George II on 25th February 1723 as 'Composer of Musick for His Majesty's Chappel Royal'. The title was constructed to allow Handel, still a German citizen, to contribute to the musical development of the Chapel Royal without actually being a member of it. Handel composed the great anthem 'Zadok the Priest' for the coronation of George II in 1727 and it has been used at every coronation since. It is also sung each year at the Royal Maundy service during which The Queen distributes specially minted Maundy money. The Choir of Her Majesty s Chapel Royal The Choir of Her Majesty's Chapel Royal has a strong musical reputation. It comprises six Gentlemen-in-Ordinary, who are professional singers, and ten Children of the Chapel Royal, boy choristers who hold the Sovereign's choral scholarships at the City of London School. The boy choristers wear Gold and Scarlet State Coats, still tailored to the Royal Warrant of Arthur Sullivan was a Child of the Chapel and Oscar Wilde a Probationer. The Chapel Royal choir sings each Sunday at St James's Palace in either the Tudor Chapel Royal or The Queen's Chapel facing Marlborough Road. The choir also sings at other events elsewhere as commanded by The Queen. These include the annual Royal Maundy service, the Remembrance Sunday Parade at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, and, in recent years, the funeral of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and the Wedding of Prince William to Catherine Middleton at Westminster Abbey, in addition to the Golden and Diamond Jubilee Services at St Paul's Cathedral. Choirs of other Chapels Royal under the authority of The Dean of the Chapel Royal, whose Ordinary is The Queen, continue to operate simultaneously at the Tower of London and Hampton Court Palace