Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey, formally called the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. It holds a special place in British history. Since the year 1066, it has been where 40 English and British monarchs were crowned and where 18 kings and queens are buried. At least 16 royal weddings have also taken place there since 1100.

The church's history goes back many centuries. By the mid-900s, there was an abbey with Benedictine monks on the site. King Edward the Confessor, who is buried there, built the first large church in the 1040s. The current building began in 1245 under orders from Henry III. After the monastery closed in 1559, Elizabeth I made it a special royal peculiar, meaning it reports directly to the monarch. In 1987, Westminster Abbey, along with the Palace of Westminster and St Margaret's Church, became a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its great historical and symbolic meaning.

The abbey is famous for its beautiful Gothic architecture, mixing styles from France and England in the 1200s, with some parts having earlier Romanesque looks or later Baroque and modern designs. One special part is the Henry VII Chapel, known for its Perpendicular Gothic style. Over 3,300 people are buried there, including many important figures in British history such as monarchs, prime ministers, poets laureate, and famous artists and scientists. Among them lies the Unknown Warrior, a soldier from World War I whose grave is honored worldwide.

History

Historians believe there was a monastery dedicated to Saint Peter at Westminster Abbey before the 11th century, though its exact origins are unclear. Legends say it was founded by either the Saxon king Sæberht of Essex or the fictional British king Lucius. Traditions also tell of a young fisherman on the River Thames who had a vision of Saint Peter near the site.

The abbey’s origins are generally traced to around 959, when Dunstan and King Edgar established a community of Benedictine monks there. Between 1042 and 1052, Edward the Confessor began rebuilding the abbey in the Romanesque style, making it the first church in England built on a cruciform floorplan. It was completed around 1060 and consecrated in 1065, just before Edward’s death. He was buried there, and later his wife Edith was buried alongside him. The abbey became increasingly associated with royalty, especially after it gained exemption from the Bishop of London’s jurisdiction in 1222.

Westminster Abbey continued to serve as a coronation site. After Edward the Confessor, no monarchs were buried there until Henry III began rebuilding it in the Gothic style in 1245. Henry aimed to create a shrine to honor Edward and a burial place for his family. Construction included the eastern end, transepts, and part of the nave. Work continued for many years, with various masons leading the project. By 1269, Henry had spent over £29,000, and the shrine of Edward the Confessor was completed. After Henry’s death in 1272, construction paused for over a century.

The abbey faced significant changes during the English Reformation in the 1530s when Henry VIII seized control of England’s monasteries. The abbey’s treasures were removed, and it was dissolved. It became the cathedral for the new Diocese of Westminster but later reverted to a church under the control of the monarch. During the English Civil War, the abbey suffered damage, and its treasures were lost or destroyed. In the 17th century, it hosted the translation of the King James Version of the Bible.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the abbey underwent restoration and rebuilding. Western towers were added in the 1740s, and further restoration occurred in the 19th century. The abbey was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

In the 21st century, the abbey has hosted significant events, including the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton in 2011. Archaeological discoveries in 2020 uncovered a 13th-century sacristy and buried bodies of monks. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the abbey was used as a vaccination centre.

Architecture

Westminster Abbey is built in a Geometric Gothic style, using Reigate stone for its facings. It features an eleven-bay nave with aisles, transepts, and a chancel with an ambulatory and radiating chapels. The building is supported by two tiers of flying buttresses. The western end of the nave was designed by Henry Yevele in a Perpendicular Gothic style. The Henry VII Chapel, built in a late Perpendicular style, is made of Huddlestone stone.

The modern abbey is largely based on French Gothic styles, especially those found at Reims Cathedral, rather than English Gothic styles. Unlike English Gothic churches, Westminster Abbey did not have towers until the 18th century and has a higher nave with a narrower width. It also features a long, rounded apse and chapels radiating from the ambulatory, typical of French Gothic style. However, there are English elements, such as the use of contrasting coloured materials.

The abbey retains its 13th- and 14th-century cloisters, which were busy parts of the church when it was a monastery. The west cloister was used for teaching novice monks, the north for private study, and the south led to the refectory. The east cloister led to the chapter house and dormitory. The newest part of the abbey is the Weston Tower, finished in 2018, which provides access to the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries.

Interior

The interior of Westminster Abbey has Purbeck marble piers and shafting, with a very high roof vault. The transepts are long to accommodate guests during coronations, and the choir is placed east of the crossing. The nave was built over centuries but maintains a unified style. Behind the main altar is the shrine and tomb of Edward the Confessor, surrounded by tombs of medieval kings and queens. The abbey includes side chapels radiating from the ambulatory, many of which were originally altars dedicated to individual saints.

Chapter house and Pyx Chamber

The octagonal chapter house, built between 1250 and 1259, was used by the abbey monks for daily meetings. It has benches for 80 monks, large stained-glass windows, and walls decorated with medieval paintings. The Pyx Chamber, dating to the late 11th century, was used as a treasury and features an original tiled floor and an ancient wooden door.

Henry VII Chapel

The Henry VII Chapel, built in late Perpendicular Gothic style, is known for its elaborate pendant and fan vault ceiling. It houses tombs of several monarchs, including Edward V, Henry VII, Edward VI, Mary I, Elizabeth I, James I, Charles II, George II, and Mary, Queen of Scots. The chapel also contains the RAF Chapel, with a stained-glass window dedicated to those who died in the Battle of Britain.

Monastic buildings

Many rooms used by the monks have been repurposed. The dormitory became a library and school room, and the monks’ offices are now houses for the clergy. The abbot’s lodgings, possibly the oldest continuously occupied residence in London, include the Jericho Parlour and Jerusalem Chamber. The prior’s household is now part of Ashburnham House in Little Dean’s Yard.

Artworks and treasures

The nave and transepts of Westminster Abbey feature sixteen crystal chandeliers made of hand-blown Waterford glass. These were donated by the Guinness family in 1965 to mark the abbey’s 900th anniversary. The choir stalls, designed by Edward Blore in 1848, include some assigned to high commissioners of countries in the Commonwealth of Nations.

The abbey contains important artworks and treasures, such as the 13th-century Westminster Retable, thought to be the earliest surviving English panel painting. The high altar and its screen, designed by George Gilbert Scott, feature sculptures of notable religious and historical figures. The south transept has beautiful wall paintings from around 1300, showing scenes from the Bible.

Above the Great West Door are statues of 20th-century Christian martyrs, created in 1998. The abbey’s library, built as a dormitory for monks, now holds about 16,000 books. Nearby is the Muniment Room, which keeps the abbey’s historic archives.

Cosmati pavement

At the crossing in front of the main altar lies the Cosmati pavement, a 700-year-old tile floor made from nearly 30,000 pieces of colored glass and stone. This unique floor, almost 25 feet square, is where coronations take place. It was created using a special technique called opus sectile and features geometric designs that reflect medieval ideas about the universe.

Stained glass

Many of the abbey’s original 13th-century stained glass windows were lost during historical events, but new ones have been added over time. The north rose window, designed by James Thornhill in 1722, shows Christ and the apostles. In the Henry VII Chapel, windows created in recent years include designs by artists such as John Lawson, Alan Younger, and David Hockney, who designed a window for the north transept in 2018 inspired by the Yorkshire countryside.

Queen's Diamond Jubilee Galleries

The Westminster Abbey Museum moved in 2018 to new galleries high in the abbey’s triforium, called the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries. These galleries display life-size effigies of monarchs, a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II on the Cosmati pavement, models of unbuilt towers, and historic documents such as the wedding licence of Prince William and Catherine Middleton.

Burials and memorials

Main article: Burials and memorials in Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey is the final resting place for over 3,300 people, including many famous figures from British history. For centuries, it has been a special honor for important people to be buried or remembered there. Monarchs, scientists, actors, musicians, and writers are all represented among those buried in the abbey. Notable burials include politicians like William Wilberforce and scientists such as Charles Darwin. The abbey also holds the graves of many monarchs, from Edward the Confessor to George II.

One special area is called Poets' Corner, located in the south transept, where many famous poets and writers are buried or remembered. This tradition began in the 18th century and includes writers like William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens. Another important memorial is The Unknown Warrior, an unidentified soldier from the First World War. Buried in the center of the nave, this grave is treated with great respect and is the first of its kind in the world.

Main article: Poets' Corner

Main article: The Unknown Warrior

Royal occasions

Westminster Abbey has strong ties to the British royal family. It has been the site of many important events, including coronations, weddings, and funerals for royalty. Since 1066, 40 English and British monarchs have been crowned there, with the most recent being Charles III in 2023. The abbey has also hosted at least 16 royal weddings since 1100.

The abbey has hosted many royal jubilees and anniversaries, including Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887 and special services for Queen Elizabeth II's silver, gold, and diamond wedding anniversaries. Royal funerals have also been held there, including the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997 and Queen Elizabeth II in 2022.

Main articles: Coronation of the British monarch and List of British coronations

People

Dean and Chapter

Main article: Dean and Chapter of Westminster

Westminster Abbey is a collegiate church led by the Dean and Chapter of Westminster, established by a royal charter from Elizabeth I in 1560. In 2019, David Hoyle became the Dean of Westminster. The chapter includes four canons and a senior officer called the Receiver General. One canon also serves as the rector of St Margaret's Church, Westminster and often acts as chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons. There are also minor canons who help with the abbey's work.

King's almsmen

Six King's (or Queen's) almsmen and women are supported by the abbey. They are chosen by the dean and the Home Secretary, and they attend services on Sundays and help with duties for a small payment. When they are on duty, they wear a special red gown with a crowned rose badge.

Schools

Westminster School is located in the abbey and has been teaching since the 14th century. It became independent from the abbey in 1868 but remains closely linked. The Westminster Abbey Choir School is also on the abbey grounds and educates the choirboys who sing in services.

Order of the Bath

Main article: Order of the Bath

The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry with its spiritual home in the abbey's Henry VII Chapel. It was founded by George I in 1725 and revived by George V in 1913. Members of the order are given special stalls with their banners and crests during ceremonies held in the abbey every four years. The order is the fourth-oldest of the British orders of chivalry, after the Orders of the Garter, the Thistle, and St Patrick.

Music

See also: List of Westminster Abbey organists

Andrew Nethsingha is the current Organist and Master of the Choristers at Westminster Abbey. The abbey’s choir, founded in the 14th century, sings at daily services and important events like royal weddings and funerals. The choir includes twelve adult singers and thirty boy choristers aged eight to 13, who attend the Westminster Abbey Choir School.

Westminster Abbey has a long history with organs. The first known organ was given by King Henry III in 1240. Today, the main organ has five manuals and 109 stops and was built by Harrison & Harrison. The abbey also has other organs, including the Queen’s Organ in the Lady Chapel. The abbey’s bells, installed in 1971, include ten bells used for special events.

In popular culture

Westminster Abbey has been featured in many books, plays, and films. William Shakespeare mentioned it in his play Henry VIII, and it has inspired poems by writers like Francis Beaumont and John Betjeman. Famous artists such as Canaletto and J. M. W. Turner have also painted the abbey.

In modern times, the abbey appeared in the popular book and film The Da Vinci Code, though filming did not take place there. Later, the abbey allowed filming for Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning in 2022.