St. Paul's Cathedral

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St Paul’s Cathedral St Paul’s Cathedral is one of many icons of London. It is the seat of the Bishop of London and is dedicated to the Paul the Apostle, like its four predecessors. The current building which stands on the site is buli in the English baroque style and still acts to this day as a church , not only a tourist attraction. The cathedral has more than 1400 years of history, beginning in 604, when work on the original cathedral was completed. The current building was designed by famous architect Sir Cristopher Wren, like much of historical London. It was consecrated in 1708, but all construction works finished in 1710 The dome reaches a height of 111 meter (366 ft) and weights about 66,000 ton. Eight arches support the dome. On top of the dome is a large lantern with a weight of 850 ton. The first gallery, the Whispering Gallery, just inside the dome, is renowned for its acoustics. The second gallery is the Stone Gallery and the third is the narrow Golden Gallery, encircling the lantern's base. The baroque interior is just as imposing as the exterior of the church. The mosaics on the ceiling were added in 1890 by William Richmond after Queen Victoria complained that there was not enough color in the cathedral. Several famous people are entombed in the cathedral's crypt. Most notable are the tomb of the Duke of Wellington - who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo - and the tomb of Admiral Nelson, who died at the Battle of Trafalgar. There is also a tomb of Christopher Wren himself and a number of important artists are buried here as well. Being the cathedral of the capital city, St Paul's is officially the spiritual home of Great Britain.All kinds of festivals and ceremonies are held there, for example the Parish Festival, National Service of Celebration for HM The Queen's 80th
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