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| Hradetzky organ |
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| St Salvator's tower |
(Please note that the Chapel interior is not regularly open to the public. However, a virtual tour is available HERE. Opens in new window.)
Images © University of St Andrews
The Hradetzky Organ and Patrick Hamilton
At the time of the previously mentioned siege of
St Andrews Castle in the 16th century, the tower of St Salvator's Chapel in
North Street did not have a stone steeple. The flat surface therefore served as
a conveniently sited elevated platform for the attacking French force,
commanded by the Italian Leone Strozzi, to locate their cannon used to bombard
the castle and breach its defences.
A prominent position within the chapel is occupied by the
Hradetzky organ, installed in 1974. It is widely regarded as one of the finest
instruments of its kind in Scotland. The organ was made by Gerhard Hradetzky in
the village of Oberbergern in Lower Austria and contains over 3,000 pipes. Its
striking colours reputedly represent the red gowns worn by undergraduate
students in St Andrews and the grey stone of the surrounding buildings.
Outside the chapel, beneath the tower, the initials PH are
set into the cobbles, marking the site at which the Protestant reformer Patrick
Hamilton was burnt at the stake for his beliefs in 1528. (Student
tradition suggests that treading on the initials will result in failure in the
final exams.) Patrick Hamilton developed extensive contacts with reformist
figures in Europe and was influenced by the views of the German theologian Martin
Luther and by the thinking of the Dutch humanist scholar Erasmus.
It is noteworthy that, unlike many college chapels, St
Salvator's Chapel opened its doors to the street, outside the confines of the
college, welcoming the people of the town. Today, this medieval symbolism is
reflected in the international nature of the university, welcoming students and
academics from all parts of the world. Appropriately, many of these visitors,
arriving from across Europe, have done so prior to 2021, thanks to the
Erasmus+ educational exchange programme of the European Union, named after the medieval
Dutch philosopher whose humanist views helped form the outlook of Patrick
Hamilton.
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