Italian Chapel

The Italian Chapel is a highly ornate Catholic chapel built by Italian prisoners of war captured in North Africa during World War II, who were housed on Lamb Holm while they constructed the Churchill Barriers to the east of Scapa Flow. Only the concrete foundations of the other buildings of the prisoner-of-war camp survive. It was not completed until after the end of the war and was restored in the 1960s and again in the 1990s.

The chapel was constructed from limited materials by the prisoners. Two Nissen huts were joined end-to-end. The corrugated interior was then covered with plasterboard and the altar and altar rail were constructed from concrete left over from work on the barriers. Most of the interior decoration was done by Domenico Chiocchetti, a POW from Moena. He painted the sanctuary end of the chapel and fellow-prisoners decorated the entire interior. They created a front facade out of concrete, concealing the shape of the hut and making the building look like a church.

Chiocchetti remained on the island to finish the chapel, even when his fellow prisoners were released shortly before the end of the war.

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Place Categories: History & Heritage See & Do

Italian Chapel 7 Day Weather Forecast

Todaylightrain
Expect a temp in the range 11.8℃ to 12.2℃ with wind speed 14.9 m/sec (SSW)
Thursday, Sep 21lightrain
Expect a temp in the range 11.8℃ to 12.2℃ with wind speed 13.4 m/sec (SSW)
Friday, Sep 22rainshowers_night
Expect a temp in the range 11.6℃ to 12.1℃ with wind speed 8.9 m/sec (SW)
Saturday, Sep 23partlycloudy_night
Expect a temp in the range 9.9℃ to 10℃ with wind speed 11.8 m/sec (NW)
Sunday, Sep 24rain
Expect a temp in the range 11.6℃ to 13.2℃ with wind speed 9.7 m/sec (SSE)
Monday, Sep 25rain
Expect a temp in the range 13.7℃ to 15.2℃ with wind speed 12.1 m/sec (S)
Tuesday, Sep 26clearsky_night
Expect a temp in the range 12.7℃ to 13.3℃ with wind speed 9.1 m/sec (SW)

Lamb Holm weather forecast from Yr, delivered by the Norwegian Meteorological Institute and NRK


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