St George’s Chapel Windsor Castle

Visited April 2015: «Breathtaking!!»
No photos were allowed to be taken. We stayed for Good Friday service, and admired the burials of 5 monarch and the architecture of the chapel. Definitely worth a visit.

When visiting Windsor Castle, I would suggest going to the chapel first as it closest earliest. The level of detail in the architecture is just amazing and it’s the only Protestant church in England, which still shows it Catholic roots in the form of the preserved chantries. Also checking out the final resting place of so many Kings of England gave me goosebumps. I could have happily spent more time here and hope to be back to attend an actual service here one day.

I came in here thinking this would be a museum-​like tourist attraction.
How surprised I was to find out that it was a working chapel. When I saw recent children’s artwork displayed, I knew this was a real church.
We got in and there were a few guides (?) /​docents (?) /​local volunteers (?) in uniform, admonishing people not to take pics. One didn’t see a Korean guy taking surreptitious pics right in front of her, though.
I guess I have to be a member of the royal family to not think this weird, but having my ancestors buried on my property is kind of freaky. Having them buried in the same church I still worship at is borderline crazy. I immediately noticed the names of QEII’s immediate relatives buried here: the Queen Mum; her sister Princess Margaret; her father King George V; her grandparents King George IV and Mary of Teck, etc. And then there were a few of the relatives from her more distant past (Jane Seymour was the only one I remembered).
The chapel was beautiful inside and actually much smaller than I expected. It was the size of some of the churches I visited in my local towns.
If you rented the earphone guides, they work here.
It was nice seeing my former interest in royal history culminate in an actual visit to final resting places.

#557 I’m just going to put it out there, I have only been in two churches in my lifetime (the chapel in my preschool notwithstanding). St. George’s Chapel was the second. The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York was my first. So, unfortunately, I’m stuck comparing the two, not fair, I’m sure. Regardless, here I go.
I found St. George’s to be intricately quaint and comforting. The stained glass window, the altar, the music, everything worked together to create a homey ambiance where you feel accepted and understood. However, it’s much smaller and simpler compared to the Cathedral Church, which is much grander and ornate. Not to mention, Cathedral Church is much, much larger. Because I only walked through St. George’s in under ten minutes, I don’t have much else to say. Though, I wish I were able to spend more time inside, sitting and soaking in the ethereal aura of the place.