Garden Island Naval Chapel

The Naval Chapel at Garden Island, New South Wales

The Naval Chapel at Garden Island dockyard is the oldest Christian chapel of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). It was established in 1902 after conversion from the former sail loft,[1] and has stained glass windows and plaques from that era to the present. The building is the oldest on Garden Island, two storey, built of stuccoed brick with stone sills, arches and columns. The original loft floor of timber remains, caulked with oakum and bitumen.

Setting

Garden Island is on the southern shore of Port Jackson, the proper name for the harbour at Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is second promontory east of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

The Royal Navy used the island from February 1788, just a month after Australia's colonisation by the First Fleet, as a garden for provisioning first HMS Sirius and later the fleet based in the port. During the nineteenth century, the island became the support base for the fleet and various buildings were established including houses for senior staff.

The stone and brick Rigging building was built in 1887, on the shoreside shelf at the northern end of the island, in which the chapel was later established. The building bears the dedication "VRI 1887", alluding to its construction during the reign of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom ("Victoria Regina Imperatrix"). The building now sits at the north-eastern end of the Captain Cook Dry Dock, which was constructed in the channel between the island and the mainland and connected the island to the mainland shore at Potts Point. The building has been restored, including the wrought iron swing cranes adjacent to each major upper doorway which were formerly used to get rigging to and from the upper floor. These doorways in the Chapel are now stained glass windows. The main entrance is from the northern side. 33°51′44.5″S 151°13′40.8″E / 33.862361°S 151.228000°E / -33.862361; 151.228000Coordinates: 33°51′44.5″S 151°13′40.8″E / 33.862361°S 151.228000°E / -33.862361; 151.228000

Features

Entrance

The entrance from street level leads to the winding wooden staircase to the main Chapel (right), and Chapel of Remembrance (left).

At the entrance are three stained glass windows representing:

On the wall opposite the entrance doors, midway on the stairs, is a map showing the places where RAN Honours have been won, with at each side the current and former White Ensigns of the RAN.

Main Chapel

Naval Chapel at Garden Island, looking to the altar. Boat shaped pulpit at front-left.

The main chapel is on the upper level of the building, accessed by a winding staircase from the main entrance. The layout was formerly with two equal lines of pews, until the modernisation when the Chapel of Remembrance was constructed. At that time the original stairs were removed and a staircase was erected from the new entrance. The Chapel of Remembrance could also be incorporated into the overall design of the space.

The pulpit is shaped like the bow of a boat.

Colours

The Chapel houses the laid up or decommissioned Fleet monarch's Colours (Standards) received by the RAN since its formation in 1911, from:

The current Fleet Colour is held at Fleet Headquarters, HMAS KUTTABUL, whilst the location of the Colour presented during the reign of King George VI is unknown.

RAN Colour of George V
RAN Colour (first) of Elizabeth II
RAN Colour (second) of Elizabeth II

Windows

Memorial windows for the aircraft carrierHMAS Melbourne and the first three warships named HMAS Sydney. Between them is the commemorative plaque for Rear Admiral Sir David Martin KCMG AO RAN, Governor of New South Wales.
Bathurst class corvette window; Alpha and Omega symbols; names of the ships.

The main chapel has various stained glass windows, some naturally lit and others in cases with back-lights. This list circles the chapel to the right from the altar.

Right of altar:

Right wall:

Back wall & door:

Left side:

Behind the pulpit:

Left of altar

Plaques

Plaques adorn the main Chapel in great number. Several poignant plaques are:

Side chapels

Two side chapels lead off the main chapel, at the right, one each for Protestant and Catholic worship. Both have access only from the main Chapel; the Catholic chapel is at the rear, the Protestant near the front. A door connects the two, and also gives access to a small robing room that is shared with the main chapel. Each chapel has seating for about 20 people with an altar and lectern.

Chapel of Remembrance

Chapel of Remembrance

The Chapel of Remembrance is accessed from the main entrance and then by several steps down, and occupies a portion of the area under the main chapel. It was officially opened on 25 August 1996 by Rear Admiral David Campbell, AM RAN, Flag Officer Naval Support Command, and dedicated by Principal Chaplains Michael Holtz AM RANR and Gareth Clayton RAN and Chaplain J.F.B. Connelly RAN.

The front wall of is faceted to allow plaques to be placed on the wooden screens. Tow rough-hewn posts stand in the body of the chapel. The altar is a simple wooden block of a sandstone plinth, standing on a raised area at the front wall.

Features

Three windows are on the left wall:

Australian Destroyers, World War II, including the Scrap Iron Flotilla.

References

  1. ↑ Sydney Harbour Naval Precinct, Heritage Branch, Department of Planning, New South Wales,
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