Since the year 1066, Westminster Abbey has been the site of coronations, 16 royal weddings, and countless funerals; 30 kings and queens are among the 3,300 buried there.
, according to its official website. This includes 30 kings and queens, eight British prime ministers, poets, actors, and even scientists like Sir Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin.
The church became known as the "west minster" to distinguish it from St Paul's Cathedral — or the east minster — in the city of London.When the new church was finally consecrated in 1065, the king was too ill to attend and died a few days later, according to the official history page. His remains are entombed in front of theA view of the Westminster Abbey, The High Altar on June 1, 2021 in London, England.
Henry declared that Westminster Abbey would be designed to be not only a great monastery and place of worship but also a place for the coronation and burial of monarchs. Much of the building seen today dates back to Henry’s reign, the website says. Various updates and renovations were made in the next several centuries, including when King Henry V died in 1422, a "lavishly sculptured chantry chapel" was built over the tomb, with two staircases leading to an altar above. More updates came in the 1500s until King Henry VII. The last phase of the Abbey’s construction was completed in 1745 involving the West Towers. 1953: Queen Elizabeth II at her coronation ceremony in Westminster Abbey, London.
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