GREAT Video for showing what it is like inside the ABBEY

DAY 1:  WESTMINSTER ABBEY
...so how old is it? Westminster Abbey is steeped in more than a thousand years of history. Benedictine monks first came to this site in the middle of the tenth century, establishing a tradition of daily worship which continues to this day.  The Abbey has been the coronation church since 1066  --that means it is where the Kings and Queens of England are crowned! and is the final resting place of seventeen monarchs. The present church, begun by Henry III in 1245, is one of the most important Gothic buildings in the country, with the medieval shrine of an Anglo-Saxon saint still at its heart.

A treasure house of paintings, stained glass, pavements, textiles and other artefacts, Westminster Abbey is also the place where some of the most significant people in the nation's history are buried or commemorated. Taken as a whole the tombs and memorials comprise the most significant single collection of monumental sculpture anywhere in the United Kingdom. Built in 1065!!! 

That makes it over 950 years old!!! The coronation of William the Conqueror was there!

DAY 2:  Architecture --the Abbey has been added to many times over the years resulting in many architectural elements --just look at the variety of ceilings in the Abbey:

The Lady's Chapel inside Westminster

The ceiling of the Chapter House in Westminster

Ceiling of the main Nave

DAY 3: The great pavement in front of the High Altar of Westminster Abbey is a unique and remarkable object. The complexity and subtlety of the design and workmanship can be seen nowhere else on this scale. It was laid down in 1268 by order of Henry III. The workmen came from Rome, with a man called Odoricus at their head. The pavement belongs to a type of inlaid stone decoration known as Cosmati work.  The Cosmati at Westminster is the most famous in the world!  

DAY 4: Many Kings and Queens have been buried at Westminster Abbey including Mary Queen of Scots --other famous people have been buried in Westminster as well! In fact, there are 450 tombs throughout the Abbey! However... perhaps the most noticeable and best known is the unknown warrior --it is much like our Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington.

DAY 5: Since 1308 nearly every monarch has been crowned on the famous Coronation Chair. But, up close, you will notice that it is covered in graffiti – the work of schoolboys and other visitors in the 1700s and 1800s.  For those who are curious --see if you can find out about the "stone" under the chair...