St Paul
Content
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is an Anglican cathedral, the seat of the Bishop of London and the
mother church of theDiocese of London. It sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City
of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in
AD 604.[1] The present church, dating from the late 17th century, was designed in the English
Baroque style by Sir Christopher Wren. Its construction, completed within Wren's lifetime, was part
of a major rebuilding programme which took place in the city after the Great Fire of London.[2]
The cathedral is one of the most famous and most recognisable sights of London, with its dome,
framed by the spires of Wren's City churches, dominating the skyline for 300 years. [3] At 365 feet
(111 m) high, it was the tallest building in London from 1710 to 1962, and its dome is also among the
highest in the world. In terms of area, St Paul's is thesecond largest church building in the United
Kingdom after Liverpool Cathedral.St Paul's Cathedral occupies a significant place in the national
identity of the English population.[4] It is the central subject of much promotional material, as well as
postcard images of the dome standing tall, surrounded by the smoke and fire of the Blitz.[4] Important
services held at St Paul's have included the funerals of Lord Nelson, the Duke of Wellington,
Sir Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher; Jubilee celebrations for Queen Victoria; peace
services marking the end of the First and Second World Wars; the wedding of Charles, Prince of
Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer, the launch of the Festival of Britain and the thanksgiving services
for the Golden Jubilee, the 80th Birthday and the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II. St Paul's
Cathedral is a busy working church, with hourly prayer and daily services.
Present St Paul'sThe task of designing a replacement structure was officially assigned to Sir
Christopher Wren on 30 July 1669.[15] He had previously been put in charge of the rebuilding of
churches to replace those lost in the Great Fire. More than fifty City churches are attributable to
Wren. Concurrent with designing St Paul's, Wren was engaged in the production of his five Tracts on
Architecture.[16]
Wren had begun advising on the repair of the Old St Paul's in 1661, five years before the Great Fire
of London in 1666.[17] The proposed work included renovations to both interior and exterior that would
complement the Classical facade designed by Inigo Jones in 1630.[18] Wren planned to replace the
dilapidated tower with a dome, using the existent structure as a scaffold. He produced a drawing of
the proposed dome, showing that it was at this stage at which he conceived the idea that it should
span both nave and aisles at the crossing.[19] After the fire, It was at first thought possible to retain a
substantial part of the old cathedral, but ultimately the entire structure was demolished in the early
1670s to start afresh.
In July 1668 Dean William Sancroft wrote to Christopher Wren that he was charged by
theArchbishop of Canterbury, in agreement with the Bishops of London and Oxford, to design a new
cathedral that was "handsome and noble to all the ends of it and to the reputation of the City and the
nation".[20] The design process took several years, but a design was finally settled and attached to a
royal warrant, with the proviso that Wren was permitted to make any further changes that he
deemed necessary. The result was the present St Paul's Cathedral, still the second largest church in
Britain and with a dome proclaimed as the finest in the world.[21] The building was financed by a tax
on coal, and was completed within its architect's lifetime, and with many of the major contractors
employed for the duration.
The "topping out" of the cathedral (when the final stone was placed on the lantern) took place on 26
October 1708, performed by Wren's son Christopher Jr and the son of one of the masons. [22] The
cathedral was declared officially complete by Parliament on 25 December 1711 (Christmas Day).
[23]
In fact, construction was to continue for several years after that, with the statues on the roof only
being added in the 1720s. In 1716 the total costs amounted to £1,095,556[24] (£143 million in 2015).[25]
Depictions of St Paul's[edit]
St Paul's Cathedral has been depicted many times in paintings, prints and drawings. Among the
well-known artists to have painted it are Canaletto, Turner,Daubigny, Pissarro, Signac, Derain, Lloyd
Rees,
St Paul's Cathedral has been the subject of many photographs, most notably the iconic image of the
dome surrounded by smoke during the Blitz.(see above) It has also been used in films and TV
programmes, either as the focus of the film, as in the episode of Climbing Great Buildings; as a
feature of the film, as in Mary Poppins; or as an incidental location such as the staircase of the
south-west tower which has appeared in several movies including Harry Potter and the Prisoner of
Azkaban. Films in which St Paul's has appeared include:
Lawrence of Arabia (1962) shows the exterior of the building and T E Lawrence's bust.
Mary Poppins (1964) shows the front and outside of the Cathedral, though it shows the
space from the missing clock, when that was caused by bombing during World War II, 30 years
after the film was set.
St Paul's Cathedral has appeared numerous times in Doctor Who, most notably the 1968
episode, "The Invasion". In one scene, a group of Cybermen are shown climbing out of some
manholes in Central London, before descending a stairway in front of the Cathedral.
Saint Paul's is seen briefly in the Goodies episode "Kitten Kong" (1971). During his rampage
through London, Twinkle does damage to various London landmarks, including Saint Paul's
Cathedral, which has its dome knocked off when he bursts out of the centre of the famous
church.
In the BBC educational programme "A Guide to Armageddon," (1982) a 1-megaton nuclear
weapon is detonated over London, with St Paul's used as ground zero.
The Madness of King George (1994) shows the Geometric Staircase in the South West Bell
Tower.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) shows the Geometric Staircase in the
South West Bell Tower.
Industrial Revelations: Best of British Engineering – Buildings, with Rory McGrath series 5,
episode 1, 2008, focuses on St Paul's Cathedral.
Sherlock Holmes (2009) shows the North side of the West Steps, and the Geometric
Staircase in the South West Bell Tower.
Climbing Great Buildings (2010)
Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) depicts St Paul's in 23rd-century London along with other
notable modern-day London buildings.[93]
mother church of theDiocese of London. It sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City
of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in
AD 604.[1] The present church, dating from the late 17th century, was designed in the English
Baroque style by Sir Christopher Wren. Its construction, completed within Wren's lifetime, was part
of a major rebuilding programme which took place in the city after the Great Fire of London.[2]
The cathedral is one of the most famous and most recognisable sights of London, with its dome,
framed by the spires of Wren's City churches, dominating the skyline for 300 years. [3] At 365 feet
(111 m) high, it was the tallest building in London from 1710 to 1962, and its dome is also among the
highest in the world. In terms of area, St Paul's is thesecond largest church building in the United
Kingdom after Liverpool Cathedral.St Paul's Cathedral occupies a significant place in the national
identity of the English population.[4] It is the central subject of much promotional material, as well as
postcard images of the dome standing tall, surrounded by the smoke and fire of the Blitz.[4] Important
services held at St Paul's have included the funerals of Lord Nelson, the Duke of Wellington,
Sir Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher; Jubilee celebrations for Queen Victoria; peace
services marking the end of the First and Second World Wars; the wedding of Charles, Prince of
Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer, the launch of the Festival of Britain and the thanksgiving services
for the Golden Jubilee, the 80th Birthday and the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II. St Paul's
Cathedral is a busy working church, with hourly prayer and daily services.
Present St Paul'sThe task of designing a replacement structure was officially assigned to Sir
Christopher Wren on 30 July 1669.[15] He had previously been put in charge of the rebuilding of
churches to replace those lost in the Great Fire. More than fifty City churches are attributable to
Wren. Concurrent with designing St Paul's, Wren was engaged in the production of his five Tracts on
Architecture.[16]
Wren had begun advising on the repair of the Old St Paul's in 1661, five years before the Great Fire
of London in 1666.[17] The proposed work included renovations to both interior and exterior that would
complement the Classical facade designed by Inigo Jones in 1630.[18] Wren planned to replace the
dilapidated tower with a dome, using the existent structure as a scaffold. He produced a drawing of
the proposed dome, showing that it was at this stage at which he conceived the idea that it should
span both nave and aisles at the crossing.[19] After the fire, It was at first thought possible to retain a
substantial part of the old cathedral, but ultimately the entire structure was demolished in the early
1670s to start afresh.
In July 1668 Dean William Sancroft wrote to Christopher Wren that he was charged by
theArchbishop of Canterbury, in agreement with the Bishops of London and Oxford, to design a new
cathedral that was "handsome and noble to all the ends of it and to the reputation of the City and the
nation".[20] The design process took several years, but a design was finally settled and attached to a
royal warrant, with the proviso that Wren was permitted to make any further changes that he
deemed necessary. The result was the present St Paul's Cathedral, still the second largest church in
Britain and with a dome proclaimed as the finest in the world.[21] The building was financed by a tax
on coal, and was completed within its architect's lifetime, and with many of the major contractors
employed for the duration.
The "topping out" of the cathedral (when the final stone was placed on the lantern) took place on 26
October 1708, performed by Wren's son Christopher Jr and the son of one of the masons. [22] The
cathedral was declared officially complete by Parliament on 25 December 1711 (Christmas Day).
[23]
In fact, construction was to continue for several years after that, with the statues on the roof only
being added in the 1720s. In 1716 the total costs amounted to £1,095,556[24] (£143 million in 2015).[25]
Depictions of St Paul's[edit]
St Paul's Cathedral has been depicted many times in paintings, prints and drawings. Among the
well-known artists to have painted it are Canaletto, Turner,Daubigny, Pissarro, Signac, Derain, Lloyd
Rees,
St Paul's Cathedral has been the subject of many photographs, most notably the iconic image of the
dome surrounded by smoke during the Blitz.(see above) It has also been used in films and TV
programmes, either as the focus of the film, as in the episode of Climbing Great Buildings; as a
feature of the film, as in Mary Poppins; or as an incidental location such as the staircase of the
south-west tower which has appeared in several movies including Harry Potter and the Prisoner of
Azkaban. Films in which St Paul's has appeared include:
Lawrence of Arabia (1962) shows the exterior of the building and T E Lawrence's bust.
Mary Poppins (1964) shows the front and outside of the Cathedral, though it shows the
space from the missing clock, when that was caused by bombing during World War II, 30 years
after the film was set.
St Paul's Cathedral has appeared numerous times in Doctor Who, most notably the 1968
episode, "The Invasion". In one scene, a group of Cybermen are shown climbing out of some
manholes in Central London, before descending a stairway in front of the Cathedral.
Saint Paul's is seen briefly in the Goodies episode "Kitten Kong" (1971). During his rampage
through London, Twinkle does damage to various London landmarks, including Saint Paul's
Cathedral, which has its dome knocked off when he bursts out of the centre of the famous
church.
In the BBC educational programme "A Guide to Armageddon," (1982) a 1-megaton nuclear
weapon is detonated over London, with St Paul's used as ground zero.
The Madness of King George (1994) shows the Geometric Staircase in the South West Bell
Tower.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) shows the Geometric Staircase in the
South West Bell Tower.
Industrial Revelations: Best of British Engineering – Buildings, with Rory McGrath series 5,
episode 1, 2008, focuses on St Paul's Cathedral.
Sherlock Holmes (2009) shows the North side of the West Steps, and the Geometric
Staircase in the South West Bell Tower.
Climbing Great Buildings (2010)
Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) depicts St Paul's in 23rd-century London along with other
notable modern-day London buildings.[93]
