Table Of Content,
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BY CANON ADAM FOX, D.D.,
Archdeacon of Westminster
THIS IS A PITKIN -'PRIDE OF BRITAIN" SOI \ I.MK
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Joseph L. Barnett
1438BoulevardAve.
Huntington,WV25701
WestminsterAbbeyandtheoldHousesofParliamentfromtheRiverThames. ThispaintingbyDavidRobertsdepicts
theLord MayorofLondonfor 1838-39, Mr. SamuelWilson,aboutto land atParliament Steps. Until 1857 theLord
Mayor'sprocessionwaswater-borne. EveryyearfromnearGuildhallthefleetofdecoratedbarges passedup-streamto
Westminster where the High Constable ofWestminster received the Lord Mayor. From the landingstage, theparty
proceededinprocessiontotheCourtofExchequerinWestminsterHallwheretheLordMayorwas swornin.
THE COLLEGIATE CHURCH OF
SAINT PETER IN WESTMINSTER
Suchis thefull titleofWestminsterAbbey. Ithas been so
named since Elizabeth I replaced the Abbot and Monastery
by a Dean and Canons; five centuries earlier, Edward the
Confessorhad dedicated the Church he had built to St. Peter
in reparation for not making a promised pilgrimage to Rome.
WestminsterAbbeyisnota cathedralforitdoesnotcontain
a Bishop's throne, nor is it a parish church. Inecclesiastical
terms it is a "Royal Peculiar," a distinction shared only with
St. George's Chapel, Windsor. The Dean and Canons are
subject only to the jurisdiction of the Sovereign as Visitor;
neither the Archbishop of Canterbury nor the Bishop of
London have any authorityoverthe affairs oftheAbbey.
William the Conqueror Westminster Abbey is essentially a Royal Church. It was Henry V, the victor of
whowascrownedinthe founded by a king and, apart from the Dissolution, has 900 Agincourt,agreatbene-
Abbeyin 1066. years ofunbrokenconnectionwith the Crown. factoroftheAbbey.
St.EdwardTheConfessor KingHenry The Third
The Pictorial History Of
WESTMINSTER ABBEY
BY CANON ADAM FOX, D.D.
Archdeacon of Westminster
THERE are many Abbeys in Britain, but of to Elaine'sgraveinthe Abbey, buttheydo show
them all, one has become known throughout the tomb of King Sebert erected by the monks
the civilised world simply as theabbey. West- in 1308.
oitmthfienitssphteeaeorqpvuelahrelayisitnlyatarhogivfeseirctpyshruleara-rrcceghhmeiitanceciecttntiycuvaeree,nl,ydppmpaaairrrntttilllsyyytebbbreeeicccnaaaguuusssteeeo EsduApwlralermtdheistbhiusetdCpiormnofbaeansbdsloymrisqtuiysi.tweiutBnhuctountsshcesitciolrule.sataiBcotnyooaff
statesmanship, he has made Westminster the
oEsofngitblsayangdte.h-elosIntoglicesomannnivetecyrtyiosofonlswueicmtcnhesptslhiaevceeg.oCvoeIrrtonnimsaetmniatodnoesf cReinvterreTohfaamemsi,ghatlyreeamdpyirceal.ledOWnesatnmiinssltanedriEnyotth,e
and the solemn pomp of funeral monuments. (earlier known as Thorney or Thorneye Island),
IStervisicefsa,mewdhifcohr ltahregesocloenmgrnegcaetrieomnosnigaalthoefr ittos htheesetglaobroyutotfobGuoilddaagnrdeatthmeonaprsotsepreryittyo-proofmohties
aotfttehned.GotIhtiics spioelresmannadlwvaauylstsfowritthhetghreeiartpahtecihgehst kreisnigddeoncmeoifnEonrgdlearntdh.at hCelomsiegbhyt hweattcohokthuepprhoi-s
osfhasduonwlsigthhteyofcasetveartydusshkapoer aonnda smiizset;yadnady tahree gseraetssofofgtohveerbnumieldnitng.fromThtuhse hCeitsyepoafraLtoedndtohne
beautiful to behold. whichlayacrossthefieldsacoupleofmilesaway.
This he may have done intentionally. Further,
The recorded history of Westminster Abbey by placing the Abbey and the Royal palace side
begins inEdward theConfessor'stime,butthere by side he strengthened for some centuries the
are glimpses of its existence before that. The bond between Church and State. This may
name occurs in a 10th-century document where also have been intentional in part, but he could
itisdescribed asa terrible place, that is, anawe- not have foreseen the ultimate effect.
some place. This evidence points to the previ-
ous foundation of a monastery or at least of a Forthefirstfivecenturiesofitsexistence, that
church, and legend attributes this foundation to is from the nth century to the 16th, the palace
Sebert, King of the East Saxons (died 616), at Westminster was the reigning king's place of
under the influence of Mellitus, first Bishop of residence. For the last two of these five cen-
London. Earlier still, Romance, as shaped by turies, actually from about 1376 to 1547, the
Mallory in his Morte d''Arthur, tells of King HouseofCommonsnormallymetinthe Chapter
Arthur holding a tournament in a field near by; House or the Refectory of the Abbey. During
of Queen Guinevere going a-maying into fields this period too, eight ofthe kings and queens of
and woodsaside, and ofthe corpse ofElaine the England were buried in the Abbey, where pre-
fairmaidenbeingrowedinabargetupanddown viously the only Royal burial was that of the
the Thames at Westminster and then being Confessor himself. Thus Church and State
richly interred. No one has ventured to point forged bonds between themselves. But after
Page 1
;
B I V E B
H M
T A E S
Westminster Eyot (earlier called Thorney Island) as it Sanctuary; (22) Bell Tower; (23) Great Sanctuary; (24)
appeared about 1532. This reconstructed illustration of AbbeyWall;(25) Abbey Gatehouse;(26)Jail;(27) Bishop
theAbbey,theadjacentmonasterybuildingsand theRoyal of London's prison; (28) The Elms (now Dean's Yard)
Palace of Westminster was prepared after exhaustive (29) King's Alms Houses; (30) Poor men's Lodging;
research by Mr. A. E. Henderson, F.S.A., by whose kind (31) River Tyburn; (32) Long Ditch; (33) Abbey Farm;
permissionitisreproduced, theabbeybuildings:(1)The (34) Abbey Mill; (35) Abbot's Garden, the royal
N((DFc36ioao))srvrhdemHCe,ielP;otnoiorWns(reydt1yse6sV;r)t;Ism;I((Gi11nr(C03s7))ah)tamPeIpVrmrneieafolsrriA;t'rrbsm(ybS4a;Lce)rohyyC(do;;8eog)mli((e;Cn12th1g))e(a;1rpS7(Iytt)1.ne;4frE)i(Mn5rFaHt)mrroraaAguartbansyebrceroee;;Gtta''(t(srs1o95d)L)eCBoaMnhMdy;oiuglsnriiefk(cnrf1shgis2';;-;) bwmCFiuhaniayWslpetdelseiletrna;mdgiisSInnts:gaTtiAhrtesoer;PCaHWilDahtaliyclteD;eoufhCGacoLluholryS;nttda;oJrofAnPCAaL;haiBannHctmiaeCbgsdlehtoreCcT;rkho;awHTme.Eobrwe,SeStr.orW;ue;StsKtChtepWWGGheeaaesstnttte'es--;-
(18)Hospice;(19) Stables;(20)SouthGateway;(21)Broad minster Palace Boathouse and Stairs; LJewel Tower.
THE INFLUENCE OF EDWARD THE CONFESSOR
the middle of the 16th century the king ceased to mighthavebeenexpected,inthevicinityoftheArch-
liveatWestminster,and thisledontogreatandne%v bishopofCanterbury's Palaceat Lambeth.
events. HispalacebecametheHousesofParliament, Edward theConfessoris,therefore, nomerefigure
and side by side with the legislative power the offabledsanctity. Hisworkstillstronglyinfluences
executive, or, as we should call it now, the Civil thenationallife. Ofhis buildingsalmost nothingis
Service, grew up and established itselfin Whitehall left. He completed the Church which was later on
where it still remains. By a parallel development, entirely demolished, but the rest of the monastery
the business ofthe Church ofEngland has come to was hardly begun in his lifetime. Some kind of
betransacted inanotherarea that adjoins theAbbey temporaryaccommodation there must have been for
precincts. Here are the ChurchHouse, the Cqnvo- theAbbot and monks to eat and sleep and work in,
cations, the Church Commissioners and the offices but it took the best part ofa hundred years to erect
ofmostofthe Church Societies, instead ofbeing,as the permanent buildings. Of these there are very
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IncomparingthisrecentaerialphotographoftheWestminsterareawiththedrawingonthefacingpageitwillbeseen that
severaloftheoriginalbuildings,notablythemainAbbeybuilding,WestminsterHall,St.Margaret'sChurch,St.Stephen's
ChapelandtheJewelTowerstillremain. ButtheRiverTyburnhaslongsincebeenfilled in,andtwoHousesofParlia-
menthaveoccupiedthesiteofthePalaceofWestminster, below: WestminsterAbbeyasitappearedabout 16S9before
theWesternTowers designed by SirChristopherWren wereadded. These werecompleted byHawksmoorin 1740.
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above:OneofSirChristopherWren'sdesignsfortheadditionsto
WestminsterAbbeyincludedacentralspire. Thisproposal,how-
ever,neverprogressedbeyond thedrawing-boardstage, below
TheentrancetotheChantryChapelofHenryVwheretheheroof:
Agincourt is buried. In his will he directed that a high chantry
chapel should beerected over his body. Above HenryV's tomb
are his saddle, shieldand helmet.
Pari of the beautiful stone reredos of the Henry V
Chantry Chapel zoilh the statues of Ota- Lady,
St. EdmundandSt. Denis.
considerable remains. You may still see the under-
croft of the monks' dormitory almost exactly as it
was,and itispossible that theConfessorhimselfsaw
it too. You can see one wall ofthe Refectory with
itsNormanarcading,andtheDarkCloisterbywhich
themonks moved fromone partofthe monastery to
another. Three rounded arches of St. Catherine's
Chapel are still standing, a part of the original
InfirmaryandarelicofsomewhatlaterNormanwork.
But of course it was round the Church that the
whole life of the community revolved, and Edward
theConfessorwasperhapscontenttohavecompleted
that. It stood on the north side of the monastic
buildings,averylargeChurchinthestylethenpreva-
lent in France, and for that reason termed the Nor-
manstyle,butabroadtheRomanesque. Theground
planwas very littledifferentfrom thatofthepresent
Church, except that the Transepts were narrower.
Itwas intheformofa crossandprobablyhadacen-
tral tower, and is so represented in the Bayeux
tapestry. No doubt the Confessor's Church had
the grim but reassuring look of the early Norman
churches. East ofthe crossing made by the Tran-
septs was the Sanctuary which occupied a consider-
ableareawith theHigh Altar in the centre. To the
eastoftheAltar therewas presently to be the tomb
ofthe Confessor himself.
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Page4
THE CONFESSOR'S SHRINE
The Chapel of St. Edward The Confessor is the most
sacred spot in theAbbey since it contains not only the
body ofthe founder, but the tombs offive other kings
and three queens. The bones of the Confessor have
beenmuchdisturbedsincehewasfirstburiedbeforethe
High Altar of his church. William the Conqueror
erected an imposing stone tomb over the grave, but in
1163theSaint'sremainsweretransferredtoanewshrine
raised by Henry II. When Henry III began to pull
downtheNormanchurch,thisshrinewasremovedwhilst
anew and more magnificent one was prepared. Only
the lower part (seen above) of this costly 13th-century
monument now remains. On the Dissolution of the
Abbey in 1540 it was stripped of its huge jewels,
beautiful cameosandthe golden statues whichadorned
iEtd.warridg'hstC:hAapesle.ctioTnhoeftshceenceardveepdicsttsonteheScCroenefnesisnorS'ts.
vision of the drowning of the King of Denmark who
wasshipwreckedon his waytoinvade England.
left: An 18th-century engraving of the South Ambulatory.
above: The tombofHenryIII. Although Edwardthe Con-
fessorfoundedWestminsterAbbey,HenryIII commenced the
rebuildingofthe Normanfabric,andcanthusbesaidtobethe
father of the present church. More devout than wise, out-
rageously extravagant, Henry III beggaredhimselftore-build
the Abbey until he was eventually forced to pawn the jewels
withwhichhehad beautified St.Edward's Shrine.
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR CROWNED
IS
The Consecration of the Church had been fixed to work from the east end, and before the king
forChristmas Day 1065,butthe Kingwas soillthat died in 1272 theyhad completed the Sanctuary, the
itwas postponed,thenhurriedonand solemnisedon Transepts, theChoirand twobayswestofthe Choir
the Holy Innocents Day, 28th December, and on Screen. The rest of the Norman Nave was still
5thJanuary the King died. Harold's accession was standing, producingacompletedisharmonyofshape
confirmed by his Coronation (some historianssayin and style, and so it continued for more than a cen-
the Abbey,but thereisnodefinite evidenceofthis), tury. Henry III had spared no expense, but when
and by a strange revolution in this fateful year of he died the coffers were empty and the work was
1066 there was another Coronation within twelve stopped.
months, that of William the Conqueror, Duke of ThemainpiersoftheChurchareofsolidPurbeck
Normandy. He chose the Abbeyfor his crowning, marble, the floor is paved with a lighter variety of
no doubt partly for its size, partly because it was the same; the stone came partly from Caen, but
attachedtothe Royalpalaceandpartlybecauseitwas mainly from quarries near Rcigate. Structurally,
nearLondon. Hewas crownedonChristmasDay. theChurchto-dayisasHenryIII plannedit,though
Not a stone of the Confessor's Church remains itisdoubtfulifthereisanypartoftheoutsidewhich
above ground. Less than 200 years after its com- has not been re-faced. There is carving and statu-
pletion Henry III resolved to demolish it and build ary in every part ofthe building. This was all due
amore beautifulone, again after the style then pre- toHenry'sinspirationandappreciationofthebeauti-
vailinginFrance. ThenewChurchwould bemuch ful. Hehasbeencalled"thegreatestbuilderandthe
taller, much lighter and more spacious; and it was greatestpatronoftheartswhohaseveroccupiedthe
to be of the very best material. The masons set throne ofEngland."
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THE ANCIENT RELICS
OF THE ABBEY LOST
y tit
Henry III seems tohave had three ideas whenhe
resolved to rebuild the Abbey. First he sought to
promote the glory ofGod, for Whom only the very
bestwas appropriate, by gathering into its fabricall
that was precious and beautiful. Secondly, he de-
r S9B sired to providea placefitfor thegreatoccasion and
Y"nTv spectacle ofa Coronation. Thirdly, he thought to
provideaburyingplaceforhimselfandhissuccessors
near the tomb ofSt.Edward,aroundwhose bodyso
much national sentimenthadalreadygathered.
He contributed to all these purposes at once by
rebuilding the Church and piling up a great mound
ofearthin itseastern part. This entailed removing
theConfessor'sremains toatemporaryrestingplace,
anditwasnotuntil 1268 thattheywerereplacedand
theexistingmonumentwaserected. Thismonument,
avabnoivtey,:"EEddwwaarrddIIlIlI'sditeodmbi.n 13"7A7.,poevrefrecctomeexawmiptlhegroifefthfiosrtwhoerlldo'sss mwohsiacihccaanmde fsruormmoIutnatlyedanwditwhasargicohlldyenadoferrneetdorywitohr
ofhiseldestson,theBlackPrince. Thekingwasdesertedbyhisfol- hearse,was,and perhaps still is, the great wonderof
lowers;onlyonepoorpriestwhowasunabletopreventtheservants the Abbey. Westward of this tomb was the High
stripping the ringsfromEdward'sfingersattended thedeath bed. Altar, and westward of the High Altar the great
below: Thewhite marble tombofQueen ElizabethI erected by mound formed a platform on which Coronations
James I in 1603. Inserted inthetombisagoldringtraditionally takeplace.
said tobetheringwhichElizabeth gaveherfavourite,Essex. On the borderofthe mound, by way ofenclosing
the Confessor's shrine, there were later erected one
by one the tombs of Henry III, Queen Eleanor,
Edward I,Queen Philippa, Edward III and Richard
II. All these tombs except that of Edward I are
surmountedbyeffigieswhichpreservesometradition
ofwhat these kings and queenslooked like. Along-
sideofRichardH'seffigy is thaiofhiswife, Anneof
Bohemia. The tomb of Edward I is perfectly un-
adorned and may still be regarded as temporary.
At the east end ofthis Shrine there was a small
Lady Chapel, and here King Henry VI caused an
upper Chapel to be built supported on arches and
bountifully enriched with statuary. Underneath
wasthetombofhis father,HenryV,agreat loverof
the Abbey; and the whole was a memorial of the
French wars in which the warrior king was for so
much ofhis life engaged. In the Chapelabove, the
chief relics of the Abbey were exhibited until the
Reformation. Amongst them was the head of St.
Benedict and, less authentic, a tooth of St. Athana-
sius, some vestments ofSt. Peter and a girdleofthe
Blessed Virgin Mary. Thewhole design is original
and forms a noble monument to the men ofAgin-
court and the king who led them. To the west of
thisgreatgroupofRoyaltombsthe HighAltarstood
whereitstillstands,but therewas no Screenbehind.
From thebodyoftheChurchthe Shrinewas visible
beyond theAltar. Onlyafter the erection ofHenry
V's Chapel did the monks erect the lovely carved
stone Screen to exact something more from the
pilgrims who passed throughit.
And theywerejustifiedindoingso,fortheyhad to
scrape and save to complete their long Nave, and at
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