Westminster Abbey in London: history, photo, description, interesting facts

2024 Author: Harold Hamphrey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:06

Westminster Abbey is a large church with the official name St. Peter's Collegiate Church in Westminster. It is a Gothic building located to the west of the Houses of Parliament in the central London borough of Westminster. Here, until 1539, there was a Benedictine monastic monastery, until the monastery was abolished. Between 1540 and 1556 the church had the status of a cathedral. But despite its current name, Westminster Abbey is not formally an abbey or a cathedral. Since 1560, Elizabeth I issued a special royal charter on the transition of the English churches to the status of Royal peculiar (royal features, estates), according to which the dean and heads of the churches of the kingdom are subordinate to the monarch, and not to the bishop.

Meaning

The majestic church building does not have a history full of interesting events, and its architecture does not stand out for originality or pronounced beauty. But the greatestthe importance of Westminster Abbey for the state is unconditional. This is a special royal church. Since the coronation of William the Conqueror in 1066, all the coronations of English and later British monarchs have been performed under the vaults of this temple, funeral services and weddings of members of royal families have been held here. Since 1100, at least 16 royal weddings have been held at the abbey. Since the middle of the 10th century, the tradition of daily worship in the abbey has continued to this day.

Not only royals are buried in the church, many English figures who played the greatest role in the development of state policy, culture and science were awarded this honor. In total, over three thousand people are buried on the territory of the abbey, six hundred of which have tombstones. Since 1987, Westminster Abbey, St. Margaret's Church and the Houses of Parliament in London have been collectively designated World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.

History of Architecture

The construction of the first temple on the site of the modern abbey began 1400 years ago, during the founding of the Christian English Church, at the origins of which stood Bishop Augustine of Canterbury. At the beginning of the 7th century, Augustine sent Mellitus, one of his priests, to the kingdom of Essex by the Thames, near London, to preach and convert the population to the Christian faith. One of the first to accept Christianity was the king of the East Saxons, Sabert. Im and Mellit two miles west of old London on the Isle of Thorney(Thorney) a Christian church was built. And Mellit from 604 became the first bishop of London.

The recorded origins of the abbey date back to the 960s or early 970s, when Saint Dunstan, Bishop of Worcester and London, together with King Edgar established a community of Benedictine monks on the site of the church. With the growing influence of the abbey, the monastery and the island began to be called the Western Church (West Minster). The first known reconstruction of the church was made in 1065-1090, and it was started by the Anglo-Saxon king Edward, called the Confessor. On the eve of his death in 1042, the temple was consecrated. The support columns with round arches in the crypt of the modern abbey are the only surviving trace of a building from that time.

The next reconstruction was the most important, during which the church acquired its main appearance. Construction was carried out for almost three centuries (1245-1517) and began under Henry III, according to whose plan the building of Westminster Abbey was designed and created as a Gothic cathedral. The work was supervised by the royal stonemason Henry of the Rhine. Henry III commissioned a unique mosaic floor in front of the High Altar, paved in the Italian cosmatesco technique. During the construction period of the XIV century, the appearance of the church reflected significant traces of the activity and leadership of the skilled architect Henry Yevel. Under him were built: the nave, the House of the Abbot, the western cloister and several tombs. Construction work was completed during the reign of Richard II.

The first Tudor king Henry VII added in 1503The Lady Chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, known as the Chapels of Henry VII. Most of the stone for it was brought from the city of Cannes and the Loire Valley in France, as well as from the Isle of Portland.

Status changes

By 1535, the annual income of the abbey reached 2400-2800 pounds sterling, which is equivalent to 1,340,000-1,527,000 English pounds at the time of 2016. It was the second richest Christian monastery in England after the monastic community of Glastonbury.

Henry VIII assumed direct royal control of the abbey in 1539, endowing it with the position of second cathedral under the charter of 1540. At the same time, the monarch issued a decree with a written patent establishing the Diocese of Westminster. By granting cathedral status to Westminster Abbey, Henry VIII secured grounds to spare the temple from the destruction or decay that most English monasteries and churches suffered during that period, while still controlling its income.

The rights to the abbey were restored by the Benedictines under the reign of the Catholic Mary I, but again abolished by the ascended throne of Elizabeth I. In 1560, the Virgin Queen Bess restored the activities of Westminster, but making it the Collegiate Church of St. dean. Westminster Abbey has received the status of Royal Peculiar, that is, the Anglican Church, which is directly subordinate to the sovereign, and not to the bishop.

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During the rebellious 1640s, the abbey suffered damage when it was attacked by Puritan iconoclasts. But thanks to the patronage of the state and the monarchy, the church was protected, and the destruction remained insignificant.

Between 1722 and 1745, architect Nicholas Hawksmoor erected the temple's two western towers of Portland stone, modeled after the late Gothic and early Renaissance. And the walls and upper floors of the church are lined with Purbeck marble, and many tombstones are also made of various types of marble. According to the description, Westminster Abbey in the 19th century, under the direction of the architect Sir George Gilbert Scott, underwent major restoration work and final reconstruction.

The Mystery Chapel of the Order of Knights

One of the most beautiful details of the church interior is the vaulted ceiling of the chapel of Henry VII. No photos of Westminster Abbey convey the interior splendor of this building. When the Order of the Bath was established by George I (1725), the chapel became the site of installation ceremonies for the most honored order, presided over by the Grand Master. Ceremonies are held every four years, and every second of them is attended by the king. Such a strange name of the order comes from an ancient knightly rite, when a neophyte was subjected to an all-night vigil in fasting and prayer with an obligatory cleansing bath on the eve of the initiation ceremony. Composition of the Order: Sovereign Head (King of Britain); Grand Grand Master (Master), whose role belongs to the Prince of Wales; three knightly classes. Membersorders are not only knights, but also ladies.

Church organ

The beautiful Harrison & Harrison organ was installed in 1937 and first used at the coronation of George VI. Some of the trumpets from the previous 1848 instrument, Craftsman William Hill, have been removed and included in the new scheme. The two organ bodies, designed and built in the late 19th century by John Loughborough Pearson, were restored and painted in 1959. In 1982 and 1987, Harrison & Harrison expanded the organ to include additional registers under the direction of the then abbey organist Simon Preston. In 2006, the organ console was renovated and expanded by the same company Harrison & Harrison. One part of the instrument, the Celestial Organ, is not currently functional. Current organist and choirmaster James O'Donnell has been active since 2000.

World War II

Westminster suffered the most damage in history during the May 1941 bombing, when several incendiary bombs hit the roof of the building. They were all extinguished except for one, which caught fire among the wooden beams and the plaster vault of the roof over the north transept. The flames quickly spread, burning debris with molten lead roofing began to fall on wooden stalls, pews, lamps and other church equipment. However, church officials managed to carry out most of the furniture. Finally, part of the roof collapsed, preventing furtherfire spread.

In those war years, about 60,000 sandbags were used to protect the tombs. The Coronation Chair was sent for security to Gloucester Cathedral, and the Coronation Stone was buried in the recesses of the Abbey.

Burial Honor

Since the Middle Ages, English monarchs, aristocrats, monks and people associated with the abbey have been buried in chapels, crypts, transepts, under floor slabs and other places in the church. One of them was the poet Geoffrey Chaucer (1400), who was honorably buried here. A century and a half later, the ashes of Edmund Spenser were buried in the abbey, then other poets, writers and musicians were buried or their names were immortalized here in the "Poets' Corner" of the south transept.

Subsequently, Westminster Abbey became the most honored burial place in Britain. The practice of burying prominent national figures at the abbey began with the funeral of Admiral Robert Blake in 1657 and continued with a list of generals, admirals, politicians, doctors and scientists such as Isaac Newton or Charles Darwin. In the 20th century, it became customary to bury cremated remains in the abbey. In 1905, the first cremated ashes interred in the church were those of the actor Henry Irving.

Legends

There are few legends about Westminster Abbey, and one of them goes back to the founding of the church. In those days, the Thames was rich in fish, and many fishermen hunted in its waters. One of them had a vision of the patron saint of fishermen - the Apostle Peter, at the place where the temple was soon erected. On the eve of the ceremony of consecration of the church, allegedly its founder, Mellitus, also appeared St. Peter, whose name the abbey later received. Perhaps the legend was the reason why, in later times, the fishermen of the Thames annually on June 29, St. Peter's Day, brought rich gifts of salmon to the abbey. And the Fishmongers' Company still supplies the abbey with fish.

Another story concerns the island of Thorney itself, on which the church is located. It was first named in the 8th century as Thorn ait (thorny island) because of its abundant wild brambles. In the chronicles of that time, it is called "a terrible place." After 200 years, under King Edward the Confessor, the island is mentioned as "the most beautiful place, surrounded by green fields with fertile soil." The monks began to cultivate blackberries and develop the tradition of English gardening. To this day, the abbey gardens, considered the oldest in London, have been preserved.

Interesting facts

A lot of interesting things can be said about Westminster Abbey and its interior. Here are some of his stories.

1. In the basement of the XI century, under the former cells of the Benedictine monks, the museum has been located since 1908. This is one of the oldest areas of Westminster Abbey, dating back to 1065, and the only one left from that time.
2. Until the 19th century, Westminster was the third place of study in England, after Oxford and Cambridge. It was here that the first and third parts of the King James Bible, as well as the second half of the New Testament, were translated into English. In the 20th century, NewEnglish Bible.
3. September 17, 2010, the church was visited by the first person to set foot on the territory of the abbey, Pope Benedict XVI. No pontiff has been to this temple before.
4. In the floor, just inside the large west door in the center of the nave, is the tomb of an unknown warrior - a British soldier killed on a World War I European battlefield. He was buried in the abbey on November 11, 1920, and this grave is the only one in the temple that is forbidden to step on.



5. The last wedding in the abbey was the 2011 wedding ceremony of Prince William and non-aristocratic Catherine Middleton. The event, which was attended by about 1900 invited guests, was broadcast live around the world.

The latest news from Westminster Abbey will be the opening in 2018 of the Royal Diamond Jubilee Galleries, a new museum in a medieval triforium. The gallery, located at a height of 70 feet, has been hidden from the public for over 700 years. These newly opened galleries will provide visitors with magnificent views of the Palace of Westminster and the church. Treasures and collections reflecting the abbey's rich and varied millennial history will be on display.