Editing Christopher Wren (section)

===St Paul's Cathedral===
[[St Paul's Cathedral]] in London has always been the highlight of Wren's reputation. His association with it spans his whole architectural career, including the 36 years between the start of the new building and the declaration by parliament of its completion in 1711.{{Citation needed|date=June 2021}}Letters document Wren's involvement in St Paul as early as 1661, when he was consulted by Charles II regarding repairs to the medieval structure.<ref name=":0" /> In the spring of 1666, he made his first design for a dome for St Paul's. It was accepted in principle on 27 August 1666. One week later, however, the Great Fire of London reduced two-thirds of the City to a smoking desert and old St Paul's to ruin. Wren was most likely at Oxford at the time, but the news, so fantastically relevant to his future, drew him at once to London. Between 5 and 11 September, he ascertained the precise area of devastation, worked out a plan for rebuilding the City and submitted it to Charles II. Others also submitted plans. However, no new plan proceeded any further than the paper on which it was drawn. A [[Rebuilding of London Act 1666|Rebuilding of London Act]] which provided rebuilding of some essential buildings was passed in 1666. In 1669, the King's Surveyor of Works died and Wren was promptly installed.

{{Multiple image
| image1 = St Paul's Cathedral, London, South elevation of the Great Model – Royal Academy Collection.jpg
| image2 = 74 - AS II.13. S elevation.jpg
| image3 = The South Prospect of St. Paul's Church London.jpg
| total_width = 600
| caption2 = The Warrant Design (1674)
| caption1 = Greek Cross Design (1673)
| caption3 = The cathedral as built
| footer = 
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| header = '''The development of Wren's design for St Paul's Cathedral'''
| header_align = center
}}

It was not until 1670 that the pace of rebuilding started accelerating. A [[Rebuilding of London Act 1670|second rebuilding act]] was passed that year, raising the tax on coal and thus providing a source of funds for rebuilding of churches destroyed within the [[City of London]]. Wren presented his initial "First Model" for St Paul's. This plan was accepted, and demolition of the old cathedral began. By 1672, however, this design seemed too modest, and Wren met his critics by producing a design of spectacular grandeur. This modified design, called "Great Model", was accepted by the King and the construction started in November 1673. However, this design failed to satisfy the [[Cathedral chapter|chapter]] and clerical opinion generally; moreover, it had an economic drawback. Wren was confined to a "cathedral form" desired by the clergy. In 1674 he produced the rather meagre Classical-Gothic compromise known as the Warrant Design. However, this design, called so from the royal warrant of 14 May 1675 attached to the drawings, is not the design upon which work had begun a few weeks before.

{{Multiple image
| image1 = Cathedral of Saint-Paul - 2014-08-04.jpg
| image2 = St Paul's Cathedral Dome from One New Change - Square Crop.jpg
| image3 = St Paul's Cathedral Nave, London, UK - Diliff.jpg
| caption1 = West front
| caption2 = Dome
| caption3 = Nave
| total_width = 600
| footer = 
| footer_align = 
| header = St Paul's Cathedral
| header_align = center
}}

The cathedral that Wren started to build bears only a slight resemblance to the Warrant Design. In 1697, the first service was held in the cathedral when Wren was 65. There was still, however, no dome. Finally, in 1711 the cathedral was declared complete, and Wren was paid the half of his salary that, in the hope of accelerating progress, [[Parliament of England|Parliament]] had withheld for 14 years since 1697. The cathedral had been built for 36 years under his direction, and the only disappointment he had about his masterpiece was the dome: against his wishes, the commission engaged Thornhill to paint the inner dome in false perspective and finally authorised a [[balustrade]] around the roof line. This diluted the hard edge Wren had intended for his cathedral, and elicited the apt [[Parthian shot|parthian comment]] that "ladies think nothing well without an edging".<ref>Bolton and Hendry, eds., ''The Wren Society'', 20 vols.</ref>