Sculpture and Faith at St Paul's Cathedral, c. 1796-1914: W. F. Woodington, The Gospel of St Luke (1862): Enlisting the Bible.

This article examines the use of biblical iconography and storytelling in sculptures and monuments at St Paul's Cathedral, focusing on William Frederick Woodington's relief depicting St John the Baptist addressing soldiers, created around 1857. The relief, alongside William Calder Marshall's complementary work, employs biblical narratives to contrast spiritual authority with military power within the context of the Wellington memorial, highlighting themes of foreshadowing and moral legitimacy. The article further explores how other monuments at St Paul's, such as John Bacon's statue of prison reformer John Howard and John Flaxman's monument to Admiral Lord Nelson, utilize biblical and allegorical forms to imbue secular heroes with spiritual significance and to promote ideals of heroism, nationhood, and empire. These works collectively demonstrate how biblical storytelling techniques were adapted to reinforce moral codes and national identity in Victorian Britain.