Westminster Abbey: Its Links with the Famous

About this book

Sheldon Press [Published date: 1976]. Soft cover, 182 pp. [From introduction] THE LIVELY, chronological story of the Abbey highlighted by cameos of some of the famous people buried there. People like Chaucer, who recanted his life's work in an Abbey tenement, Caxton, who set up his printing press in the Abbey almonry, Byron, the believer whose body was turned away, and Darwin, the wistful agnostic, who was welcomed with open arms, are brought vividly to life with a brief portrait, a little-known incident, a revealing piece of writing, a snatch of conversation. Carolyn Scott's delightful descriptions of the consecrations, coronations, funerals and monuments that make up the daily life of the Abbey make history fresh and fascinating. This is not a guide book, nor a history textbook; it is a book not merely about the kings, poets and statesmen who are buried and commemorated there but also about those whose lives and careers have touched the Abbey because for a moment, they were within context.