Westminster Chapel
Westminster, Greater London
A witnessing church; a church worth witnessing.
The original Guards Chapel was built in 1838 but was almost entirely destroyed by a V1 bomb in 1944 during a service, tragically killing a large number of soldiers and civilians. The chancel and apse survived unscathed. Candles that were lit for the service continued to burn amid the carnage.
The present chapel is unlike any other chapel in London. It was designed by Bruce George of the architectural practice George Trew and Dunn, and building work started in 1962. The design successfully integrates the surviving elements of the prewar chapel, as well as a memorial cloister built in the 1950s by H S Goodhart-Rendel, while embracing new materials and detailing. The chapel is Grade II* listed.