St Paul's Cathedral, an Anglican cathedral named after the Apostle Paul, is built at the highest point in London, at the top of Ludgate Hill. There is speculation that Christian churches have existed on this site since the Anglo-Saxon conquest. Most likely they were wooden, and no material traces of these buildings survive, nor of the stone church that burned in the fire of 1087.
After the fire, the so-called "Old St Paul's" was built; construction continued for over two hundred years, and much of the unfinished church was again destroyed by fire in 1136. Consecrated in 1300, the church was one of the largest in Europe, and its spire was 178 metres high (according to Francis Penrose's archaeological excavations in 1878).
At the time of Henry VIII's ecclesiastical reforms, the cathedral, like many other cathedrals in Britain, fell into disrepair and slowly deteriorated. In 1561 the spire was struck by lightning and burnt down, in what both Protestants and Catholics saw as the wrath of God against the unrighteous acts of opponents.
In 1670 the site was cleared of the ruins of the old building, and construction began on an entirely new cathedral designed by the architect Sir Christopher Wren. Sir Christopher Wren had already built over 50 churches in London, and the proposal to rebuild the cathedral came to him before the Great Fire of London in 1666.
Several designs for the cathedral were made, which differed considerably from each other. From the first project we have only one sketch and part of the layout. According to this project, the cathedral was a dome similar to the Pantheon in Rome and a rectangular basilica. This variant was rejected as not majestic enough. The second project - in the form of a Greek cross - seemed to critics too radical. The third variant came down to us in the form of the Great Layout, made of oak and plaster, six metres long and four high. The Big Mockup is now on display in the cathedral. This variant is based on the second design, but with an elongated nave. This variant was also criticised by the clergy - preference was given to plans in the form of a Latin cross. In addition, such a cathedral should have been built immediately - because it was crowned by a dome, and traditional cathedrals could be sacred unfinished and conduct services in them. Wren himself liked this option best, and he decided not to bring his designs to public discussion any more, calling it a "waste of time" and the judgement of "incompetent judges".
The fourth project was an attempt to combine the Gothic tradition of English churches with the harmony of the Renaissance style. The final version was still very different from what was approved. The king gave the architect permission to make "decorative changes" in the project, and Sir Christopher Wren interpreted this permission very freely. First of all, the dome appeared - it was not in the approved project, but it became a key detail in the overall appearance of the cathedral.
Inside the dome is the Whispering Gallery - due to the peculiarities of acoustics under the dome, a word spoken in a low whisper can be heard on the opposite side of the gallery.
On the north-west tower is the belfry - 13 bells of various ranges, including the largest bell in the British Isles, the Great Paul. According to a tradition established by Pope John XIV, the bells were baptised and given the name of some saint.
Many famous people are buried in the cathedral - Lord Nelson, Winston Churchill, Alexander Fleming, Joshua Reynolds and Joseph Turner, but most notably the cathedral's creator Sir Christopher Wren. There is no monument on his grave, only the Latin inscription, "To you who read this, if you are looking for a monument, look around you".
