Westminster Abbey - London, England
Posted by: 
hykesj
N 51° 29.959 W 000° 07.594
30U E 699437 N 5709268
1966 postage stamp from Great Britain celebrating the 900th anniversary of Westminster Abbey in London.
Waymark Code: WM1586Q
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 11/05/2021
Views: 7
During the reign of King Edward the Confessor (1042-1066) St. Peter’s Abbey was rebuilt, ostensibly to provide the king with a burial site. The Romanesque building was completed just in time for the king’s death which occurred on January 5, 1066. Later that same year, William the Conqueror was crowned king in the new abbey, the first documented coronation to take place there. Thus began a tradition of coronations and royal burials at the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, as it is officially known today. In 1966, the Royal Mail issued a set of postage stamps to celebrate the world-famous church’s 900th anniversary.
The current building was constructed in stages beginning in 1245 and lasting several hundred years. One notable addition was made by Henry VII beginning in 1503 and is known as the Henry VII Chapel or the Lady Chapel. It features a highly ornate fan vaulted ceiling and houses the tombs of Henry VII, Elizabeth I, Mary Queen of Scots and James I among others. The pendant fan vaulting is a gothic architectural feature that’s unique to England and is the subject of the beautifully line-engraved stamp.
Over the centuries, Westminster Abbey has seen the coronation of nearly every English monarch and well over a dozen royal weddings. And besides the numerous royal burials, it is the final resting place of many other notables such as Oliver Cromwell, Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin.
Stamp Issuing Country: Great Britain
Date of Issue: 28-Feb-1966
Denomination: 2s6d
Color: black
Stamp Type: Single Stamp
Relevant Web Site: [Web Link]
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