London Tour: London in a Day, part 3 – Cathedrals

Westminster Abbey, North door. Image: Wikipedia

London in a Day, part 3 – Cathedrals

We’ve explored London’s Museums in our previous article; now we get to two of the great Churches of London.

Modern London is based on two focal points:

• Westminster (political, cultural, religious)
• The City of London (financial, economic, central business district)

There are two great churches in London – one in each of these locations – that you must see, each for different purposes.

First, I will provide some historical background on these two locations.

Westminster

Aerial view of London’s Westminster in 1909. Image: Wikipedia

Westminster is a district in London, a city really, known as the Metropolitan Borough of Westminster. It also explains where it was situated regarding the ancient Roman city of Londinium, of which it is west. Until the English Reformation, there was also an Eastminster, near the Tower of London, which defended the City of London.

Fragment of London wall from Roman times, AD 200. Image: Wikipedia

The Palace of Westminster, in contrast, is located across the street from the Abbey in the Parliament building. The Palace, from around AD 1200, was a royal residence. It was only later that this Palace housed the developing Parliament.

Westminster Hall, inside the present Parliament Building, London. Image: Wikipedia

It was there, in Westminster Hall of the Palace, at the end of the English Civil War, that King Charles I was brought to trial on January 20, 1649, and condemned to be beheaded.

• A: Westminster Abbey (several hours)

Westminster Abbey, western facade, London. Image: Wikipedia

Originally called St. Peter’s, the Abbey has grown since its legendary 7th-century origins. In the 10th century, a monastery was added, and in the 11th century, it was rebuilt in the Romanesque style by Edward the Confessor.

Henry III began The Gothic redesign in the 13th century, though it was not completed until after the War of the Roses. It now has a significant presence not only in London but to the Church of England worldwide.

In some ways, it is like America’s National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.: it’s “the church” of the country. The Abbey is where Queen Elizabeth I was crowned, married, and buried. King Charles III was coronated there. Indeed, in this church, 40 English and British monarchs have been coronated, 16 royal weddings, and 18 English, Scottish, and British monarchs have been buried.

Indeed, it is full of monuments and memorials. Jane Austin is there among 3,300 other notables. It seems more like a mausoleum than a church. Author and artist William Morris has called it the “National Valhalla (Norse: Hall of Fallen Heroes).”

It is where the Westminster Standards, including the Westminster Confession, were written in the mid-1600s. These documents are foundational to Reformed churches, especially the Presbyterian church.

Ceiling of Henry VII Chapel, Westminster Abbey. Image: Wikipedia

One of the rooms where it was written, which is open to the public, is the (Our) Lady Chapel (aka Henry VII Chapel) behind the altar and transept (farthest eastern part), and upstairs are the tombs of several key monarchs.

It is where Elizabeth I and her half-sister, Mary I Tudor (Bloody Mary), are buried in the same room (actually, Elizabeth is buried above Mary). Also buried here are all the Tudors (except Henry VIII), including Henry VII, Edward VI, and a selection of the Stuarts: Mary Queen of Scots, James I, and Charles II.

The Chapel is built in the late Perpendicular Gothic style, with a stunning fan vault-style ceiling. See What’s on.

City of London

City of London map. Image: Wikimedia

As I mentioned previously, what is now called the “City of London” was originally the Roman settlement of Londinium. It was “the City” from the Roman 1st century AD to the Middle Ages. It is not a borough of London, like Westminster, but instead a ceremonial county with its own Lord Mayor.

This Square Mile (1.12 square mile) is the center of the UK’s financial services (Bank of England), trading (London Stock Exchange), insurance (Lloyds of London), and legal (The Temple) establishments. About a million professionals work there.

• A: St. Paul’s Cathedral (several hours)

St. Paul’s aerial view. Image: Wikipedia

St. Paul’s is a proper cathedral, meaning the “chair” (Latin: cathedra) of a bishop. It serves as the seat of the Anglican Bishop of London and is the mother church of the Diocese of London. As impressive as Westminster Abbey is, it is a church, not a cathedral.

It sits atop Ludgate Hill and is the highest point in the City of London. It was dedicated to St. Paul the Apostle back in AD 604. Through many iterations, especially after the Great Fire of London, which gutted it in 1666, it was rebuilt in a modern style. The work was done by Sir Christopher Wren in 1669 in the English Baroque style. He worked on 50 other city churches and dozens of other structures throughout England.

He made St. Paul’s the second-largest church in Britain and replaced the old spire with a dome inspired by Michelangelo’s dome of St. Peter’s Basilica. Though struck by bombs in World War II, the dome still stood, displaying Britain’s indomitable spirit.

You often see St. Paul’s as a backdrop in movies:

• In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the students follow a spiraling geometric staircase (in St. Paul’s) that leads to Professor Trelawney’s Divination classroom
• The steps and west facade were featured in the original Mary Poppins‘ song “Feed the Birds, Tuppence a Bag.”
• The exterior of the church and the bust of T.E. Lawrence were seen in Laurence of Arabia.
• St. Paul’s appears in 23rd-century London in Star Trek Into Darkness.

For over 300 years, it was the tallest building on the London skyline, from the time of its completion in 1701 until the Millbank Tower in 1963. From the west, you now see the “Gherkin” (St. Mary Axe) tower behind St. Paul’s. You can climb the 528 steps to the top of the dome and get a panoramic view of London, or descend into the crypt, where there are buried Christopher Wren, Admiral Nelson, and the Duke of Wellington.

It was the site of the famous wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, chosen for having more seating than Westminster Abbey. Historically, it has been the site of many celebrations and funerals. It was the location of the Silver, Diamond, and Golden Jubilees of Queen Elizabeth II. A service of thanksgiving for her Platinum Jubilee (70th anniversary) celebration was held at St. Paul’s.

No other British monarch had celebrated 70 years on the throne. Her “Platinum Party” was celebrated all over London and the United Kingdom. I wrote about it here.

It’s a block or two from the Museum of London and a few blocks from the Barbican (Theatre) Center, where Les Misérables originally debuted in 1985. The Barbican is where I saw Handel’s Messiah during a Christmas season years ago.

The Cathedral is stunning inside and out. The acoustics will knock your eyes out (ears?). You can take a tour of the Dome Galleries. See What’s on.

Next article: London Monuments

Bill Petro, your friendly neighborhood historian
billpetro.com