Christopher Wren. St. Paul's Cathedral. Encyclopedia What Sir Christopher Wren built in London
Even before the establishment of the Royal Society of London, while at Oxford, Christopher Wren became an active member of the research group Robert Boyle(Robert Boyle, 1627-1691), which also included Thomas Willis(Thomas Willis, 1621-1675); William Petty(William Petty, 1623-1687); Richard Lover(R.Lower, 1631-1691); John Locke(John Locke, 1632-1704); John Mayow(John Mayow, 1643-1679); Robert Hooke(Robert Hooke, 1635-1703), and others.
This group of like-minded people, known in works on the history of medicine as the “Oxford group,” carried out a huge number of interesting anatomical and surgical experiments. For example, in some of the group’s research protocols that have survived to this day, it is of interest to describe the removal of the spleen from a dog that survived afterward.
The participants of the “Oxford group” enthusiastically greeted Harvey’s teachings, and in their experiments they sought to further develop the theory of blood circulation. The main object of their research since 1656 was blood.
The main ideological inspirer of the “Oxford group” and the scientific director of the research, Robert Boyle, sought to coordinate these studies, highlighting anatomical, physiological and chemical priorities in them.
The world's first documented intravenous infusions, performed by Christopher Wren. Around 1656, K. Ren began conducting experiments on intravenous administration of tinctures of opium, beer, wine, ale, milk, etc. K. Ren used a bird feather as an injection needle, and instead of a syringe, fish and animal bladders, because there were still two whole centuries left before the invention of the hollow injection needle and syringe. The results of these studies were published in 1665 in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Thus, the famous English architect Christopher Wren can be considered one of the founders of modern infusion therapy and intravenous anesthesia.
The activities of the scientific society "Invisible College", London and Oxford groups of like-minded scientists became the foundation for the creation in 1660 of a larger scientific society uniting all the most influential scientists in England.
November 28, 1660 Gresham College Robert Hooke(Robert Hooke, 1635-1703).
Charles II with the right to annual funding from the Royal Treasury.
The first president of the society from 1662 to 1677 was William Viscount Bronker(William Viscount Browner).
The motto of this prestigious scientific organization is "Nullius in Verba"(“Nothing in words”) emphasizes how seriously the creators of society took the role of experiment in science. The Royal Society of London still exists today, being the oldest of all active scientific societies in the world. London. St. Paul's Cathedral. BIOGRAPHY OF CHRISTOPHER RAN. RAN, CHRISTOPHER(Wren, Christopher, 1632-1723), the greatest English architect and mathematician, author of the project for the new Cathedral of St. Paul's in London and many other churches. Born on October 20, 1632 in the town of East Knoyle, Wiltshire.
His father, also Christopher Wren, was a very educated man. He was educated at St. John's College, Oxford, and devoted himself to serving the church. In 1620 he became parish priest at Fonthill, Wiltshire, and in 1623 he received the parish of East Knoyle. His wife, Mary Cox, was the sole heir of the wealthy Fonthill landowner Robert Cox, which subsequently significantly affected the material well-being of the Wren family. Christopher and Mary Wren's first three daughters, born before 1628, died just weeks after birth. In 1630, a daughter, Elizabeth, was born, and on October 20, 1632, Christopher Wren Jr. was born.
Christopher Wren's mother died very early, and he was raised by his father and older sister Elizabeth, who, according to Christopher, replaced his mother. Since childhood, he did not have very good health, he was short in stature, but he amazed everyone around him with his abilities in science. Christopher himself taught himself to draw well, which was useful to him later when he began to study architecture.
In 1635, his father, thanks to the patronage of his brother Matthew Wren, received the position of rector of the royal cathedral in Windsor, and the Wren family moved closer to the royal court.
One of Christopher Wren's childhood friends was the son of King Charles I, the Prince of Wales, and they often played together. It was in the intellectual environment of the royal court of Charles I that Christopher Wren was able to demonstrate and develop his mathematical abilities. From early childhood he received a good education, thanks to private lessons from good teachers hired by his father. However, at the age of nine, he was sent by his father to Westminster School in London, which was distinguished by the strictest discipline and high quality of education, which subsequently ensured a successful career for many of the school's students. At school, Christopher Wren quickly stood out among the students due to his passion for learning and great abilities. For example, Christopher learned Latin very easily, as evidenced by his letters to his father in Latin, which have survived to this day. But he paid especially much attention to the study of astronomy.
The Ren family was in favor at the royal court, and all members of this family were loyal royalists. However, this circumstance created great difficulties for the family when civil war broke out between the king and parliament. Matthew Wren was imprisoned in the Tower of London for eighteen years. Christopher's father was forced to flee to Bristol. When Christopher was 11 years old, his sister got married. Her husband, mathematician William Holder, did much to further Christopher's education and development. He began teaching Christopher mathematics and encouraged his interest in astronomy.
In 1646, Christopher Wren left Westminster School, but did not immediately enter the university, and for three years he was intensively engaged in self-education. In the same year, he conducted experiments with a sundial and also made a cardboard model of the solar system, which demonstrated his professional astronomical knowledge and skills. In 1647, Christopher Wren met the physiologist Charles Scarburgh, with whom he subsequently studied anatomy a lot. Since Dr. Charles Scarburgh lectured students on anatomy, Christopher Wren made cardboard models for him to demonstrate how muscles worked. It is believed that Christopher Wren experienced serious health problems during these years, which explains his three-year collaboration with Charles Scarburg, who was involved in his treatment.
In 1649, K. Ren entered the Wadham College(Wadham College) in Oxford, graduating in 1651 with a bachelor's degree. Two years later he received his master's degree. In the same year, 1653, he became a college teacher. "All Souls College" in Oxford (All Souls. Full name - College of All Souls Righteously Deceased in Oxford). Thanks to this appointment, Christopher Wren received unique opportunities for his further scientific research.
During these years, K. Ren performed many experiments, his scientific interests were almost limitless. He invents instruments for measuring angles; optical instruments; instruments for marine navigation; water lift; devices for defending city walls from attacking enemies, etc.
He is actively involved in the Oxford Group research coordinated by Robert Boyle(Robert Boyle, 1627-1691), as evidenced by the world's first documented intravenous infusions performed by Christopher Wren (experiments on intravenous administration of tincture of opium, beer, wine, ale, milk, etc.). K.Ran used a bird feather as an injection needle, and fish and animal bubbles instead of a syringe. The results of these studies were published in 1665 in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. At the same time, he began working on drawings for the famous book Thomas Willis(Thomas Willis, 1621-1675) "Brain Anatomy"(the full title of the book in Latin is Cerebri anatome: cui accessit nervorum descriptio et usus), published in 1664. It was in this book that the vascular complex at the base of the brain was first described in detail, now known in our time as the “arterial circle of Willis,” which is an anastomosis of two powerful vascular systems - the internal carotid and vertebral arteries supplying blood to the brain . Many people erroneously attribute the description of this formation to the never-existing anatomist Willis, when in fact it is due to the English spelling of Willis's surname.
Thomas Willis Cerebri anatome(1664).
In 1657 Christopher Wren became professor of astronomy at the college Gresham College in London. As for astronomy, here too K. Ren proved himself to be a deeply erudite and knowledgeable scientist, although he was not always lucky in this field, and he “didn’t have enough stars from the sky” in terms of major scientific discoveries. So, for example, in my work De corpore saturni
he tried to summarize his observations of Saturn since 1652, and even developed his own hypothesis for the appearance of the planet and its famous rings. But just before the publication of Ren's book, the famous astronomer Huygens presented his brilliant hypothesis of the rings of Saturn. C. Ren immediately reacted to this event and admitted that Huygens' theory was better than his own. Therefore, K. Ren's first book De corpore saturni
was never published.
At this time, both Christopher Wren and his close acquaintances at Oxford and Cambridge, including Isaac Newton, tried to create a theory of the harmonic structure of the universe, as well as to clearly demonstrate how the mechanism of motion of the celestial spheres works. Since childhood, Ren was fond of creating not architectural, but “cosmic” models - his lunar globe with a relief image of depressions and hills, extremely elegantly executed, as well as an “automatic machine” demonstrating the movement of the rings of Saturn, attracted the attention of noble amateurs, and later the king, to him . Charles II undoubtedly thought that architecture was simpler than astronomy. He believed that anyone who could build a model of the movement of celestial bodies would be good at constructing buildings. Assessing the abilities of Christopher Wren, the king was right, although this happened to him quite rarely.
In the 1650s, Christopher Wren also remembered his childhood fascination with sundials and created a unique sundial, which he mounted on the wall of the house church of All Souls College, which closes the discreetly Gothic forecourt created in the 15th century. They seemed to fit perfectly among the pointed arches, slender buttresses and prickly phials.
Christopher Wren took an active part in the founding of the Royal Society of London. By 1660 the activities of the scientific society "Invisible College" London and Oxford groups of like-minded scientists gradually became the foundation for the creation of a larger scientific society, uniting all the most influential scientists in England. At first, Christopher Wren initiated almost weekly meetings of scientists to discuss various scientific problems at Gresham College. This was largely facilitated by his interesting lectures, which he specially prepared for such meetings and discussions.
The official date of the creation of a new company is considered November 28, 1660 when 12 scientists from the scientific communities mentioned above gathered in Gresham College(London) listen to another lecture by Christopher Wren. Among them were Robert Boyle, John Wilkins, Robert Moray, William Viscount Brounker and others. After the end of the lecture, inspired scientists decided to create a scientific society “College for the Promoting of Physico-Mathematical Experimentall Learning”. Was elected curator of scientific research Robert Hooke(Robert Hooke, 1635-1703). By the way, it was K. Ren who was the author of the company’s charter. Between 1680 and 1682 he was elected to the position of president of the society.
In 1662 this society was by decree of King Charles II ( Charles II), a great lover of chemistry and other sciences, was transformed into Royal Society of London(“The Royal Society of London for the Promotion of Natural Knowledge”) with the right to annual funding from the Royal Treasury. 
The first president of the society from 1662 to 1677 was elected William Viscount Bronker(William Viscount Brouncker, 1620-1684). The motto of this prestigious scientific organization is "Nullius in Verba"(“Nothing in words”) emphasizes how seriously the creators of society took the role of experiment in science. The Royal Society of London still exists today, being the oldest of all active scientific societies in the world.
After Cromwell's death, Gresham College was temporarily occupied by the military, and so Christopher Wren had to return to Oxford, where in 1661 he became professor of astronomy at the university. Despite such an impressive list of achievements, Christopher Wren, by the age of thirty, had not yet decided on a priority direction in life.
The architectural architecture of Christopher Wren.
Probably one of the reasons for Christopher Wren to turn his attention to architecture was the almost complete absence of an architectural school in England at that time. Great Architect Inigo Jones died in the early 1650s. A couple of dozen capable builders could be found in England, but they were not ready to work within the framework of the Royal Society. It was in this area that Ren decided to prove himself, to become the best.
It is also possible that if the execution of King Charles I had not taken place, Christopher Wren would not have become an architect, but would have inherited the position of rector of the royal cathedral in Windsor, which was occupied by his uncle and father, and perhaps would have become a bishop. The revolution, which ended court privileges, forced him to become a scientist. But subsequently, the restoration of the monarchy allowed him to receive a very advantageous position as Supervisor of the Royal Works. There was no longer enough time for a church career, and his inclination towards architecture manifested itself while still at Oxford, although Ren did not receive the slightest education in construction. Of course, his character was remarkable and unbending.
The first order came already in 1662. It was necessary to construct a theater auditorium in Oxford. This building was a gift to the university from former graduate Gilbert Sheldon, who became Archbishop of Canterbury. At the request of the customer, the building had to be designed in the classical traditions of Ancient Rome.
Christopher Wren was invited to do the design as a person well versed in mathematics and therefore able to provide a scientific basis for the harmonic proportions of such an important structure. He proved himself to be a truly excellent geometer. The calculations he and another mathematician, Professor John Wallis, made for complex timber floor trusses were excellent. Recent restoration of the building has shown that its structure remains virtually intact, although the attic was used as a warehouse for the university press for two centuries.
With architecture the situation was different. Ren decided to create a truly antique building. It was supposed to serve as the center of scientific life. By the way, even today academic degrees are conferred there and ceremonial meetings are held. Christopher Wren had never been to Italy and had never seen any ancient monuments. However, he took the Theater of Marcellus in Rome as a model for his amphitheater. He probably used engravings from the third volume of Sebastiano Serlio's treatise, popular throughout northern Europe. As a model for the main facade, he chose the reconstruction of the Basilica of Maxentius in the Forum Romanum from the Four Books of Andrea Palladio. Despite these Italian sources, its construction turned out to be in the restrained and intimate spirit of the northern Protestant Baroque. It is quite understandable that Ren’s hand was not yet confident; he was just beginning to build. In addition, the authority of ancient models and the great masters of the Renaissance constrained him. However, Christopher Wren coped with the task. As we see, in his very first building he broke with previous traditions in university construction.
It was from then on that the active architectural life of the creator began. The only thing he lacked was news about the cultural and, in particular, architectural life of continental Europe. In 1665, wanting to expand his knowledge of architecture, Christopher Wren traveled to France and met the Italian architect G. Bernini in Paris. The impressions from this trip became one of the most important sources of his creativity. He also learned a lot from drawings, engravings and architectural treatises Inigo Jones. Some of the principles that guided Ren in creating his designs were described by him and can be reconstructed from surviving records.
Subsequent commissions by Christopher Wren included the chapel of Pembroke College, Cambridge (1663-1665) and several buildings for Emmanuel College. His talent as an architect was noticed, so he was invited to London as a consultant on the project to rebuild St. Cathedral. Pavel. By the spring of 1666, Christopher Wren created the first sketch of the cathedral dome. On August 27 it was approved. However, a week later, tragedy struck London - a “great fire” began, destroying more than two-thirds of the buildings in the City of London. Among them was the old St. Paul's Cathedral. Oddly enough, this only made Ren's task easier, since he had a real opportunity to create a masterpiece, and not add to the old one.
The London fire of 1666 opened up enormous scope for construction activity. Therefore, Christopher Wren at the same time presented his plan for the reconstruction of the city, receiving an order to restore 52 parish churches. Ren proposed various spatial solutions; some buildings are built with truly baroque pomp (for example, St. Stephen's Church in Walbrook). Their spiers along with the towers of St. Paul form a spectacular panorama of the city. Among these are the churches of Christ in Newgate Street, St. Bride's in Fleet Street, St. James's in Garlick Hill and St. Vedast in Foster Lane. If special circumstances required it, as during the construction of St Mary Aldermary or Christ Church College in Oxford (Tom's Tower), Wren could use late Gothic elements, although, in his own words, he did not like to “deviate from the best style”.
On September 13, 1666, King Charles II approved a new plan for the construction of the city, in which the future St. Paul's Cathedral occupied an important place. In the same month, the area for the building was cleared and work began.
Construction of St. Paul's Cathedral in London.
St Paul's Cathedral is the London cathedral of the Church of England. Since the consecration of the first Bishop of London, St. Augustine (604), according to sources, several Christian churches were erected on this site. The immediate predecessor of the current cathedral, the old Cathedral of St. St. Paul's, consecrated in 1240, was 175 m long, and was 7 m longer than Winchester Cathedral.
In 1633-1642. The architect Inigo Jones carried out extensive renovations to the old cathedral and added a west façade in classical Palladian style. However, this old cathedral was completely destroyed during the Great Fire of London in 1666. The current building was built by Christopher Wren between 1675 and 1710. The first service took place in the unfinished church in December 1697.
From an architectural point of view, the Cathedral of St. Paul's is one of the largest domed buildings in the Christian world, standing on a par with the Florence Cathedral, the Cathedrals of St. Sophia in Constantinople and St. Peter's in Rome. The cathedral has the shape of a Latin cross, its length is 157 m, width 31 m; transept length 75 m; total area 155,000 sq. m. In the middle cross at a height of 30 m, the foundation of a dome with a diameter of 34 m was laid, which rises to 111 m.
When designing the dome, Christopher Wren used a unique solution. Directly above the middle cross, he erected the first dome in brick with a 6-meter round hole at the top (oculus), completely commensurate with the proportions of the interior. Above the first dome, the architect built a brick cone that serves as a support for a massive stone lantern, the weight of which reaches 700 tons, and above the cone is a second dome covered with lead sheets on a wooden frame, proportionally correlated with the external volumes of the building. An iron chain is placed at the base of the cone, which takes on the lateral thrust. A slightly pointed dome, supported by a massive circular colonnade, dominates the appearance of the cathedral.
This story gives an idea of the architect's skill. When the cathedral was almost built, the city authorities noticed that in the central space of the temple there were no columns that would support the huge ceiling. Christopher Wren convinced that columns were not needed and the ceiling would not collapse, and cited his calculations as evidence. However, they did not believe him and ordered to support the ceiling of the cathedral with columns. Ren complied with this requirement, but... the columns he erected do not reach the ceiling; there is space between the capitals and the ceiling itself. These columns, which do not support the ceiling, still stand today, being a symbol of the highest skill of the architect and the usual mistrust of the authorities in the achievements of science.
The interior is mainly finished with marble cladding, and since there is little color, it looks austere. Along the walls there are numerous tombs of famous generals and naval commanders. The glass mosaics of the vaults and walls of the choir were completed in 1897.
In addition to the construction of churches, Wren carried out private commissions, one of which was the creation of the new library of Trinity College (1676-1684) in Cambridge.
In 1669, the royal architect died, and Ren was invited to take his place. In December of that year he married Faith Coghill. He and his wife moved to an official residence in Whitehall, where he lived until 1718. All these years, Ren was not only the main leader in the construction of St. Paul and many London churches, he was also responsible for all construction projects financed by the royal treasury. This was part of his job description as Overseer of the Royal Works. In this position, he received a number of important government orders, such as the construction of hospitals in the Chelsea and Greenwich areas, several buildings included in the complexes of Kensington Palace and Hampton Court Palace. In the same 1669, he was invited as the personal teacher of Crown Prince Charles II. In 1673, Christopher Wren was knighted, and since then he has been called Sir Christopher Wren.
With the beginning of the “glorious revolution” of 1688, which removed the king from the throne and elevated William of Orange to it, Ren, despite the changes, remained at court in the status of royal architect. Wilhelm was very fond of Ren's new masterpieces, so he enthusiastically approved many of his projects - Kensington Palace, the royal chambers at Hampton Court and others. However, in 1694, Queen Mary III, the wife of William of Orange, died, who was inconsolable, so many projects were not completed, because the king had no time for them. Nevertheless, in 1710 it was possible to complete the construction of St. Paul's Cathedral.
During his long life, Ren was in the service of five successive kings on the English throne and left his position only in 1718.
Queen Anne gave Christopher Wren a personal home at Hampton Court. One day, a servant was surprised by his master's long afternoon nap. When he looked into his room, Sir Christopher Wren was already dead. This happened on February 25, 1723. The architect was buried with honors in his brainchild, St. Paul's Cathedral, under a modest slab of black marble. Later, the tombstone was inscribed with a message from Christopher Wren's son: "Lector, si monumentum requiris, circumspice" ("If you are looking for a monument, look around").
Literary sources.
- Richard S. Westfall, Department of History and Philosophy of Science
- Indiana University. Wren, Christopher, The Galileo Project
Sir Christopher Wren - Dmitry Shvidkovsky. Classical and Gothic: Oxford transformations of the 17th and 18th centuries. www.projectclassica.ru
(Sir Christopher Wren, 1632-1723) - English architect, showed aptitude for mathematics in his youth. In 1652 he became a teacher of astronomy at the Grechem College in London, from where, in 1659, he moved to the same position at Oxford University, and was elected to the membership of the Royal Society of London. Simultaneously with the mathematical sciences, he also studied architecture; in 1663, on behalf of the king, he was engaged in the restoration of the former St. Paul's Cathedral in London and built the Cheldon Theater in Oxford and Pembroke College in Cambridge. Also engaged in natural science, in 1664 he made drawings for Willis’s “Anatomy of the Brain.” In 1665 he made a trip to France and studied the construction of the Louvre in Paris. After the terrible fire that devastated London in 1666, he was entrusted with drawing up a project for the new development of this city, but, due to obstacles arising from prejudices and the petty interests of private individuals affected, this project was only partially implemented (some streets were widened, spacious areas, a large number of buildings made of stone and brick were erected). In 1668, R. received the title of royal architect, in 1673 he was elevated to the dignity of nobility, in 1675 he began to build according to his own plan the now existing Cathedral of the Apostle Paul, which, in terms of size, occupies the first place, after the Cathedral of Peter the Great in Rome. Among similar buildings, it is particularly remarkable for the beautiful proportions of its dome. R. intended to richly decorate the majestic interior of this temple with statues, but could not insist on this, and the cathedral received its real appearance only later. The construction of this temple lasted 35 years. Of the other buildings of R., the most important are: the so-called “London Monument” - a colossal column 188 m high, erected in memory of the fire of 1666, the elegant Church of St. Stephen's in Walbrook, London, St. Brida, in the same place, the royal palace in Winchester, the bishop's palace, in the same place, hospitals in Chelsea and Greenwich and the library of Trinity College in Cambridge. R. built preferably in the cold, little picturesque Roman style, and therefore later adherents of Romance and Gothic style judged him one-sidedly and biasedly; but justice requires recognizing that he was an artist who possessed deep, versatile knowledge, purity of taste and the ability to compose and implement bold, majestic projects. He was the first in England to begin engraving in black.
Wed. Elmes, "Memoirs of the life and werks of Sir Christopher Wren" (L., 1828).
Architect and mathematician who rebuilt central London after the great fire of 1666. The creator of the national style of English architecture - the so-called. Renovsky classicism. According to the Brockhaus and Efron dictionary, “in his works Wren adhered preferably to the Roman style, strictly observing the rules of Palladio, but applying them with the cold calculation of a learned technician.”
Biography
Buried inside St Paul's Cathedral. The inscription on his tombstone reads: “If you are looking for a monument, look around you.”
Memory of Rene
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In Rostov, as well as in the entire army from which he came, the revolution that took place in the main apartment and in Boris was still far from accomplished in relation to Napoleon and the French, who had become friends from enemies. Everyone in the army still continued to experience the same mixed feelings of anger, contempt and fear towards Bonaparte and the French. Until recently, Rostov, talking with Platovsky Cossack officer, argued that if Napoleon had been captured, he would have been treated not as a sovereign, but as a criminal. Just recently, on the road, having met a wounded French colonel, Rostov became heated, proving to him that there could be no peace between the legitimate sovereign and the criminal Bonaparte. Therefore, Rostov was strangely struck in Boris’s apartment by the sight of French officers in the very uniforms that he was accustomed to look at completely differently from the flanker chain. As soon as he saw the French officer leaning out of the door, that feeling of war, of hostility, which he always felt at the sight of the enemy, suddenly seized him. He stopped on the threshold and asked in Russian if Drubetskoy lived here. Boris, hearing someone else's voice in the hallway, came out to meet him. His face at the first minute, when he recognized Rostov, expressed annoyance.“Oh, it’s you, I’m very glad, very glad to see you,” he said, however, smiling and moving towards him. But Rostov noticed his first movement.
“I don’t think I’m on time,” he said, “I wouldn’t have come, but I have something to do,” he said coldly...
- No, I’m just surprised how you came from the regiment. “Dans un moment je suis a vous,” [I am at your service this very minute," he turned to the voice of the one calling him.
“I see that I’m not on time,” Rostov repeated.
The expression of annoyance had already disappeared from Boris's face; Having apparently thought it over and decided what to do, he with particular calm took him by both hands and led him into the next room. Boris's eyes, calmly and firmly looking at Rostov, seemed to be covered with something, as if some kind of screen - blue dormitory glasses - were put on them. So it seemed to Rostov.
“Oh come on, please, can you be out of time,” said Boris. - Boris led him into the room where dinner was served, introduced him to the guests, calling him and explaining that he was not a civilian, but a hussar officer, his old friend. “Count Zhilinsky, le comte N.N., le capitaine S.S., [Count N.N., captain S.S.],” he called the guests. Rostov frowned at the French, bowed reluctantly and was silent.
Zhilinsky, apparently, did not happily accept this new Russian person into his circle and did not say anything to Rostov. Boris did not seem to notice the embarrassment that had occurred from the new face and, with the same pleasant calm and cloudiness in the eyes with which he met Rostov, tried to enliven the conversation. One of the French turned with ordinary French courtesy to the stubbornly silent Rostov and told him that he had probably come to Tilsit in order to see the emperor.
“No, I have business,” Rostov answered briefly.
Rostov became out of sorts immediately after he noticed the displeasure on Boris’s face, and, as always happens with people who are out of sorts, it seemed to him that everyone was looking at him with hostility and that he was disturbing everyone. And indeed he interfered with everyone and alone remained outside the newly started general conversation. “And why is he sitting here?” said the looks that the guests cast at him. He stood up and approached Boris.
“However, I’m embarrassing you,” he told him quietly, “let’s go, talk about business, and I’ll leave.”
“No, not at all,” said Boris. And if you are tired, let’s go to my room and lie down and rest.
- Indeed...
They entered the small room where Boris was sleeping. Rostov, without sitting down, immediately with irritation - as if Boris was guilty of something in front of him - began to tell him Denisov’s case, asking if he wanted and could ask about Denisov through his general from the sovereign and through him deliver a letter. When they were left alone, Rostov became convinced for the first time that he was embarrassed to look Boris in the eyes. Boris, crossing his legs and stroking the thin fingers of his right hand with his left hand, listened to Rostov, as a general listens to the report of a subordinate, now looking to the side, now with the same clouded gaze, looking directly into Rostov’s eyes. Each time Rostov felt awkward and lowered his eyes.
“I have heard about this kind of thing and I know that the Emperor is very strict in these cases. I think we should not bring it to His Majesty. In my opinion, it would be better to directly ask the corps commander... But in general I think...
- So you don’t want to do anything, just say so! - Rostov almost shouted, without looking into Boris’s eyes.
Boris smiled: “On the contrary, I’ll do what I can, but I thought...
At this time, Zhilinsky’s voice was heard at the door, calling Boris.
“Well, go, go, go...” said Rostov, refusing dinner, and being left alone in a small room, he walked back and forth in it for a long time, and listened to the cheerful French conversation from the next room.
Rostov arrived in Tilsit on a day least convenient for interceding for Denisov. He himself could not go to the general on duty, since he was in a tailcoat and arrived in Tilsit without the permission of his superiors, and Boris, even if he wanted, could not do this the next day after Rostov’s arrival. On this day, June 27, the first peace terms were signed. The emperors exchanged orders: Alexander received the Legion of Honor, and Napoleon Andrei 1st degree, and on this day a lunch was assigned to the Preobrazhensky battalion, which was given to him by the battalion of the French Guard. The sovereigns were supposed to attend this banquet.
Rostov felt so awkward and unpleasant with Boris that when Boris looked at him after dinner, he pretended to be asleep and early the next morning, trying not to see him, he left the house. In a tailcoat and a round hat, Nicholas wandered around the city, looking at the French and their uniforms, looking at the streets and houses where the Russian and French emperors lived. In the square he saw tables being set up and preparations for dinner; on the streets he saw hanging draperies with banners of Russian and French colors and huge monograms of A. and N. There were also banners and monograms in the windows of the houses.
Illustration copyright Museum of London Image caption This painting from 1670 depicts the Great Fire of London. This oil painting, covered with black soot, was restored in 1910
This year marks 350 years since a small candle left overnight in a bakery led to the Great Fire of London.
In 1666, the fire raged for four days. Most of the houses were completely destroyed and about 100 thousand residents of the capital were left homeless.
However, this disaster made it possible to rebuild London literally from scratch.
Thanks to the fire, England was the first European country to receive a capital free from the architectural problems of the Middle Ages.
City of stone
Illustration copyright Museum of London Image caption The Great Fire of London raged for four days and left 100,000 people homelessWhen a fire broke out in Thomas Farriner's bakery on Pudding Lane in the early hours of September 2, 1666, no one could have imagined the devastating consequences it would cause.
In a city where open flames were used for both lighting and heating, fires were commonplace.
So familiar that the Lord Mayor of the City of London, Sir Thomas Bloodworth, saw the flames flaring up from his window, yawned and went to get some sleep.
But a fateful combination of circumstances: strong winds, crowded buildings and too warm weather (because of it, the wooden beams from which the houses were built thoroughly dried out and flared up like matches) led to the fact that the area along the Thames, more than a length of two kilometers.
Image caption The old buildings on Puting Lane loomed over each other like these old houses in York, still standing today.But this made it possible to completely rebuild the city.
King Charles II, by a special decree, prohibited the development of the burned area until the general master plan was approved.
And in 1667, a development law was introduced, in which the authorities tried to eliminate the risks of similar disasters in the future.
For example, the upper floors could no longer overhang the street and had to strictly fit into the dimensions of the lower ones.
Illustration copyright Museum of London Image caption Hanging advertisements were banned after the fire and replaced with flat signs like this oneBut the most important thing is that the building material has also changed. The law stated that no one could erect a house or building that was constructed from materials other than brick or stone.
Violators were treated simply: built buildings that did not comply with fire safety regulations were simply demolished to the very foundation.
Illustration copyright Museum of London Image caption 17th century water pipes were made of woodThe second problem was that until 1666, not only houses were built from wood, but also water pipes. After the fire, the water supply network of the English capital was also completely destroyed.
When the fire started, the townspeople tried to extinguish it with water from the water supply. But water could not be taken from the taps without shutting off the pipe. The cramped buildings meant that it was almost impossible to get to the river itself.
Desperate citizens broke water pipes to get to water. But most of the water flowed into the ground, and this did not stop the fire.
After the fire, it became clear that something had to be done with the water supply system. As a result, London was perhaps the first of the European capitals to receive a system of fire hydrants.
In 1668, the Lord Mayor of the City issued an edict stating that "water taps should be installed in the most convenient places in every street, of which notice should be given to all residents, so that the disorderly destruction of the pipes may be avoided."
New St. Paul's Cathedral
Illustration copyright Getty Images Image caption St Paul's Cathedral today: the pearl of London and the center of tourismThere is no dispute that St Paul's Cathedral in its current form is one of London's most famous buildings. But in 1666 he looked completely different.
The medieval cathedral, which was more than 500 years old in the year of the fire, was quietly being destroyed. To be honest, it was in such poor condition that during the Revolution, Oliver Cromwell's troops used it as a stable.
Illustration copyright Image caption This engraving shows Old St. Paul's Cathedral, built in 1087The architect Sir Christopher Wren had been working on a project to reconstruct the medieval cathedral just before the fire. In particular, he proposed to cover all the walls with limestone, the so-called Portland stone, and replace the existing tower with a dome.
The old cathedral was ruined by the fact that, firstly, it was really very old, and secondly, it was falling apart before our eyes, so the rickety walls were supported by powerful logs.
The wind carried burning chips onto the wooden roof of the cathedral, which immediately caught fire. And the wooden supports gave the fire additional strength.
The complete destruction of the cathedral was also facilitated by local residents, who for some reason decided that St. Paul’s Cathedral was not in danger, so they filled the entire courtyard with wooden furniture, which rose along the walls in several rows.
The local guild of paper and writing supplies filled the entire basement with paper and books, then closed and sealed the doors to prevent anyone from stealing the valuable goods. You can imagine how the fire raged in the crypt when the burning roof collapsed in there!
According to eyewitnesses, the temperature in the burning cathedral was so high that the stone sculptures burst like grenades.
The publicist John Evelyn later wrote about this time in his diary: molten lead from the roofs flowed through the streets in a stream, and even the pavements became red hot.
Illustration copyright The Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral Image caption This is what the northern courtyard of the cathedral might have looked like before the fire.The fire meant that Wren had the opportunity to completely remodel the cathedral. However, it must be admitted that he was not too concerned about preserving what could still be saved.
Despite his great love for mathematical precision and symmetry, Wren moved the building slightly to the west to get away from the old foundation. Ren did not trust the old foundation.
In addition, it was the first cathedral built in Protestant England, and the architect tried to move as far as possible from Catholic architectural canons.
Illustration copyright The Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral Image caption The stone column from the old cathedral was preserved, but its color was completely changed by the fireIt is unlikely that the medieval St Paul's Cathedral would have stood for much longer, but the fire allowed Wren to fully realize his vision of a new cathedral for London.
The architect's tombstone in St. Paul's Cathedral is engraved with a Latin saying: "If you are looking for what makes his life memorable, look around!"
And other famous buildings
Image caption Christopher Wren built this column to commemorate the Great Fire - MonumentFive architects, including Christopher Wren, presented five detailed plans for how to rebuild the City.
It was almost impossible to implement them completely due to the fact that most homeowners still owned the land on which the burned houses stood, and were not at all going to part with it for next to nothing.
In general, Ren was, to one degree or another, responsible for the reconstruction of 52 churches, 36 buildings of guild corporations and a column that perpetuated the memory of the Great Fire - the Monument.
Birth of the insurance business
Illustration copyright Museum of London Image caption One of the first insurance policies signed by Nicholas BarbonThe fire destroyed more than 13 thousand houses, and yet insurance did not exist at that time.
The authorities even created a special “Fire Court”, which heard disputes about who exactly owns what property and who should pay for reconstruction. He had enough work for a whole decade.
Doctor Nicholas Barbon was able to take advantage of the opportunity and founded the first insurance company, The Fire Office, in 1667.
His company even maintained its own fire brigade, which came to the aid of those who insured their property with the Fire Office.
Policy holders were given special signs that were hung on the walls of houses so that firefighters knew which building to save first.
Other entrepreneurs were quick to follow Barbon’s example. For example, in 1710, the Sun Fire Office was founded, which still exists today and is the oldest insurance company in the world.
The Association of British Insurers believes that the Great Fire led to the creation of the insurance industry in its modern form.
Fire services
Illustration copyright Museum of London Image caption This leather fireman's bucket has been preserved since 1666.In 1666, London had no fire brigades, no hydrants, and no protective clothing. Each parish church kept leather buckets and fire hooks in case of fire.
The archives record that on the eve of the Great Fire, 36 buckets and one ladder were stored in St Botolph's Church in Billingsgate, located less than a kilometer from Pudding Lane. It is clear that this modest equipment did not have any effect on extinguishing the fire.
Illustration copyright Museum of London Image caption The 17th century fire engine was a rather primitive device.The first fire engines were large barrels on wheels that pumped out approximately three liters of water for every movement of the pump handle. It was difficult to deliver them to the place, and in general there was no particular reason to count on their help.
After the fire, new regulations were introduced requiring each parish to have two fire pumps, leather buckets and other fire-fighting equipment.
Under the new rules, all homeowners were required to keep access to the Thames open to avoid water shortages.
The process culminated in the creation of the London Fire Brigade, which will celebrate its 150th anniversary this year.
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CHRISTOPHER WRAN
"CHRISTOPHER WREN"
Profound changes in the entire cultural situation and, in particular, artistic tastes in the field of architecture turned out to be focused in the work and in the very personality of Christopher Wren, who, in terms of his significance for the era, is rightly placed on a par with the most remarkable Englishmen of the 17th century - Shakespeare, Newton and Milton . It is noteworthy, however, that, despite the versatility of his talents, Ren is already far from the well-known type of universal Renaissance man.
Christopher Wren was born on October 20, 1632. His life is free from the rebellious quests of the previous generation and is filled to the brim with often very bold, but confident and systematic development of what has been achieved in the field of exact sciences, and then architecture. Fine arts, literature and the humanities in general apparently did not interest him. The son of the rector of Windsor Abbey and the nephew of a bishop, and therefore a representative of a privileged social stratum, with its established way of life and influential connections, Christopher received an excellent education for that time and early devoted himself to scientific interests, revealing, like many representatives of his generation, indifference to politics.
Ren was a member of a circle of leading university figures. As a mathematician, he was, according to Newton, one of the three most outstanding geometers of his time. Wren was professor of astronomy at Oxford. He invented many, including construction mechanisms, and subsequently became one of the founders and first presidents of the Royal Society (English Academy of Sciences) created in 1660. However, Ren went down in history, first of all, as the most outstanding architect of his country. Although he was repeatedly elected to Parliament (1685-1702), only one of his speeches is known - in connection with taxation for the construction of a hospital in Chelsea. He was later elevated to the rank of nobility and given the title of baronet.
Ren turned to architecture relatively late, in the thirty-third year of his life, and then after repeated insistence from influential clients. This in itself testifies to a new attitude towards architecture, which was perceived at that time as an activity requiring deep, diverse knowledge and a broad outlook.
Wren's first building was the so-called Sheldonian Theater in Oxford, erected at the expense of Bishop Sheldon for the awarding of academic degrees and other university ceremonies. Repeating the basic design of the Theater of Marcellus in Rome, Wren covered it with a flat ceiling suspended from trusses (its span of 21 meters amazed contemporaries), the painting of which depicted the open sky and awnings of the ancient prototype. In this, as in the next building, the chapel of Pembroke College in Cambridge (1663-1665), violations of some strict canons of classicism probably indicate not so much Wren’s inexperience, as many authors believed, but rather the master’s inclination towards Baroque freedom, which later will be typical for him.
However, the turning point in Ren's life, which determined his turn to architecture, was his stay in France (1665-1666) and the Great Fire of London (1666).
In France, Ren met with Hardouin Mansart and Bernini, who came to Paris at the invitation of the king, and using the example of the first Parisian squares and ensembles, as well as the construction of the Louvre, he could appreciate the enormous social significance and broad possibilities of architecture.
"CHRISTOPHER WREN"
We read in his later notes: “Architecture has its political purpose; public buildings are the adornment of the country; it establishes the nation, attracts people and trade; makes the people love their native country, which passion is the source of all great deeds in the state:” Parisian impressions, undoubtedly , affected the entire architectural work of Ren, which differs radically from the architecture of the first half of the century in the breadth and variety of ideas, freedom in handling the language of architecture of antiquity and the Renaissance, and most importantly, urban planning approach. In one of his letters, Ren called Paris “a school of architecture, today perhaps the best in Europe.”
The fire, which destroyed almost half of London, was barely stopped when Wren presented the king with his plan for rebuilding the central part of the capital. Wren's proposal was not implemented, but he was immediately included in the Commission for the Regeneration of the City of London, composed of representatives of the royal and city authorities. The general plan, so quickly developed by Ren, vaguely reminiscent in design of the layout of Le Nôtre's Versailles gardens, in fact, is much closer to the layout of Rome, begun by Pope Sixtus V at the end of the 16th century, but almost probably unknown to Ren even from the images.
We see the same straight streets, designed for distant perspectives, converging radially to the front representative squares and public buildings, marking the most important nodes of the city, which is interpreted as a single spatial composition.
Ren actively participated in the drafting of a number of commission decrees that prescribed construction only from brick, regulated the height of buildings, the thickness of walls, etc., and also sought funds for the restoration of the city and its most important buildings by introducing special taxes. The churches alone destroyed by fire numbered eighty-five, and although many parishes were united by commission, Wren still had to design more than fifty new ones, of which at least thirty-five were erected under his direct supervision. The architecture of these churches is the fruit of an amazing combination of creative imagination, ingenuity and inquisitiveness of a scientifically trained mind, inclined to organize working material, almost cataloging various compositional possibilities and testing them in nature.
Wren's churches represent a completely new chapter in the history of English architecture. They mark the flowering of English classicism in organic combination with such traditional national features of architecture as the opposition of soaring verticals to low volumes and sober practicality of planning.
Wren recognized with exceptional clarity the demands of the Protestant cult, which viewed the church primarily as an audience for the preacher, and not as a place for the spectacular Catholic liturgy, and clearly formulated these demands in a special note.
Small, unusually varied in plan, these churches were skillfully arranged by the master into irregular and cramped areas.
"CHRISTOPHER WREN"
The facades characteristic of classicism are combined with the integrity of the interior space. Particularly characteristic in this regard is the church of St. Stephen Walbrook (1672-1687), with its spacious and flat dome that unites the entire space. Often the choir gallery for the congregation opens wide into the main space (St. Bride's on Fleet Street, 1670-1684). While there is an undoubted resemblance to the Protestant churches of Northern Europe, the interiors of Wren's churches differ from the latter in greater splendor and refinement of decoration.
The famous bell towers of Wren, partly destroyed during the Second World War, truly amaze with the variety of composition and at the same time are invariably distinguished by their unique complex and light rhythm, which increases in frequency upward. In them, on the one hand, the deep imprint that Gothic left on the national character of English architecture was revealed, and on the other hand, a unique development of a “theme with variations” (each of which has a completely independent meaning) - a development that had previously been found only in a number of Palladian villas and palaces. It can be assumed that if Wren's master plan for London had been implemented, the spiers of these graceful bell towers, visible through the straightened streets, would have played almost a greater role in the English capital than the obelisks in Baroque Rome, creating not only landmarks for moving forward, but and feedback visual connections, thus uniting individual architectural mise-en-scenes into an integral urban planning organism.
Wren's most monumental building was the huge St. Paul's Cathedral in London (1675-1711), which occupies the same dominant place in Protestant religious architecture as the Roman Cathedral of St. Peter in Catholic. Wren's work on the cathedral began with a proposal to erect a highly raised and rather fantastically shaped dome over the middle cross of the old building. When, after the fire, it became clear that it needed to be dismantled, Ren proposed two versions of the project (1672 and 1673) - with a grandiose dome crowning the plan in the form of an equal-armed Greek cross, the branches of which were connected by curvilinear, Baroque-style concave facades.
The last of the plans, in which an apse was added to the equilateral branches on the east side, and a vestibule covered with a small dome on the west, has been preserved in the form of a superbly executed wooden model of such a size that the viewer could enter it to imagine the character of the interior.
At the request of the clergy, Ren developed a third, implemented option. The huge, extended volume of the structure, 157 meters long, with a plan in the shape of a Latin cross and a highly developed choir, dates back to Gothic cathedrals.
Ren's mathematical knowledge came in handy in the difficult task of constructing a dome, which he solved brilliantly, with subtle and deep calculations.
"CHRISTOPHER WREN"
The design of the triple dome resting on eight pillars is complex and unusual: above the hemispherical inner brick shell there is a brick truncated cone, which carries the lantern and cross crowning the cathedral, as well as a third, wooden, lead-covered outer shell of the dome.
The appearance of the cathedral is spectacular. Two flights of wide steps lead from the west to six pairs of Corinthian columns of the entrance portico, above which there are four more pairs of columns with composite capitals, bearing a pediment with a sculptural group in the tympanum. More modest semicircular porticoes are placed at both ends of the transept. On the sides of the main façade, slender towers were erected (one for the bells, the other for the clock), behind them, above the central cross of the cathedral, rises a huge, majestic dome.
The drum of the dome, surrounded by columns, seems especially powerful because every fourth intercolumnium of the colonnade, the so-called Stone Gallery, is laid with stone. Above the hemisphere of the dome itself, the second, so-called Golden Gallery forms a circuit around a lantern with a cross. The cluster of dome and towers rising above London is undoubtedly the most successful part of the cathedral, the main body of which was difficult to perceive in its entirety as it remained hidden by the clutter of urban development (heavily destroyed by bombing during the Second World War).
Loaded from the late 1660s, seemingly to the limit of human capacity, with architectural commissions in London alone, Wren nevertheless designed and built palaces and estates, hospitals and libraries, town halls and colleges for the king, municipalities, universities and private individuals. . Of Wren's numerous secular buildings, we should first of all note one of his masterpieces, the library of Trinity College in Cambridge (begun in 1676), evidence of a masterful solution to extraordinary compositional difficulties.
Its main facade, with two-tiered order arcades and baroque divisions in nature (the upper floor is much heavier than the lower one), is connected with older buildings so that the open first tier has the same height as the galleries on the sides, forming a traditional roundabout, characteristic of student buildings. "Cloisters" of Cambridge and Oxford. To do this, the master lowered the floor of the high front reading room on the second floor to the level of the heels of the lower arches, covering them with tympanums. This is how a solemn and resonant, large-scale facade was created, highlighting the library in the general complex of the adjacent residential buildings of the college. The opposite façade of the building is designed in a more planar manner: the highly raised (to accommodate bookcases) arched windows of the reading room are separated by simple blades, while the order is used only to accentuate the entrances.
According to a number of English architectural historians, the Trinity College library marks the end of the first stage in Wren's work and his transition to more complex compositions.
"CHRISTOPHER WREN"
It should be noted, however, that the master’s interiors continued to retain clarity and rigor, and his attitude to the order system, formulated much later, still amazes us today with modern sobriety of judgment.
“Modern authors who have written about architecture,” Wren points out, “seem to have had little in mind at all except to establish the proportions of columns, architraves and cornices in several orders: and, finding these proportions in the most ancient buildings of the Greeks and Romans (although they and were applied there more arbitrarily than they want to admit), they sought to reduce them to rules that were too strict and pedantic, not to be broken without the sin of barbarism, although by their nature they were just techniques and fashions of the times when they were in use. Curiosity could to encourage us to consider whence originally arose this tendency to consider nothing beautiful that is not adorned with columns, even where there is really no need for them.”
At the military and naval hospitals at Chelsea (started in 1683) and at Greenwich (started in 1696), as well as at Winchester Palace (started in 1683, not completed, burned down in 1896), Wren first experimented with large masses of extended volumes . In Chelsea, he uses a large order for rare accents (entrances) and a light small colonnade for galleries at the back of the courtyard. At Greenwich Hospital, he had to abandon the composition characteristic of classicism with a domed volume placed along the main axis in order to open a view of Inigo Jones's Queens House, which turned out to be in the depths of a large cour d'honneur open to the river. Crowned with baroque domes, Wren's buildings (the right one includes Webb's) flank the court d'honneur on the river side and are connected to Queens House by a horizontal line of long colonnades.
At the royal palace of Hampton Court, Wren also had to deviate from the originally broadly conceived ensemble. He owns here only the park building, the dark facades of which are trimmed with white stone and accented in the center with semi-columns, and the so-called Clock Court (“Royal Entrance”), which has preserved the combination of palace pomp and intimacy that distinguishes the original plan.
His admirers said that Wren built "the noblest temple" - St. Paul's Cathedral, "the most luxurious hospital in Britain" - Greenwich and "the largest palace" - the Duke of Marlborough in London (1709-1711).
The Palace of the Duke of Marlborough - of a Palladian character - is distinguished by the extreme luxury of its interior decoration. The proud magnate wanted, they say, to outshine the luxury of the nearby St. James's Palace (restructuring plans were created by Wren in the early years of the 18th century), which belonged to “Cousin George” - King George I.
Ren built few castles.
The most famous of them are Foley Court in the vicinity of Henley, Groombridge in Kent, Easton Neston, which he began, and some others. In some cases, he is credited with participating in such constructions on very insufficient grounds.
Unlike Inigo Jones, Wren managed to realize almost all of his plans throughout his long and fruitful career. The huge number of Ren's structures, collected together, could form a large, densely built city. Suffice it to say that he built 4 palaces, 35 various public places, 8 schools, 55 churches and 40 various other buildings.
The architect followed the path indicated by Jones, but, unlike the latter, who absorbed the spirit of the Renaissance in Italy, in the classicism of Wren, who survived the era of Puritanism, the rational principle is more clearly expressed.
Wren was buried in 1723 in St. Paul's Cathedral, and the inscription on his tombstone ends with the words: ": if you are looking for a monument, look around."
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