Westminster Abbey
The Westminster Abbey is a very popular term, which is used for denoting the Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster. It is a large, primarily Gothic church, of Westminster. It is a traditional place for coronation and a burial site for the English, as well as the monarchs of Commonwealth Realms. It held the status of cathedral for a brief period and today it is a Royal Peculiar.
According to the traditional view, the Abbey was founded on the current site. It seems to be quoted in order to justify presents of salmons from the Thames fishermen, which the Abbey received in the later years. As it is, Saint Dunstan, with the help of apt assistance from King Edgar, had planted a community for the Benedictine monks here. In fact a stone Abbey was built by King Edward as a part of his palace. It got consecrated on December 28, 1065, only a week prior to the death of King Edward and his subsequent funeral, as well as burial. It was a site for the last coronation before the Norman Invasion and that of King Harold, his successor. It was later on rebuilt by Henry III who had selected this site for his burial.
The only existing description of the original Abbey, together with adjacent Palace in Westminster, is in Bayeux Tapestry. It is, in the Romanesque style, which is referred to as Norman in England. The improved endowments played a major role in supporting a community, which had incrimination from a dozen monks in the original foundation of Dunstan, to around eighty monks.
The Abbot, along with the learned monks, in close proximity with the Royal Palace of Westminster and the seat of the government from later twelfth century, which became a major force in centuries after the Norman Conquest. The Abbot was often used for royal service and in subsequent course took up his place in House of Lords as of right. Released from burden of spiritual leadership that passed to the reformed Cluniac movement, after the mid-tenth century, as well as occupied with administration of the great landed properties, a few of which lay far away from Westminster.
The proximity with the Palace of Westminster had not extended to provide monks as well as abbots with the high royal connections in terms of social origin; the Benedictines of the Westminster had been as modest as in most of the order. As it is, the abbot stayed as Lord of Manor of Westminster as the town of around two to three thousand people grew around it. The abbey built around shops, as well as dwellings on west side.