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Sir Christopher Wren was officially appointed architect for the rebuilding of St Paul's Cathedral on 2nd December, 1697, though in truth he had been advising on it for some years already.\nThree decades later the celebrated British architect had produced a building that broke radically with the past, even if his original plans had to be adapted to the whims of the king, the clergy and the parliament.\nIn this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider why Wren loved domes so much; reveal the true reason why battering rams are a better demolition tool than dynamite; and explain why the cathedral became the ultimate humble brag\u2026\nFurther Reading:\n\u2022 \u2018St Paul's: The new church\u2019 (Cassell, Petter & Galpin, 1878): https://www.british-history.ac.uk/old-new-london/vol1/pp249-262\xa0\n\u2022 \u2018A History of St. Paul's Cathedral in 60 Seconds\u2019 (Culture Trip, 2018): https://theculturetrip.com/europe/united-kingdom/england/london/articles/st-pauls-cathedral-london/\xa0\n\u2022 \u2018Designing St Paul's - The Wren Office Drawings\u2019 (St Paul's Cathedral, 2013): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skX-RXJnaWU\xa0\n#1600s #Architecture #UK\nWe'll be back on Monday - unless you join\xa0\U0001f334CLUB RETROSPECTORS\U0001f334, where we give you ad-free listening AND a full-length Sunday episode every week!\nPlus, weekly bonus content, unlock over 70 bonus bits, and support our independent podcast.\nJoin now via\xa0Apple Podcasts\xa0or\xa0Patreon.\xa0Thanks!\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.\xa0\n Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices