St. Paul's Cathedral - Wren's Masterpiece .

After the Great Fire of London, the task of designing and rebuilding St.Paul's was assigned to Christopher Wren in 1668. The cathedral is built of Portland stone in a late Renaissance style and it took around 35 years to complete. With its impressive dome which rises to 365 feet, it has become one of London's most famous landmarks. The cathedral has a very large crypt holding over 200 memorials -  although, Christopher Wren was the first person to be interred, many other plaques, carvings, statues, memorials and tombs of famous British figures surround him and include: Lord Kitchener, The Duke of Wellington, Admiral Nelson, Henry Moore and  Sir Winston Churchill. There is also a bust of T E Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) among other popular heroes. The cathedral has been the site for many famous funerals, including those of Nelson, Wellington and Winston Churchill. St. Paul's is open to the public, though there is a charge for non-worshipping visitors. Nearest Tube / London Underground Station: St. Paul's Back to the City of London Free Walk - London Walks for Free Self-guided walk from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Cathedral.

St. Paul's features & facts.

Highlights: The Whispering Gallery - even a whisper can be heard echoing around the dome The Dome - the second largest in the world after St. Peter's in Rome, is a supreme example of Wren's genius. John Donne's Memorial - the only monument to survive the Great Fire of London in 1666 Wren's Tomb - the inscription reads "Reader, if you seek a monument look around you"   Facts: The dome is 360 ft (110 m) high The lantern weighs 850 tons 259 steps lead to the Whispering Gallery The first St. Paul's burned down in 1087 In 1675 the foundation stone of the present St. Paul's was laid HRH. Prince Charles married Lady Diana Spencer at St. Paul's in 1981 Wren's Plan Wren's great disappointment was that the opportunity was missed of laying out afresh the whole City from Temple Bar to Tower Hill, and from Moorfields to the river. His inventive genius projected broad streets, generally rectangular, with piazzas, each the meeting-point of eight thoroughfares, and quays and terraces along the river bank. He calculated that by obliterating the numerous churchyards and laying out healthier cemeteries in the suburbs, no owner would lose a square foot of ground, and that, although they would not find their property exactly on the same site, every building would be replaced, with the immense compensation of an excellent situation in the finest and healthiest city in the whole world. By this plan St. Paul's would have directly faced a long and broad street running west and passing through the present Law Courts, with St. Dunstan's Church in the centre beyond the Fleet, and the narrow Strand joining from the west at Temple Bar. As the rebuilding of houses began almost as soon as the smoke of the Fire had ceased, and long before anything definite could be decided upon, a great opportunity for the City of London was lost.