4. Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
• The first Saxon cathedral was built of
wood, probably by Mellitus in AD 604 on
Ludgate Hill. It burned down in 675.
• The cathedral was rebuilt in stone, in
685. In it was buried King or Saint Sebbi
of Essex. It was sacked by the Vikings in
961.
• The third cathedral was begun in 962,
again in stone. In it was buried Ethelred
the Unready. It burnt, with the whole
city, in a fire in 1087.
5. The fourth St Paul's (known
as Old St Paul's) was begun
by the Normans after the
1087 fire. Work took over
200 years, and a great deal
was lost in a fire in 1136. .
The 'New Work' was
completed in 1314.
In 1561 the spire was
destroyed by lightning and
it was not replaced; this
event was taken by both
Protestants and Catholics
as a sign of God's
displeasure at the other
faction's actions.
6. Old Saint Paul’s was
destroyed by the Great
Fire of London in
1666. The fire was so
hot, it melted the
cathedral bells.
7. The Greek Cross design
The warrant design
The final design
After the fire, Sir Christopher
Wren designed a new Saint
Paul’s. There is some Latin
writing about Wren on the
floor ‘Reader, if you seek his
monument, look around you’.
8. During World War Two, a lot of bombs hit the
buildings around Saint Paul’s, but the cathedral
survived.
9. The cathedral is built of Portland stone in a late
Renaissance style that is England's sober Baroque.
10. The dome of Saint Paul’s
is 111m high. It is
actually made of two
domes, one inside the
other. The inner dome is
decorated with pictures of
Saint Paul.
12. The two bells in the clock tower are called Great Paul and
Great Tom. Great Paul is the biggest bell in England. It
rings every day at 1p.m. to let people know it is lunchtime.
Great Tom rings when a king or queen dies. The bells in the
tower are rung on Sunday and special occasions.
13. The Whispering Gallery runs around the inner dome, 259
steps above the ground. It gets its name because even a
whisper can be heard all around it.
14. The ceiling of the choir is covered with pictures called
mosaics, made up of thousands of tiny bits of glass. The
mosaics show angels, animals and birds. The choir has
wooden stalls carved by a craftsman called Grinling
Gibbons.
15. The American Memorial Chapel is dedicated to Americans who
died in the Second World War. Their names are in a list in a
glass case. Carvings of American animals decorate the chapel.
The main hall is called the nave. On one side of the nave, there is
a huge monument to the Duke of Wellington. On the top, there is
a statue of the Duke on his horse, Copenhagen.
16. The cathedral has a very substantial crypt, holding over 200
memorials. Christopher Wren was the first person to be
interred, in 1723. St Paul's is home to other plaques, carvings,
statues, memorials and tombs of famous British figures
including:
• General Sir Isaac Brock
• Sir Edwin Lutyens
• John Donne
• Lord Kitchener
• The Duke of Wellington
• Lord Nelson
• Henry Moore
• Sir William Alexander
Smith
• Sir Winston Churchill
• T. E. Lawrence
• Sir Alexander
Fleming
• Sir Arthur Sullivan
• Florence Nightingale
• J. M. W. Turner
• Sir Joshua Reynolds
• Dr. Samuel Johnson
• Ivor Novello
• Charles Cornwallis
17. The Royal Family holds most of their important marriages,
christenings and funerals at Westminster Abbey, but St Paul's
was used for the marriage of Charles, Prince of Wales and
Lady Diana Spencer. The religious service for Queen Victoria's
Diamond Jubilee was also celebrated there.
