A chapel is a place of Christian worship that is smaller than, or subsidiary to, a church. The term covers side chapels within cathedrals and churches, chapels attached to colleges, schools, hospitals, castles and country houses, and the independent places of worship of Nonconformist denominations, known in Britain simply as chapels.
Private chapels were a feature of great houses from the Middle Ages, and many country houses retain richly fitted examples with carved woodwork, family pews, stained glass, monuments and organs, reflecting the status and religious convictions of their owners. In Wales, northern England and Cornwall, the Methodist, Baptist and Congregational chapels of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries are characteristic features of towns and villages, often built in a plain classical style with galleries and tiered pews. Many chapels have closed in recent decades and been converted to homes, studios or offices, and their fittings, including pews, pulpits, panelling, lighting, lecterns, clocks and memorial boards, frequently reach the architectural salvage market. Such pieces are popular for bringing character to houses, restaurants and gardens, though buyers should check provenance where fittings come from listed buildings.
