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The palace has 1,100 rooms, 100 staircases and 5 kilometers of corridors. Of the palace towers, the most famous is the Elizabeth Clock Tower (Big Ben), a symbol of Great Britain. The Victoria Tower is two meters taller, with a height of 98.45 m (323 ft). In 1987, the palace and the nearby Church of Saint Margaret (1486-1523) were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Story

The ancient name of the site on which the Palace of Westminster is located is Thorney Island. First Royal Palace Canute the Great, king of Denmark, England and Norway, built on this site during his reign from 1016 to 1035. Edward the Confessor, the second-to-last of England's Anglo-Saxon monarchs, lived in this palace at the time Westminster Abbey was being built (1045-50). The Abbey gave the area a new name, Westminster, from West Minster - the western church (the eastern church was St. Paul's Cathedral). The oldest surviving part of the palace, Westminster Hall, dates from the reign of King William II.

The Palace of Westminster was the main royal residence during the late Middle Ages, and was also the meeting place of Parliament's predecessors, the royal council and Simon de Montfort's parliament of 1265. The first formal parliament of England met at the palace in 1295, and since then almost all subsequent parliaments of England (from 1707 of Great Britain) have met here. Since 1341, Parliament has been divided into the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

At the beginning of the reign of Henry VIII, in 1512, a fire occurred in the royal part of the palace. In 1534, Henry VIII purchased the palace from Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, renamed it Whitehall and made it his main residence. From that time on, the Palace of Westminster became the building of parliament. Important ceremonies took place in the Painted Chamber, the House of Lords met in the Queen's Chamber, then, with the increase in the number of peers in the 18th century, in the larger White Chamber. Since 1547, the House of Commons has met in chapel of St. Stefan en.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the palace was renovated several times, in 1799-1801 under the leadership of the architect James Wyatt, in 1824-27 - Sir John Soane, in particular, the old premises of the House of Lords, which was mined during the Gunpowder Plot in 1605, were destroyed year.

On October 16, 1834, a big fire occurred and the palace burned down almost completely. Only Westminster Hall survived, Jewel Tower en, Undercroft Chapel and Priory and Chapel of St. Stefan. Immediately after the fire, King William IV offered Parliament the almost completed Buckingham Palace, but the parliamentarians refused the gift and decided to remain in the Palace of Westminster. First of all, the Painted Chamber for the House of Lords and the White Chamber for the House of Commons were restored. They were ready in February 1835, and the reconstruction work was led by the architect Sir Robert Smurke.

In February 1836, the design of Charles Barry was chosen for the construction of a new palace on the site of the one that burned down. He intended to build a quadrangular building in the Gothic style, with the main facade facing the Thames and with a tower in the center 55 meters high. Augustus Pugin also made a significant contribution to the project. The cornerstone was laid in 1840. The House of Lords Chamber was completed in 1847, the House of Commons Chamber in 1852, with the bulk of the work completed by 1860, although construction continued well into the 20th century. total cost construction amounted to £2 million.

In 1975, Parliament acquired the nearby Norman Shaw buildings en, in 2000 the Portcullis House building was built.

Currently, the Palace of Westminster is in need of restoration; According to preliminary estimates, the amount needed for restoration could be £7.1 billion if MPs continue to work in the palace, or £3.5 billion if they move elsewhere for six years. Restoration of the palace is currently underway. .

Exterior of the palace

The Palace of Westminster has three towers. The largest and highest of them is the Victoria Tower, 98.5 meters high, located in the southwestern part of the palace; its construction was completed in 1858 and at that time it was the tallest non-religious building in the world. At the base of the tower is the Sovereign's Entrance, an archway 15 meters high and surrounded by statues. The rest of the tower is occupied by the parliamentary archives; they are located on 12 floors and contain about three million documents, including the originals of all Acts of Parliament since 1497. At the top of the cast-iron pyramidal roof there is a 22-meter flagpole.

At the northern end is the Elizabeth Tower, also known as Big Ben. It is only slightly inferior to the Victoria Tower in height (96 meters), but much thinner. It houses the Great Clock of Westminster, created by Edward John Dent en based on drawings by amateur watchmaker Edmund Beckett Denison in 1859. They show the time on four smoked glass dials with a diameter of 7 meters; at night, the dials are illuminated from the inside. The Elizabeth Tower was designed by Augustus Pugin. Above the clock is a bell tower with five bells; the largest of these, weighing 13.8 tons, is called Big Ben, and this name is often used to refer to the entire tower.

The octagonal Central Tower is 91 meters high and is located in the middle of the building above the Central Hall. It was conceived as a chimney for four hundred fireplaces located throughout the palace, but it turned out to be of little use for this task and serves more of a decorative function, serving as an axis for two towers at the edges of the building. Also, the role of chimneys is played by turrets located along the entire facade.

In the middle of the western facade of the palace, above one of the three entrances to the building, is the Tower of St. Stefan. At the ends of the façade facing the Thames are the Speaker's Tower (at the northern end) and the Chancellor's Tower (at the southern end).

Palace plan

The most magnificent entrance to the palace is the Sovereign's Entrance at the base of the Victoria Tower, leading to the Royal Porch (top left on the plan). Through it, the British monarch enters in a carriage for the annual opening ceremony of Parliament. Next is the Royal Staircase, leading up to the Norman Porch, and beyond it to the Queen's Robing Room. This room is the southern end (left on the plan) of the main axis of the palace, which includes the Central Hall and the meeting rooms of the Houses of Lords and Commons (on the plan to the left and right of the hall, respectively).

Royal Gallery

North of the Royal Changing Room is the Royal Gallery. This is one of the largest rooms in the palace (33.5 by 13.7 meters). It serves as a stage of the royal procession in the opening ceremony of Parliament, and is also used to address members of both Houses of Parliament when visiting foreign statesmen. The walls are decorated with two frescoes by Daniel Maclis: "The Death of Nelson" and "The Meeting of Wellington and Blücher". Immediately after the completion of the frescoes, they began to deteriorate due to high humidity and air pollution, and now they are almost monochrome. In addition to the frescoes, the gallery contains portraits of all the kings since Edward I, and there are statues of kings during whose reign major battles took place, the work of the sculptor John Burney Philip.

Chamber of the House of Lords

The Chamber of the House of Lords is a richly decorated room measuring 13.7 by 24.4 meters. Here, as in other rooms of the lords, the dominant color is red. On the south side of the room is the canopied throne where the British monarch sits during the Opening of Parliament ceremony. In front of the throne is the seat of the Lord Speaker (until 2006 - the Lord Chancellor), the so-called woolsack, a rectangular pillow stuffed with wool. Along the walls there are benches for peers, to the right of the Lord Speaker is the ecclesiastical side, to the left is the secular side. The spiritual side is occupied by the Lords Spiritual (archbishops and bishops) and members of the ruling party from among the Lords Secular. The secular side is occupied by members of opposition parties. Non-party peers (crossbenchers) occupy the benches opposite the Lord Speaker's seat.

Peers' lobbies

Adjacent to the Chamber of the House of Lords on the north side are the peer chambers and the vestibule, where members of the House of Lords can discuss issues in an informal setting. It is a square room, 12 meters on a side and 10 meters high, characterized by a marble floor with a Tudor rose in the middle and massive copper doors weighing 1.5 tons, separating the corridors from the House of Lords. Through the corridor of peers, the lobbies connect to the Central Hall.

Central hall

This is an octagonal room directly under the Central Tower. Here the corridors leading to the lobbies of the House of Lords and the House of Commons converge, through the western doors it opens into the hall of St. Stephen and the public entrance to the palace, and through the eastern ones - to the lower waiting room and the library. The diameter of the hall is 18 meters, and the height to the center of the vaulted ceiling is 25 meters. Above each of the four doors of the hall there is a mosaic depicting the patron saints of the nations that make up the United Kingdom: St. George for England, St. Andrew for Scotland, St. David for Wales and St. Patrick's Day for Northern Ireland.

Lobby of the House of Commons

The corridor and corridors of the House of Commons are located symmetrically to the corridor and lobbies of the peers. The couloirs are a cube with a side of 13.7 meters. The premises were heavily damaged by bombing in 1941 and were restored in a simplified style; the doorway leading to the Commons Chamber has been left unrepaired as a reminder of the horrors of war, and is flanked by statues of Winston Churchill and David Lloyd George, the prime ministers who led Britain through the Second and First World Wars respectively.

House of Commons Chamber

The House of Commons Chamber is located at the north end of the Palace of Westminster; this premises was destroyed in 1941 and restored under the direction of architect Giles Gilbert Scott in 1950. The decoration of the Chamber of the House of Commons is much more modest than that of the Chamber of Lords; prevails here green color. This color scheme (red for the upper house, green for the lower) is also used by other parliaments of the member countries of the British Commonwealth of Nations - India, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The dimensions of the hall are 14 by 20.7 meters, along the walls there are benches for members of the House of Commons, accommodating 427 of the 650 parliamentarians (in cases where the presence of all members of Parliament is required, those who do not fit on the benches stand at the ends of the hall). At the north end of the Chamber is the Speaker's chair, with the House table in front of it. Members of the ruling party (or coalition) sit on the benches to the right of the Speaker, while members of the opposition sit to the left.

Westminster Hall

Westminster Hall (also called Westminster Hall) is the oldest surviving part of the palace; its construction began in 1097 and was completed in 1099. In terms of architecture, its unique feature is its roof. The roof was originally supported by two rows of columns, but during the reign of Richard II this was replaced by a complex structure of oak rafters supported by trusses. Similar types of vaults (Hammerbeam roof) are characteristic of English medieval architecture, and Westminster Hall is the largest of its examples, the roof dimensions are 20.7 by 73.2 meters. It was completed in 1393 by the royal carpenter Hugh Herland. The area of ​​Westminster Hall is 1547 m²,

The Jewel Tower is a three-story building next to the Palace of Westminster. It was built in 1365-66 to store personal jewelry Edward III. It was originally surrounded by a moat filled with water from the Thames. The English monarchs used it until 1512, when after a fire the royal court moved to Whitehall. At the end of the 16th century, the Tower began to be used to store the archives of the House of Lords, thanks to which these archives survived the fire of 1834, unlike the archives of the House of Commons. After the fire, the documents were moved to the Victoria Tower, and the Jewel Tower housed (from 1869 to 1938) the Standard Weights and Measures Department. After World War II, the building was restored and became open to tourists; 30 thousand people visit it annually.

Palace of Westminster

The British Parliament building (Houses of Parliament), known to our compatriots also under another name - the Palace of Westminster, is currently the seat of two parliamentary chambers of England: the House of Lords and the House of Commons. Commons).

Palace of Westminster in London: history of Parliament and modern times

The most famous landmark of the Houses of Parliament is its tower - the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster, better known as Big Ben.

The Palace of Westminster began to serve as a stronghold of the monarchy in the mid-11th century, when King Edward the Confessor moved the royal court here and the monarchs' apartments were located in the center of London, near the River Thames.

In 1265, the British Parliament was created, consisting of two chambers: the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The House of Lords always met in the Palace of Westminster, but the House of Commons at that time did not have a permanent meeting place.

In 1530, the residence of the king (at that time he was Henry the Eighth) was moved to Whitehall Palace, and the House of Lords continued to meet in the Palace of Westminster. It was not until 1547 that the House of Commons also moved into the palace and Westminster received the status of the central seat of government. This state of affairs continues today.

If you want to see the Houses of Parliament from a full perspective, then you need to visit the London Eye, the city's Ferris wheel - you will have a magnificent view of the capital and the new Palace of Westminster. "Why new?" - you ask. Unfortunately, in 1834, a fire destroyed almost the entire building; only the Jewel Tower, the crypt, St. Stephens and Westminster Hall survived.


To rebuild the palace, an architectural competition was specially held. As a result, Sir Charles Barry and his assistant Augustus Welby Pugin received the right to develop an architectural project for the restoration of Westminster, which they did with success. The palace rose from the ashes in the same Gothic, and now in the neo-Gothic style and added to the ensemble those architectural structures that survived the fire. Construction took 30 years and was completely completed in 1870.

Today the Palace of Westminster includes:

  • Clock Tower
  • Victoria Tower
  • House of Commons
  • House of Lords
  • Westminster Hall
  • Lobby

Address: Westminster, London SW1A 0AA, UK, tel. +44 20 7219 3000

Big Ben

He is also called Big Ben. But in fact the correct name is the Clock Tower, at the top of which is the largest clock in England. The elegant design of Big Ben's creator, Charles Barry, still impresses the imagination today.

Initially, it (the Clock Tower) was called St. Stephen's Tower, but was soon renamed and received the name of the largest bell located inside it - Big Ben. If you are walking in the evening in the center of London and see that in The light at the top of Big Ben comes on, this means that Parliament is working in the Government building - the Palace of Westminster.

House of Commons and House of Lords

The building in which the House of Commons met was destroyed during the Second World War, its restoration was completed in 1950, the project was designed by Giles Gilbert Scott, today you can admire the neo-Gothic style of the new House of Commons.

If we look at and compare the interior decoration of the chambers, we immediately get the feeling that the interiors of the House of Commons, made in green tones, look rather modest and austere compared to the interiors of the House of Lords.

The time that has passed since the formation of the Parliament of England has been more favorable to the House of Commons: today there is a great influence on decisions regarding the future of the country, passions run high here, and the ruling party sits opposite the opposition at a distance of exactly two swords, at a distance of one human leg , which forces parliamentarians to be self-possessed and persistent.

Central Lobby

In this room - the Central Lobby - people gather who have come to defend their interests before the government and parliament, this is where they can make a speech and convince parliament to take this or that decision, which is necessary either for ordinary citizens of the country, or for some sector of the economy, or for a territorial community. Because in this building every British citizen can declare the protection and satisfaction of their interests, it was called the Lobby, from the English verb “to lobby” - to lobby, to protect interests.

Victoria Tower

The tower, which is located opposite Big Ben, is called Victoria Tower. It was built in 1860 and houses the archives of parliamentary decisions dating back to 1497. The Flag of the United Kingdom is raised above this tower during parliamentary sessions (its height is 98 meters).

Rebuilt in 1840 after destruction in the Middle Ages, the Palace of Westminster today stands as an outstanding example of neo-Gothic architecture. The new Palace of Westminster is one of the landmarks of the English capital. It is located in the heart of London on the banks of the Thames and is its architectural center.

Location of the Palace of Westminster

Writer H.G. Wells wrote in 1911: “To me London is the most interesting, the most beautiful, the most amazing city in the world". Many who have at least once visited the capital agree with him. Today's London is large international center, the area of ​​the city is about 625 square meters. miles.

In ancient times, the site of Westminster was impassable. However, the swamp was dried up, and a royal palace was erected in its place. The palace was located near the Thames, next to Westminster Abbey, a few miles from the City.

History of the Palace of Westminster

The Palace of Westminster, one of the most famous buildings in the world, houses parliament: the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

The first palace was built for King Edward the Confessor, who ascended the throne in 1042. Forty-five years later, Westminster Hall was built for William Rufus, son of William the Confessor, the most elegant hall in the city, where a feast was held in 1099. In the 13th century, Henry 3rd added the painted chamber, and during his reign the first parliament (from the French verb "parler" - to speak) was convened.

On January 20, 1265, the first English parliament convened at the Palace of Westminster, convened by Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester. In order to give the established order a semblance of legitimacy, Montfort put forward the initiative to create a council in which, along with the rest, the third estate would be represented. Convened on January 20, 1265, this council very quickly developed into a permanent body called Parliament.

After 30 years, parliament became more democratic, because representatives were no longer appointed, but elected. By 1550, members of the House of Commons and House of Lords met separately with Members of Parliament in the graceful chapel of St Stephen.

The Palace of Westminster was destroyed by fire in 1834. A special commission was created to restore this masterpiece of architecture, and soon a competition was announced for the development of the project, in which about a hundred people took part. As a result, ninety-seven options were considered, of which the project of Charles Barry (1795-1860) was recognized as the best. It was he who was entrusted with the restoration, which he did in a magnificent Gothic style with the help of Augustus Pugin, who performed the picturesque ornamental work. St Stephen's Chapel was renamed St Stephen's Hall. It's a wide hallway lined with paintings, marble sculptures and a lagoon sign where the Speaker's chair once stood.

The preparatory work dragged on for 3 years - it was necessary to build terraces on the banks of the Thames. It was only in 1840 that work began on the parliament building itself. The construction of the palace was completed in 1888.

The crypt and Westminster Hall survive, but the adjacent House of Commons was again destroyed during the Second World War due to heavy bombing German army. The new reconstruction was led by Gil Gilbert Scott. Restoration was a difficult and expensive process, as the highest quality wood was required. The palace was restored by 1950.

Features of the architecture and interior of the Palace of Westminster

The unusual layout and, as a result, the unparalleled volumetric-spatial composition of the palace are explained not only by the complex structure of the government office, but also by the inclusion in the overall volume of the building of a national relic - Westminster Hall - a masterpiece of English Gothic of the 11th-14th centuries and part of the walls that was badly damaged by fire of the medieval chapel of St. Stephen.

The total area of ​​the entire area occupied by the palace is 3.2 hectares. Stretching along the Thames for 300 meters, the complex includes more than 1,100 rooms, 100 staircases, and is connected by a corridor whose length is almost 3 kilometers. In addition to the various buildings in the palace itself, there are 11 more courtyards.

The palace is decorated very skillfully: outwardly, despite its large size, it does not seem bulky. The palace is decorated with two main towers - the 102-meter-high tower and the 98-meter-high St. Stephen's Clock Tower. The clock on the latter has four dials, each 9 meters in diameter. The creation of these was led by the famous astronomer Eri. Time is struck by an hour bell, which weighs almost 14 tons. This is the famous Big Ben. They are named after Benjamin Hall, who was the Minister of Public Works. It was he who supervised the installation of the clock. People nicknamed him Big Ben (Big Benn) for his considerable weight. At first the bell was called Big Ben, then the clock, and now this is the name for the entire tower, which has become the hallmark of London.

The Victoria Tower houses the Royal Passage. The royal cortege moved through it on special occasions.

A whole complex of premises adjoins the House of Lords. In ancient times, the monarch ascended the Royal Staircase to the Norman Portico and from there went to the Hall of the Royal Robe. The Hall of the Royal Robe is still decorated with paintings by William Dick depicting scenes from stories about King Arthur. The Royal Gallery contains statues of rulers, ranging from King Alfred the Great to a sculpture of Queen Anne. From the Royal Gallery, the monarch walked into the Prince's Room with a statue of Queen Victoria located in it, and then solemnly entered the Lord's Chamber.

The most richly decorated room in the Palace of Westminster is the House of Lords. Decorative elements include wood and stone carvings, many paintings and frescoes painted by many great masters. The ceiling is covered with various heraldic emblems. Colored stained glass windows are inserted into the windows.

The House of Lords and the House of Commons are connected by several halls. The Hall of Peers is decorated with the coats of arms of the six royal dynasties. Through the Hall of Peers you can get to Central Hall, having an octagonal shape. As in the Royal Gallery, there are sculptural portraits of the royal family. The Commons corridor leads into the Commons Hall, behind which is the House of Commons. It is decorated less magnificently than the House of Lords. The walls are decorated with red oak, and there are balconies on the sides for the press and spectators. Deputies are seated on central benches upholstered in green leather. Traditionally, representatives of the ruling party sit on the right, and representatives of the opposition sit on the left. Not far from the entrance there is a speaker's chair surrounded by bars.

In the center of the palace is the oldest part - Westminster Hall. It was built in 1097. It was destroyed many times, but was restored the same as it was from ancient times. The dimensions of the hall are quite impressive: length - 88 meters, width - 28 meters, height - 21 meters. Westminster Hall is connected to both chambers through long corridors.

In addition to the main halls, the palace has many rooms for commissions and committees.

Until recently, the Palace of Westminster was only a government residence, but since 2004 it still operates as a museum. Excursions are organized during the period summer holidays English Parliament - from August 7 to September 16. Tourists begin their tour of the palace from the royal dressing room, the royal gallery, then enter the debate chambers and end the tour in the oldest part of the palace - Westminster Hall, built in the 11th century. Here visitors can view an exhibition on the history of parliamentary democracy in England and look into the souvenir shop.

Westminster is one of the centers of political life in the United Kingdom and a common name for the British government system. The Palace of Westminster has been renamed the Houses of Parliament since 1970 and is part of World Heritage UNESCO since 1987. One of the palace towers, often called by the name of its main bell, Big Ben, is an iconic landmark of London and the United Kingdom as a whole, one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city and an emblem of parliamentary democracy.

Modern purpose and management

The entire complex is the seat of the bicameral British Parliament. The building is located on the north side of the Thames in Westminster, central region London. The castle takes its name from the neighboring Westminster Abbey. The old medieval building was the residence and residence of English kings. The Palace of Westminster has always belonged to the monarch by right of the crown and still retains its original status royal residence for ceremonial purposes. But the monarch appears here briefly and only on special occasions. The building is governed by committees from each House of Parliament, with reporting to the Lord Speaker.

Old Palace

The first royal castle has stood on this site since the 11th century and was the residence of the sovereigns until fire destroyed most of the complex in 1512. Since that incident, Westminster has served as the meeting place for the English Parliament, which has met there since the 13th century. Also, the halls of the Palace of Westminster in London were used as the site of the Royal Courts of Justice. The newly rebuilt premises were destroyed by the largest fire that struck the palace in 1834. After this, very few medieval buildings remained: Westminster Hall, dating back to the construction of 1097; chapel of St. Stephen and St. Mary Undercroft, as well as the separate three-story Jewel Tower.

New complex

In the 1836 competition for the palace reconstruction project, preference was given to the architect Charles Barry. He proposed creating the appearance of the new building in the neo-Gothic style with a perpendicular configuration inherent in English buildings of the 14th-16th centuries. The remains of the old palace, with the exception of the Tower of Jewels, were organically incorporated into the new, much larger complex. It contains more than 1,100 rooms with a total area of ​​112,476 m2, arranged symmetrically around two rows of courtyards, and the façade on the Thames side reaches 300 meters. The architect Augustus Northmore Pugin, an authority in the field of Gothic construction, collaborated with Charles Barry, who also designed the palace interior.

Construction of Britain's Palace of Westminster began in 1840 and took 30 years, with long delays and significant cost overruns. During construction, both leading architects died. Interior work also continued intermittently into the 20th century. After the Second World War major renovations were carried out, including the reconstruction of the House of Commons, which had been damaged by the 1941 bombing.

The unique appearance of the modern structure is created by three main towers, which, according to the architectural design of Charles Barry and Northmore Pugin, dominate the building and are the most memorable elements of the complex.

The southwestern corner of the Palace is occupied by Victoria Tower - the tallest (98.5 m) tower of the Palace of Westminster. The large square structure as a symbol of the legislative institution, with the royal entrance to the palace and fireproof storage for the parliamentary archives, was an iconic part of Barry's competition design. Initially, the architect planned to call the structure the Royal Tower and redid the drawings several times. With each design change, the estimated height of the structure gradually increased, and upon its completion in 1858 it was the tallest secular building in the world.

The tower houses the Sovereign's Entrance - an arched castle gate designed for the arrival of the monarch, who annually opens Parliament or presides over other state events, at the Palace of Westminster. The high 15-meter arch is richly decorated with sculptures, including statues of Saints George, Andrew, Patrick, as well as Queen Victoria herself. The main building of Victoria Tower houses three million documents from the Parliamentary Archives, stored on 8.8 kilometers of steel shelving located on 12 floors of Victoria Tower. It contains the main copies of all Acts of Parliament since 1497 and important manuscripts such as the original Bill of Rights or the death warrant of King Charles I. The top of the pyramidal cast-iron roof is occupied by a 22-meter flagship spire, on which the Royal Standard develops during the sovereign's presence in the palace . On all other days, the Union Flag is raised on the flagpole.

Elizabeth Tower

At the northern end of the palace stands the Elizabeth Tower, London's most popular and iconic building, better known to the world as Big Ben. The 96-meter-high structure is not much shorter than the Victoria Tower, but much more elegant and narrower. Designed in the neo-Gothic style by the architect Pugin, the structure was erected after the death of its author. Until 2012, the building was known as the Clock Tower, and its current name was given to it in honor of the “diamond” 60th anniversary of the reign of Elizabeth II. The entire structure looks elegant and graceful.

Elizabeth Tower houses the Great Clock of the Palace of Westminster, built by John Dent from designs by amateur clockmaker Lord Edmund Denison. In service since 1859, the movement impresses with its precision, which is considered impossible for a 19th-century watch. The time is displayed by a 4.3 meter long hour hand and a 2.7 meter long minute hand on four 7 meter long milk glass discs, which are backlit at night. In a documentary about the Victoria Tower, the BBC compared the clock face to a giant rose, its petals edged in gold.

Tower bells and lantern

Five bells hang above the clock on the bell tower. Four of them strike every quarter of the hour, marked by the Westminster chimes. The largest, the Great Bell of Westminster, commonly called Big Ben, rings every hour. The first bell with this name broke during testing and was recast. The current Big Ben also acquired a crack over time, which gives the battle its characteristic sound. Weighing 13.8 tonnes, this bell is the third largest in the UK.

At the top of Elizabeth Tower is the Ayrton Light, an Ayrton lantern named after the famous English politician. The purpose of the lantern relates to interesting facts Palace of Westminster. It shines during the evening proceedings of the Houses of Parliament and was installed in 1885 at the request of Queen Victoria so that she could observe the sitting of the Legislative Assembly from Buckingham Palace.

Central tower

In the middle of the complex, directly above the Central Entrance Hall, stands an octagonal tower, the shortest of the three. It was added at the insistence of Dr David Reid, who was responsible for the ventilation of the new Houses of Parliament, and was designed to extract the smoke from the palace's four hundred fireplaces. However, since the structure itself offered an opportunity to improve the external design of the palace, Barry chose a spire form for it to balance the massiveness of the side towers. In the end, the structure failed to serve its purpose at all, but became notable as the first time mechanical services had a real impact on architectural design.

Excursions

If appearance Since the Houses of Parliament, especially Big Ben, are one of London's most popular attractions, a clear view inside the Palace of Westminster is not available. However, there are several options for visiting the premises, but even then access to the halls will remain very limited.

UK residents can receive a ticket from the MP representing their region and take a seat in the viewing gallery of the House of Commons. Or one of the Lords has the right to grant a pass to the presence of a visitor in the gallery of the House of Lords. Citizens of the United Kingdom or UK educational institutions may request a Member of Parliament or Lord to give a tour of the Palace of Westminster premises during sessions. But only a very small part of the palace interior can still be visited, and this system is temporarily suspended for foreigners.

You can take advantage of excursions, open to everyone, during the two summer months, when parliament is not in session and is on vacation. But a place for such a visit must be booked in advance, since the number of applicants significantly exceeds the number of places in excursion groups.

Address: UK, London, Westminster
Start of construction: 1840
Completion of construction: 1860
Architect: Charles Barry, Augustus Welby Northmore
Coordinates: 51°29"58.6"N 0°07"27.9"W

Content:

Short description

View of the palace from the Ferris wheel

Quite recently, one of the sociological services conducted a rather interesting and, at first glance, strange study. The company's specialists visited most shops and small shops in the city, where they calculated the percentage of... refrigerator magnets that depict the main attractions of London. Surprisingly, 85% of these popular inexpensive souvenirs depict the Palace of Westminster in London. It’s strange, strange, if only because in the capital of Great Britain there is also Buckingham Palace, where the legendary Queen of England, the “London Eye” lives, and a huge number of attractions. But the overwhelming majority of tourists are invited to preserve the memory of the capital of the United Kingdom, nevertheless, by the Palace of Westminster.

Before traveling to London, you don’t even have to rely on statistics from sociological services, don’t pay attention to tourist brochures, just go to any social network and look at photos of your friends who have already visited the capital of England. There is no doubt that most of their photos in London were taken with the Palace of Westminster in the background. Near the building where the Parliament of England sits, as mentioned above, there is always a huge crowd of people. It seems as if a festival of peoples of the world is taking place next to the Palace of Westminster.

View of the palace from the opposite side of the Thames

Different speech is heard from everywhere: English, German, French, Japanese, Chinese and Russian merge into a single, continuous hum. All this once again proves that the Palace of Westminster is not only one of the main attractions of England, but, without a doubt, of the entire vast Old World.

Palace of Westminster - ancient history and legendary event

The first Palace of Westminster, according to surviving documents, was built in an uninhabited and swampy area in 1042. It was erected by order of the rulers of the kingdom instead of the Tower, which, with the expansion of the city, somehow incredibly ended up in the poorest quarter of the capital. One has only to imagine what the authorities of the capital experienced among the poor, who still “smelled bad.” This state of affairs simply forced the main building of the city to be moved away from the impoverished “rabble” of London. How could monarchs rule the country in such a terrible place? The new residence in a marshy area, from the windows of which the situation in which England found itself in those distant times was not so clearly visible, was almost completely completed by 1042. Immediately after its construction was completed, King Edward and his family moved there. Looking ahead a little, I would like to immediately note that the old building had nothing in common with the modern majestic Palace of Westminster, which is a symbol of London and which is depicted in tens of thousands of paintings and professional photographs.

View of the palace from Lambeth Bridge

The Palace of Westminster was constantly growing: 45 years after its construction was completed, it was decided to add Westminster Hall to the architectural structure for the son of the legendary William the Conqueror. The son of the great commander, who won many victories over his enemies in his lifetime, was called William the Red II. It was this man who decided that the palace must have the most luxurious hall, in which it would not be a shame to organize magnificent receptions and even conduct coronation ceremonies in front of representatives of other countries. In addition to these ceremonies, by order of William the Red II, the highest body of the judiciary in England began to hold permanent meetings in Westminster Hall. Supreme Court countries. By the way, Westminster Hall, built just under 1,000 (!) years ago, is the only building that has survived to this day. According to modern architects, Westminster Hall was designed and built in the Gothic style. By the way, even the most ordinary tourist, who has absolutely nothing to do with architecture, can easily determine this: just compare Westminster Hall and other buildings of the palace.

View of the palace from Westminster Bridge

The Palace of Westminster is interesting not only for its architecture (whether new or old). Back in the 13th century, a very important document was signed here, which played a key role in the formation of the political structure of England. It is according to this document that many prestigious colleges are currently teaching students what a modern, secure democratic state should look like and how to get rid of bureaucracy and tyranny. It was in the 13th century that King John the Landless of England, under public pressure, signed a decree that went down in history as the Magna Carta.

Naturally, there was no talk of any anarchy. All the “liberties” consisted in the fact that the king was deprived of the right to rule the country alone: ​​since the 13th century, many important decisions regarding foreign and domestic policy were made by parliament, which was elected by the people! Monarchs became only a kind of symbol of the country, something like a coat of arms or flag. Even taxes were introduced and calculated by parliament, which was simply a salvation for the impoverished population of the country. For this reason, the Palace of Westminster can be considered not only the “calling card” of London, its main attraction, an architectural and historical monument, but also a symbol of the constitutional parliamentary monarchy. It is this model of power that is currently considered the most effective in the world.

Westminster Bridge with the Palace of Westminster in the background

We can talk about the construction of the Palace of Westminster and its expansion for an infinitely long time: the people constantly supported improvements to the building, because parliament sat there, which at one time saved it from the tyranny of the monarchs. The thing is that in 1834, almost the entire Palace of Westminster, built in 1042... burned to the ground. Until the 19th century, two buildings remained from the former majestic building where the Parliament of England met: the same Westminster Hall and the Jewel Tower. True, the last room, which served as a treasury, was built only in the 14th century, by order, and then by subsequent approval by Parliament (!), King Edward III.

Palace of Westminster - a new story

Restoring the building for Parliament was an urgent matter: immediately after the fire, the English government announced a competition for the best plan for the new Palace of Westminster. It was won without much difficulty by Charles Barry, who presented a grandiose and unique project of its kind. True, Barry understood perfectly well that it was impossible for him to cope with all the work alone, so he invited Augustus Welby Pugin to cooperate, with whom he built the very Palace of Westminster, the view of which can be enjoyed by any tourist visiting the capital of England these days.

View of the palace at night

According to the plan of Charles Barry, it was decided to build a new building for parliament in the neo-Gothic style (new Gothic style). To say that the construction of the Palace of Westminster took place in record time and “without a hitch” would be a lie. There were difficulties, and they constantly arose for the architects and the huge number of workers involved in the construction of the facility. The construction site had to be prepared for more than three years, and the construction of the Palace of Westminster itself took just over 48 years (from 1840 to 1888).

Over such a long period of time, not only the Palace of Westminster was rebuilt, but also St. Stephen's Tower, which can be found in our time on a huge number of posters, calendars and other printed materials. For those who have not yet been brought to London, and who were too lazy (or maybe just didn’t have time) to get acquainted with its history and attractions, let us clarify that St. Stephen’s Tower is the same famous and legendary Big Ben. Almost every civilized inhabitant of our planet undoubtedly knows about this name of the tower.

By the way, despite the fact that the Palace of Westminster and Big Ben were built relatively recently, there is no exact evidence of where the name “Big Ben” came from for St. Stephen’s Tower. There are only versions, and versions, as you know, are quite easy to refute.

View of the eastern façade of the palace

Some historians claim that Benjamin Hall, affectionately known as Ben, was a huge foreman for the construction of the Palace of Westminster and St. Stephen's Tower. Others claim that Big Ben got his “nickname” in honor of the popular boxer. However, the most interesting and, at the same time, most confusing version says that the tower was named after one representative of parliament. His name, by the way, was also Benjamin and his last name was Hall. He went to the podium and began to explain at length what the clock tower should be called. He talked for so long that he became confused historical facts, and no one listened to his muttering anymore. Finally, after an hour and a half, he ended his tirade, which made no sense at all. The parliament breathed a sigh of relief and one of its members asked the speaker a question: “So what do you propose in the end?” Benjamin Hall was confused, and someone shouted: “Let's name the tower after this long and boring speech - Big Ben!” The joke was well received and the tower got its name. Which of these three versions to believe, everyone decides for himself. It is worth repeating that not a single official evidence in favor of this or that opinion has been found these days.

Quite a long time passed before the clock was installed on St. Stephen's Tower. The delays were due to the requirements of the London authorities. The clock should fall behind or advance by no more than 1 second per day. All the most respected watchmakers simply laughed at this condition: 19th-century technology simply did not allow the creation of a giant clock that had to be placed on a high tower and run with extreme precision. Only Edmund Beckett Denison took up the development of the plan, and in five years he managed to fulfill all the requirements. The clockwork of Big Ben kept pace by more than a second per day. By the way, the weight of the watch, designed by Edmund Beckett Denison, is just over 5,000 kilograms.

A little bit won't hurt official information: the height of St. Stephen's Tower or Big Ben (as you like) is almost 96 and a half meters. Many may think that this is the tallest building architectural ensemble called the Palace of Westminster. However, this opinion is far from the truth, the most high tower The palace is the Victoria Tower, its height is 102 meters. Some tourist brochures indicate a different figure - 98.4 meters, but it has nothing to do with reality. The tower, named after Victoria, was built so huge for only one purpose, to fit in it the entire archive of documents considered by the Parliament of England. Big Ben and the Victoria Tower, however, like other rooms, are made entirely of fireproof materials: the fire of 1834 in the Palace of Westminster remains forever in the memory of Londoners.

View of the palace from Parliament Square

During World War II, the Palace of Westminster in London became a prime target for Nazi pilots. Hitting him with a bomb was an honor for every Luftwaffe ace. For this reason main symbol London, where Parliament met and where Prime Minister Winston Churchill made his fiery speeches, was seriously damaged. The Palace of Westminster, which, as mentioned above, is a symbol of the constitutional parliamentary monarchy, was completely reconstructed in 1950. It cannot be said that the building suffered only minor damage; on the contrary, the damage to the Palace of Westminster was serious: it was possible to completely revive it in 5 years only thanks to the huge budget and the heroism of the English workers. Alas, bombs also hit the legendary Big Ben. The clock mechanism “suffered a serious malfunction”; it began to lag by as much as 2 seconds per day. The British solved the problem quite quickly and simply: all they did was attach a coin to a huge pendulum. The weight of just one penny affected Big Ben's clock and it started running again with extreme accuracy.

Palace of Westminster in London - short tour

The phrase " short tour" in the subtitle of the material does not mean at all that there is nothing to see in the Palace of Westminster. On the contrary, it is simply not possible to describe all its rooms, luxurious halls, corridors and, of course, Big Ben in one article. Trying to find a palace on our vast planet that could be compared with Westminster is a thankless task: it has no equal and, according to modern architects, there will not be in the near foreseeable future.

View of the eastern façade of the palace from Westminster Bridge

11 courtyards, each of which is unique, just over 100 staircases, corridors whose total length exceeds five kilometers and 1,200 (!) rooms - where else in the world can you find such a scale and such splendor? The area of ​​the palace is huge, but thanks to the neo-Gothic style it does not seem like a massive bulk; on the contrary, it creates the impression of “lightness” and fits organically into modern London. Although, it would be more correct to say that modern London is in harmony with the Palace of Westminster.

Parliament, which is perhaps the most famous in the whole world, consists of two chambers: the House of Commons and the House of Lords of England. They are located at different ends of the building and are connected by several gigantic halls, between which there are also corridors. It will take a long time to walk from one chamber of the Palace of Westminster to another. However, a journey through these halls and corridors turns into a real museum tour! The walls of the rooms connecting the chambers are decorated with wall paintings. Most of the paintings, which depict almost the entire history of Foggy Albion, starting from the reign of King Arthur, belong to the brushes of the most famous artists in the world. They, according to art critics and numerous guides, have no price - they are priceless.

Monument to Richard the Lionheart

We can talk endlessly about the sculptures, stunning stucco moldings and gold decoration of the premises. It is simply impossible to describe all 1,200 rooms and numerous corridors in any material or even in a series of television programs. It is only worth noting that The richest and most beautiful room in the entire Palace of Westminster is the House of Lords of England. It is here that important decisions for the country are considered (but not yet made), and it is there that the Lords make their fiery speeches. The House of Lords does not have a speaker; his role is played by a bag of wool. For those who don't know, in ancient times England was the main exporter of sheep's wool, which brought the lion's share of income to its budget. In memory of these times, the “speaker” of the House of Lords was made into an ordinary “piece of wool.”

It was decided to decorate the House of Commons a little more modestly: after all, the Lords do not sit there. This is where the most important decisions for the country are made. Representatives of the ruling party and the opposition sit in the House of Commons at the Palace of Westminster. There is a specially made distance between these stocks, which is equal to the length of two swords extended in the hand. As many have already guessed, the architects provided this “corridor” for a reason: this way, representatives of the opposition and the ruling party will not be able to hit their opponents with a sword. In England, political opponents are not beaten with fists in the House of Commons, but we're talking about about a country in which a constitutional parliamentary monarchy has won, and the representatives of the people in the House of Commons are somewhat different from the deputies sitting in their halls in the post-Soviet space.

Victoria Tower

By the way, in 2004 it was decided to open the Palace of Westminster to the people. Tourists who come to London will be able to personally see all the magnificent halls and even watch how efficiently the Lords work in their rich chamber. The work process in the House of Commons is not hidden from prying eyes either. True, it’s boring to watch the representatives of this chamber: you won’t see any fist fights, throwing eggs, or explosions of firecrackers there.

While the Lords and Commons are on holiday, a must see is the legendary and preserved Westminster Hall, built for the son of William the Conqueror. By the way, it was in this building that a memorial service was held for the “greatest Briton” in the entire history of Foggy Albion, Winston Churchill.