King's Chapel | |
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36°08′14″N 5°21′12″W / 36.13727°N 5.353319°W | |
Location | Main Street |
Country | Gibraltar |
Denomination | Church of England (1728-present) Catholic Church (1530s-1728) |
History | |
Status | Chapel |
Founded | 1530s |
Architecture | |
Functional status | Active |
Architect(s) | Various |
Architectural type | Mixed |
Style | Mixed |
King's Chapel is a small chapel in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. It is located at the southern end of Main Street and adjoins the Governor of Gibraltar's residence, The Convent. What nowadays is King's Chapel was the first purpose-built church to be constructed in Gibraltar. Originally part of a Franciscan friary, the chapel was built in the 1530s but was given to the Church of England by the British after the capture of Gibraltar in 1704. It was badly damaged in the late 18th century during the Great Siege of Gibraltar and in the explosion of an ammunition ship in Gibraltar harbour in 1951, but was restored on both occasions. From 1844 to 1990 it served as the principal church of the British Army in Gibraltar; since then it has been used by all three services of the British Armed Forces.