![The bells at the Abbey were overhauled in
1971. The ring is now made up of ten bells,
hung for change ringing, cast in 1971, by
the Whitechapel Bell Foundry. In addition
there are two service bells, cast by Robert
Mot, in 1585 and 1598 respectively, a
Sanctus bell cast in 1738 by Richard Phelps
and Thomas Lester and two unused bells—
one cast circa 1320, by the successor to R
de Wymbish, and a second cast in 1742, by
Thomas Lester.[20] The two service bells and
the 1320 bell, along with a fourth small
silver "dish bell", kept in the refectory, have
been noted as being of historical
importance by the Church Buildings Council
of the Church of England.[21]](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/westministerabbey-150410042353-conversion-gate01/85/West-minister-abbey-5-320.jpg)
![The Westminster Abbey Museum is located in the 11th-century vaulted
undercroft beneath the former monks' dormitory in Westminster Abbey. This is
one of the oldest areas of the Abbey, dating back almost to the foundation of
the Norman church by Edward the Confessor in 1065. This space has been
used as a museum since 1908.[22]
The exhibits include a unique collection of royal and other funeral effigies
(funeral saddle, helm and shield of Henry V), together with other treasures,
including some panels of mediaeval glass, 12th-century sculpture fragments,
Mary II's coronation chair and replicas of the coronation regalia, and historic
effigies of Edward III, Henry VII and his queen, Elizabeth I, Charles II, William
III, Mary II and Queen Anne.
and conserved.](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/westministerabbey-150410042353-conversion-gate01/85/West-minister-abbey-8-320.jpg)
West minister abbey
- 1. JYOTSNA GAUR 2010UAR109 HITESH SHARMA 2010UAR107 SOUMYA SHUKLA2010UAR110
- 2. The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English, later British and later still (and currently) monarchs of the Commonwealth realms. The abbey is a Royal Peculiar and briefly held the status of a cathedral from 1540 to 1550.
- 3. •A narthex (a portico or entrance hall) for the west front was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens in the mid 20th century but was not executed. the Abbey's official website states that the building was without towers following Yevele's renovation, with just the lower segments beneath the roof level of the Nave completed.
- 4. The organ was built by Harrison & Harrison in 1937, then with four manuals and 84 speaking stops, and was used for the first time at the coronation of King George VI. Some pipework from the previous Hill organ of 1848 was revoiced and incorporated in the new scheme. The two organ cases, designed in the late nineteenth century by John Loughborough Pearson, were re-instated and coloured in 1959. In 1982 and 1987, Harrison and Harrison enlarged the organ under the direction of the then Abbey Organist Simon Preston to include an additional Lower Choir Organ and a Bombarde Organ: the current instrument now has five manuals and 109 speaking stops
- 5. The bells at the Abbey were overhauled in 1971. The ring is now made up of ten bells, hung for change ringing, cast in 1971, by the Whitechapel Bell Foundry. In addition there are two service bells, cast by Robert Mot, in 1585 and 1598 respectively, a Sanctus bell cast in 1738 by Richard Phelps and Thomas Lester and two unused bells— one cast circa 1320, by the successor to R de Wymbish, and a second cast in 1742, by Thomas Lester.[20] The two service bells and the 1320 bell, along with a fourth small silver "dish bell", kept in the refectory, have been noted as being of historical importance by the Church Buildings Council of the Church of England.[21]
- 6. The Chapter house was built concurrently with the east parts of the abbey under Henry III, between about 1245 and 1253. The entrance is approached from the east cloister walk and includes a double doorway with a large tympanum above. Inner and outer vestibules lead to the octagonal chapter house, which is of exceptional architectural purity. It is built in a Geometrical Gothic style with an octagonal crypt below. A pier of eight shafts carries the vaulted ceiling. To the sides are blind arcading, remains of 14th-century paintings and numerous stone benches above which are innovatory large 4-light quatre- foiled windows. These are virtually contemporary with the Sainte-Chapelle, Paris.
- 7. •The exterior includes flying buttresses added in the 14th century and a leaded tent-lantern roof on an iron frame designed by Scott. The Chapter house was originally used in the 13th century by Benedictine monks for daily meetings. It later became a meeting place of the King's Great Council and the Commons, predecessors of Parliament. •The Pyx Chamber formed the undercroft of the monks' dormitory. It dates to the late 11th century and was used as a monastic and royal treasury. The outer walls and circular piers are of 11th-century date, several of the capitals were enriched in the 12th century and the stone altar added in the 13th century. The term 'pyx' refers to the boxwood chest in which coins were held and presented to a jury during the Trial of the Pyx.
- 8. The Westminster Abbey Museum is located in the 11th-century vaulted undercroft beneath the former monks' dormitory in Westminster Abbey. This is one of the oldest areas of the Abbey, dating back almost to the foundation of the Norman church by Edward the Confessor in 1065. This space has been used as a museum since 1908.[22] The exhibits include a unique collection of royal and other funeral effigies (funeral saddle, helm and shield of Henry V), together with other treasures, including some panels of mediaeval glass, 12th-century sculpture fragments, Mary II's coronation chair and replicas of the coronation regalia, and historic effigies of Edward III, Henry VII and his queen, Elizabeth I, Charles II, William III, Mary II and Queen Anne. and conserved.
- 9. King Edward's Chair (or St Edward's Chair), the throne on which English and British sovereigns have been seated at the moment of coronation, is housed within the Abbey and has been used at every coronation since 1308. FUNCTIONS OF THE WESTMINSTER ABBEY Coronations Royal weddings Since 1100, there have been at least 16 royal weddings at Westminster Abbey. 29 April 2011: Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, grandson of Elizabeth II was married to Miss Catherine Middleton
- 10. Burials and memorials Since the Middle Ages, aristocrats were buried inside chapels and monks and people associated with the Abbey were buried in the Cloisters and other areas. Other poets, writers and musicians were buried or memorialised around Chaucer in what became known as Poets' Corner. The practice spread to include generals, admirals, politicians, doctors and scientists such as Isaac Newton, buried on 4 April 1727, and Charles Darwin, buried 19 April 1882. Just inside the great west door, in the centre of the nave, in the floor is the tomb of The Unknown Warrior, an unidentified British soldier killed on a European battlefield during the First World War. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, on 11 November 1920. There are many graves on the floors of the abbey but this is the only grave which is forbidden to step on.
- 11. Schools Westminster School and Westminster Abbey Choir School are also in the precincts of the Abbey. It was natural for the learned and literate monks to be entrusted with education, and Benedictine monks were required by the Pope to maintain a charity school in 1179.
- 12. Development plans In June 2009 the first major building work at the Abbey for 250 years was proposed. A corona—a crown-like architectural feature—was intended to be built around the lantern over the central crossing, replacing an existing pyramidal structure dating from the 1950s. This was part of a wider £23m development of the Abbey expected to be completed in 2013.