Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Historic Missouri Church in Fulton to Ring Bells in Unison with London Church on December 29 2010 to Mark Blitz Bombing of 70 years ago


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FULTON (AP) - Seventy years after it was hit by German bombers, a historic English church that was rebuilt in mid-Missouri will ring its bells in unison with those of St. Paul's Cathedral in London. The 1676 Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury, was designed by the English architect Christopher Wren. It was heavily damaged on Dec. 29, 1940, when Germany bombed London in its largest air raid of World War II. St. Mary's was later moved to Fulton, where Winston Churchill delivered his "Iron Curtain" speech at Westminster College in 1946. On Dec. 29, the bells of St. Mary's will ring out at 12:15 p.m. while the bells of St. Paul's Cathedral are rung at the same moment.

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The Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury
Location on the campus of Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri, USA


Twice destroyed by fire, the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury, is part of the Winston Churchill Memorial. The Church, which dates from the 12th century, was redesigned by Sir Christopher Wren in 1677, after the Great Fire of London. Nearly three centuries later a German incendiary bomb left it in ruin. Slated for demolition, Wren's graceful masterpiece was saved by a bold idea. The structure would be rebuilt on the campus of Westminster College as a permanent reminder of Churchill's visit to the college and his prophetic speech. Stone by stone, architects and craftsmen dismantled the Church and painstakingly reconstructed it again at its present site. Today visitors from around the world may enter Wren's beautiful, light-filled sanctuary.


Hours: 10:00 a.m.– 4:30 p.m. daily, except for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Days
Address: 501 Westminster Ave.
Phone: 573-592-5369
. Click Here for more info.

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Westminster College (Missouri)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Westminster College is a private, selective, liberal arts institution in Fulton, Missouri, USA. It was founded by Presbyterians in 1849 as Fulton College and assumed the present name in 1851. The National Churchill Museum and Library are located on the campus. The National Churchill Museum (formally known as the Churchill Memorial) is a national historic site and includes the Church of St Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury. The church, designed by Sir Christopher Wren in 1667, was rebuilt on the campus to commemorate Sir Winston Churchill, who made his famous "Iron Curtain" speech at Westminster College in 1946. As a bookend to history, Mikhail Gorbachev gave a speech in 1992, declaring the end of the Cold War.


On November 9, 1990, the one year anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, former President Ronald Reagan delivered a speech dedicating a major section of the Berlin Wall, which now stands as a permanent monument on the College Quad, as a backdrop. The monument, named "Breakthrough" as designed by Winston Churchill's granddaughter, Edwina Sandys. See photo at top of page for a visual of the Church, Library, and Berlin Wall monument.

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Winston Churchill's "Sinews of Peace" address of 5 March 1946, at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, used the term "iron curtain" in the context of Soviet-dominated Eastern Europe:
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Reciprocal links:
http://HermannHearsay.blogspot.com/(Hermann Area News, Commentary & Discussion)

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