Church Saint Paul's Cathedral stands on the summit of Ludgate Hill, on a site which was formerly used for pagan worship, and has been occupied by a church from early Saxon times. Old Saint Paul's, a vast Gothic building, was destroyed by The great fire of 1666 and only a few columns of the chapter house now remain to view. The present church, on the same site, the greatest and most conspicu ous architectural ornament of London, planned and carried out by Sir Christopher Wren, was begun in 1675 and completed in 1710. It is 510 feet in length from east to west, while the tran sept is 250 feet long, exclusive of the semi circular portico at each end; the breadth of the west front is 180 feet and the height of the walls 110 feet. The building is crowned with an immense dome, surmounted by a lantern with ball and cross, the height of the latter being 404 feet from the ground. It is built of Portland stone and cost f747,954, which was paid by levying a tax on coal. The interior has been decorated at great cost by voluntary means, ac cording to the original intentions of Wren. Among the monuments it contains are those of Wellington, Nelson, Sir Ralph Abercromby, Sir John Moore, Dr. Johnson, Howard, Sir Joshua li.eynolds and eminent men of more modern times. Near together, under the centre of the dome, lie interred Lord Nelson and the Duke of Wellington. Westminster Abbey, one of the finest specimens of. the Pointed style in Great Britain, dates from the reign of Henry III and Edward I, when it was erected on the site of the Saxon minster founded by Sebert. The beautiful chapel at the east end was added by Henry VII, and at the beginning of the 18th century the upper parts of the two towers at the west end were erected from designs of Sir Christopher Wren. It is 360 feet long and 195 feet wide within the walls. Here kings and queens have been crowned, from Edward the Confessor to George V, and here many of them are buried, some with and others without monu ments. In the south transept are the tombs and honorary monuments of great poets, from Chaucer down to Tennyson, whence it is called "Poets' Corner," and in other parts are numer ous sculptured monuments to statesmen, war riors, philosophers, divines, patriots and emi nent individuals generally, many of whom are interred within its walls. Of other sacred edifices in London the most remarkable are Saint Bartholomew's in West Smithfield, which consists of the chancel and lady-chapel only of the original church and contains some beauti ful specimens of Norman, Early English and later styles of architecture; Saint Saviour's in Southwark, now a cathedral, boasts of the best Early English architecture in London in its choir and lady-chapel, the principal portions of the old church which remain; Saint Giles', Cripplegate, a beautiful pre-Reformation church; Saint Stephen's, Walbrook, the inte rior of which is extremely fine and generally regarded as one of Wren's best works; and the Temple Church, which is one of the very few round churches now remaining in Eng land, and combines transition Norman archi tecture with Early English, the latter in the choir, which was founded in 1240. Besides these there are very few of the older• churches left, among the most interesting of which is Bow Church. Of the remainder, Wren's churches are very beautiful, and perhaps Saint Bride's in Fleet street and Saint Martin's-in the-Fields may also be specified. During the Georgian period hideous specimens of archi tecture were erected, and these still predominate. Among Roman Catholic churches in London are Saint George's Cathedral, in Southwark, finished in 1848, and the magnificent new cathe dral of Byzantine architecture at Westmin ster, with an imposing campanile 300 feet high. The largest arch over any known church doorway admits 10,000 worshippers to ample accommodation under a central dome 120 feet high. The plan dispenses with stained-glass windows — a wise arrangement in dark Lon don. Twenty-nine marble columns support aisles, galleries and arches of transepts, with bases of Norwegian granite and capitals of white Carrara elaborately carved. Many of the Non-Conformist churches' are handsome structures. Among the finest of them are the City Temple on the Viaduct, opened in 1874; Christ-church in Westminster Bridge road; the Apostolic (or Irvingite) Church in Gordon square; and the Tabernacle, Newington Butts; while the site of the former Royal Aquarium at Westminster is now occupied by a mammoth connectional building, built by the Wesleyan Methodists.
The Houses of consist of the House of Peers and the House of Com mons, with the connected apartments and offices, the whole practically forming one struc ture. It is a highly decorated structure in the Tudor Gothic style, after designs by Sir Charles Barry. It stands on the left bank of the Thames, between the river and Westminster Abbey, and extends over an area of about eight acres. The facade which overlooks the river is
900 feet in length. The walls are of brick, faced externally with magnesian limestone, and the whole edifice is separated from the river by a terrace of Aberdeen granite. It is paneled with rich tracery, and profusely decorated with statues and shields of arms of the kings and queens of England from the Conquest to the present time. In the southwest angle is the Victoria Tower, supported on four pointed arches 60 feet in height; it is 75 feet square and 340 feet in height. There is also a tower in the centre, 300 feet high by 60 feet, surmounted by a lantern; and the clock tower, at the north end of the edifice, with its richly decorated spire, rises 320 feet. The House of Peers is an apart ment 97 feet long, 54 feet wide and 45 feet high; magnificently decorated throughout with carved oak paneling, a profusion of gilding, paintings in fresco and richly stained glass win dows. The House of Commons is a somewhat smaller apartment, fitted up in a much plainer style. Paintings in fresco and the water-glass medium and statues of great statesmen have been added to the internal decorations; and a statue of the architect has been placed on the staircase leading up to the committee rooms. Westminster Hall, the most magnificent hall in the kingdom, 290 feet long, was built by Wil liam Rufus and improved by Richard II. The hall is not now used except as a members' en trance to the House of Commons.
Saint James', erected by Henry VIII, from a design by Holbein, at the foot of Saint James' street, is an irregular and pictur esque brick building. It is well adapted in ternally for royal levees and drawing-rooms, which are held here during the fashionable season. Buckingham Palace, facing the west end of Saint James' Park, was built by George IV, and consists, since the erection of the east front, of a quadrangular range of buildings. In the gallery, which is 160 feet long, are some good pictures. The king resides here oc casionally in the spring and summer. White hall — the Banqueting House — designed by Inigo Jones in the Paladian style, is the only remnant of the ancient palace of Whitehall; the ceiling, painted by Rubens, is the most ex tensive work of that artist existing in the coun try. Kensington Palace, in Kensington Gar dens, is a brick building of the Jacobean period, and was thrown open to the public by Queen Victoria shortly before her death. It was the birthplace of her majesty. Lambeth Palace on the Surrey side of the river, opposite the Houses of Parliament. has been for many centuries the residence of the archbishops of Canterbury. It is a brick edifice, and comprises a great variety of styles in architecture, from Early English downward, and contains a magnificent library. Fulham Palace, the residence of the bishops of London, is a building of no archi tectural pretension. It is pleasantly situated on the Thames, and at one time had extensive and well-timbered grounds: Greenwich Palace, once the home of the Tudor and Stuart sover eigns, is a stone building of considerable beauty, now used as a training school for the navy. Eltham Palace, once a residence of Henry VIII, is now a picturesque and well-preserved ruin.
Government These are mostly situated in and near Whitehall. The Treasury, Home Office and Education Department occupy one range of buildings, which have been im proved by a uniform and handsome façade. The India Office and the Local Government Board face Saint James' Park. The Horse Guards, which are somewhat nearer Charing Cross, have little to admire in their external appearance, hut opposite, and next to the ban quet hall of the old Whitehall Palace, from the window of which Charles I stepped to his execution, rises the New War Office, and farther on the New Admiralty Office. An ex tensive pile of government offices, for the Foreign Office and the Colonial Office, has been erected in Downing street. The style is Italian, and the building exhibits a large amount of decorative detail, part of it in red and other colored marbles and granites. Some of the public offices are in Somerset House, once a royal palace of Charles II. It has a spacious and handsome quadrangle, finished in 1782, from designs by Sir W. Chambers: its north facade, 200 feet in leneth. faces the Strand: and its south front, 800 feet It•nct, overlooks the river. The post office, near Saint Paul's, is a spacious and handsome building. It is 390 feet long, 130 feet wide and 64 feet Its façade, which is toward Saint Martin's-le Grand, has three Ionic porticoes. A supple mental building for telegraph and other busi ness occupies the opposite side of Saint Mar tin's-le-Grand. The mint, a stone building of the ordinary Georgian architecture, finished in 1810, stands on Tower Hill, and occupies about 10,000 square yards. The royal arsenal and dockyard for military stores is at Woolwich.