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St. Paul's Cathedral
St. Paul's Cathedral
St. Paul's Churchyard,
London EC4M 8AD
Tel: 020 7236 4128
About St. Paul's Cathedral
St. Paul’s Cathedral in the centre of London is a world heritage site and a stunning family attraction, providing a breathtaking and invigorating family day out. A ticket to the cathedral might not bring redemption, but it will bring much enlightenment, with Guided tours of St. Paul’s Cathedral and Crypt taking around an hour and a half and taking in such amazing features as the Quire and geometric staircase.
Established in 604 AD, St. Paul’s Cathedral is the fourth building to exist on the site and was the brainchild of court architect Sir Christopher Wren. Put up between 1675 and 1710, it began operating in earnest in 1697. Wren's masterwork has been the centrepiece for the funerals of Admiral Nelson, the Duke of Wellington and Sir Winston Churchill; Jubilee celebrations for Queen Victoria; thanksgiving services following the First and Second World Wars; the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana Spencer, in 1981; and the 80th Birthday of Queen Elizabeth II.
Its mighty pillars and archways are replete with staggering artwork and monuments, ensuring a captivating family day out. The Crypt houses effigies and stone fragments from the pre-Fire Of London cathedral buildings, while the 1695 organ used by Mendelssohn is still played and Jean Tijou’s imposing iron gates of 1700 continue to separate the Quire and the ambulatory.
Grandiose Victorian mosaics and a 1951 Roll Of Honour are to be found in the American Memorial Chapel erected after the Blitz of World War 2, and the cathedral continues to be a working a place of worship, as well as a major family attraction.
A ticket to the family attraction gives its holder access to St. Paul’s Cathedral’s Nave and Dome, the Great West Door - nine metres high - and the chapels of All Souls', St. Dunstan's and St. Michael and St. George. The first of these nestles at the North West Tower and in 1925 was dedicated to Lord Kitchener. Its wonders include sculptures of St. Michael and St. George and a superb pietá sculpture of the Virgin and Christ. Its silver-plated altar candlesticks were manufactured from London Rifle Brigade trophies. Consecrated in 1699, St. Dunstan’s chapel is adjacent to Wellington's monument on the north aisle, which was unveiled in 1912. The Chapel of St. Michael and St. George at the south aisle was a consistory court in a past life. Rest assured, though, judgement will not be passed on a family day out!
The transepts - the short, central arms of St. Paul’s Cathedral – are dominated to the north by William Holman Hunt's magnum opus, The Light Of The World, painted in 1900. Services are regularly held in Middlesex Chapel, the Italian marble font dating to 1727. In the south transept is a monument to Nelson, as well as memorials to landscape painter J.M.W. Turner and explorer Captain Robert Scott, whose remains are housed in the Crypt.
To the east of St. Paul’s Cathedral is The Quire, where the choir and clergy sit. The earliest part of the current St. Paul’s Cathedral boasts delicate carvings by Grinling Gibbons, as well as a Bishop's cathedra (throne). Gibbons put the finishing touches to the dazzling organ, the third biggest in the country, with some 7189 pipes, five keyboards and 138 stops. More than a London bus route!
The High Altar of 1958 comprises marble and carved, gilded oak dates and retains a grand canopy based on a Wren outline. Possibly his greatest achievement, however – and a major draw on a family day out to St. Paul’s Cathedral - is the mind-boggling cruciform Dome. It’s one of the biggest cathedral domes anywhere, at 111.3 metres high. It weighs 65,000 tonnes, supported with eight pillars – an engineering miracle, as TV’s Fred Dibnah confirmed. By ’eck! Its murals were undertaken between 1715 and 1719 by court painter Sir James Thornhill.
Furthermore, the inner dome’s arches feature mosaics of prophets and saints, completed between 1864 and 1888.
The Dome’s is noteworthy too for its Ball & Lantern, emplaced in 1821 and some 23 feet tall and seven tonnes in weight. The Golden Gallery traverses the highest point of the outer dome at 280 feet. It can be reached by the fit thanks to a monumental flight of 530 steps – just the ticket for an energetic family day out, and definitely worth it when you see the view! The Stone Gallery rises to 173 feet, accessed via 378 steps. Last but certainly not least, the famous Whispering Gallery skirts the interior of the Dome, at 259. It derives its name from the fact that a whisper against the wall here can be heard on the opposite side.
A family day out to St. Paul’s Cathedral should also take in its wonderful peeling bells. There are a dozen in the North West Tower, the second largest ring of bells in the world (chiming in B flat) and 125 years young. The smallest, the Treble, weighs in at half a ton, and the largest, the Tenor, is over 3 tons. Further, the first service bell, The Banger, has been retained in situ. Manufactured in 1700, it’s rung often to warn of the 0800 Eucharist. The South West Tower features Great Paul, the biggest bell in the British Isles. It weighs 16½ tons and rings daily at 1300 over Ludgate Hill. Taking in a demonstration of the bells in action is a unique part of this enjoyable family attraction.
Back down to earth – or underneath it – a family day out to St. Paul’s Cathedral should include a tour of the Crypt, with Nelson at its core, lying in a lead-lined coffin filled with brandy, camphor and myrrh. It sits in a second lead-lined box and a black velvet and gold gilt mahogany outer casket. He remains under the black sarcophagus of Cardinal Wolsey, dating back to the early 16th century.
The Iron Duke, Wellington, is housed in a sarcophagus of Cornish granite, draped in the banners from his funeral procession.
Sir Christopher Wren is at the east end with a stone adorned by his architect's mark. He is in the company of artists such as Sir Joshua Reynolds and Sir John Everett Millais; the scientific pioneer Sir Alexander Fleming; the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan (Gilbert & Sullivan); and sculptor Henry Moore.
The OBE Chapel in the east end of the Crypt was dedicated in 1960 and has fine glass panels and banners.
The Triforium level behind the South West Tower houses the library of the Dean and Chapter in a space designed by Wren. It features ancient Bibles and liturgies, two thousand volumes from the collection of Henry Compton, acquired in 1712, and others left in 1783 by John Mangey. A host of ecclesiastical tracts and pamphlets were added later. A Tour takes in the library and geometrical staircase, not to mention a fantastic view from the West End of the Nave (up 141 steps). The visit concludes at the Trophy Room, featuring Wren's Great Model, based on a plan of the Cathedral in the shape of a Greek cross. The tour includes ticket entry into the Cathedral, Crypt and Galleries (details are on the St. Paul’s Cathedral website).
Ticket holders can enjoy St. Paul’s Cathedral’s shop and refectory on a family day out. The crypt Shop has exclusive merchandise, books and religious paraphernalia, and is accessed from the West Front steps. The nearby Refectory has a self-service restaurant. Education tours for schools can be booked, along with private tours and corporate events for up to 350 people.