St Paul's Cathedral

:This article is about the cathedral in London. For other uses of the term, see Cathedral of Saint Paul.

Wren's St Paul's

The task of designing a replacement structure was assigned to Christopher Wren in 1668, along with over fifty other churches. His first design (to build a replacement on the foundations of the old cathedral) was rejected in 1669. The second design, in the shape of a Greek cross (circa 1670-1672) was rejected as too radical, as was a revised design which resulted in the 1:24 scale "Great Model", currently on display in the crypt of the cathedral. The 'warrant' design was accepted in 1675 and building work began in June. This design included a smaller dome with a spire on top, however King Charles II had given Wren permission to make "ornamental" changes to the approved design, and Wren took the liberty to radically rework the design to the current form, including the large central dome and the towers at the West end. The cathedral was completed on October 20, 1708, Wren's 76th birthday (although the first service was held on December 2, 1697), and has survived until the present day, despite being targeted during the Blitz (it was struck by a bomb on October 9, 1940, but survived).

Related Topics:
Christopher Wren - 1668 - 1669 - Greek cross - 1670 - 1672 - 1675 - King Charles II - October 20 - 1708 - December 2 - 1697 - The Blitz - October 9 - 1940

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The cathedral is built of Portland stone in a late Renaissance to Baroque style. Its impressive dome was inspired by St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, rising 108 metres (365 feet to the cross at its summit, i.e. one foot for each day of the year), making it a famous London landmark. Wren achieved a pleasing appearance by actually building three domes: the tall outer dome is non-structural but impressive to view, the lower inner dome provides an artistically balanced interior, and between the two is a structural cone which supports the apex structure and the outer dome panelling. During the building of its later stages, Wren was said to have been hauled up to the rafters in a basket to inspect the artwork.

Related Topics:
Portland stone - Renaissance - Baroque - St. Peter's Basilica - Rome

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The cathedral runs west to east from the Great West Door. The nave has three small chapels in the two adjoining aisles – All Souls and St Dunstan's in the north aisle and the Chapel of the Order of St Michael and St George in the south aisle. The main space of the cathedral is centred under the Dome, it rises 108.4 metres from the cathedral floor and holds three circular galleries – the internal Whispering Gallery, the external Stone Gallery, and the external Golden Gallery.

Related Topics:
Cathedral - Nave - Aisle - Order of St Michael and St George

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The Whispering Gallery runs around the interior of the Dome and is 259 steps up from ground-level. It gets its name from a serendipitious quirk of construction: a whisper against its wall at any point is audible to a listener with their ear held to the point diametrically opposite.

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The Quire extends to the east of the Dome and holds the stalls for the clergy and the choir as well as the cathedral's organ. The organ was first commissioned in 1694 and the current instrument is the third biggest in Britain with 7,189 pipes and 138 stops; it is enclosed in an impressive case built by Grinling Gibbons. To the north and south of the dome are the transepts of the North Quire and the South Quire. The cathedral has a very substantial crypt holding over 200 memorials as well as the OBE Chapel and the Treasury; Christopher Wren was the first person to be interred (in 1723). The cathedral has very few treasures: Many have been lost, and in 1810 a major robbery took almost all of the remaining precious artefacts.

Related Topics:
Quire - Clergy - Organ - 1694 - Grinling Gibbons - OBE - Christopher Wren - 1723 - 1810

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Within the cathedral are plaques, carvings, monuments and statues dedicated to a wide range of people. The bulk are related to the British military, including several lists of servicemen who died in action, the most recent being the Gulf War. There are special monuments to Admiral Nelson and to the Duke of Wellington in the south transept and north aisle, respectively. Also remembered are poets, painters, clergy and residents of the local parish. There are also lists of the Bishops and cathedral Deans for the last thousand years.

Related Topics:
Gulf War - Admiral Nelson - Duke of Wellington

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The cathedral has been the site for many famous funerals, including those of Horatio Nelson, the Duke of Wellington and Winston Churchill. The British Royal Family hold most of their important marriages, funerals and other religious and celebratory functions at Westminster Abbey, but St Paul's was used for the marriage of Charles, Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer.

Related Topics:
Horatio Nelson - Duke of Wellington - Winston Churchill - Westminster Abbey - Charles, Prince of Wales - Lady Diana Spencer

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Sir Christopher Wren

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Said, "I am going to dine with some men.

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If anyone calls,

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Say I am designing St Paul's."

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      —A clerihew by Edmund Clerihew Bentley

Related Topics:
Clerihew - Edmund Clerihew Bentley

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In 2001, Britain's memorial service to honour the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks was held at St. Paul's Cathedral, which the British Royal Family and then-U.S. ambassador William Farish attended. He spoke, as did Prince Philip. Farish said just before he resigned as ambassador in 2004 in The Times that this service showed the strong relationship between the US and Britain.

Related Topics:
2001 - September 11, 2001 attacks - Prince Philip - 2004 - The Times

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The cathedral is open to the public, though there is a charge for non-worshipping visitors. In 2000, the cathedral began a major restoration programme, scheduled for completion in 2008, to celebrate the 300th anniversary of its opening. The restoration programme is expected to cost £40 million, and involves not only repair and cleaning of the building, but also improvement of visitor facilities - such as accessibility for the disabled, and provision of additional educational facilities.

Related Topics:
2000 - Restoration programme - 2008

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