St Paul's Cathedral

This article is about St Paul's cathedral in London, England. For other cathedrals of the same name, seeSt. Paul's Cathedral (disambiguation).

"Saint Paul's" redirects here. For other uses, seeSaint Paul (disambiguation).

St Paul's
Cathedral Church of St Paul the Apostle
Aerial view of the St Paul's Cathedral
Interactive fullscreen map
51°30′50″N0°05′54″W
Location	London,EC4
Country	United Kingdom
Denomination	Church of England
Previous denomination	Roman Catholicism
Website	stpauls.co.uk
History
Status	Active
Consecrated	1697(1697)
Architecture
Heritage designation	Grade I Listed
Previous cathedrals	4
Architect(s)	Sir Christopher Wren
Style	English Baroque
Years built	1675–1710
Groundbreaking	1675
Completed	1710
Specifications
Length	518 ft (158 m)
Navewidth	121 ft (37 m)
Width across transepts	246 ft (75 m)
Height	365 ft (111 m)
Dome height (outer)	278 ft (85 m)
Dome height (inner)	225 ft (69 m)
Dome diameter (outer)	112 ft (34 m)
Dome diameter (inner)	102 ft (31 m)
Number oftowers	2
Tower height	221 ft (67 m)
Administration
Province	Canterbury
Diocese	London(since 604)
Clergy
Bishop(s)	Sarah Mullally
Dean	Andrew Tremlett
Precentor	vacant
Chancellor	Paula Gooder (lay reader)
Canon Treasurer	vacant
Laity
Director of music	Andrew Carwood
Organist(s)	William Fox(acting)

St Paul's Cathedralis anAnglicancathedralinLondon,England, the seat of theBishop of London.The cathedral serves as themother churchof theDiocese of London.It is onLudgate Hillat the highest point of theCity of London.Its dedication in honour ofPaul the Apostledates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604.The present structure, which was completed in 1710, is aGrade I listed buildingthat was designed in theEnglish Baroquestyle by SirChristopher Wren.The cathedral's reconstruction was part of a major rebuilding programme initiated in the aftermath of theGreat Fire of London.The earlier Gothic cathedral (Old St Paul's Cathedral), largely destroyed in the Great Fire, was a central focus for medieval and early modern London, includingPaul's walkandSt Paul's Churchyard,being the site ofSt Paul's Cross.

The cathedral is one of the most famous and recognisable sights of London. Its dome, surrounded by the spires of Wren's City churches, has dominated the skyline for over 300 years. At 365 ft (111 m) high, it was the tallest building in London from 1710 to 1963. The dome is still one of the highest in the world. St Paul's is thesecond-largest church buildingin area in the United Kingdom, afterLiverpool Cathedral.

Services held at St Paul's have included the funerals ofAdmiral Lord Nelson,theDuke of Wellington,Winston ChurchillandMargaret Thatcher;jubilee celebrations forQueen Victoria;an inauguration service for theMetropolitan Hospital Sunday Fund;peace services marking the end of theFirstandSecond World Wars;thewedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer;the launch of theFestival of Britain;and the thanksgiving services for theSilver,Golden,Diamond,andPlatinumJubileesand the 80th and 90th birthdays ofQueen Elizabeth II.St Paul's Cathedral is the central subject of much promotional material, as well as of images of the dome surrounded by the smoke and fire of theBlitz. The cathedral is a working church with hourly prayer and daily services. The tourist entry fee at the door is £25 for adults (January 2024) but no charges are made to worshippers attending services, or for private prayer.

The nearestLondon Undergroundstation isSt Paul's,which is 130 yards (120 m) away from St Paul's Cathedral.

History

Before the cathedral

The location of Londinium's original cathedral is unknown, but legend and medieval tradition claims it wasSt Peter upon Cornhill.St Paul is an unusual attribution for a cathedral, and suggests there was another one in the Roman period. Legends of St Lucius link St Peter upon Cornhill as the centre of the Roman Londinium Christian community. It stands upon the highest point in the area of old Londinium, and it was given pre-eminence in medieval procession on account of the legends. There is, however, no other reliable evidence and the location of the site on the Forum makes it difficult for it to fit the legendary stories. In 1995, a large fifth-century building onTower Hillwas excavated, and has been claimed as a Roman basilica, possibly a cathedral, although this is speculative.

TheElizabethanantiquarianWilliam Camdenargued that atempleto the goddessDianahad stood during Roman times on the site occupied by the medieval St Paul's Cathedral.Wren reported that he had found no trace of any such temple during the works to build the new cathedral after the Great Fire, and Camden's hypothesis is no longer accepted by modern archaeologists.

Pre-Norman cathedral

There is evidence for Christianity in London during the Roman period, but no firm evidence for the location of churches or a cathedral. BishopRestitutusis said to have represented London at theCouncil of Arlesin 314 AD.A list of the 16"archbishops" of Londonwas recorded byJocelyn of Furnessin the 12th century, claiming London'sChristiancommunity was founded in the second century under the legendaryKing Luciusand his missionary saintsFagan,Deruvian,Elvanus and Medwin. None of that is considered credible by modern historians but, although the surviving text is problematic, either BishopRestitutusor Adelphius at the314 Council of Arlesseems to have come fromLondinium.

Bederecords that in AD604Augustine of CanterburyconsecratedMellitusas the first bishop to theAnglo-Saxonkingdom of theEast Saxonsand their king,Sæberht.Sæberht's uncle and overlord,Æthelberht,king ofKent,built a church dedicated to St Paul in London, as the seat of the new bishop.It is assumed, although not proved, that this first Anglo-Saxon cathedral stood on the same site as the later medieval and the present cathedrals.

On the death of Sæberht in about 616, his pagan sons expelled Mellitus from London, and the East Saxons reverted to paganism. The fate of the first cathedral building is unknown. Christianity was restored among the East Saxons in the late seventh century and it is presumed that either the Anglo-Saxon cathedral was restored or a new building erected as the seat of bishops such asCedd,WineandErkenwald,the last of whom was buried in the cathedral in 693.

Earconwald was consecrated bishop of London in 675, and is said to have bestowed great cost on the fabric, and in later times he almost occupied the place of traditionary, founder: the veneration paid to him is second only to that which was rendered to St. Paul.Erkenwald would become a subject of the important High Medieval poemSt Erkenwald.

KingÆthelred the Unreadywas buried in the cathedral on his death in 1016; the tomb is now lost. The cathedral was burnt, with much of the city, in afire in 1087,as recorded in theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle.

Old St Paul's

Main article:Old St Paul's Cathedral

Reconstructed image ofOld St Paul'sbefore 1561, with intact spire

Shrine of St Erkenwald, relics removed 1550, lost as a monument in the Great Fire of London

The fourth St Paul's, generally referred to asOld St Paul's,was begun by theNormansafter the 1087 fire. A further fire in 1135 disrupted the work, and the new cathedral was not consecrated until 1240. During the period of construction, the style of architecture had changed fromRomanesquetoGothicand this was reflected in the pointed arches and larger windows of the upper parts and East End of the building. The Gothic ribbed vault was constructed, like that ofYork Minster,of wood rather than stone, which affected the ultimate fate of the building.

An enlargement programme commenced in 1256. This "New Work" was consecrated in 1300 but not complete until 1314. During the later Medieval period St Paul's was exceeded in length only by theAbbey Church of Clunyand in the height of its spire only byLincoln CathedralandSt. Mary's Church, Stralsund.Excavations byFrancis Penrosein 1878 showed that it was 585 feet (178 m) long and 100 feet (30 m) wide (290 feet (88 m) across thetranseptsandcrossing). The spire was about 489 feet (149 m) in height.By the 16th century the building was deteriorating.

TheEnglish ReformationunderHenry VIIIandEdward VI(accelerated by theChantries Acts) led to the destruction of elements of the interior ornamentation and the chapels,shrines,andchantries.

The Reformation would come to include the removal of the cathedral's collection of relics, which by the sixteenth century was understood to include:

• the body ofSt Erkenwald
• both arms ofSt Mellitus
• a knife thought to belong to Jesus
• hair ofMary Magdalen
• blood ofSt Paul
• milk of theVirgin Mary
• the head ofSt John
• the skull ofThomas Becket
• the head and jaw ofKing Ethelbert
• part of the wood of the cross,
• a stone of theHoly Sepulchre,
• a stone from the spot of theAscension,and
• some bones of the eleven thousand virgins of Cologne.

Old St Paul's in 1656 byWenceslaus Hollar,showing the rebuilt west facade

In October 1538, an image of St Erkenwald, probably from the shrine, was delivered to the master of the king's jewels. Other images may have survived, at least for a time. More systematic iconoclasm happened in the reign of Edward VI: theGrey Friar's Chroniclereports that the rood and other images were destroyed in November 1547.

In late 1549, at the height of the iconoclasm of the reformation,Sir Rowland Hillaltered the route of his Lord Mayor's day procession and said ade profundisat the tomb of Erkenwald.Later in Hill's mayoralty of (1550)the high altar of St Paul's was removedovernightto be destroyed,an occurrence that provoked a fight in which a man was killed.Hill had ordered, unusually for the time, that St Barnabas's Day would not be kept as a public holiday ahead of these events.

Three years later, by October 1553, "Alle the alteres and chappelles in alle Powlles churche" were taken down.In August 1553, the dean and chapter were cited to appear before Queen Mary's commissioners.

Some of the buildings in the St Paul's churchyard were sold as shops and rental properties, especially to printers and booksellers. In 1561 the spire was destroyed by a lightning strike, an event thatRoman Catholicwriters claimed was a sign of God's judgment on England's Protestant rulers. Bishop James Pilkington preached a sermon in response, claiming that the lightning strike was a judgement for the irreverent use of the cathedral building.Immediate steps were taken to repair the damage, with the citizens of London and the clergy offering money to support the rebuilding.However, the cost of repairing the building properly was too great for a country and city recovering from a trade depression. Instead, the roof was repaired and a timber "roo" ’put on the steeple.

In the 1630s a west front was added to the building by England's firstclassicalarchitect,Inigo Jones.There was much defacing and mistreatment of the building byParliamentarianforces during theCivil War,and the old documents and charters were dispersed and destroyed.During theCommonwealth,those churchyard buildings that were razed supplied ready-dressed building material for construction projects, such as the Lord Protector's city palace,Somerset House.Crowds were drawn to the north-east corner of the churchyard,St Paul's Cross,where open-air preaching took place.

In the Great Fire of London of 1666, Old St Paul's was gutted.While it might have been possible to reconstruct it, a decision was taken to build a new cathedral in a modern style. This course of action had been proposed even before the fire.

Present St Paul's

St Paul's Cathedral in 1896

The task of designing a replacement structure was officially assigned to Sir Christopher Wren on 30 July 1669.He had previously been put in charge of the rebuilding of churches to replace those lost in the Great Fire. More than50 city churchesare attributable to Wren. Concurrent with designing St Paul's, Wren was engaged in the production of his fiveTractson Architecture.

Wren had begun advising on the repair of theOld St Paul'sin 1661, five years before the fire in 1666.The proposed work included renovations to interior and exterior to complement theclassicalfacade designed by Inigo Jones in 1630.Wren planned to replace the dilapidated tower with a dome, using the existing structure as a scaffold. He produced a drawing of the proposed dome which shows his idea that it should span nave and aisles at the crossing.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.

In July 1668 DeanWilliam Sancroftwrote to 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".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, with a dome proclaimed as the finest in the world.The building was financed by a tax on coal, and was completed within its architect's lifetime with many of the major contractors engaged 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.The cathedral was declared officially complete by Parliament on 25 December 1711 (Christmas Day).In fact, construction continued for several years after that, with the statues on the roof added in the 1720s. In 1716 the total costs amounted to £1,095,556(£207 million in 2023).

Consecration

On 2 December 1697, 31 years and 3 months after the Great Fire destroyed Old St Paul's, the new cathedral was consecrated for use. The Right ReverendHenry Compton,Bishop of London, preached the sermon. It was based on the text ofPsalm 122,"I was glad when they said unto me: Let us go into the house of the Lord." The first regular service was held on the following Sunday.

Opinions of Wren's cathedral differed, with some loving it: "Without, within, below, above, the eye / Is filled with unrestrained delight",while others hated it: "There was an air of Popery about the gilded capitals, the heavy arches... They were unfamiliar, un-English...".

Since 1900

Suffragette terror attacks

See also:Suffragette bombing and arson campaign

A suffragette bomb (right) used in an attempted bombing of St. Paul's in 1913 (City of London Police Museum)

St. Paul's was the target of twosuffragettebombing attacks in 1913 and 1914 respectively. This was as part of thesuffragette bombing and arson campaignbetween 1912 and 1914, in which suffragettes from theWomen's Social and Political Union,as part of their campaign forwomen's suffrage,carried out a series of politically motivated bombings and arson nationwide.Churches were explicitly targeted by the suffragettes as they believed theChurch of Englandwas complicit in reinforcing opposition to women's suffrage.Between 1913 and 1914, 32 churches across Britain were attacked.

The first attack on St. Paul's occurred on 8 May 1913, at the start of a sermon.A bomb was heard ticking and discovered as people were entering the cathedral.It was made out ofpotassium nitrate.Had it exploded, the bomb likely would have destroyed the historicbishop's throneand other parts of the cathedral.The remains of the device, which was made partly out of a mustard tin, are now on display at theCity of London Police Museum.

A second bombing of the cathedral by the suffragettes was attempted on 13 June 1914, however the bomb was again discovered before it could explode.This attempted bombing occurred two days after a bomb had exploded atWestminster Abbey,which damaged theCoronation Chairand caused a mass panic for the exits.Several other churches were bombed at this time, such asSt Martin-in-the-Fieldschurch inTrafalgar Squareand theMetropolitan Tabernacle.

War damage

The iconicSt Paul's Survivestaken on 29 December 1940 of St Paul's duringthe Blitz

The cathedral survivedthe Blitzalthough struck by bombs on 10 October 1940 and 17 April 1941. The first strike destroyed the high altar, while the second strike on the north transept left a hole in the floor above the crypt.The latter bomb is believed to have detonated in the upper interior above the north transept and the force was sufficient to shift the entire dome laterally by a small amount.

On 12 September 1940 a time-delayed bomb that had struck the cathedral was successfully defused and removed by abomb disposaldetachment ofRoyal Engineersunder the command of Temporary LieutenantRobert Davies.Had this bomb detonated, it would have totally destroyed the cathedral; it left a 100-foot (30 m) crater when later remotely detonated in a secure location.As a result of this action, Davies andSapperGeorge Cameron Wyliewere each awarded theGeorge Cross.Davies' George Cross and other medals are on display at theImperial War Museum,London.

One of the best known images of London during the war was a photograph of St Paul's taken on 29 December 1940 during the "Second Great Fire of London"by photographer Herbert Mason,from the roof of a building in Tudor Street showing the cathedral shrouded in smoke.Lisa JardineofQueen Mary, University of London,has written:

Wreathed in billowing smoke, amidst the chaos and destruction of war, the pale dome stands proud and glorious—indomitable. At the height of that air-raid, Sir Winston Churchill telephoned the Guildhall to insist that all fire-fighting resources be directed at St Paul's. The cathedral must be saved, he said, damage to the fabric would sap the morale of the country.

Post-war

On 29 July 1981, thewedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencerwas held at the cathedral. The couple selected St Paul's overWestminster Abbey,the traditional site of royal weddings, because the cathedral offered more seating.

Extensive copper, lead and slate renovation work was carried out on the Dome in 1996 by John B. Chambers. A 15-year restoration project—one of the largest ever undertaken in the UK—was completed on 15 June 2011.

Occupy London

Julian Assangespeaks at the Occupy London outside the cathedral in the City of London on 15 October 2011.

In October 2011 an anti-capitalismOccupy Londonencampment was established in front of the cathedral, after failing to gain access to theLondon Stock Exchangeat Paternoster Square nearby. The cathedral's finances were affected by the ensuing closure. It was claimed that the cathedral was losing revenue of £20,000 per day.Canon ChancellorGiles Fraserresigned, asserting his view that "evicting the anti-capitalist activists would constitute violence in the name of the Church".TheDean of St Paul's,the Right Revd Graeme Knowles, then resigned too.The encampment was evicted at the end of February 2012, by court order and without violence, as a result of legal action by theCity of London Corporation.

2019 terrorist plot

On 10 October 2019,Safiyya Amira Shaikh,aMuslim convert,was arrested following anMI5andMetropolitan Policeinvestigation. In September 2019, she had taken photos of the cathedral's interior. While trying toradicaliseothers using theTelegram messaging software,sheplanned to attackthe cathedral and other targets such as a hotel and a train station usingexplosives.Shaikhpleadedguilty and wassentencedtolife imprisonment.

National events

The state funeral of the Duke of Wellington in 1852

The size and location of St Paul's has made it an ideal setting for Christian services marking great national events. The opportunity for long processions culminating in the dramatic approach up Ludgate Hill, the open area and steps at the west front, the great nave and the space under the dome are all well suited for ceremonial occasions. St Paul's can seat many more people than any other church in London, and in past centuries, the erection of temporary wooden galleries inside allowed for congregations exceeding 10,000. In 1935, the dean,Walter Matthews,wrote:

No description in words can convey an adequate idea of the majestic beauty of a solemn national religious ceremony in St Paul's. It is hard to believe that there is any other building in the world that is so well adapted to be the setting of such symbolical acts of communal worship.

National events attended by the royal family, government ministers and officers of state includenational services of thanksgiving,state funeralsand aroyal wedding.Some of the most notable examples are:

• Thanksgiving service for theActs of Union 1707,1 May 1707
• State funeral of Horatio Nelson,9 January 1806
• State funeral of the Duke of Wellington,18 November 1852
• Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria,22 June 1897
• Thanksgiving service for theTreaty of Versailles,6 July 1919
• Silver Jubilee of George V,6 May 1935
• Thanksgiving services forVE DayandVJ Day,13 May and 19 August 1945
• State funeral of Winston Churchill,30 January 1965
• Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II,7 June 1977
• Wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer,29 July 1981
• Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II,4 June 2002
• Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II,5 June 2012
• Ceremonial funeral of Margaret Thatcher,17 April 2013
• Thanksgiving service for the Queen's 90th Birthday, 10 June 2016
• Platinum Jubilee National Service of Thanksgiving,3 June 2022

Ministry and functions

St Paul's during a special service in 2008

St Paul's Cathedral is a busy church with four or five services every day, includingMatins,Eucharistand Evening Prayer or Choral Evensong.In addition, the cathedral has many special services associated with the City of London, its corporation, guilds and institutions. The cathedral, as the largest church in London, also has a role in many state functions such as the service celebrating theDiamond Jubileeof Queen Elizabeth II. The cathedral is generally open daily to tourists and has a regular programme of organ recitals and other performances.TheBishop of LondonisSarah Mullally,whose appointment was announced in December 2017 and whose enthronement took place in May 2018.

Dean and chapter

Main article:Dean and Chapter of St Paul's

Thecathedral chapteris currently composed of seven individuals: the dean, three residentiary canons (one of whom is, exceptionally, lay), one "additional member of chapter and canon non-residentiary" (ordained), and two lay canons. Each has a different responsibility in the running of the cathedral.As of October 2022:

• Dean —Andrew Tremlett(since 25 September 2022)
• Precentor — vacant
• Treasurer — vacant
• Chancellor —Paula Gooder(since 9 May 2019;lay readersince 23 February 2019)
• Steward — Neil Evans (since June 2022)
• Additional member of chapter and canon non-residentiary —Sheila Watson(since January 2017).
• Lay Canon — Pamela (Pim) Jane Baxter(since March 2014). Deputy Director at theNational Portrait Gallery,with experience in opera, theatre and the visual arts.
• Lay Canon — Sheila Nicoll (since October 2018). She is Head of Public Policy atSchroder Investment Management.
• Lay Canon — Clement Hutton-Mills (since March 2021). He is also a Managing Director atGoldman Sachs.
• Lay Canon — Gillian Bowen (since June 2022). She is Chief Executive Officer ofYMCALondon City and North and is a magistrate.

Minor canons and priest vicar

Further information:Minor Canons of St Paul's

Director of Music

The Director of Music isAndrew Carwood.Carwood was appointed to succeedMalcolm Archeras Director of Music, taking up the post in September 2007.He is the first non-organist to hold the post since the 12th century.

See also:List of musicians at English cathedrals § London, St Paul's Cathedral

Organs

The south choir organ

An organ was commissioned fromBernard Smithin 1694.

In 1862 the organ from thePanopticon of Science and Art(the Panopticon Organ) was installed in a gallery over the south transept door.

The Grand Organ was completed in 1872, and the Panopticon Organ moved to theVictoria Roomsin Clifton in 1873.

The Grand Organ is the fifth-largest in Great Britain,in terms of number ofpipes(7,256),with 5 manuals, 136 ranks of pipes and 137stops,principally enclosed in an impressive case designed in Wren's workshop and decorated byGrinling Gibbons.

Details of the organ can be found online at theNational Pipe Organ Register.

Choir

St Paul's Cathedral has a full professional choir, which sings regularly at services. The earliest records of the choir date from 1127. The present choir consists of up to 30 boy choristers, eight probationers and the male vicars choral, 12 professional singers. In February 2017 the cathedral announced the appointment of the first female vicar choral, Carris Jones (a mezzo-soprano), to take up the role in September 2017.In 2022, it was announced that girls would be admitted to a cathedral choir in 2025.

During school terms the choir singsEvensongsix times per week, the service on Mondays being sung by a visiting choir (or occasionally said) and that on Thursdays being sung by the vicars choral alone. On Sundays the choir also sings at Mattins and the 11:30 am Eucharist.

Many distinguished musicians have been organists, choir masters and choristers at St Paul's Cathedral, including the composersJohn Redford,Thomas Morley,John Blow,Jeremiah Clarke,Maurice GreeneandJohn Stainer,while well-known performers have includedAlfred Deller,John Shirley-QuirkandAnthony Wayas well as the conductorsCharles GrovesandPaul Hillierand the poetWalter de la Mare.

Wren's cathedral

Development of the design

Sir Christopher Wren
Said, "I am going to dine with some men.
If anyone calls,
Say I'm designing Saint Paul's. "

AclerihewbyEdmund Clerihew Bentley

In designing St Paul's, Christopher Wren had to meet many challenges. He had to create a fitting cathedral to replaceOld St Paul's,as a place of worship and as a landmark within the City of London. He had to satisfy the requirements of the church and the tastes of a royal patron, as well as respecting the essentially medieval tradition of English church building which developed to accommodate the liturgy. Wren was familiar with contemporary Renaissance and Baroque trends in Italian architecture and had visited France, where he studied the work ofFrançois Mansart.

Wren's design developed through five general stages. The first survives only as a single drawing and part of a model. The scheme (usually called theFirst Model Design) appears to have consisted of a circular domed vestibule (possibly based on thePantheon in Rome) and a rectangular church ofbasilicaform. The plan may have been influenced by theTemple Church.It was rejected because it was not thought "stately enough".Wren's second design was a Greek cross,which was thought by the clerics not to fulfil the requirements of Anglican liturgy.

Wren's third design is embodied in the "Great Model" of 1673. The model, made of oak and plaster, cost over £500 (approximately £32,000 today) and is over 13 feet (4 m) tall and 21 feet (6 m) long.This design retained the form of the Greek-Cross design but extended it with a nave. His critics, members of a committee commissioned to rebuild the church, and clergy decried the design as too dissimilar to other English churches to suggest any continuity within the Church of England. Another problem was that the entire design would have to be completed all at once because of the eight central piers that supported the dome, instead of being completed in stages and opened for use before construction finished, as was customary. The Great Model was Wren's favourite design; he thought it a reflection ofRenaissancebeauty.After the Great Model, Wren resolved not to make further models and not to expose his drawings publicly, which he found did nothing but "lose time, and subject [his] business many times, to incompetent judges".The Great Model survives and is housed within the cathedral itself.

Wren's fourth design is known as theWarrant designbecause it received a Royal warrant for the rebuilding. In this design Wren sought to reconcile Gothic, the predominant style of English churches, to a "better manner of architecture". It has the longitudinal Latin Cross plan of a medieval cathedral. It is of1+1⁄2storeys and has classical porticos at the west and transept ends, influenced by Inigo Jones's addition to Old St Paul's.It is roofed at the crossing by a wide shallow dome supporting a drum with a second cupola, from which rises a spire of seven diminishing stages. Vaughan Hart has suggested that influence in the design of the spire may have been drawn from the orientalpagoda.Not used at St Paul's, the concept was applied in the spire ofSt Bride's, Fleet Street.This plan was rotated slightly on its site so that it aligned, not with true east, but with sunrise on Easter of the year construction began. This small change in configuration was informed by Wren's knowledge of astronomy.

The Greek Cross design

The Warrant design

St Paul's, as it was built

Final design

The final design as built differs substantially from the official Warrant design.Wren received permission from the king to make "ornamental changes" to the submitted design, and Wren took great advantage of this. Many of these changes were made over the course of the thirty years as the church was constructed, and the most significant was to the dome: "He raised another structure over the first cupola, a cone of brick, so as to support a stone lantern of an elegant figure... And he covered and hid out of sight the brick cone with another cupola of timber and lead; and between this and the cone are easy stairs that ascend to the lantern" (Christopher Wren, son of Sir Christopher Wren). The final design was strongly rooted inSt. Peter's Basilicain Rome. The saucer domes over the nave were inspired by François Mansart'sChurch of the Val-de-Grâce,which Wren had seen during a trip to Paris in 1665.

The date of the laying of the first stone of the cathedral is disputed. One contemporary account says it was 21 June 1675, another 25 June and a third on 28 June. There is, however, general agreement that it was laid in June 1675. Edward Strong later claimed it was laid by his elder brother, Thomas Strong, one of the two master stonemasons appointed by Wren at the beginning of the work.

Structural engineering

Cross-section showing the brick cone between the inner and outer domes

William Dickinson's plan for the floor paving (1709–1710)

Wren's challenge was to construct a large cathedral on the relatively weak clay soil of London. St Paul's is unusual among cathedrals in that there is a crypt, the largest in Europe, under the entire building rather than just under the eastern end.The crypt serves a structural purpose. Although it is extensive, half the space of the crypt is taken up by massive piers which spread the weight of the much slimmer piers of the church above. While the towers and domes of most cathedrals are supported on four piers, Wren designed the dome of St Paul's to be supported on eight, achieving a broader distribution of weight at the level of the foundations.The foundations settled as the building progressed, and Wren made structural changes in response.

One of the design problems that confronted Wren was to create a landmark dome, tall enough to visually replace the lost tower of St Paul's, while at the same time appearing visually satisfying when viewed from inside the building. Wren planned a double-shelled dome, as at St Peter's Basilica.His solution to the visual problem was to separate the heights of the inner and outer dome to a much greater extent than had been done byMichelangeloat St Peter's, drafting both ascatenarycurves, rather than as hemispheres. Between the inner and outer domes, Wren inserted a brick cone which supports both the timbers of the outer, lead-covered dome and the weight of the ornate stone lantern that rises above it. Both the cone and the inner dome are 18 inches thick and are supported by wrought iron chains at intervals in the brick cone and around the cornice of the peristyle of the inner dome to prevent spreading and cracking.

The Warrant Design showed external buttresses on the ground floor level. These were not a classical feature and were one of the first elements Wren changed. Instead he made the walls of the cathedral particularly thick to avoid the need for external buttresses altogether. The clerestory and vault are reinforced with flying buttresses, which were added at a relatively late stage in the design to give extra strength.These are concealed behind the screen wall of the upper story, which was added to keep the building's classical style intact, to add sufficient visual mass to balance the appearance of the dome and which, by its weight, counters the thrust of the buttresses on the lower walls.

Designers, builders and craftsmen

During the extensive period of design and rationalisation, Wren employed from 1684Nicholas Hawksmooras his principal assistant.Between 1696 and 1711William Dickinsonwas measuring clerk.Joshua Marshall (until his early death in 1678) and Thomas and his brother Edward Strong were master masons, the latter two working on the construction for its entirety. John Langland was the master carpenter for over thirty years.Grinling Gibbons was the chief sculptor, working in both stone on the building itself, including the pediment of the north portal, and wood on the internal fittings.The sculptorCaius Gabriel Cibbercreated the pediment of the south transeptwhileFrancis Birdwas responsible for the relief in the west pediment depicting theConversion of St Paul,as well as the seven large statues on the west front.The floor was paved by William Dickinson in black and white marble in 1709–10Jean Tijouwas responsible for the decorative wrought ironwork of gates and balustrades.The ball and cross on the dome were provided by an armorer, Andrew Niblett.Following thewar damagementioned above, many craftsmen were employed to restore the wood carvings and stone work that had been destroyed by the bomb impact. One of particular note is Master Carver, Gino Masero who was commissioned to carve the replacement figure of Christ, an eight-foot sculpture in lime which currently stands on the High Altar.

Description

A floorplan

St Paul's Cathedral is built in a restrainedBaroquestyle which represents Wren's rationalisation of the traditions of English medieval cathedrals with the inspiration ofPalladio,the classical style of Inigo Jones, the baroque style of 17th century Rome, and the buildings by Mansart and others that he had seen in France.It is particularly in its plan that St Paul's reveals medieval influences.Like the great medieval cathedrals ofYorkandWinchester,St Paul's is comparatively long for its width, and has strongly projecting transepts. It has much emphasis on its facade, which has been designed to define rather than conceal the form of the building behind it. In plan, the towers jut beyond the width of the aisles as they do atWells Cathedral.Wren's uncleMatthew Wrenwas theBishop of Ely,and, having worked for his uncle, Wren was familiar with the unique octagonal lantern tower over the crossing ofEly Cathedral,which spans the aisles as well as the central nave, unlike the central towers and domes of most churches. Wren adapted this characteristic in designing the dome of St Paul's.In section St Paul's also maintains a medieval form, having the aisles much lower than the nave, and a defined clerestory.

Exterior

The most renowned exterior feature is the dome, which rises 365 feet (111 m) to the cross at its summit,and dominates views of the city. The height of 365 feet is explained by Wren's interest in astronomy. Until the late 20th century St Paul's was the tallest building on the City skyline, designed to be seen surrounded by the delicate spires of Wren's other city churches. The dome is described bySir Banister Fletcheras "probably the finest in Europe", byHelen Gardneras "majestic", and by SirNikolaus Pevsneras "one of the most perfect in the world". SirJohn Summersonsaid that Englishmen and "even some foreigners" consider it to be without equal.

Dome

The dome

Wren drew inspiration from Michelangelo's dome of St Peter's Basilica, and that of Mansart's Church of the Val-de-Grâce, which he had visited.Unlike those of St Peter's and Val-de-Grâce, the dome of St Paul's rises in two clearly defined storeys of masonry, which, together with a lower unadorned footing, equal a height of about 95 feet. From the time of theGreek Cross Designit is clear that Wren favoured a continuous colonnade (peristyle) around the drum of the dome, rather than the arrangement of alternating windows and projecting columns that Michelangelo had used and which had also been employed by Mansart.Summerson suggests that he was influenced by Bramante's "Tempietto" in the courtyard ofSan Pietro in Montorio.In the finished structure, Wren creates a diversity and appearance of strength by placing niches between the columns in every fourth opening.The peristyle serves to buttress both the inner dome and the brick cone which rises internally to support the lantern.

Above the peristyle rises the second stage surrounded by a balustraded balcony called the "Stone Gallery". This attic stage is ornamented with alternating pilasters and rectangular windows which are set just below the cornice, creating a sense of lightness. Above this attic rises the dome, covered with lead, and ribbed in accordance with the spacing of the pilasters. It is pierced by eight light wells just below the lantern, but these are barely visible. They allow light to penetrate through openings in the brick cone, which illuminates the interior apex of this shell, partly visible from within the cathedral through the ocular opening of the lower dome.

The lantern, like the visible masonry of the dome, rises in stages. The most unusual characteristic of this structure is that it is of square plan, rather than circular or octagonal. The tallest stage takes the form of atempiettowith four columned porticos facing the cardinal points. Its lowest level is surrounded by the "Golden Gallery" and its upper level supports a small dome from which rises a cross on a golden ball. The total weight of the lantern is about 850 tons.

West front

For the Renaissance architect designing the west front of a large church or cathedral, the universal problem was how to use a facade to unite the high central nave with the lower aisles in a visually harmonious whole. SinceAlberti's additions toSanta Maria Novellain Florence, this was usually achieved by the simple expedient of linking the sides to the centre with large brackets. This is the solution that Wren saw employed by Mansart at Val-de-Grâce. Another feature employed by Mansart was a boldly projecting Classical portico with paired columns. Wren faced the additional challenge of incorporating towers into the design, as had been planned at St Peter's Basilica. At St Peter's,Carlo Madernohad solved this problem by constructing anarthexand stretching a huge screen facade across it, differentiated at the centre by a pediment. The towers at St Peter's were not built above the parapet.

Wren's solution was to employ a Classical portico, as at Val-de-Grâce, but rising through two storeys, and supported on paired columns. The remarkable feature here is that the lower story of this portico extends to the full width of the aisles, while the upper section defines the nave that lies behind it. The gaps between the upper stage of the portico and the towers on either side are bridged by a narrow section of wall with an arch-topped window.

The towers stand outside the width of the aisles, but screen two chapels located immediately behind them. The lower parts of the towers continue the theme of the outer walls, but are differentiated from them in order to create an appearance of strength. The windows of the lower story are smaller than those of the side walls and are deeply recessed, a visual indication of the thickness of the wall. The paired pilasters at each corner project boldly.

Above the maincornice,which unites the towers with the portico and the outer walls, the details are boldly scaled, in order to read well from the street below and from a distance. The towers rise above the cornice from a square block plinth which is plain apart from large oculi, that on the south being filled by the clock, while that on the north is void. The towers are composed of two complementary elements, a central cylinder rising through the tiers in a series of stacked drums, and pairedCorinthian columnsat the corners, withbuttressesabove them, which serve to unify the drum shape with the square plinth on which it stands. The entablature above the columns breaks forward over them to express both elements, tying them together in a single horizontal band. The cap, an ogee-shaped dome, supports a gilded finial in the form of a pineapple.

The transepts each have a semi-circular entrance portico. Wren was inspired in the design by studying engravings ofPietro da Cortona's Baroque facade ofSanta Maria della Pacein Rome.These projecting arcs echo the shape of the apse at the eastern end of the building.

The west front of St Paul's Cathedral at night

West front from the street, between encroaching buildings

St Paul's from the south-east, with the tower of the destroyed Church ofSt Augustine, Watling Streetto the right

Walls

The building is of two storeys of ashlar masonry, above a basement, and surrounded by a balustrade above the upper cornice. The balustrade was added, against Wren's wishes, in 1718.The internal bays are marked externally by paired pilasters with Corinthian capitals at the lower level and Composite at the upper level. Where the building behind is of only one story (at the aisles of both nave and choir) the upper story of the exterior wall is sham.It serves a dual purpose of supporting the buttresses of the vault, and providing a satisfying appearance when viewed rising above buildings of the height of the 17th-century city. This appearance may still be seen from across theRiver Thames.

Between the pilasters on both levels are windows. Those of the lower storey have semi-circular heads and are surrounded by continuous mouldings of a Roman style, rising to decorative keystones. Beneath each window is a floral swag by Grinling Gibbons, constituting the finest stone carving on the building and some of the greatest architectural sculpture in England. A frieze with similar swags runs in a band below the cornice, tying the arches of the windows and the capitals. The upper windows are of a restrained Classical form, with pediments set on columns, but are blind and contain niches. Beneath these niches, and in the basement level, are small windows with segmental tops, the glazing of which catches the light and visually links them to the large windows of the aisles. The height from ground level to the top of the parapet is approximately 110 feet.

Fencing

The original fencing, designed by Wren, was dismantled in the 1870s. Thesurveyor for the government of Torontohad it shipped to Toronto, where it has since adornedHigh Park.

Interior

The nave, looking towards the choir

The choir, looking towards the nave

Internally, St Paul's has a nave and choir in each of its three bays. The entrance from the west portico is through a square domed narthex, flanked by chapels: the Chapel of St Dunstan to the north and the Chapel of the Order of St Michael and St George to the south.The nave is 91 feet (28 m) in height and is separated from the aisles by an arcade of piers with attached Corinthian pilasters rising to an entablature. The bays, and therefore the vault compartments, are rectangular, but Wren roofed these spaces with saucer-shaped domes and surrounded theclerestorywindows withlunettes.The vaults of the choir are decorated with mosaics by SirWilliam Blake Richmond.The dome and the apse of the choir are all approached through wide arches with coffered vaults which contrast with the smooth surface of the domes and punctuate the division between the main spaces. The transepts extend to the north and south of the dome and are called (in this instance) the North Choir and the South Choir.

Thechoirholds the stalls for the clergy, cathedral officers and the choir, and the organ. These wooden fittings, including the pulpit and Bishop's throne, were designed in Wren's office and built by joiners. The carvings are the work ofGrinling Gibbonswhom Summerson describes as having "astonishing facility", suggesting that Gibbons aim was to reproduce popular Dutch flower painting in wood.Jean Tijou,a French metalworker, provided various wrought iron and gilt grilles, gates and balustrades of elaborate design, of which many pieces have now been combined into the gates near the sanctuary.

The cathedral is some 574 feet (175 m) in length (including the portico of the Great West Door), of which 223 feet (68 m) is the nave and 167 feet (51 m) is the choir. The width of the nave is 121 feet (37 m) and across the transepts is 246 feet (75 m).The cathedral is slightly shorter but somewhat wider than Old St Paul's.

Dome

The interior of the dome showing howThornhill's painting continues an illusion of the real architectural features

This view of an arch spanning the aisle shows howWrensucceeded in giving an impression of eight equal arches.

The main internal space of the cathedral is that under the central dome which extends the full width of the nave and aisles. The dome is supported onpendentivesrising between eight arches spanning the nave, choir, transepts, and aisles. The eight piers that carry them are not evenly spaced. Wren has maintained an appearance of eight equal spans by inserting segmental arches to carry galleries across the ends of the aisles, and has extended the mouldings of the upper arch to appear equal to the wider arches.

Above the keystones of the arches, at 99 feet (30 m) above the floor and 112 feet (34 m) wide, runs a cornice which supports theWhispering Galleryso called because of its acoustic properties: a whisper or low murmur against its wall at any point is audible to a listener with an ear held to the wall at any other point around the gallery. It is reached by 259 steps from ground level.

The dome is raised on a tall drum surrounded by pilasters and pierced with windows in groups of three, separated by eight gilded niches containing statues, and repeating the pattern of the peristyle on the exterior. The dome rises above a gilded cornice at 173 feet (53 m) to a height of 214 feet (65 m). Its painted decoration bySir James Thornhillshows eight scenes from the life ofSt Paulset in illusionistic architecture which continues the forms of the eight niches of the drum.At the apex of the dome is anoculusinspired by that of thePantheonin Rome. Through this hole can be seen the decorated inner surface of the cone which supports the lantern. This upper space is lit by the light wells in the outer dome and openings in the brick cone. Engravings of Thornhill's paintings were published in 1720.

Apse

The choir, looking east

The apse and high altar

The easternapseextends the width of the choir and is the full height of the main arches across choir and nave. It is decorated with mosaics, in keeping with the choir vaults. The original reredos and high altar were destroyed by bombing in 1940. The present high altar andbaldacchinoare the work ofW. Godfrey AllenandStephen Dykes Bower.The apse was dedicated in 1958 as the American Memorial Chapel.It was paid for entirely by donations from British people.The Roll of Honour contains the names of more than 28,000 Americans who gave their lives while on their way to, or stationed in, the United Kingdom during the Second World War.It is in front of the chapel's altar. The three windows of the apse date from 1960 and depict themes of service and sacrifice, while the insignia around the edges represent the American states and theUS armed forces.The limewood panelling incorporates a rocket—a tribute to America'sachievements in space.

Artworks, tombs and memorials

St Paul's, at the time of its completion, was adorned by sculpture in stone and wood: most notably that of Grinling Gibbons, by the paintings in the dome by Thornhill, and by Jean Tijou's elaborate metalwork. It has been further enhanced by Sir William Richmond's mosaics and the fittings by Dykes Bower and Godfrey Allen.Other artworks in the cathedral include, in the south aisle,William Holman Hunt's copy of his paintingThe Light of the World,the original of which hangs inKeble College,Oxford. The St. Paul's version was completed with a significant input fromEdward Robert Hughesas Hunt was now suffering from glaucoma. In the north choir aisle is a limestone sculpture of theMadonna and ChildbyHenry Moore,carved in 1943.The crypt contains over 200 memorials and numerous burials. Christopher Wren was the first person to be interred, in 1723. On the wall above his tomb in the crypt is written in Latin:Lector, si monumentum requiris, circumspice( "Reader, if you seek his monument, look around you" ).

Sarcophagus of Nelson in the crypt

The largest monument in the cathedral is that to theDuke of WellingtonbyAlfred Stevens.It stands on the north side of the nave and has on top a statue of Wellington astride his horse "Copenhagen". Although the equestrian figure was planned at the outset, objections to the notion of having a horse in the church prevented its installation until 1912. The horse and rider are byJohn Tweed.The Duke is buried in the crypt. The tomb ofHoratio, Lord Nelsonis located in the crypt, next to that of Wellington.The marblesarcophaguswhich holds Nelson's remains was made forCardinal Wolseybut not used as the cardinal had fallen from favour.At the eastern end of the crypt is the Chapel of theOrder of the British Empire,instigated in 1917, and designed byJohn Seely, Lord Mottistone.There are many other memorials commemorating the British military, including several lists of servicemen who died in action, the most recent being theGulf War.

Also remembered areFlorence Nightingale,J. M. W. Turner,Arthur Sullivan,Hubert Parry,Samuel Johnson,Lawrence of Arabia,William Blake,William Jonesand SirAlexander Flemingas well as clergy and residents of the local parish. There are lists of the Bishops and cathedral Deans for the last thousand years. One of the most remarkable sculptures is that of the Dean and poet,John Donne.Before his death, Donne posed for his own memorial statue and was depicted byNicholas Stoneas wrapped in a burial shroud, and standing on a funeral urn. The sculpture, carved around 1630, is the only one to have survived the conflagration of 1666 intact.The treasury is also in the crypt but the cathedral has very few treasures as many have been lost, and on 22 December 1810 a major robbery took almost all of the remaining precious artefacts.

The funerals of many notable figures have been held in the cathedral, including those of Lord Nelson, the Duke of Wellington,Winston Churchill,George MalloryandMargaret Thatcher.

The East India Company Trail at St. Paul's Cathedral

In 2023, following nationwide discussions over the status and value of memorial statues celebrating the lives of individuals involved with the British Empire, including slavery, the St. Paul's Cathedral initiated a partnership withStepney Community Trust,a community-led charity based out of the East End of London. A group of volunteers were recruited to help historically situated the many memorial statues inside St. Paul's Cathedral, whose careers, actions and views were associated with historic harm done to communities in South Asia. The project entailed writing explanatory texts that situated the highly eulogistic statues in their wider historical context. These texts are now available on the website of St. Paul's Cathedral, on dedicated webpages titledThe East India Company at St. Paul's.

Memorials thus contextualised include thestatue of Charles George Gordon,thestatue of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington,thestatue of Richard Southwell Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo,thestatue of Bishop Thomas Fanshaw Middleton,thestatue of Granville Gower Loch,thestatue of William Jones,thestatue of Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis,thestatue of Henry Montgomery Lawrence,thestatue of Henry Bartle Frere,thestatue of Robert Cornelius Napier, 1st Baron Napier of Magdala,thestatue of Charles James Napier,thestatue of Charles Metcalfe Macgregor,thestatue of Samuel James Browne,thestatue of Harry Smith Parkesand thememorial to Indian Army Volunteers.The trail has a printed guide that visitors may use, and the statues on the trail are identifiable by a graphic and a QR code which leads to the relevant webpage upon scanning. The graphic is original artwork produced by graphic design artist Sonal Agarwal, and represents a cluster of statues of South Asian persons, men and women, who currently serve as decorative or supportive features of the main statues.

Clock

The south-west tower

A clock was installed in the south-west tower by Langley Bradley in 1709 but was worn out by the end of the 19th century.The present mechanism was built in 1893 bySmith of Derbyincorporating a design of escapement byEdmund Denison Beckettsimilar to that used byEdward DentonBig Ben's mechanism in 1895. The clock mechanism is 19 feet (5.8 m) long and is the most recent of the clocks introduced to St Paul's Cathedral over the centuries. Since 1969 the clock has been electrically wound with equipment designed and installed by Smith of Derby, relieving the clock custodian from the work of cranking up the heavy drive weights.

Great Paul

The south-west tower also contains four bells, of whichGreat Paul,cast in 1881 byJ. W. TaylorofTaylor's bell foundryofLoughborough,at16+1⁄2long tons (16,800 kg) was the largest bell in theBritish Islesuntil the casting of theOlympic Bellfor the 2012 London Olympics.Although the bell is traditionally sounded at 1 pm each day, Great Paul had not been rung for several years because of a broken chiming mechanism.In the 1970s the fastening mechanism that secured the clapper had fractured, sending both through the clock mechanism below and causing damage which cost £30,000 to repair. In about 1989 the clapper fractured completely, although less damage was sustained.On 31 July 2021, during the London Festival of the Bells, Great Paul rang for the first time in two decades, being hand swung by the bell ringers.

Great Tom

The clock bells includeGreat Tom,which was moved fromSt Stephen's Chapelat thePalace of Westminsterand has been recast several times, the last time byRichard Phelps.It chimes the hour and is traditionally tolled on occasions of a death in the royal family, the Bishop of London, or theLord Mayor of London,although an exception was made at the death of the US presidentJames Garfield.It was last tolled for the death ofQueen Elizabeth IIin 2022, ringing once every minute along with other bells across the country in honour of the 96 years of her life.

Quarter-jacks

In 1717, Richard Phelps cast two more bells that were added as "quarter jacks" that ring on the quarter hour. Still in use today, the first weighs 13long cwt(1,500 lb; 660 kg), is 41 inches (100 cm) in diameter and is tuned to A♭;the second weighs 35 long cwt (3,900 lb; 1,800 kg), is 58 inches (150 cm) in diameter and is tuned to E♭.They are sometimes known asDingandDongdue to the way they sound.

Bells

The north-west tower contains 13 bells. Aringof 12 bells by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough hung forchange ringing,and the single communion bell. In January 2018 the bells were removed for refurbishment and were rehung in September that year, being rung again for the first time onAll Saints' Day.The original service or "Communion" bell dating from 1700 and known as "the Banger" is rung before 8 am services.

Details of the bells (including clock bells mentioned above)

Bell (Name)	Weight			Nominal Hz	Note	Diameter		Date cast	Founder
	(long measure)	(lb)	(kg)			(in)	(cm)
1	8 long cwt 1 qr  4 lb	928	421	1,461	F	30.88	78.4	1878	John Taylor & Co
2	9 long cwt 0 qr 20 lb	1,028	466	1,270	E♭	32.50	82.6	1878	John Taylor & Co
3	9 long cwt 3 qr 12 lb	1,104	501	1,199	D	34.00	86.4	1878	John Taylor & Co
4	11 long cwt 2 qr 22 lb	1,310	594	1,063	C	36.38	92.4	1878	John Taylor & Co
5	13 long cwt 1 qr  0 lb	1,484	673	954	B♭	38.63	98.1	1878	John Taylor & Co
6	13 long cwt 2 qr 14 lb	1,526	692	884	A	39.63	100.7	1878	John Taylor & Co
7	16 long cwt 1 qr 18 lb	1,838	834	784	G	43.75	111.1	1878	John Taylor & Co
8	21 long cwt 3 qr 18 lb	2,454	1,113	705	F	47.63	121.0	1878	John Taylor & Co
9	27 long cwt 1 qr 22 lb	3,074	1,394	636	E♭	52.50	133.4	1878	John Taylor & Co
10	29 long cwt 3 qr 21 lb	3,353	1,521	592	D	55.25	140.3	1878	John Taylor & Co
11	43 long cwt 2 qr  0 lb	4,872	2,210	525	C	61.25	155.6	1878	John Taylor & Co
12	61 long cwt 2 qr 12 lb	6,900	3,130	468	B♭	69.00	175.3	1878	John Taylor & Co
Clock (quarter-jack Ding)	12 long cwt 2 qr  9 lb	1,409	639	853	A♭			1707	Richard Phelps
Clock (quarter-jack Dong)	24 long cwt 2 qr 26 lb	2,770	1,256	622	E♭			1707	Richard Phelps
Clock (Great Tom)	102 long cwt 1 qr 22 lb	11,474	5,205	425	A♭	82.88	210.5	1716	Richard Phelps
Bourdon (Great Paul)	334 long cwt 2 qr 19 lb	37,483	17,002	317	E♭	114.75	291.5	1881	John Taylor & Co
Communion (The Banger)	18 long cwt 2 qr 26 lb	2,098	952	620	E♭	49.50	125.7	1700	Philip Wightman

Education, tourism and the arts

Gilt statue of Saint Paul at the top of the monument toSt Paul's Crossin the cathedral precinct

Interpretation Project

The Interpretation Project was a long-term project concerned with bringing St Paul's to life for all its visitors. In 2010, theDean and Chapter of St Paul'sopened St Paul's Oculus, a 270° film experience that brings 1400 years of history to life.It was located in the former Treasury in the crypt, the film took visitors on a journey through the history and daily life of St Paul's Cathedral. Oculus was funded by American Express Company in partnership with theWorld Monuments Fund,J. P. Morgan, the Garfield Weston Trust for St Paul's Cathedral, the City of London Endowment Trust and AIG. It was closed by 2020. The Treasury space is now used for changing exhibitions.

In 2010, touchscreen multimedia guides were launched. These guides are included in the price of admission. Visitors can discover the cathedral's history, architecture and daily life of a busy working church with these new multimedia guides. They are available in 12 different languages:English,French,German,Italian,Spanish,Portuguese,Polish,Russian,Mandarin,Japanese,KoreanandBritish Sign Language(BSL). The guides have fly-through videos of the dome galleries and zoomable close-ups of the ceiling mosaics, painting and photography. Interviews and commentary from experts include theDean of St Paul's,conservation team and the Director of Music. Archive film footage includes major services and events from the cathedral's history.

Charges for sightseers

St Paul's charges an entrance fee for sightseers, admission to worship services is free. The entrance ticket is £25 for adults (June 2024).Outside service times, people seeking a quiet place to pray or worship are admitted to St Dunstan's Chapel free of charge. On Sundays people are admitted only for services and concerts and there is no sightseeing. The charge to sightseers is made because St Paul's receives little regular or significant funding from the Crown, the Church of England or the state and relies on the income generated by tourism to allow the building to continue to function as a centre for Christian worship, as well as to cover general maintenance and repair work.

St Paul's Cathedral Arts Project

The St Paul's Cathedral Arts Project explores art andfaith.Projects have included installations byGerry Judah,Antony Gormley,Rebecca Horn,Yoko OnoandMartin Firrell.

In 2014, St Paul's commissioned Gerry Judah to create an artwork in the nave to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the beginning of theFirst World War.Two spectacular sculptures consisting of three-dimensional white cruciforms reflect the meticulously maintained war graves of northern France and further afield. Each sculpture is also embellished with miniaturised destroyed residential blocks depicting contemporary war zones in the Middle East—Syria,Baghdad,Afghanistan—thus connecting 100 years of warfare.

Bill Violahas created two altarpieces for permanent display in St Paul's Cathedral. The project commenced production in mid-2009. Following the extensive programme of cleaning and repair of the interior of St Paul's, completed in 2005, Viola was commissioned to create two altarpieces on the themes of Mary and Martyrs. These two multi-screen video installations are permanently located at the end of the Quire aisles, flanking the High Altar of the cathedral and the American Memorial Chapel. Each work employs an arrangement of multiple plasma screen panels configured in a manner similar to historic altarpieces.

In summer 2010, St Paul's chose two new works by the British artist Mark Alexander to be hung either side of the nave. Both entitled Red Mannheim, Alexander's large red silkscreens are inspired by theMannheimCathedral altarpiece (1739–41), which was damaged by bombing in the Second World War. The original sculpture depicts Christ on the cross, surrounded by a familiar retinue of mourners. Rendered in splendid giltwood, with Christ's wracked body sculpted in relief, and the flourishes of flora and incandescent rays from heaven, this masterpiece of the German Rococo is an object of ravishing beauty and intense piety.

In March 2010, Flare II, a sculpture by Antony Gormley, was installed in the Geometric Staircase.

In 2007, the Dean and Chapter commissioned Martin Firrell to create a major public artwork to mark the 300th anniversary of the topping-out of Wren's building. The Question Mark Inside consisted of digital text projections to the cathedral dome, West Front and inside onto the Whispering Gallery. The text was based on blog contributions by the general public as well as interviews conducted by the artist and on the artist's own views. The project presented a stream of possible answers to the question: "What makes life meaningful and purposeful, and what does St Paul's mean in that contemporary context?" The Question Mark Inside opened on 8 November 2008 and ran for eight nights.

Depictions of St Paul's

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,andLloyd Rees.

• Paintings and engravings of St Paul's
• 
  Canaletto:The River Thames with St. Paul's Cathedral on Lord Mayor's Day(1746;Lobkowicz Collections,Prague)
• 
  19th-century coloured engraving from the south-west byThomas Hosmer Shepherd
• 
  Romantic 19th-century engraving of St Paul's in the evening after rain byEdward Angelo Goodall
• 
  Oil painting,John O'Connor,Evening on Ludgate Hill(1887) St Paul's looms beyond St Martin's
• 
  St Paul's from Richmond HouseinWestminsterby the Venetian painter Canaletto (1747)
• 
  St Paul's viewed from a loggia,acapriccio(c. 1748) byAntonio Joliwho also worked in Venice
• 
  An Impressionist view ofSt Paul's from the RiverbyErnest Dade(before 1936)
• 
  St Paul's from Bankside,a watercolour by Frederick E. J. Goff (before 1931)

Photography and film

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 (includingThames Television's most recognised ident), either as the focus of the film, as in the episode ofClimbing Great Buildings;as a feature of the film, as inMary Poppins;or as an incidental location such as Wren's Geometric Staircase in the south-west tower which has appeared in several films includingHarry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Films in which St Paul's has been depicted include:

• St. Paul's Cathedral(1942), a wartime documentary film for theBritish Council,the final part of which shows bomb damage in and around St Paul's.
• Lawrence of Arabia(1962) shows the exterior of the building and the bust of T.E. Lawrence.
• Mary Poppins(1964) shows the steps and west front of the cathedral, the main setting for the song ' "Feed the Birds' ".
• St Paul's Cathedral has appeared as a filming location twice inDoctor Who,in the 1968 serialThe Invasion,and in the 2014 two-part story "Dark Water"/"Death in Heaven".In both, theCybermenare shown descending steps outside the cathedral.
• St Paul's is seen briefly in theGoodiesepisode "Kitten Kong"(1971). During his rampage through London, Twinkle damages London landmarks, including St Paul's Cathedral, the dome of which is knocked off.
• In the BBC educational programme "A Guide to Armageddon"(1982), a 1-megaton nuclear weapon is detonated over London, with St Paul's used asground zero.
• Lifeforce(1985) – the cathedral's interior is the setting for the climax of the film.
• 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, representing the staircase towards the Divination classroom.
• Star Trek Into Darkness(2013) depicts St Paul's in 23rd century London along with other notable modern-day London buildings.
• St Paul's is the only building of ancient London that survived the "Sixty Minute War" in the movieMortal Engines(2018) and thebooksit is based on.

See also

• Cyril Raikes(fire watching on the dome of St Paul's Cathedral in the Second World War)
• Category:Burials at St Paul's Cathedral
• List of cathedrals in the United Kingdom
• List of churches and cathedrals of London
• Magnificat and Nunc dimittis for St Paul's Cathedral
• Paternoster Square
• Tall buildings in London
• History of early modern period domes
• List of tallest domes
• List of tallest structures built before the 20th century

References

Sources

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Further reading

• Atkinson, Frank (1985).St Paul's and the City.London: Park Lane Press.ISBN978-0-7181-2629-2.
• Burman, Peter (1987).St. Paul's Cathedral.Bell & Hyman.ISBN978-0-7135-2617-2.
• Clifton-Taylor, Alec (1974).The Cathedrals of England.Thames and Hudson.
• Harvey, John(1961).English Cathedrals.Batsford.

External links

• The Sound of Bells — Great Paulfrom William Hibbert (self-published)
• St. Paul's CathedralfromGoogle Arts and Culture
• Wren's various designs
• The 'Registrum Statutorum..' of St Paul's— collected charters and other documents from the earliest years until the nineteenth century. Published by the cathedral in 1873, Latin and English.
• Bells of St Paul'sArchived7 July 2006 at theWayback Machine
• A history of the choristers of St Paul's Cathedral
• Mystery Worshipper Reportat theShip of Fools website
• The Chapel of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire — OBE Chapel
• St Paul's lithographs c. 1647–1817