Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: Warwick

The Beauchamp Chapel is considered being the finest medieval chapel in England. The chapel, situated at the south-east of the Collegiate Church of St. Mary, was built at the behest of Richard de Beauchamp (1382–1439), 13th Earl of Warwick, a nobleman and military commander. Richard de Beauchamp's will was made in 1437 and two years later he died. Most of his property was entailed, but with a portion of the rest the will established a substantial trust. The trust endowed the St Mary’s Church and called for the construction of a new chapel there. Construction started shortly after his death with the foundation stone being laid in 1443; the chapel was completed in 1462. In 1475 the body of De Beauchamp was transferred to this family mausoleum. The Beauchamp Chantry is composed of three bays, at the centre of which is the tomb of Richard de Beauchamp with its gilt-bronze monumental effigy. Beside the tomb of Earl Richard is that of Ambrose Dudley, whose effigy wears a gilded iron coronet (PiP). But the grandest tomb of is that of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester and his wife Lettice. His tomb is set into the north wall of the chapel, beneath a gilded canopy.

The Lord Leycester Hospital has never been a medical establishment. The word hospital is used in its ancient sens, meaning ‘a charitable institution for the housing and maintenance of the needy, infirm or aged’. In 1571 Robert Duydley, Earl of Leicester, founded a retirement home for disabled soldiers and their wives. His ‘hospital’ was set up in buildings which were already more than 150 years old, when it was the home of Warwick’s medieval guilds. The hospital, now a self-supporting charity, continues to provide a home for ‘the Brethen’, as they are still known. They make together with their wives a key contribution to ensuring that this architectural gem is accessible for visitors.