St Paul's Cathedral
 Cathedrals |
(England - London)
Nearest Tube, St Paul's
Recently totally refurbished to its original splendour, St Paul's Cathedral is one of the most recognisable great churches in the world and together with Big Ben and the Tower of London and Tower Bridge forms one of the characteristic features of London's sky line.
The origins of the Cathedral dates back to the early 7th century AD. After the original wooden structure was burnt down by the Danes in 962, another building was constructed but was itself destroyed by fire in 1087. The construction of a Cathedral following in the early 12th Century but from the 14th Century it fell into disrepair, being used for a variety of purposes including as a prison and even as a stable during the English Civil War. Then disaster struck again as it, together with the whole of medieval London, was totally destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666. However, out of the ashes was born the present Cathedral of St Paul. Six days after the fire Sir Christopher Wren, a brilliant young architect, submitted a plan for the re-building of London, the centre piece of which was to be the great new Cathedral of St Paul.
The foundation stone of the new Cathedral was laid on 21 June 1675. Thirty two years later, in 1708, the final stone was laid. Dominating the sky line of the City of London, the cathedral is 364 feet (111meters) high and 557 feet (170 meters) long and dominating the cathedral is its dome which its golden bell and cross. The dome is flanked by two towers, the left one housing the largest bell in England, the Great Paul. The bell was cast in 1882and weighs 17 tonnes. The interior of the cathedral is decorated in gold and mosaic and almost luminescent stone. A very large part of the Cathedral is dedicated as a memorial to the many great Britons of the past - soldiers, artists, writers poets and architects.
Sir Christopher Wren himself is buried beneath a simple black marble stone inscribed with the most fitting inscription: "Reader, if you are looking for a monument then look around you". A major characteristic of the cathedral's interior is the Whispering gallery that is reached by a 259 step staircase. The gallery, which runs around the dome, is so named because a whisper uttered next to the wall can be clearly heard by someone standing diametrically opposite. From the lantern which sits at the top of the dome wonderful views of the city of London can be seen.