Westminster Abbey | Construpedia

Westminster Abbey

Introduction

Westminster Abbey, formally Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is a large, predominantly Gothic abbey church in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, just west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the most significant religious buildings in the United Kingdom and the burial place of numerous English and, later, British monarchs. Since the coronation of William the Conqueror in 1066, the coronations of all English and British monarchs have taken place at Westminster Abbey.[2][3] Since 1100, sixteen royal weddings have been held at the abbey.[4].

According to tradition handed down by the monk Sulcard") around 1080, a church was founded at its location (then known as Thorney Island "Thorney Island (London)") in the 19th century, in the time of Melito, the first bishop of London. Construction of the current church began in 1245 under the orders of Henry III.[2].

The church was originally part of a Catholic Benedictine abbey, which was dissolved in 1539. It then served as the cathedral of the diocese of Westminster&action=edit&redlink=1 "Diocese of Westminster (Church of England) (not yet drawn up)" until 1550, and was subsequently a second cathedral of the diocese of London) until 1556. The abbey was returned to the Benedictines by Mary I in 1556, and in 1559 Elizabeth I made it a royal peculiar (a church directly responsible to the monarch).

The abbey is the burial place of over 3,300 people, mostly of prominence in British history, including at least sixteen monarchs, eight prime ministers, poet laureates, actors, scientists, military leaders and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (London).[5]

History

Contenido

Una tradición tardía afirma que Aldrich, un joven pescador del río Támesis, tuvo una visión de san Pedro cerca de la ubicación de la actual abadía. Se ha afirmado que esto pudo ser el origen del salmón que los pescadores del Támesis ofrecían a la abadía en años posteriores, una costumbre que todavía es observada cada año por el Gremio de Pescaderos. Los orígenes documentados de la abadía se remontan a la década de 960 o principios de la década de 970, cuando san Dunstán y el rey Edgar el Pacífico instalaron una comunidad de monjes benedictinos en el lugar.[6].

Westminster Abbey

Introduction

History

Contenido

Construction of the current church

Freed from the burden of spiritual leadership, which passed to the reformed order of Cluny from the middle of the century, and charged with the administration of large estates, some of which were far from Westminster, the Benedictines achieved a high degree of identification with the secular life of their time, and particularly with the life of the upper class, to the point that their representation of daily life provides a broader view of the concerns of the English bourgeoisie in the High and Late Ages. Media.[11].

The abbot and monks, found next to the Palace of Westminster (seat of Government since the end of the century), became a powerful force in the centuries after the Norman conquest, to the point that the Abbot of Westminster would come to occupy a place in the House of Lords. Proximity to the palace, however, did not serve to provide them with connections to royalty; In social origin, the Westminster Benedictines were as modest as most of the order. The abbot continued to hold the lordship of Westminster while a city of two or three thousand inhabitants grew around him: as a large-scale consumer and employer, the monastery helped boost the city's economy, and relations with it were unusually cordial, but during the Middle Ages no voting charter was issued.[12]

Westminster Abbey became the coronation site of Norman kings, but none of them were buried there until Henry III rebuilt it in Anglo-French Gothic style as a temple to worship King Edward the Confessor and as a suitable royal setting for his own tomb, under the tallest Gothic nave in England.[13] Edward the Confessor's shrine would later play a significant role in his canonization.[6].

Work began in 1245.[14] The first phase of work included the entire east end, the transepts and the easternmost bay of the nave. The chapel of the Virgin, which had been built from 1220 at the east end, was incorporated into the apse of the new building, but was later replaced. These works were to have been practically completed in 1258–1260, when the second phase began. This phase extended the nave by five additional bays, taking it one bay beyond the ritual choir. Here, construction stopped around 1269. A consecration ceremony was held on October 13 of that same year,[15] but, due to Henry's death, construction was not resumed. Thus, the old Romanesque nave remained attached to the new building for more than a century, until it was demolished and rebuilt in 1376, closely following the original design, although it was outdated at that time.[16] The works were practically completed by the architect Henry Yevele during the reign of Richard II.[17] Henry III also commissioned the unique Cosmatesco pavement in front of the main altar; This pavement was re-consecrated by the dean on May 21, 2010 after being subjected to an important cleaning and conservation program.[18].

In 1503, Henry VII added a Perpendicular Gothic chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary "Mary (mother of Jesus)"), known as the "Henry VII Chapel" or "Virgin Chapel". Much of the stone used came from the French city of Caen (Caen stone), the island of Portland (Portland stone) and the Loire Valley region of France (tuffeau")).[19] The chapel was completed around 1519.[16].

16th and 17th centuries: dissolution and restoration

In 1535, during the assessment on the dissolution of the monasteries, the annual income of the abbey amounted to £3,000 (equivalent to £1,950,000 in 2021).[20][21].

Henry VIII assumed direct control of the abbey in 1539 and granted it cathedral status by charter "Charter (Grant)") in 1540, simultaneously issuing royal patents to found the diocese of Westminster&action=edit&redlink=1 "Diocese of Westminster (Church of England) (not yet drawn up)"). By granting the abbey cathedral status, Henry VIII gained an excuse to save it from the destruction or dissolution that he imposed on most English abbeys.[22] The abbot, William Benson, thus became dean of the cathedral, while the prior and five of the monks became among the twelve canons.[23]

The diocese of Westminster was dissolved in 1550, but in 1552 the abbey was recognized (with retroactive effect from 1550) as the second cathedral of the diocese of London", a situation that lasted until 1556. Money intended for the abbey, which is dedicated to Saint Peter, was diverted to the treasury of Saint Paul's Cathedral.[27].

The abbey was returned to the Benedictines by the Catholic Queen Mary I, but they were expelled again by Elizabeth I in 1559. In 1560, Elizabeth I refounded Westminster Abbey as a royal peculiar—a church of the Church of England responsible directly to the sovereign, rather than to a diocesan bishop—and converted it into a collegiate church (i.e. a church with a "Chapter (religion)") of canons, headed by a dean, but which does not have the status of a cathedral).[28].

At the turn of the century, the abbey housed two of the six companies of ecclesiastics who translated the King James Version of the Bible, led by Lancelot Andrewes, Dean of Westminster.[29]

It was damaged during the turbulent 1640s, when it was attacked by Puritan iconoclasts, but was again protected by its close ties to the State during the Commonwealth. An elaborate funeral was held there for Oliver Cromwell in 1658, only for him to be exhumed in January 1661 and hanged posthumously from a gallows at Tyburn.[30]

Burials and memorials

Henry III rebuilt the abbey in honor of a royal saint, Edward the Confessor, whose relics were placed in a shrine in the temple. Henry III was buried nearby, as were many of the Plantagenet kings of England, their wives and other relatives. Until the death of George II in 1760, most kings and queens were buried at the abbey. Some notable exceptions are Henry VI, Edward IV, Henry VIII and Charles I, who were buried in St George's Chapel "St George's Chapel (Windsor Castle)") of Windsor Castle; Edward II, buried in Gloucester Cathedral; John I, buried in Worcester Cathedral; Henry IV, buried in Canterbury Cathedral; Richard III, now buried in Leicester Cathedral; and the de facto queen Joan Grey, buried in the chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula in the Tower of London. More recently, monarchs have been buried in St George's Chapel or in the royal cemetery at Frogmore "Royal Cemetery (United Kingdom)"), east of Windsor Castle.[67].

Since the Middle Ages, aristocrats were buried within chapels, while monks and other people associated with the abbey were buried in cloisters and other areas. One of them was Geoffrey Chaucer, who worked as the king's master builder and had apartments in the abbey. Other poets, writers and musicians were buried or commemorated around Chaucer, in what would become known as Poets' Corner. Abbey musicians, such as Henry Purcell, were also buried at their workplace.[68]

Subsequently, being buried or commemorated in Westminster Abbey became one of the United Kingdom's highest honours.[69] The practice of burying national figures in the abbey began under Oliver Cromwell with the burial of Admiral Robert Blake "Robert Blake (admiral)") in 1657 (although he was later buried outside the abbey).[70] The practice spread to include generals, admirals, politicians, doctors and scientists such as Isaac Newton (buried). 4 April 1727), Charles Darwin (buried 26 April 1882) and Stephen Hawking (buried ashes 15 June 2018). Another personality buried in the abbey is William Wilberforce, who led the movement to abolish slavery in the United Kingdom and the plantations, buried on 3 August 1833 in the north transept, near his friend, the former Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger "William Pitt (the Younger)").

At the beginning of the century it became increasingly common to bury cremated remains in the abbey instead of coffins. In 1905, the actor Sir Henry Irving was cremated and his ashes interred at Westminster Abbey, becoming the first person to be cremated before being buried at the abbey. Today, most burials are of cremated remains, but some traditional burials still take place: for example, Frances Challen, wife of Sebastian Charles, Canon of Westminster, was buried with her husband in the south choir aisle. in 2014.[73] Members of the Percy family) have a family vault, the Northumberland Crypt, in St Nicholas' Chapel at the abbey.[74].

On the ground, just past the large west door, in the center of the nave, is the tomb of the unknown soldier "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (London)"), an unidentified British soldier killed on a European battlefield during the First World War and buried in the abbey on 11 November 1920. This is the only tomb in the abbey on which walking is prohibited.[75].

To the east of the Virgin's Chapel is a memorial chapel dedicated to the Royal Air Force airmen "Royal Air Force (United Kingdom)") who lost their lives in the Second World War. It also includes a memorial window dedicated to the Battle of Britain, replacing an earlier Tudor stained glass window destroyed in the war.[76]

On September 6, 1997, the funeral of Princess Diana of Wales was held. It was a ceremonial, but not state, funeral, which included royal pomp and Anglican funeral liturgy. A second public service was held on Sunday by popular request. The burial took place privately on 6 September in the grounds of his family estate, Althorp, on a private island.[77].

In 1998, ten empty niches in the façade above the large west door were filled with statues of Christian martyrs of the century representing different denominations. Those commemorated are Maximilian Kolbe, Manche Masemola, Janani Luwum, Grand Duchess Isabel Fiódorovna, Martin Luther King, Óscar Romero, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Esther John, Lucian Tapiedi") and Wang Zhiming.[78][79].

Construction of the current church

16th and 17th centuries: dissolution and restoration

In 1535, during the assessment on the dissolution of the monasteries, the annual income of the abbey amounted to £3,000 (equivalent to £1,950,000 in 2021).[20][21].

At the turn of the century, the abbey housed two of the six companies of ecclesiastics who translated the King James Version of the Bible, led by Lancelot Andrewes, Dean of Westminster.[29]

Navegación

Westminster Abbey

Introduction

History

Contenido

Westminster Abbey

Introduction

History

Contenido

1042: Edward the Confessor begins rebuilding St. Peter's Abbey

Construction of the current church

16th and 17th centuries: dissolution and restoration

1722–1745: construction of the western towers

Suffragette bombing in 1914

Second World War

Postwar period

Coronations

royal weddings

Dean and chapter

king's almoners

Burials and memorials

Schools

Music

Organ

Bells

chapter house

Museum

General

In English

References

1042: Edward the Confessor begins rebuilding St. Peter's Abbey

Construction of the current church

16th and 17th centuries: dissolution and restoration

1722–1745: construction of the western towers

Suffragette bombing in 1914

Second World War

Postwar period

Coronations

royal weddings

Dean and chapter

king's almoners

Burials and memorials

Schools

Music

Organ

Bells

chapter house

Museum

General

In English

References