The Chapel

It was in this very chapel that James VIII (The Old Chevalier) cured people by touch for the disease scrofula. Although not a de facto sovereign he was de jure King of Scots and therefore his success in curing those who came from far and wide was not considered unusual.

The richly decorated panels on walls and ceiling make this one of the most beautiful small private chapels in Europe. In 1673 a Dutch artist called Jacob de Wet was brought to Scotland to work on commissions for the Palace of Holyroodhouse. He painted all the sovereigns of Scotland starting from the semi-legendary Fergus who flourished in the 6th century.

The chapel occupies one floor of a small wing added to the north east corner of the Castle from 1679-1683 by the 3rd Earl of Strathmore. The paintings were added in 1688 when the Earl commissioned Jacob de Wet. The contract, dated 18 January 1688, stated that de Wet was to receive £90 and the paintings were to conform to scenes in Lord Strathmore's bible. That bible has not been traced but recent research suggests that the ceiling panels were based on engravings by Boetius a Bolswert, dated 1622, and the wall paintings on engravings by Jacquet Callot published in 1631. One of the curiosities of these scenes is that depicting Christ wearing a hat. Other scenes show the Last Supper, the Flight into Egypt, St. Andrew and other Saints.

During the late 17th and early 18th century the Episcopal Church of Scotland suffered from various disabilities enacted by Parliament. Even so, as with Roman Catholic recusants in England, some families including the Strathmores kept up the old practices and today the Chapel is still in use.

The Chapel fell into disuse for some years but in 1866 it was restored by the 13th Earl and dedicated to St. Michael and All Angels. The stained glass window showing St. Michael was inserted in 1867-68 and the windows in the north wall, made by Kempe of London, were added in 1882-83. In 1979-80 the paintings were cleaned and restored by the Stenhouse Conservation Centre in Edinburgh. On the Feast Day of St. Michael in 1988 a service was held here for the chapel's tercentenary and H.M. Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother unveiled a plaque to commemorate the occasion. This leads into The Billiard Room.