Moon phase details at Saturday, December 1, 1973

Ahhh … movie hype. Westminster Abbey, unlike most Anglican churches and cathedrals, is under the direct control of England’s monarch. Actor Ian McKellen adds his own conspiracy theory — that the Queen kept movie cameras out of Westminster Abbey during the filming of The Da Vinci Code.

Originally the abbey church of a Benedictine monastery, which closed in 1539, Westminster Abbey is one of England’s most important Gothic structures and a national shrine. Its official name is t he Collegiate Church of St. Peter, but this name is rarely used.

Situated west of the Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey is the traditional coronation site for English monarchs. It was originally home to a Norman monestary, of which there are little or no traces left. The Abbey standing today was built by King Edward the Confessor around 1050, and was consecrated in 1065.

The ancient Abbey is filled with monuments and tombs, including that of Sir Isaac Newton, whose grave plays a minor part in The Da Vinci Code. Any Abbey visitor is free to seek out what the book refers to as this tomb of “a knight a Pope interred.” Feel free to remember, or ignore, the fact that Alexander Pope (“a Pope”) didn’t really read the eulogy at the funeral of the great scientist.

Having gawked at Sir Isaac’s final resting place, Da Vinci Code fans make their way to the Abbey’s octagonal Chapter House, site of a dramatic showdown in the book. The Chapter House is where Robert Langdon, the book’s heroic main character, tosses a cryptex cylinder toward the ceiling when evil Sir Teabing threatens to shoot co-hero Sophie Neveu.

The scene is pure fiction, but an event that did happen here had tremendous historical significance. In 1257, the King’s Council met in the Chapter House. The Council was the precursor to the English Parliament, and from it sprang a lineage that can be traced forward all the way to the United States Congress and other modern legislatures, worldwide.