Monumental Church

Monumental Church is a former Episcopal church that stands at 1224 E. Broad Street between N. 12th and College Streets in Richmond, Virginia. Designed by architect Robert Mills, it is one of America's earliest and most distinctive Greek Revival churches and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is a National Historic Landmark and is located in the Court End historic district.Monumental Church was built between 1812 and 1814 to commemorate the 72 people who died on the site in the December 26, 1811 Richmond Theatre fire. The building consists of two parts: a crypt and a church. The crypt is located beneath the sanctuary and contains the remains of those claimed by the fire. The church is an octagonal construction of brick and Aquia sandstone with a stucco coat.HistoryThe site of Monumental Church was known initially as the first Academy of Fine Arts and Sciences in America, or "The Theatre Square." Chevalier Quesnay de Beaurepaire, a French officer in the Revolutionary army, had developed the idea for the academy but the plan was abandoned due to the war. In 1786 on this site Richmond's first theatre was built, which had the appearance of a "barn-like building." The Virginia Ratifying Convention of 1788 was held in this building beginning on June 3 for three weeks "after first convening in the temporary capitol at Cary and fourteenth streets." Among the many individuals in attendance were James Madison, John Marshall, James Monroe, Edmund Pendleton, George Wythe, George Nicholas, Edmund Randolph, George Mason, Richard Henry Lee and Patrick Henry. This building was destroyed by fire in 1802 and the Richmond Theatre would replace it.