Envision an edifice where monarchs are crowned and legends find their rest. That’s Westminster Abbey. Formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster. This Anglican church stands tall in the City of Westminster. It is rich with royal history.
Since 1066 forty English and British monarchs have been crowned here. It is a sacred tradition. The abbey has also been a burial site for 18 monarchs. Royal weddings have graced this place since 1100.
While its true origins are veiled an abbey stood here by the mid-10th century. Benedictine monks called this place home. Edward the Confessor commissioned the first large building in the 1040s. He is also buried within these walls.
Construction of the present church began in 1245. Henry III sought a grand shrine. He wanted to venerate Edward. The monastery dissolved in 1559. Elizabeth I declared the church a royal peculiar. This meant it answered directly to the sovereign. In 1987 the abbey became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It shares this honor with the Palace of Westminster and St Margaret’s Church.
Gothic architecture dominates. The abbey draws inspiration from 13th-century French and English styles. The Henry VII Chapel is a prime example of Perpendicular Gothic design. Antiquarian John Leland called it orbis miraculum. This means “the wonder of the world.”
More than 3300 souls rest here. Many were prominent figures in British history. Monarchs, prime ministers, and poets laureate all lie here. Actors, musicians, scientists, and military leaders fill the spaces too. William Morris called the abbey a “National Valhalla.” This speaks to the fame of those interred.
Historians agree a monastery existed here before the 11th century. Its exact start remains obscure. Legend says Saxon king Sæberht of Essex founded it. Another tale credits the fictional 2nd-century British king Lucius. Tradition tells of a fisherman’s vision. He saw Saint Peter on the River Thames near this spot. This is said to be the origin of the salmon offering. Thames fishermen give salmon to the abbey annually. The Fishmongers’ Company still observes this custom.
Around 959 Dunstan and King Edgar established Benedictine monks here. The location was then an island in the Thames called Thorney Island. That building is gone. Archaeologists have found pottery and foundations from that time.
Edward the Confessor rebuilt Saint Peter’s Abbey between 1042 and 1052. He desired a royal burial church. The church was Romanesque. It was England’s first with a cruciform floorplan. Leofsi Duddason was the master stonemason. Godwin and Wendelburh Gretsyd were patrons. Teinfrith was the “churchwright.” This likely meant carpentry and roofing work.
Edward’s endowments supported a growing community. It grew from a dozen monks to as many as 80. Construction finished around 1060. The consecration occurred on December 28 1065. Edward died a week later. He was buried in the church. His wife Edith joined him nine years later. Harold Godwinson was likely crowned here. William the Conqueror’s coronation followed later that year. It is the first documented one.
The Bayeux Tapestry shows the only surviving depiction of Edward’s abbey. Its foundations remain under the present church. Parts of the monastic dormitory survive above ground in the undercroft. A door is said to come from the prior Anglo-Saxon abbey. The church was a little smaller than today’s. It had a central tower.
In 1103 Edward’s tomb was reopened. Abbot Gilbert Crispin and Henry I found his body in perfect condition. This proved his saintliness. He was canonized in 1161. His ring was removed and added to the abbey’s collection two years later when he was moved to a new shrine.
The abbey became more closely tied to royalty. Kings used the nearby Palace of Westminster as their seat of government. In 1222 the abbey gained exemption. It was free from the Bishop of London’s jurisdiction. It answered only to the head of the Church. By then the abbey owned much land. It stretched from Oxford Street to the Thames. It included parishes in the City of London.
Westminster Abbey is more than stone and history. It is a living chronicle. It reflects England’s evolving story. From royal coronations to the final resting places of luminaries. It resonates with the echoes of centuries past.