Naval Academy Chapel
{{short description|Church building in Maryland, United States of America}}
{{Infobox religious building
| building_name = Brigade of Midshipmen Chapel
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| image = USNA Chapel.jpg
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| caption = Brigade of Midshipmen Chapel
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| location = 101 Cooper Rd
Annapolis, Maryland, United States
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| religious_affiliation = Christian
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| consecration_year = 1908
| status = Chapel
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| website = [http://www.usna.edu/Chaplains/ www.usna.edu]
| architecture = yes
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| groundbreaking = 1904
| year_completed = 1908
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| capacity = 2500
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The United States Naval Academy Chapel in Annapolis, Maryland, is one of nine designated chapel spaces on the grounds of the United States Navy's service academy. Protestant and Catholic services are held there. The Brigade Chapel is a focal point of the Academy and the city of Annapolis. The chapel is an important feature which led to the Academy being designated a National Historic Landmark in 1961.
Traditionally, new third-class midshipmen become "Youngsters" when they sight the chapel dome upon returning from their summer cruise.{{cite web|url=http://usna.org/handbook/year.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060509170121/http://usna.org/handbook/year.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=9 May 2006|title=USNA-Net's Parents' Handbook - Plebe Year|date=9 May 2006}}
History
File:Front Elevation of Chapel, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland.jpg
The Brigade Chapel was designed by Ernest Flagg.{{cite web |last=Kelly |first=Earl |title=Naval Academy Chapel restoration complete: Reopening ceremony Saturday |publisher=Capital Gazette Communications, Inc. (HometownAnnapolis.com) |date=October 24, 2009 |url=http://www.hometownannapolis.com/news/top/2009/10/24-19/Naval-Academy-Chapel-restoration-complete.html |accessdate=2010-03-18}} The article includes a photo and slideshow. The cornerstone was laid in 1904 by Admiral George Dewey and the dedication of the Chapel was on May 28, 1908.
In 1940, the Chapel underwent remodeling which doubled the seating capacity to 2,500, to accommodate a larger brigade of midshipmen. From 1853 to 1972, chapel attendance was compulsory.{{cite web|url=http://dc.findacase.com/research/wfrmDocViewer.aspx/xq/fac.19700731_0000050.DDC.htm/qx|title=FindACase™ - ANDERSON v. LAIRD|website=dc.findacase.com}} After remodeling, the chapel formed a large cross. The dome over the chapel is copper and the cupola is {{convert|193|ft|m|0}} above the main altar area.
In 1995, the Chapel was featured on a U.S. Postal Service postage stamp, honoring the Academy's 150th anniversary.{{cite web|url=http://www.usna.edu/VirtualTour/150years/stamp.htm|title="Postal Service Honors Naval Academy with a 150 Year Anniversary Commemorative Stamp"|publisher=}}
In 2009, nearly seventy years after the 1940 renovation and expansion, the chapel underwent an extensive restoration that included the repair of decades-long deterioration. The restoration uncovered the dome's {{convert|20|ft}}-diameter oculus (round skylight), situated {{convert|121|ft}} above the chapel floor, which had been plastered over for decades because of its deteriorating condition. The cost of the project was nearly $2.5 million, of which $925,000 was donated by the Class of 1969 to cover the cost of replacing the hardwood floors and refinishing the pews. The remaining $2.3 million came from the government.
Architectural features
The two stained-glass windows facing the altar are symbolic. One is of Sir Galahad holding his sheathed sword, portraying the ideals of the naval service. The other signifies the Commission Invisible, a beacon each new officer must follow: Christ is pointing him toward the flag. Four other windows are memorials to LCDR Theodorus B.M. Mason and Admirals David Dixon Porter, David Farragut, and William T. Sampson. Several of the stained-glass windows in the Chapel were designed by Frederick Wilson.{{cite web|title=Stained Glass|url=https://www.annapolis.gov/706/Stained-Glass|website=Annapolis, MD|publisher=City of Annapolis|accessdate=22 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180323030815/https://www.annapolis.gov/706/Stained-Glass|archive-date=23 March 2018|url-status=dead}}
The Brigade Chapel boasts a 268-rank organ controlled by one of the largest drawknob consoles in the world (522 drawknobs).
The basement level of the chapel houses the crypt of John Paul Jones and St. Andrew's Chapel which is used for smaller services.
John Paul Jones Crypt
On January 26, 1913, the remains of John Paul Jones were interred in the crypt beneath the Brigade Chapel, inside a sarcophagus made of {{convert|21|ST}} of black and white Italian marble with bronze fittings.{{cite web|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2005-07-08-0507080066-story.html|title=John Paul Jones has a newly renovated resting place, 100 years after his body was returned to America.|first=Chris|last=Yakaitis|website=baltimoresun.com}}{{cite web|url=https://www.navalhistory.org/2012/01/26/the-final-resting-place-of-john-paul-jones|title=The Final Resting Place of John Paul Jones|date=26 January 2012|publisher=}}{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2002/jul/20/20020720-034457-6290r/|title=U.S. Navy pays homage to its 'father'|newspaper=The Washington Times}}
In the deck around the crypt are inscribed the names of his ships: Bonhomme Richard, Alliance, Serapis, Ariel, Alfred, Providence, and Ranger.
See also
- Commodore Uriah P. Levy Center and Jewish Chapel (USNA)
- United States Navy Chaplain Corps
- United States Air Force Academy Cadet Chapel (including Catholic, Jewish, and Protestant chapels)
- United States Military Academy Chapel (Protestant)
- Chapel of the Most Holy Trinity (West Point) (Catholic)
- United States Merchant Marine Academy#Mariners' Memorial Chapel
- St. Peter's Chapel, Mare Island (Catholic and Protestant)
Footnotes
External links
{{Commons category|Naval Academy Chapel}}
- [http://www.usna.edu/Chaplains/ USNA Chaplain Center] webpage
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060904223841/http://www.usna.edu/Chaplains/orgs.htm Midshipmen Religious Organizations]. USNA Chaplain Center webpage. Retrieved 2010-03-18.
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20081106213802/http://www.usna.edu/Music/Accessable/organ.html Chapel Organ]. USNA Music Department webpage. Retrieved 2010-03-18.
- [http://www.usna.edu/Chaplains/weddings.htm Weddings in the USNA Chapel]. USNA Chaplain Center webpage. Retrieved 2010-03-18.
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20061231155617/http://www.basecamp.cnchost.com/jones.htm John Paul Jones Crypt]
- [http://www.usna.edu/VirtualTour/150years/stamp.htm USNA 150th-anniversary U.S. postage stamp]. USNA website
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{{USNA}}
Category:Christianity in Annapolis, Maryland
Category:United States Naval Academy buildings and structures
Category:Military chapels of the United States
Category:University and college chapels in the United States
Category:Churches in Anne Arundel County, Maryland
Category:Religious buildings and structures in Annapolis, Maryland
Category:Churches completed in 1908