From the Middle Ages, rich families would often give money to a church or cathedral so that a family chapel could be built attached to the church. There were several reasons for this. The family might want a place where they could pray privately outsde the regular service time. They might want to give thanks to God that a member of the family had been healed or rescued. They might want to bury dead family members and have prayers said every day. They might want to give honour to a particular saint. They might want to avoid taxation by spending a lot of money quickly. They might want to beautify their favorite church and make it bigger. They might want to make something beautiful that the whole town can use.