The most interesting tomb here is that of Geoffrey Chaucer, who for years lived in a house in the monastery garden pulled down to make room
Westminster Abbey: Poets’ Corner
Westminster Abbey: Choir, east
for Henry VII.’s Chapel. It is a small altar-tomb supposed to date from 1451, with a canopy of Purbeck marble of later date. The memorial window above dates from 1868. Here lie Dryden, Francis Beaumont, Browning, Tennyson and Edmund Spencer among others; and a bust of Longfellow was placed here in 1884.
“The Choir, which has been the scene of so many solemn and memorable services, has no ancient woodwork. The stalls were erected about the middle of the last century. The altar and reredos are modern. There are some large figures, and a mosaic of the Last Supper. Here the coronations of our monarchs take place. The pavement is interesting, as it was brought from Rome by Abbot Ware in 1268, and beneath it he rests with other abbots of Westminster. The sedilia are Thirteenth Century work, and were decorated with paintings. The figures of King Siebert, the first founder, and of Henry III., the munificent re-founder, remain. Above the base of the tomb of Anne of Cleves, one of Henry VIII.’s many wives, is a remarkable painting of Richard II., and behind it some ancient tapestry.”—(P. H. D.)