Westminster Cathedral, the largest and most important Roman Catholic church in England, stands near the west end of Victoria St., from which it is approached via Ashley Place. This vast edifice, erected in 1895-1903, was designed by J. F. Bentley (died 1902) in an early-Christian Byzantine style, wisely evading comparison with the old Norman and Gothic English cathedrals, and the alternate narrow bands of red brick and grey stone of the exterior add to its exotic appearance. The church occupies an inconvenient site which detracts from its impressiveness; it is orientated from north-west to south-east. On the north side rises a lofty square campanile (284 feet high), leaning 6 feet out of the perpendicular. The (north west) facade is richly articulated in three receding stages. In the tympanum of the main entrance is a mosaic by R. A. Bell (1916): Christ, St. Peter, Edward the Confessor, Our Lady, and St. Joseph. Visitors enter by the side-door on the north (where tickets for the crypt, 6d, and the tower, 6d, are issued).
INTERIOR. The brick walls are still bare, but the vast size and beautiful proportions of the church are remarkably impressive, especially when viewed from the west end, from between the two great columns of red Norwegian granite (emblematic of the Precious Blood of Jesus, to which the cathedral is dedicated). When the decorative scheme is completed the walls and piers up to the height of about 30 feet will be covered with coloured marble, while the upper walls and the domes will be lined with mosaics of subjects illustrating the great mysteries of the Christian religion. Some idea of the effect aimed at may be obtained from those of the chapels that are already completed. The cathedral, consisting mainly of four great square bays with flat domes, is rectangular in ground-plan, with lateral chapels on each side and an apse at the east end. Its total length is 342 feet; the height of the main arches is 90 feet, while the domes are 112 feet above the floor. The nave, the widest in England (60 feet; or, including the aisles and the side-chapels, 149 feet), occupies the three west bays. Over the narrow aisles and at the west end are galleries supported by columns of coloured marble. The floor is of wood, except at the west end, where a marble pavement in Opus Alexandrinum has been laid down. The great rood hanging from the arch at the east end of the nave is 30 feet long; it bears painted figures of Christ and the Mater Dolorosa. The east bay contains the choir and sanctuary, 4+ feet higher than the nave; and in the apse is the still higher retro-choir, beneath which is the crypt. On the piers of the nave are white marble Stations of the Cross, carved in low relief by Eric Gill, which have been severely criticized and as enthusiastically defended.
We begin our survey of the CHAPELS with the Baptistery, at the west angle, in the corner to the right of the main entrance; it contains a large font of coloured marble. On the Saturday before Easter the archbishop blesses the baptismal water here with great ceremony. A marble screen divides this chapel from that of SS. Gregory and Augustine (given by Lord Brampton, better known as Mr. Justice Hawkins). Its mosaics refer to the conversion of England. The chapel of St. Patrick and the Saints of Ireland was dedicated in 1924 as a memorial to the Irishmen who fell in the War. Each Irish regiment has its own marble tablet and 'Liber Vitae.' Beyond this is the chapel dedicated to St. Andrew and the Saints of Scotland, in the decoration of which Scottish marbles and stone are largely employed. The following chapel is that of St. Paul. We now cross the south Transept to the Lady Chapel, which is situated on the south side of the Sanctuary, and is embellished with marble and mosaics. On the reredos is a mosaic of the Madonna and Child. At the east end of the outer aisle of this chapel is the sacristy, where visitors to the Crypt ring the electric bell to summon the sacristan. Passing through the Outer Sacristy, with its handsome vestment-press of Dutch ebony, we descend to the semicircular crypt, or Chapel of St. Peter, which is lined with marble. In the south wall are four relic chambers, in which are preserved a mitre of St. Thomas Becket, some fragments of the True Cross, and other relics. Against the east wall stands an ancient chair, formerly used as the archbishop's throne. Off the west side of the crypt opens the Shrine of St. Edmund, a small chapel situated directly beneath the High Altar of the Cathedral and containing an altar under which is preserved a relic of St. Edmund (displayed on November 16th). In this chapel are the tombs of Cardinal Wiseman (1802-65) and Cardinal Manning (1808-92), the first two Archbishops of Westminster, who were originally buried at Kensal Green. Count Alexandre de Benckendorff (1849-1917), the Russian ambassador, who died during the War, is the only other person buried in the crypt.
We now re-ascend to the church. The altar-table in the Sanctuary consists of a solid block of Cornish granite, 12 tons in weight. Above it rises a white marble baldacchino, with eight monolithic columns of yellow Verona marble on pedestals of verde antico. The metropolitan throne of the archbishop, on the left, is a reduced copy of the papal chair in St. John Lateran at Rome. On the north side the Sanctuary is adjoined by the sumptuous Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, corresponding in size and plan with the Lady Chapel, but enclosed on all sides by rich bronze screens. The curtains of the tabernacle hang from golden wedding-rings bequeathed by devout matrons. Immediately to the left of it is the small Chapel of the Sacred Heart, much used for private devotion. Opening off the north Transept is the chapel of St. Thomas of Canterbury, or Vaughan Chantry, in which is a recumbent statue of Cardinal Vaughan (died 1903; buried at Mill Hill), who was archbishop during the building of the cathedral. On the wall of the transept, farther to the west, is a mosaic of St. Joan of Arc. The chapels on the east side of the nave, as we return towards the exit, are those of St. Joseph, St. George, and the Holy Souls; only the last-named has its decorations complete. At the end of the north aisle is the access to the Tower (over 400 steps), which commands an extensive view of London. At the east end of the Cathedral is a group of buildings accommodating the Clergy House, the Archbishop's Residence, the Choir School, and the Cathedral Hall (used for concerts). The present Archbishop of Westminster is Cardinal Bourne. In Carlisle Place, to the west, is the house occupied by Cardinal Manning from 1873 till his death.
