LONDON’S SHRINES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 21 April 1941, Page 5

LONDON’S SHRINES

ST. PAUL’S AGAIN STRUCK BY BOMB OTHER FAMOUS BUILDINGS DAMAGED. INCLUDING THE HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT. (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright) LONDON. April 19. The Houses of Parliament were hit again in.a recent air raid. The House of Commons suffered more than the House of Lords. All the windows in lhe library wei'e blown out and the contents wei'e damaged. and hundreds of windows were also shattered along River Terrace. Neither House was in session.

It can now be revealed that among famous shrines, hospitals and shops known throughout the Empire which were damaged in recent raids are St. Paul’s, the City Temple, Chelsea Old Church, Guy’s Hospital, Chelsea Royal Hospital, Maple’s, Christie’s, and Selfridge’s. A heavy bomb made a direct hit on the north transept of St. Paul’s and carried away the “saucer” dome. Tons of masonry were blown out of the floor of the crypt. Statues of famous generals were mutilated and almost every window in the cathedral, some dating back to Sir Christopher Wren, was shattered. The Great Dome and the Whispering Gallery escaped damage by a few feet, and Nelson’s Tomb is also untouched. The main floor of St. Paul’s cannot be used for services, but it is hoped to continue ordinary services in the crypt. An observer noted among the debris the marble slab with the famous inscription which is Wren's memorial, “If you seek a monument, look around you.” The bombed and desecrated cathedral is now a fitting monument to Nazidom.

Only the walls remain of the City Temple, the headquarters of the Congregational Church, which was valued at £250,000.

The three-story wing of Guy’s Hospital was gutted, and the oldest inmate, aged 101, was killed when the infirmary at Chelsea Royal Hospital was bombed, seriously damaging the building and killing eight pensioners and five nurses.

Maple’s was burnt out. Selfridge’s will be able to carry on in the basement and ground floor.