Having spent a full week now in Europe, both in Dublin and in London, and seeing all the sites each city has to offer, I can confidently say that Westminster Abbey has by far been the most captivating and interesting place I have seen to date. Standing in the shadow of Big Ben and the British Parliament building, a stunning architectural work and arguably London’s most recognizable landmark, at first Westminster Abbey did not catch my eye, or my attention. Walking in however, that changed almost immediately. Initially, I was awed by the huge ceilings and intricate effigies dotting the walls. Although stunned by the beauty of the Abbey, its significance in history dawned on me when our tour guide pointed out that William the Conquerer was crowned King of England in 1066. It struck me that one of the most recognizable names in medieval history not only walked the very same steps I was walking, but was crowned king nearly a thousand years before in the very same building.
As I continued my walk through the Abbey, I had no idea that William the Conquerer would just be one famous name among many. Seeing the graves and tombs of men who shaped not only England but all of mankind, Charles Darwin, Isaac Newton, Charles Dickens, Geoffrey Chaucer, to name a few, was a humbling experience. On top of that, seeing the incredibly detailed and intricate effigies of countless Kings and Queens of England, dating all the way back to King Henry III who died in 1272, and including Queens Elizabeth and Mary Queen of Scots to name just two, was something I will not soon forget.
Experiencing being in the same room as some of the most notable and famous men and women of the past thousand yeas was incredible in and of itself, but the Abbey’s architecture was something else to behold entirely. It isn’t hard to understand why the coronation of England’s monarchs has been held at Westminster, from William to Conquerer to the present Queen Elizabeth, coronated in 1952. Westminster has hosted many royal weddings as well, including the recent wedding of Prince William to Kate Middleton, probably the most famous wedding of recent memory. With its huge ceilings and incredible stained class, Westminster Abbey is absolutely one of the most beautiful buildings in the world.
Having been in London for almost a week, and seen all the landmark sites one of the oldest and greatest cities in the world has to offer, Westminster Abbey and the experience I had there has stuck with me, even as we leave for France. Not only is it one of the most beautiful buildings I have even been in, but the fact that it is the burial for hundreds of history’s most prominent and influential people, coupled with the fact that it is almost one thousand years old, makes it the highlight of my time in London. I can only hope the rest of our European experience offers what London has offered us.