The Monmouth inquirer., 1925-06-18
I ct. pAuL's IN LONDON.

4 euf3 A2FUSSR SnuEcN fM CnFtaEtaNH
< DOM. Site 10 Centuries Old. 3
IN the very heart Of the city, cons
Epicuously situated on q slight emf
hence stands London's most promi-
nent building, the beautiful st. Paul's
Cathedral. For nearly 1900 years .
church has occupied this site, Ethel
bert having founded one there as ear
ly as CLIO. For AT years this origni-
nal church remained standing, or un-
til it was destroyed by IRE in 1889.
A new edifce then was commenced
In the Norman style. It occupied 40
years In building. and, according to
William of Malmesbury, could con-
tain the utmost conceivable multitude
OF worshipers" But what with addi-
tons of various kinds, the cathedral
was not declared completed until 1915.
The height Of the steeple then was
$40 feet. and the total length OF the
Church was 720 feet, a great many feet
lager than the longest church now In
england. At that time the spire was
of timber covered with lead, and was
eight feet higher than the world-rc-
rowned cathedral of Cologne. the lar
gest specimen of gothic architecture
IN tho world. In 1861 this spire was
s;rve;i by lightning and was destroyed,
and in the fire that ensued the church
was damaged, and remained in a d.
M9idated condition until the reign Of
Charles |.
TIC wcrk Of restoration under The
great architect, lingo Jones, had 1ot
been completed when the structure
was destroyed in the great fire Of
1866 Before this the famous st.
Pauss'1 cross had been removed. where
great religious disputations were held
and papal bulls promulgated. Here
the bull OF tho pope against Martin
Luther was read Ia the presence OF
CarG.lGl Wolsey.
The present st. Paul's was erected
IN tho years between 1CT5-97 from the
designs of Sir Christopher Wren. 1t
is in the form of Latin cross and re-
semblcs st. Peters at Rome. though
much smaller. Il cost what would
be computed in our money to-day as
nearly SO, 900. but which represent.
ed q far greater purchasing power in
those times. 1t is 500 feet long and
1t is the third largest church in Chris
tendon, being exceeded in size only
by St. Peters at Rome and the cathe.
dral Of Milan.
The dome, which separates the two
transepts and the nave and the choir,
rises to a height of 365 feet, and is
OF wood covered with lead. 1t sup
p. 60 lantern, on top of which is a
ball s~srarunled By a cross, the Lall
and cross Weighing $500 pounds. and
bringing the e2sreme height OF the
structure to AGA rect. The ball is six
feet in diameter and can hold from 10
to ~ persons.
The principal fr12t to TIE LAST con
sists of double Do4t:co CT corinthian
pillars, flanked by campanile towers
100 feet high. IN front of the west
facade stands statue of Queen Anne,
with England, Ireland, France and
America at her feet. In the campanile
tower is tho largest BEN In England.
Wren received 9200 q year while
working on st. Paul's, but his de-
signs for the decoration of the vast
interior were never carried out. The
expense was paid by a tax on coal.
st. Paul's is famous for its numer.
ous monuments, where also are the
tombs of Sir Joshua Reynolds, Lord
Nelson, DI. Samuel johnson, the Duke
of Wellington. the painter Turner. and
other distinguished men.