Westminster Abbey
Anyone who knows me can attest that I am not a churchy type person, but one has to appreciate some of the amazing cathedrals out there in the world. Westminster Abbey would have to rate as one of the most impressive I have ever seen, simply because it is not only an amazing building, but it is so ancient and has so much social, cultural and historical significance, especially in terms of British history.
You do have to pay admission to get in to the Abbey but it is well worth it. You can also pay more money to take a guided tour, but I chose to not do that option. Instead I tried to tag along with the various tour groups moving through the castle and eavesdrop on their commentary. That saved me about five pounds, and I still had a good experience, so it was all good!
Westminster Abbey has been the place for every coronation since 1066… that’s a bloody long time (and see, I didn’t need to pay for the tour to learn stuff)! You can see the historic coronation chair at the Abbey. The Abbey is also chokka- block full of tombs. Some of these tombs are quite famous, for example those belonging to Queen Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots. The poet’s corner is famous and holds tombs for, or memorials commemorating, great writers and poets such as Chaucer, T.S. Eliot, Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, Shakespeare, Tennyson, Browning, Keats, Wordsworth and more.
Westminster Abbey is definitely a worthwhile place to visit, especially for those with an interest in British history or the church.
Look, I have managed to go the whole way through this article without saying anything nasty or snide about organized religion. That is pretty good for me. But seriously, one of the things that amazed me the most is how such a building was constructed in those times… it was obviously constructed because of the massive power and wealth of the church. It kind of made me annoyed that the church had gone to such lengths to construct these massive monuments to God when I am sure there were people starving and dying etc that could have done with some money. It seems like it would have been a very elitist house of God also. But that is the past… I will refrain from anymore ranting because this is supposed to be a travel blog.
Anyway, you can visit the official website by clicking here.
You do have to pay admission to get in to the Abbey but it is well worth it. You can also pay more money to take a guided tour, but I chose to not do that option. Instead I tried to tag along with the various tour groups moving through the castle and eavesdrop on their commentary. That saved me about five pounds, and I still had a good experience, so it was all good!
Westminster Abbey has been the place for every coronation since 1066… that’s a bloody long time (and see, I didn’t need to pay for the tour to learn stuff)! You can see the historic coronation chair at the Abbey. The Abbey is also chokka- block full of tombs. Some of these tombs are quite famous, for example those belonging to Queen Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots. The poet’s corner is famous and holds tombs for, or memorials commemorating, great writers and poets such as Chaucer, T.S. Eliot, Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, Shakespeare, Tennyson, Browning, Keats, Wordsworth and more.
Westminster Abbey is definitely a worthwhile place to visit, especially for those with an interest in British history or the church.
Look, I have managed to go the whole way through this article without saying anything nasty or snide about organized religion. That is pretty good for me. But seriously, one of the things that amazed me the most is how such a building was constructed in those times… it was obviously constructed because of the massive power and wealth of the church. It kind of made me annoyed that the church had gone to such lengths to construct these massive monuments to God when I am sure there were people starving and dying etc that could have done with some money. It seems like it would have been a very elitist house of God also. But that is the past… I will refrain from anymore ranting because this is supposed to be a travel blog.
Anyway, you can visit the official website by clicking here.
posted by Ashlee at 1:34 pm
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