Medieval & Religion site on Churches~Cathedrals,Castles

 A living Church that enshrines the history of a nation.

There has been a place of worship on this site for well over a thousand years, and every monarch since William the Conqueror in 1066, bar two, have been crowned under it's roof in an elaborate ceremony that is steeped in history and tradition.
Westminster Abbey, or to call it by its correct name, The Collegiate Church of St Peter, Westminster, is unusual amongst churches in England in being a 'Royal Peculiar'.This means it is under the jurisdiction of the crown and not within any diocese. This was an extremely important privilege in the Middle Ages as it gave the Abbey full control over its finances and day to day running and it soon grew into one of the wealthiest religious houses in the country.

Westminster Abbey has survived them all. It's an architectural masterpiece of the thirteenth to sixteenth centuries and contains countless memorials and effigies to the famous and great of this nation.
Over three thousand people are either buried or memorialised in Westminster Abbey from Medieval Kings and their Queens, to the tomb of the Unknown Warrior, which in recent times has become a place of pilgrimage.

It is said that a church was founded on the site of Westminster Abbey by Serbert, King of the East Saxons who died in AD616, and this was overseen by Mellitus, the first Bishop of London, but there is no evidence of this building.

The earliest foundations that are known are those of St Dunstan, c. 909-88. He was Abbot of Glastonbury and archbishop of Canterbury and a leading player in the church. He was educated at Glastonbury abbey before entering the household of his uncle Athelm, archbishop of Canterbury and he later joined the court of King Athelstan, whom he was also related to.
He set up a Benedictine abbey around AD 960 on an Island in the Thames, although very little is known about the building except it was sited not far from where the west door now stands.

Less than one hundred years later this abbey was succeeded by an even greater monastery created by Edward the Confessor, King of England 1042 -66. The focal point of the new abbey was the Church which was dedicated to St Peter and similar in area to the present building.
It was built in the Norman-French style and would have been similar to Durham Cathedral, which is one of our finest surviving examples. Edward also built a new royal palace nearby.

Edward the Confessor was born in 1003, son of King Ethelred II, The Unready and Emma, daughter of Duke Richard I of Normandy. He spent his youth in exile in Normandy and later married Edith, daughter of the Earl Godwin of Wessex.
 He was recalled to England in 1041, and suceeded his half brother Harthecnut to the throne in the following year. Edward had been accompanied back to England with several influential Normans who were later given important posts in office and he remained in close contact with the Duchy during his reign.
This was a period of great political turbulence in England, although Edward kept his kingdom in relative peace. This was helped to a large extent by the military capacity of the Earl Godwin of Wessex and his Sons, most notably Harold, who later succeeded Edward to the throne.

Edward the Confessor died on 5th January 1066 and on his deathbed is said to have acknowledged Harold as his successor. At dawn on the next day he was buried in the new abbey at Westminster, which had been consecrated only eight days before.
By the end of the morning Harold had been elected by the Witan and they celebrated with High Mass in the Abbey. Harold's reign was to be a short one and by the end of the year a new king was to be crowned at the Abbey.

    
The Burial of Edward the Confessor at Westminster Abbey from the Bayeux Tapestry.

One of the most important events in the history of Westminster Abbey took place on Christmas Day in 1066. This was the coronation of William the Bastard, Duke of Normandy, who had on the 14th October of that year defeated King Harold on the field of Hastings.
William had spent the previous 2 months consolidating his victory and stamping his authority on the south , but the rest of the country was still not entirely under his control.

It was a dramatic ceremony. When the shouts of acclamation rang out from the abbey, the Norman guards thought that their Duke was in danger inside and, being trained soldiers, they quickly started a diversion by setting fire to nearby buildings. The final rituals inside were hurriedly completed and the startled congregation fled into the chaos of the surrounding streets.

 The Coronation ceremony used by William in 1066 was almost certainly very similar to the one still used today, although latin ceased to be used from 1603 onwards. It takes place in the sanctuary, before the high altar, with the sovereign seated on the ancient Coronation Chair. The ceremony has almost always been conducted by the archbishop of Canterbury.

The next Coronation at the Abbey was on 26th September 1087. This was conducted by Archbishop Lanfranc when he crowned the son of the Conqueror, William Rufus. This effectively meant that the elective monarchy of England had become hereditary, and the recognition of the king's chosen heir had passed from his council to his archbishop. After this, every monarch of England ( apart from Edward V, one of the princes in the Tower, and Edward VIII, who abdicated. ) has been crowned in Westminster Abbey.

By the 12th century the Abbey at Westminster was flourishing and would have held between thirty and sixty monks, with up to 300 other people also being involved in the running of the Benedictine Monastry. The Abbey was by now the wealthiest religious house in Britain, helped without doubt by its Royal Patronage and the Tomb of St Edward the Confessor, which was by now attracting large numbers of Pilgrims. The Monks lived a demanding life, attending services during the day and night with reading and writing taking place in between. They even had time to tend the Abbey garden, probably the oldest in England, which has been looked after continuously for over 900 years.

The Abbey also owned another 216 manors in England and much time would have been spent by the Abbot and Monks travelling to and from, to ensure they were being correctly managed and supervising any work which needed to be carried out. The Monks also spent time in other places of learning and some of the younger ones would have travelled to Oxford to study. The Abbot of Westminster would also have been responsible for holding courts and hearing the cases of local wrong-doers, and would even, on occasion, travel overseas on diplomatic missions for the King. A copy of the Domesday Book is almost certain to have been held in the Abbey for safe keeping by the King along with other important relics.

                
                                      Some of the Abby's exterior

Westminster Abbey is famous throughout the world as one of the greatest churches in Christendom, and draws visitors from all corners of the globe. For over a thousand years the people of this nation have seen their monarchs crowned in settings of pomp, tradition and splendour, unsurpassed in todays modern age. The interior is an absolute delight, the gothic arcitechture draws the eye repeatedly and one wonders how such an emense structure of beauty could have been built hundreds of years ago. The roof of the nave is one of the finest of any building in the world., it soars above you as you crane your neck to view its immense design and great height.

The Chapter House is separate from the Abbey and it is possible to visit this on its own, via the Dean's Yard and the Cloister. This I would throughly recommend as the Chapter House is worth seeing in its own right and is managed by English Heritage. ( That membership coming in handy again ) Next to the Chapter House is the ancient treasury and next to that is the Pyx Chamber, all included in the entrance fee and well worth the visit. The Pyx Chamber contains some of the funeral relics of the Medieval Kings including the death mask of Edward III and the saddle, helm and sword of Henry V, which for many years hung above his Chapel.