"familiar with the unique octagonal lantern tower over the crossing of Ely Cathedral, which spans the aisles as well as the central nave, unlike the central towers and domes of most churches. Wren adapted this characteristic in designing the dome of St Paul's. In section St Paul's also maintains a medieval form, having the aisles much lower than the nave, and a defined clerestory. The most notable exterior feature is the dome, which rises to the cross at its summit, and dominates views of the City. The height of 365 feet is explained by Wren's interest in astronomy. Until the"
"western tower, and in that case, it was framed by two lower lateral towers, one of which has since fallen down. Ely, alone among England’s cathedrals, has a central feature over the crossing that somewhat resembles the polygonal vaulted lantern towers of Spain. This elaborate lantern-like structure known as “The Octagon” spans both the nave and aisles, and is thus said to have inspired Christopher Wren’s design for the dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral. Its upper parts are supported by hidden wooden hammer-beams, an architectural device unique to English Gothic. The facades of English cathedrals show a considerable diversity, rather"
"Tom Tower Tom Tower is a bell tower in Oxford, England, named for its bell, Great Tom. It is over Tom Gate, on St Aldates, the main entrance of Christ Church, Oxford, which leads into Tom Quad. This square tower with an octagonal lantern and facetted ogee dome was designed by Christopher Wren and built 1681–82. The strength of Oxford architectural tradition and Christ Church's connection to its founder, Henry VIII, motivated the decision to complete the gatehouse structure, left unfinished by Cardinal Wolsey at the date of his fall from power in 1529, and which had remained roofless since."
"Exeter Cathedral Exeter Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city of Exeter, Devon, in South West England. The present building was complete by about 1400, and has several notable features, including an early set of misericords, an astronomical clock and the longest uninterrupted vaulted ceiling in England. The founding of the cathedral at Exeter, dedicated to Saint Peter, dates from 1050, when the seat of the bishop of Devon and Cornwall was transferred from Crediton because of a fear of"
"the present building dating between 1090 and 1536, Ely Cathedral has a significant Norman nave and Decorated Gothic choir, but its most important features are its unique western tower of 1174 and central octagon of 1322, which Clifton-Taylor describes as “one of the wonders of English cathedral architecture”. It also has a unique, very large, free-standing Lady Chapel with a very wide vault and intricately carved stone arcades around the sedilia. Dating from 1112 to 1519, Exeter Cathedral is the major example of a cathedral built mainly in the later Decorated Gothic style of the 14th century. It has an"
"their nests on the cathedral's tower. Salisbury Cathedral Salisbury Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, England, and one of the leading examples of Early English architecture. The main body of the cathedral was completed in 38 years, from 1220 to 1258. Since 1549, the cathedral has had the tallest church spire in the United Kingdom, at . Visitors can take the ""Tower Tour"" where the interior of the hollow spire, with its ancient wooden scaffolding, can be viewed. The cathedral also has the largest cloister and the largest"
"the new instrument. Exeter Cathedral Exeter Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city of Exeter, Devon, in South West England. The present building was complete by about 1400, and has several notable features, including an early set of misericords, an astronomical clock and the longest uninterrupted vaulted ceiling in England. The founding of the cathedral at Exeter, dedicated to Saint Peter, dates from 1050, when the seat of the bishop of Devon and Cornwall was transferred from Crediton because of"
"Cathedral, although octagonal shrines have a long history in Christian architecture. Similarly, the choir shows English influence, and appears to have been modeled after the Angel Choir of Lincoln Cathedral. It is joined to the octagon by a stone screen that fills the entire east side of the choir. The principal arch of this screen is subdivided into three subsidiary arches: the central arch frames a statue of Christ the Teacher, standing on the top of a central arch of three subsidiary arches below him. The space above the principal arch, corresponding to the vault of the choir, contains a"
"St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral, London, is an Anglican cathedral, the seat of the Bishop of London and the mother church of the Diocese of London. It sits on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grade I listed building. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. The present cathedral, dating from the late 17th century, was designed in the English Baroque style by Sir Christopher Wren. Its construction, completed in Wren's lifetime, was part of a major rebuilding programme"
"Salisbury Cathedral Salisbury Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, England, and one of the leading examples of Early English architecture. The main body of the cathedral was completed in 38 years, from 1220 to 1258. Since 1549, the cathedral has had the tallest church spire in the United Kingdom, at . Visitors can take the ""Tower Tour"" where the interior of the hollow spire, with its ancient wooden scaffolding, can be viewed. The cathedral also has the largest cloister and the largest cathedral close in Britain at ."
"Lincoln Cathedral Lincoln Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln and sometimes St Mary's Cathedral, in Lincoln, England, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Lincoln. Construction commenced in 1072 and continued in several phases throughout the medieval period. It was the tallest building in the world for 238 years (1311–1548), and the first building to hold that title after the Great Pyramid of Giza. The central spire collapsed in 1548 and was not rebuilt. The cathedral is the third largest in Britain (in floor area) at around , after St Paul's and York"
"Three-spired cathedrals in the United Kingdom There are only three cathedrals in the United Kingdom with three spires. Lichfield Cathedral, dating from the 13th and early 14th centuries is the only medieval cathedral. Between the 14th and 16th centuries Lincoln Cathedral also had three spires and was the tallest building in the world for 238 years until the central spire collapsed in 1549 and was not rebuilt. Both Truro Cathedral, Cornwall (late 19th–early 20th century) and St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral, Edinburgh (late 19th century) were built in the Gothic Revival style and also have three spires. Lichfield Cathedral is situated"
"Tower of the Winds (Oxford) The Tower of the Winds is the prominent octagonal tower on top of the old Radcliffe Observatory building in Oxford, England. The building now forms a centrepiece for Green Templeton College, one of the colleges of Oxford University. The tower is based on the ancient and smaller Tower of the Winds in Athens, Greece, built c.100–50BC by Andronicus of Cyrrhus for the purpose of measuring time. It is of octagonal stone construction, with eight relief images of Greek mythological wind gods at the top of each side of the tower, carved by John Bacon the"
"the tallest cathedral tower in France is Rouen Cathedral, and Cologne Cathedral (151.0 meters or 495 feet) is the tallest cathedral in Europe. The Gothic Old St Paul's Cathedral (1087–1314) had been the tallest cathedral in England until it was destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666. Today the tallest combined Gothic tower and spire in the UK belongs to Salisbury Cathedral, (123 meters or 404 feet), built 1220–1258. In Italy, the tower, if present, is almost always detached from the building, as at Florence Cathedral, and is often from an earlier structure. In France and Spain, two"
"Peterborough Cathedral Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Andrew, whose statues look down from the three high gables of the famous West Front. Although it was founded in the Anglo-Saxon period, its architecture is mainly Norman, following a rebuilding in the 12th century. With Durham and Ely Cathedrals, it is one of the most important 12th-century buildings in England to have remained largely"
"Peterborough Cathedral Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Andrew, whose statues look down from the three high gables of the famous West Front. Although it was founded in the Anglo-Saxon period, its architecture is mainly Norman, following a rebuilding in the 12th century. With Durham and Ely Cathedrals, it is one of the most important 12th-century buildings in England to have remained largely"
"Worcester Cathedral Worcester Cathedral, is an Anglican cathedral in Worcester, England, situated on a bank overlooking the River Severn. It is the seat of the Bishop of Worcester. Its official name is the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Mary the Virgin of Worcester. The present cathedral church was built between 1084 and 1504, and represents every style of English architecture from Norman to Perpendicular Gothic. It is famous for its Norman crypt and unique chapter house, its unusual Transitional Gothic bays, its fine woodwork and its ""exquisite"" central tower, which is of particularly fine proportions. The cathedral's west"
"the spire, and was probably more beautiful both inside and out than that of any other English cathedral."" According to the architectural historian John Harvey, the octagonal chapter house, built about 1332 by William Ramsey, was the earliest example of Perpendicular Gothic. This is confirmed by Alec Clifton-Taylor, who notes that the chapter house and St Stephen's chapel at Westminster Abbey predate the early Perpendicular work at Gloucester Cathedral by several years. The foundations of the chapter house were recently made visible in the redeveloped south churchyard of the new cathedral. The finished cathedral of the Middle Ages was renowned"
"Ilminster, but both of these were closed in the 1960s. The Church of England Church of St Peter and St Paul has Saxon origins. It retains a 13th-century crosswing, with the remainder of the buildings dating from the 15th century, however it underwent major restorations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It has been designated by English Heritage as a grade I listed building. The tower is an irregular octagon on plan, wider on east-west axis, which is believed to be the tallest octagonal church tower in the UK. It houses a ring of twelve bells. The Coke"
"Worcester Cathedral represents every medieval style from Norman to Perpendicular. It is famous for its Norman crypt, and for its circular chapter house, which became the model from which derives the series of uniquely British polygonal chapter houses. Also notable are a series of unusual Transitional Gothic bays, fine woodwork and the central tower, which, though not large, is nevertheless of particularly fine proportions. Built between 1154 and 1500, York Minster is one of the biggest Gothic churches in the world. Without having the elevated positions of Durham or Lincoln it dominates the city skyline from all angles, and its"
"early English cathedral. It is a cruciform building, with an apse, central tower and narthex, built throughout of Purbeck stone. Its tower dominates the landscape. The tower, which is somewhat disproportionate in size to the rest of the church, was made large enough to contain a full peal of eight bells, which were cast and installed by John Taylor & Co., of Loughborough, in 1880. Inside the clustered pillars and other details are made of Purbeck marble, quarried from Lord Eldon’s estate and worked by his own craftsmen. It did not replace the existing church immediately and in effect for"
"tower in 1711. Elgin Cathedral is unique in Scotland in having an English style octagonal chapterhouse and French-influenced double aisles along each side of the nave; in England, only Chichester Cathedral has similar aisles. The chapterhouse, which had been attached to the choir through a short vaulted vestry, required substantial modifications and was now provided with a vaulted roof supported by a single pillar (Figs. 13 & 14). The chapterhouse measures high at its apex and from wall to opposite wall; it was substantially rebuilt by Bishop Andrew Stewart (1482–1501), whose coat of arms is placed on the central pillar."
"is the tallest in England and is visible for many miles as it rises in spectacular fashion from a high hill. The decagonal Chapter House with its huge flying buttresses is the first polygonal chapter house in England. Of the interior, the finest part is considered to be the late-13th-century “Angel Choir” with “gorgeous layers of tracery” and enriched with carved angels. The transepts have two rose windows, the “Dean’s Eye” on the north dating from c. 1200 and retaining its original glass, while the Flowing Decorated “Bishop’s Eye” on the south is filled with salvaged medieval fragments. Manchester Cathedral"
"(after St John's) with an endowment of £501m . Christ Church has a number of architecturally significant buildings including Tom Tower (designed by Sir Christopher Wren), Tom Quad (the largest quadrangle in Oxford), and the Great Dining Hall which was also the seat of the parliament assembled by King Charles I during the English Civil War. The buildings have inspired replicas throughout the world in addition to being featured in movies such as ""Harry Potter"" and ""The Golden Compass"". This has helped Christ Church become the most popular Oxford college for tourists with almost half a million visitors annually. Christ"
"Lincoln Cathedral, Salisbury Cathedral, Truro Cathedral and Glasgow Metropolitan Cathedral, but there are many more including those at the cathedrals in Aberdeen (St Machar's Cathedral), Calcutta, Canterbury, Carlisle, Coventry (destroyed in the WW II bombing of the original Cathedral), Durham, Edinburgh (St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral), Exeter, Glasgow Cathedral (the High Kirk of Glasgow), Gloucester, Hereford, St Davids (Pembrokeshire, Wales), Wells and Winchester, as well as examples at St George's church, Gateshead, St Peter's, Brighton, St Mary's Church, Southampton, Giggleswick School, St Mary's church, Bideford, Felsted School and the Old High Church in Inverness. St Michael and all Angels, Croydon boasts"
"church tower in England. Rogers also based some details on the 16th-century tower of St Giles church in Wrexham, Wales, where Elihu Yale is buried. In turn, Harkness Tower has been identified as the direct influence for the tower of the Cathedral of Christ the King in Hamilton, Ontario. The tower's image was adopted by the ""Yale Herald"", a weekly student newspaper, for its masthead. Harkness Tower is 216 feet (66 m) tall, one foot for each year since Yale's founding at the time it was built. From a square base, it rises in stages to a double stone crown"
"number of octagonal churches in Norway. The central space in the Aachen Cathedral, the Carolingian Palatine Chapel, has a regular octagonal floorplan. Uses of octagons in churches also include lesser design elements, such as the octagonal apse of Nidaros Cathedral. Architects such as John Andrews have used octagonal floor layouts in buildings for functionally separating office areas from building services, notably the Intelsat Headquarters in Washington D.C., Callam Offices in Canberra, and Octagon Offices in Parramatta, Australia. The ""octagon"", as a truncated square, is first in a sequence of truncated hypercubes: As an expanded square, it is also first in"
"vault in England is at Westminster Abbey at , that at York Minster being of the same height but despite its appearance, not actually of stone, but wood. The majority of English cathedrals have vaults ranging in height from . These contrast with cathedrals such as Beauvais, Amiens and Cologne with internal heights of over . An important feature of English cathedrals, uncommon elsewhere except in Normandy, is the large and often elaborate square central tower over the crossing. The larger of these towers range from at Wells to at Lincoln. The central tower may exist as a single feature"
"Birmingham Orthodox Cathedral The Cathedral Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God and St. Andrew, (in Greek: ""Καθεδρικός Ναός της Κοιμήσεως της Θεοτόκου και Αποστόλου Ανδρέα"") is a Greek Orthodox cathedral on Summer Hill Terrace in Birmingham, England, dedicated to the Dormition of the Theotokos and St Andreas. In 1958 the first Greek Orthodox Church in Birmingham was inaugurated. Regular liturgies began in Birmingham conducted by the first permanent priest, Father Nicodemos Anagnostou. The building was formerly a Catholic Apostolic church. It was designed in 1873 by J.A. Chatwin, who worked on many of Birmingham's churches, including St"
"Winchester Cathedral Winchester Cathedral is a cathedral of the Church of England in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It is one of the largest cathedrals in Europe, with the longest nave and greatest overall length of any Gothic cathedral in Europe. Dedicated to the Holy Trinity, Saint Peter, Saint Paul, and before the Reformation, Saint Swithun, it is the seat of the Bishop of Winchester and centre of the Diocese of Winchester. The cathedral is a Grade I listed building. The cathedral was founded in 642 on a site immediately to the north of the present one. This building became known as"
"Octagon Chapel, Norwich The Octagon Chapel is a Unitarian Chapel located in Colegate in Norwich, Norfolk, England. It is home to a growing liberal religious community, welcoming people of all religious faiths and none. The congregation is a member of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches. The chapel is a grade II* listed building. Completed in 1756 by the architect Thomas Ivory, it is perfectly octagonal, an example of English Neo-Palladian architecture. Originally built as a Presbyterian Chapel, the building now serves the Unitarian Community. Theophilus Browne was appointed minister here in 1809, but was paid to"
"place of Anglican worship and became St George's Cathedral. With St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate in the City of London it is one of two Antiochan churches in London. A new roof was built in 2000. St George's Cathedral, London St George's Cathedral is an Antiochian Orthodox church in Albany Street, St Pancras, in the London Borough of Camden. Built to the designs of James Pennethorne, it was consecrated as an Anglican place of worship called Christ Church in 1837. It became an Orthodox cathedral in 1989. The building, designed by James Pennethorne, stands on the corner of Redhill Street (formerly Edward Street)"
"Octagon Chapel, Bath The Octagon Chapel in Milsom Street, Bath, Somerset, England was built in 1767 and has been designated as a Grade II* listed building. The building was designed as a church by the architect Timothy Lightholder or Lightoler, whose specific brief was to produce a structure which would be warm, comfortable and well lit. The Octagon fulfilled all of these requirements, and it became a fashionable church. Eminent and distinguished visitors, including Jane Austen, made a point of engaging a pew for as long as they stayed in the city, hiring it at the same time as they"