13 Iconic Buildings By Christopher Wren, The 17th Century Architect Who Defined The Look Of London

Sir Christopher Wren was the foremost architect in Britain in the 17th century. 

An exponent of the neoclassical style, he supervised the rebuilding of the City of London after the Great Fire half-destroyed the capital in 1666.

An Oxford graduate, Wren was born in East Knowle, Wiltshire, on Oct. 20, 1632. He also was a founding member of the Royal Society in 1662. He was appointed Surveyor of the Royal Works in 1669, three years after the Great Fire, and designed the plans for 52 churches in London alone. 

Born the son of a parish cleric, Wren was knighted a Sir for his famous works. He was rumored to be a Freemason, as well.

Wren is most famous for the rebuilding of London's largest church, St Paul's Cathedral, which was reconstructed after the fire and opened in 1711. He also worked at Oxford and Cambridge.

To celebrate his birthday, Google UK has launched a doodle with compass and ruler today.

The facade of St Paul's Cathedral is in neoclassical style, with two rows of columns below a triangular tympanum. The two towers on the sides are a reminder of the medieval origin of the church.

The dome of St Paul's is one of the largest in the world and used to be London's tallest building until 1953.

The Monument is a commemoration of the Great Fire. It is built on the exact same location where the first flames sparkled in a bakery shop on the night of Sept. 2, 1666.