Every visitor to London has heard of Westminster Abbey and most have visited that famous site of royal coronations and royal weddings. However, I bet there are few people who know that in addition to the abbey, there is another church possessing the "Westminster" moniker. It's name is Westminster Cathedral.
There are vast differences between the two churches. One is a historical icon dating back hundreds of years and filled with the tombs of kings, queens, poets and scholars. And, it is the seat of the Church of England. The other is a 20th century building and the mother church of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales.
The cathedral is tucked away from the street just a few blocks from Victoria Station.
It was completed in 1903 in a Neo Byzantine style made almost entirely of brick and stone. It's facade has a striped and checked appearance that is quite unusual for churches in England. Westminster Cathedral is also the largest catholic church in England and Wales.
The first time I saw this beautiful church, I thought it was a mosque. It has more of the Moorish look that is more prevalent in the architecture of mosques than it is in churches.
When I was last inside, there was a mass going on so I only got one quick photo of the inside. The architect, John Francis Bentley died before it was completed and he left very few details about the interior decor. The interior mosaics remain unfinished to this day. That certainly doesn't stop the huge crowds from gathering for Sunday services. As you can tell from this photo, it is well attended.
3 comments:
Exquisitely beautiful, and very different.
Unusual indeed for a Catholic church, we never went inside. Nice to see all the details here.
I was going to make a light comment about the rock song by the Beatles. But then I Googled a bit and was reminded that that one was "Winchester Cathedral" and it wasn't by the Beatles either. Oh well.
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