Westminster Abbey | Page 7

now one, now another, whatever
his nationality, is sure to be reminded by some grave or monument of
his own country, and we shall hope to awaken {22} the interest of all
alike. Before a start is made we would recall the memory of Dr.
Bradley, who made it one of his chief duties and pleasures to show
people round the church he loved so well, thus following a custom set
by Stanley, and continued by the present Dean and his colleagues.
Royal princes, distinguished foreigners, tourists from every part of the
world, working men and women, and his own friends, all were equally
welcome to Westminster Abbey. On every Saturday during the spring
and early summer the late Dean made fixed engagements to take parties
round, and on the Bank holidays was rarely absent from the Abbey, but
held himself ever ready to help the chance sightseer and show him
places which are not easily accessible to the public. His ground plans of
the church and its precincts were hung up in the Jerusalem Chamber on
the days when he expected parties, and here, before beginning their
round, he would tell his eager listeners something of the general history
of the foundation. After that the Dean used to lead the way into the
building itself, by the little door beneath the Abbot's Pew, and show
them all the most notable tombs and monuments. He now lies at rest
beneath the very stones which his feet so often passed over on {23}
these happy Saturday afternoons, close to the vault of an
eighteenth-century Dean, whose heart was broken by his banishment
from the Deanery, and of whom we shall have occasion to speak later.
* * * * * *

[Illustration: The Interior of the Nave, Looking East]
* * * *
THE INTERIOR OF THE NAVE, LOOKING EAST
Standing in the south-west corner of the nave, we get a view of the
interior of the church in its full extent as far as the east window. Behind
this we know, from our previous survey of the outside, is the Chapel of
Henry VII., and below, hidden from sight by the organ screen, is the
high altar, with the shrine of the founder, St. Edward the Confessor,
beyond. Formerly the rood was suspended from the nave roof between
us and the present wooden screen, which, although the stone below is
of fourteenth-century workmanship, is only about a hundred years or so
old. Just beyond the rood were also the Jesus altars, above and below,
but no trace of these nor of the wall or screen upon which they stood is
left. We see now only two large monuments on either side of the choir
screen, which, as we approach nearer, prove to be those of the great
philosopher, Sir Isaac Newton, and of a less renowned personality, Earl
Stanhope.
* * * * * *
Although practically impossible to stand at the west end and discourse
at any length on the history and architecture, it is well to get some idea
of the shape of the building and the period of each portion before we
start. On either side are the lower parts of the towers, behind us is the
great west window, finished, as we heard before, in the reign of King
Henry VII. The bells hang in the belfry, the south-west tower, and the
north-west tower is still called the baptistery, because baptisms used to
take place there. The font is now in Henry VII.'s Chapel. The glass of
the window over our heads dates only from George II.'s time; the two
smaller ones, left and right, are filled with fragments of ancient glass,
as is also the east window, which we see at the other end of the church.
The building itself is in the usual cruciform shape, and we stand now,
as it were, at the foot of the cross, the nave and ritual choir forming the
beam, the transepts the arms, and the apse, with its circle of small
chapels, the head. Behind the apse, we know from our previous survey,

{24} is the Chapel of Henry VII., which takes the place of the old Lady
Chapel. The nave is divided into twelve bays, intersected at the eighth
by the choir screen, upon which is placed the organ. At the twelfth bay,
where the nave properly so called ends, the ritual choir begins, and we
can see the sanctuary and high altar through the open gates. On either
side of the nave beyond the screen are the aisles, now included, as is all
this part at the present time, in the choir. Look first at the graceful
arcading of the triforium, then higher still from the clerestory windows
carry the eye to the roof, 100 feet above