A place travelers can visit Westminster Abbey

Reviews: Westminster Abbey

General description: Westminster Abbey

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Westminster Abbey is not to be missed. The church where people of fame and repute are crowned and buried: a Who's Who of London life from centuries gone by.

The Abbey's Rich History
The coronation church of monarchs and the burial church of high society. Edward the Confessor had a church consecrated here in 1065 but died only a few days later. Subsequently William the Conqueror had himself crowned king here on Christmas Day 1066. At present, the Norman crypt is the only part of the original building open to the public. The Gothic nave of the new building (13th century) is filled with over 600 monuments, memorial plaques and grave tablets. The Henry VII Chapel which dates to the early 16th century is adorned with a spectacular fan vault in Perpendicular style. 3300 famous Britons are buried here: scientists such as Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin, composers such as Henry Purcell and Georg Friedrich Händel, and politicians such as William Pitt the Younger and William Gladstone. At Poets' Corner, you can see the graves of Geoffrey Chaucer (Canterbury Tales, 1400) and Charles Dickens. Other writers are commemorated with plaques. In 1637 the playwright Ben Jonson willed that he be buried standing up, to save money. Make note of the memorial above the main door to the German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, murdered by the Nazis in 1945. The two towers were added in 1745 by Christopher Wren's student, Nicholas Hawskmoor (1661-1736). On 2 June 1953, this was the scene of Elizabeth II's coronation, attended by over 8000 people. More recently on April 29th 2011, Westminster Abbey witnessed the Royal Wedding with Prince William and Kate Middleton.

Visiting Westminster Abbey
 
Opening times
Mon - Tue,Thu - Fri 9:30am - 3:30pm
Wed 9:30am - 6pm
Sat 9:30am - 1:30pm
Sunday: Open for worship only - all welcome.
 
Admission
Adults: £16
Concession: £13
Children (11 - 18): £6
Under 11: FREE
Group and family reductions available
Free audio guide included

Nearest Tube stations: St James's Park (District & Circle Lines), Westminster (Jubilee, District & Circle Lines).
 
Address
Dean's Yard 20
SW1P 3PA London
http://www.westminster-abbey.org

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