St. Paul’s CathedralLondon, EnglandArchitecture 071

Architecture History IISpring 2005

Instructor: Rolando L. Gonzalez, M.Arch., Architect, A.I.A.

Student: Kevin Bohnstedt

History

Short Timeline 314 – Seat (Cathedra) of Bishop of London Established

604 – First Cathedral Built

675 – First Cathedral Burned

972 – Second Cathedral Rebuilt after Viking Ransacking

1087 – Old St Paul’s Built in Norman Style

1310 – Old St Paul’s Finished

1666 – Old St Paul’s Destroyed in Great Fire

1675 – Third Plan for St Paul’s Accepted

1710 – St Paul’s Completed

1901 – Queen Victoria’s Funeral Here

1940 – Targeted in WWII

1944 – Bells Announce end of WWII

1945 – Services with 35000 attending mark end of war

Design: The Plan

• The Fire– After the Great Fire of 1666, the Cathedral

needed to be rebuilt– Sir Christopher Wren included it in his plan for

London

• Sir Christopher Wren (1632 – 1723)– Trained in Science and Medicine– Took up Architecture at 30– 3rd Plan for St Paul’s was approved (Warrant

Design)• Fortunate Coda

– Only Architect to design a Cathedral and see it through to completion in his lifetime

– Knighted by Charles II in 1673

Design: The Plan

•A Baroque Masterpiece

–Wren derived his inspiration from Renaissance greats

›Two Tier design all around

›Paired Corinthian Columns on façade like Louvre

›Twin towers frame entrance reflect Borromini

›The Dome reinterprets Bramante’s Tempietto

›Curved Transept Porches mirror the Pietro da Cortona’s

Design: The Dome

•First Dome in England

•World’s 3rd largest

•Triple layer design

•Inside design–Whispering Gallery

–Stone Gallery

–Golden Gallery

Whispering Gallery

Stone Gallery

Golden Gallery

Recent History

1964 – Martin Luther King Preached here enroute to Oslo for his Nobel Peace Prize

1965 – Sir Winston Churchill Funeral

1977 – Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee

1981 – The wedding of the century

1996 – Fragments of Inigo Jones Portico found by archaeologists

1997 – 300th Anniversary

2000 – HM Queen Mother 100th Birthday

2001 – Service of Remembrance for the victims of 9/11

Renovations

•A major renovation began in 1997

–Marks the 300th anniversary of the cathedral

–Prepares for the next 300 years

–Will cost 40 million pounds

–Repairs, cleans, and improves accessibility

–Also provides additional educational facilities

•Scheduled for completion in 2008

–Celebrates 300th anniversary of opening

The Crypt

•A favorite burial place for English heroes

•The people interred here are a pantheon of English history

•Sir Christopher Wren

•Lord Admiral Nelson

•The Duke of Wellington

•John Donne

Visit St. Paul’s

• Centrally located in London

• Open for visitation daily– Chapels, Galleries open with

tours

• Visit their website for more information– http:/www.stpauls.co.uk

Questions?