|
Images
Building Rating Other Information
- 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.
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.
- Ludgate Hill itself has long been associated
with religion. It is believed that it was originally
the site of an ancient megalith and then later
a temple dedicated to the goddess Diana, in
alignment with the Apollo Temple which once
stood at Westminster.
- A religious structure dedicated to Saint Paul
has existed in London since 604. It has been
damaged or destroyed on a number of
occasions but has been doggedly rebuilt. The
first cathedral was destroyed by fire in 675
and the second was ransacked and then
destroyed by Viking forces in 962. Old St
Paul's was built by the Normans in their
characteristic style from 1087 and it was
completed in 1310. It was the largest church
in England and the third largest in Europe.
The church had the highest steeple in Europe
until 1561 when it was destroyed by fire
following a lightning strike and was never
rebuilt, the building then slowly fell into
general disrepair. The Norman structure
otherwise survived until 1666 when,
scheduled for demolition, it was completely
destroyed in the Great Fire of London.
- The task of designing a replacement
structure was assigned to Christopher Wren
in 1668 along with over fifty other churches.
His first design in the shape of a Greek cross
was rejected as too radical in 1669 and his
second proposal was turned down in 1673
before his 'warrant' design was accepted in
1675 and building work began in June. The
Wren cathedral was completed by 1710
(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). Wren achieved a
pleasing appearance for the dome 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. Between the two is a
structural cone which supports the apex
structure and the outer dome panelling.
- 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.
Companies
If your company has been involved with the Design/Build, Supply or Maintenance of this building please submit your details. - Architect
- Sir Christopher Wren
- Developer
- The Diocese of London
- Main Contractor
- The Worshipful Company of Masons
Reference Data
- Reference No.
- 191
- First Uploaded
- 19-02-2006
- Last Editorial Date
- 16-01-2015
|
|
- Address
- St Paul's Churchyard, London. EC2
- Council
- City of London
- County
- London
- Region
- London
- Country
- United Kingdom
View in Google Maps - Status
- Complete
- Proposal date
- 1668
- Construction start date
- 1677
- Completion date
- 1711
- Renovation Date
- 2008
- Heritage Status
- Grade I
- Style
- Baroque
- Pinnacle Height (AGL)
- 111.00
- Pinnacle Type
- Spire
- Roof Height (AGL)
- 108.40
- Top Floor Height (AGL)
- 53.40
Market Data
- Primary Use
- Place of Worship
- Floorspace (sq m)
- 7,875.00
- Construction Cost
- £1,095,556.00
- Budget Date
- 1711
Metres > Feet |
|