Timeline: 1400 Years of History

St Paul’s dome crowns the London skyline. Among skyscrapers and city bustle, it is a constant reminder of history and the power of faith. For over 1400 years this site has witnessed some of the greatest names and events in the nation’s history, and continues to do so. As a centre of Christian worship, people continue to congregate here to pray, to celebrate, to mourn and to remember.

Introduction
Cathedrals have always played more than one role in the communities they serve.

314
Restitutus becomes the first Bishop of London.

604
The first St Paul's is founded by King Ethelbert of Kent.

962
St Paul's is burnt and rebuilt within the year

1087
London is burnt and St Paul's is destroyed; rebuilding begins soon after.

1310
Work is finally completed on St Paul's , more than 200 years after it began

1501
Katherine of Aragon marries Prince Arthur at St Paul's

1526
Bishop of London preaches at Paul's Cross against Tyndale's English New Testament, which is later burnt.

1588
Following the defeat of the Armada, Queen Elizabeth I visits St Paul's.

1606
Four gunpowder plotters are executed in St Paul's Churchyard.

1621
The poet, John Donne, becomes Dean of St Paul's

1648-9
During the Civil War, parliamentary soldiers and their horses are billeted in St Paul's

1666
The Great Fire of London destroys Old St Paul's.

1668
Wren is commissioned to produce a new design for St Paul's Cathedral.

1669
Wren's first Greek Cross design for the new cathedral is rejected.

1673 - Sir Christopher Wren
Wren's second plan and Great Model are abandoned.

1674
Wren, frustrated by all the delays, works on his third design.

1675
Sir Christopher Wren's design for a new cathedral is given royal approval.

1697
The first service is held on 2 December in the Quire, the part of the building where construction began.

1698
The structure reaches the height of the Whispering Gallery and work begins on the dome.

1708
'Topping out' of the Cathedral

1710
Construction on the new cathedral is completed.

1723
Sir Christopher Wren dies, aged 91.

1790
The first memorial is erected on the cathedral floor, to John Howard, prison reformer

1806
A funeral service is held for Admiral Lord Nelson after he dies at the Battle of Trafalgar.

1852
One million people watch the Duke of Wellington's funeral procession to St Paul's

1897
Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee celebrated at the cathedral

1913
Suffragettes plant a bomb under the Bishop's throne in the quire.

1918
Crowds assemble at St Paul's on Armistice Day.

1940
The cathedral is the target for a bombing raid during the Blitz. During firebombing, Prime Minister Churchill declares that St Paul's must be saved.

1945
On V.E. Day, more than 30,000 flock to services at St Paul's.

1958
St Paul's dedicates a chapel to commemorate American service personnel, based in Britain, who died during World War II.

1964
Human rights campaigner Martin Luther King preaches at St Paul's on his way to Oslo to collect the Nobel Peace Prize.

1965
Sir Winston Churchill's state funeral at St Paul's is the first broadcast to the nation on radio and television.

1977
Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her Silver Jubilee at St Paul's.

1981
HRH Prince Charles, Prince of Wales marries Lady Diana Spencer in the quire.

2001
St Paul's becomes a focus for public mourning in the UK after 9/11.

2002
A national service of celebration on the Golden Jubilee of the accession of HM Queen Elizabeth II.

2003
The first female residentiary canon is installed at the cathedral.

2005
UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan visits St Paul's to support Make Poverty History.

2006
2006 - National Service of Celebration for HM The Queen's 80th Birthday

2007
Service of Remembrance is held for the victims of the July 7th bombings on London

2009
UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd speak at St Paul's ahead of G20 summit.