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Christopher Wren

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Christopher Wren by Godfrey Kneller, 1711.

Sir Christopher Wren, PRS (20 October 1632–25 February 1723) was an English scientist and architect of the 17th century, most famous for his role in the re-building of London's churches after the Great Fire of London of 1666.

Life and times

Wren is particularly known for his design for St Paul's Cathedral, one of very few cathedrals in England to have been built after the medieval period, and the only Renaissance cathedral in the country. He was inspired by the St Peter's in Rome for his design of St Paul's and although he was met with strong opposition about his design for the cathedral he managed to give London and England one of its finest buildings.

Born in 1632 in Wiltshire, Wren was the son of the Dean of Windsor, a Royal appointment which would cause privations to the family during the period of the Commonwealth (1649 - 1660). As a boy he met the young Prince Charles who would later become King and employ Wren as an architect. He was educated at Westminster School, (where Dr. Busby the headmaster discreetly harboured several sons of Royalists in difficulties) and Wadham College, Oxford and was then elected to All Souls. In 1657, he became professor of astronomy at Gresham College and four years later he became the Savilian Professor of astronomy at Oxford until his resignation in 1673. He was acknowleged as a brilliant scientist even by Newton, who was not inclined to praise others. Wren was also one of the founding members of the Royal Society, of which he was President from 1680 to 1682.

His first serious architectural venture was the Sheldonian Theatre, which can still be seen at Oxford, and he designed various other university buildings in both Oxford and Cambridge, including the chapels of Pembroke College and Emmanuel College, Cambridge.

After the Great Fire of London, he was selected as the architect of St Paul's, the previous building having been destroyed, and thereafter he devoted himself to architecture. The design and construction of the new cathedral took from 1675 to 1710, and in the interim Wren, together with his associates Robert Hooke and Nicholas Hawksmoor, designed many other buildings, including 51 London churches to replace 87 destroyed, many of which remain standing. These include St Bride's, St Mary le Bow, St Clement Danes, St Benet Paul's Wharf, and St Stephen Walbrook. In addition, he was involved in the design of the Monument to the Great Fire of London, Royal Greenwich Observatory, Chelsea Hospital, Greenwich Hospital, Marlborough House, the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, the Wren Library of Trinity College Cambridge, and many other distinguished buildings.

Christopher Wren was knighted in 1673 and served as a member of Parliament in 1685-1688 and 1702-1705.

Aubrey recorded that Wren was made a freemason in 1691, and it has long been suggested that he was Grand Master before the "revival" in 1717, but that is unproven.

Wren died in 1723 and was buried at St Paul's. An inscription inside the cathedral, dedicated to the architect, reads, "Lector, si monumentum requiris, circumspice" ("Reader, if you seek a memorial, look around you").

Major works attributed to Wren

Chapels

Churches

St Mary-le-Bow, built 1670-80, one of Wren's "City Churches" built after the Great Fire of London

Surviving

Destroyed

  • All Hallows the Great, Lombard Street, London
  • All Hallows, Bread Street, London
  • All Hallows, Lombard Street, London
  • Christ Church Newgate, Newgate Street, London
  • St Alban, Wood Street, London
  • St Anne's Church, Soho
  • St Antholin, Watling Street, London
  • St Augustine with St Faith, Watling Street, London
  • St Bartholomew-by-the-Exchange, Exchange, London
  • St Benet, Gracechurch Street, London
  • St Christopher-le-Stocks, Threadneedle Street, London
  • St Dionis Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, London
  • St George, Botolph Lane, London
  • St Mary Aldermanbury*, London
  • St Mary Magdalene, Old Fish Street, London
  • St Mary Somerset, Thames Street, London
  • St Matthew, Friday Street, London
  • St Michael Queenhithe, Upper Thames Street, London
  • St Michael, Crooked Lane, London
  • St Michael, Wood Street, London
  • St Mildred, Bread Street, London
  • St Mildred, Poultry, London
  • St Olave Old Jewry, London
  • St Stephen Coleman, Coleman Street, London
  • St Swithin London Stone, Cannon Street, London

College halls of residence

Court rooms

  • Court House, Windsor

Gateways & entrances

Government offices

  • The Custom House, London
  • The Navy Office, Seething Lane, London

Guard houses

Hospitals

Houses

  • Tring Manor House, Hertfordshire
  • Thoresby House, Nottinghamshire
  • Bridgewater Square Development, London
  • Winslow Hall, Buckinghamshire
  • Marlborough House, St James's, London

Libraries

Monuments

Observatories & scientific buildings

Palaces

Schools & colleges

Theatres

See also

  • On a Grander Scale: The Outstanding Career of Sir Christopher Wren (ISBN 0007107757 hardback, ISBN 0007107765 paperback)
  • His Invention So Fertile: A Life of Christopher Wren (ISBN 0195149890)
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