Westminster Hall Roof

Westminster Hall is the oldest surviving part of the Palace of Westminster in London. Its walls date from 1097-1099, under William II, but its fame rests on the oak hammerbeam roof built for Richard II at the end of the 14th century, often described as the greatest creation of medieval timber architecture.

Construction

Richard II commissioned the new roof in 1393. The king's master mason, Henry Yevele, raised the walls and added heavy buttresses to resist the outward thrust, while the king's carpenter, Hugh Herland, designed the roof. Sources give the main carpentry period as 1395-1399. Two lanterns on the ridge were completed in 1397-98, and work stopped in 1401 before details such as the decorative tracery were fully finished. How the earlier roof of the hall was supported is unknown.

Scale

• The roof covers about 20.7 by 73.2 m (68 by 240 ft).
• The arched trusses meet in a central span of about 18 m (60 ft) or more.
• Timbers were lifted to about 28 m (92 ft).
• The framed timber weighed about 660 tons, and its lead covering about 176 tons.

The oak came from woods in Hampshire, Hertfordshire and Surrey. The trusses were framed near Farnham, Surrey, then carried to Westminster by wagon and barge. The work was partly funded by fees paid by exiles for licences to return to England.

Decoration

The ends of the hammer beams carry 26 carved angels.

Survival and repair

The hall survived the 1834 fire that destroyed most of the old palace, and incendiary bombs on 10 May 1941. In 1913 deathwatch beetle was found in the timbers, and the architect Frank Baines led an extensive restoration of the roof in the following years. Sources differ on the details and completion date of that work.

Significance

The roof showed how far timber could be pushed without a continuous tie beam. It remains a reference point for historic carpentry, conservation engineering and the study of medieval building logistics.