Marked by the teeming human contents of tour buses, off the south side of Parliament Square, this is where nearly all of England's monarchs have been crowned amid great heraldic splendor; many are buried here, too. The main nave, often crowded, is packed with memories, as it has witnessed many splendid royal ceremonies. As the most ancient of London's great churches, the place is crammed with spectacular medieval architecture. Other than the mysterious gloom of the vast interior, the first thing to strike most people is the fantastic proliferation of statues, tombs, and commemorative tablets: in parts, the building seems more like a stonemason's yard than a place of worship. But it's in its latter capacity that this landmark truly comes into its own.

Although attending a service is not something to undertake purely for sightseeing reasons, it provides a glimpse of the abbey in its full majesty, accompanied by music from the Westminster choristers and the organ that Henry Purcell once played. During a service, you won't be bothered by the frequent and jarring loudspeaker announcements made during peak hours, requesting "a minute of silence" from the noisy masses.

There's only one way around the abbey, and as there will almost certainly be a long stream of shuffling tourists at your heels, you'll need to be alert to catch the highlights. Entering by the north door, the first thing you see on your left are the overbearing and extravagant 18th-century monuments of statesmen in the north transept and north-transept chapels. Look up to your right to see the painted-glass rose window, the largest of its kind. At many points the view of the abbey is crowded by the many statues and screens; to your right is the 19th-century (and part 13th-century) choir screen, to the left is the sacrarium, containing the medieval kings' tombs, which screen the Chapel of St. Edward the Confessor.

Due to its great age, the shrine to the pre-Norman king known as Edward the Confessor is closed off (unless via a tour with the verger; details are available at the admission desk and there is a small extra charge), but continuing to the foot of the Henry VII Chapel steps you can still see the hot seat of power, the Coronation Chair, which has been briefly graced by nearly every regal posterior. Edward I ordered it around 1300; it used to shelter the Stone of Scone (pronounced "Skoon"), upon which Scottish kings had been crowned since time began, but this precious relic was returned to Scotland's Edinburgh Castle. The stone is to be returned to England, however, for the duration of future coronations.

Proceed up the steps into one of the architectural glories of Britain, the Henry VII Chapel, passing the huge white-marble tomb of Elizabeth I, buried with her half sister, "Bloody" Mary I; then the tomb of Henry VII with his queen, Elizabeth of York, by the Renaissance master Torrigiano. Close by are monuments to the young daughters of James I; Sophia, who only lived for three days, is remembered by a single alabaster candle. An urn holds the purported remains of the so-called Princes in the Tower -- Edward V and Richard. All around are magnificent sculptures of saints, philosophers, and kings, with wild mermaids and monsters carved on the choir-stall misericords (undersides) and with exquisite fan vaulting above -- one of the miracles of Western architecture.

The tombs and monuments with which Westminster Abbey is packed (some would say stuffed) began to appear at an accelerated rate starting in the 18th century (newest additions are 10 20th-century figures, including Martin Luther King, over the west door of the nave). One earlier occupant, though, was Geoffrey Chaucer, who in 1400 became the first poet to be buried in Poets' Corner. Most of the other honored writers have only their memorials here, not their bones: William Shakespeare and William Blake (who both had a long wait before the dean deemed them holy enough to be here at all), John Milton, Jane Austen, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and William Wordsworth. Charles Dickens is both celebrated and buried in this crowded corner.

After the elbow battle you are guaranteed in Poets' Corner, you exit the main body of the abbey by a door from the south transept and south choir aisle to the comparative calm of the cloisters, where monks once strolled in contemplation and you may do the same. Go nearly all the way round and an archway leads to the quiet green Dean's Yard, where you can catch a fine view of the massive flying buttresses above. Also here is the entrance to Westminster School, formerly a monastic college, now one of Britain's finest public (which means the exact opposite to Americans) schools; Christopher Wren and Ben Jonson number among the old boys. Return to the cloisters and the abbey rooms used by monarchs of the Middle Ages.

The Chapter House, a stunning octagonal room supported by a central column and adorned with 14th-century frescoes, is where the King's Council and, after that, an early version of the Commons, met between 1257 and 1547. Underfoot is one of the finest surviving tiled floors in the country. The Abbey Museum is in the undercroft, which survives from Edward the Confessor's original church, and includes a collection of deliciously macabre effigies made from the death masks and actual clothing of Charles II and Admiral Lord Nelson and the battle kit of shield, saddle, and helmet of Henry V at Agincourt, among other fascinating relics. Adjoining these rooms, the Little Cloister is a quiet haven, and just beyond, the College Garden has been tended by monks for more than 900 years; it's like a secret garden, planted with medicinal herbs.

Returning to the abbey and the nave, look to the foot of the wall in the north aisle opposite the organ loft. All of Ben Jonson is buried here -- upright in accord with his modest demand for a 2-by-2-foot grave site (only his memorial is in Poets' Corner). James Watt and Michael Faraday are among the scientists with memorials; Sir Isaac Newton has both grave and memorial. There's only one painter: Godfrey Kneller, whose dying words were "By God, I will not be buried in Westminster."

The Tomb of the Unknown Warrior, in memory of the soldiers who lost their lives in both world wars, is near the exit. Nearby is one of the very few tributes to a foreigner, a plaque to Franklin D. Roosevelt. Note that photography is not permitted anywhere in the abbey. COST: Abbey and museum £6. Tube: Westminster.