Westminster hall. Palaces and castles of England: the Palace of Westminster (Palace of Westminster). Free debates in Parliament

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Royal residence and symbol of parliamentarism, a Gothic building erected in the 19th century, an architectural masterpiece and a labyrinth of stairs and passages, a collection of art treasures and a state archive. All this is the Palace of Westminster, a real tangle of contradictions, surprisingly embodying the imperial spirit in stone, combined with the desire for freedom. In terms of recognition, it is quite comparable with the Egyptian pyramids or the Moscow Kremlin. And it must be admitted that the British are rightfully proud of their Parliament House.

A bit of history

There is a suspicion that on the site of the present Palace of Westminster once stood the temple of Apollo, erected by the founders of Laundanum - Roman legionnaires on the swampy island of Thorney at the confluence of the Tyburn River with the Thames. The ruler of Denmark, England and Norway, Knud the Great, was the first to establish his residence here around 1016, then it went to the Saxon and Norman kings. Their vassals first met here for a council in 1265.

At the beginning of the reign of Henry VIII, the building almost completely burned down, the king moved to Whitehall, and the deputies remained in the ashes. Another fire occurred in 1834, after which the architect Charles Barry built the current magnificent neo-Gothic palace, known throughout the world.

What to see

A huge building of 1200 rooms, connected by 3 km of corridors and hundreds of stairs, stretches along the Thames and seems to float above the water. Lancet windows, high towers and turrets, stained-glass windows and statues - all the signs of neo-Gothic are evident. If you look from the side of the river, then on the right rises the Elizabeth Tower, familiar to everyone as Big Ben. Her clock has been striking the time since 1859.

On the left, the facade is completed by the Victoria Tower - the State Archives. For the sake of ensuring the safety of documents, it was erected on a cast-iron frame. On the side you can see the lancet Entrance of the sovereign, 15 m high, through which the monarch enters the Parliament building to perform the annual opening ceremony of the regular session. At this time, his standard is raised on the flagpole, on other days the British banner is visible above the tower.

Westminster Hall, a masterpiece of wooden architecture, miraculously survived from all the fires. Its grandiose vaults are supported not by columns, but by complex arched brackets built by the carpenter Hugh Erland in 1393. Coronations took place here, royal courts worked, the famous trials of Charles I, Thomas More, and arsonist Guy Fawkes took place here.

Parliament House is open to tourists on Saturdays and between sessions. Tours are conducted by appointment, visitors inspect the meeting rooms of the House of Lords and the House of Commons, their corridors, decorated with statues of English monarchs and generals, the room where the queen puts on regalia and jewelry before going to the deputies, the hall with portraits of all the wives of Henry VIII.

Practical information

Address: London, Westminster. Website (for impudence).

How to get there: by metro to st. Westminster, on buses No. 148, 211 to the stop. Parliament Square or №№ 12, 53, 159, 453 to the stop. Westminster Station Parliament Square.

Opening hours from 9:00 to 17:00, detailed information on the website of the palace.

Ticket price for adults is 28 GBP, for pensioners and students - 23 GBP, for children over 5 years old - 12 GBP. Prices on the page are for November 2018.

Rebuilt in 1840 after being destroyed in the Middle Ages, the Palace of Westminster today serves as an outstanding example of neo-Gothic architecture. The new Palace of Westminster is one of the sights 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

The writer HG Wells wrote in 1911: "For me, London is the most interesting, the most beautiful, the most wonderful city in the world." Many who have ever visited the capital agree with him. Today's London is a major international center, the area of ​​the city is about 625 sq. miles.

In the place of Westminster in ancient times it was impassable. However, the swamp was dried up, and a royal palace was erected in its place. The palace was close to 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 came to the throne in 1042. Forty-five years later, for William Rufus, the son of William the Confessor, Westminster Hall was built - the most elegant hall in the city, where a feast was held in 1099. In the 13th century, Henry III added a painted chamber, and during his reign the first parliament was convened (from the French verb "parler" - to speak).

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

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

The Palace of Westminster was destroyed by fire in 1834. To restore this masterpiece of architecture, a special commission was created, 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. Restoration was entrusted to him, which he did in a magnificent Gothic style with the help of Augustus Pugin, who completed the picturesque ornamental work. St. Stephen's Chapel was renamed St. Stephen's Hall. It is a wide corridor lined with paintings, marble sculptures, and a lagoon marker where the speaker's chair used to be.

The preparatory work dragged on for 3 years - it took to build terraces on the banks of the Thames. Only in 1840 did work begin on the Parliament building itself. The construction of the palace was completed in 1888.

The crypt and Westminster Hall survived, but the adjacent House of Commons was again destroyed during World War II due to heavy bombing by the German army. The new reconstruction was led by Gil Gilbert Scott. Restoration was a difficult and costly process, as the highest quality timber 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 and spatial composition of the palace are explained not only by the complex structure of the government institution, but also by the inclusion in the total 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 heavily damaged by the fire of the medieval chapel of St. Stephen.

The total area of ​​​​the entire area occupied by the palace is 3.2 hectares. Spread along the Thames for 300 meters, the complex includes more than 1,100 rooms, 100 stairs, and connects it all with a corridor, whose length is almost 3 kilometers. In addition to 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 decoration of the palace are two main towers - a tower with a height of 102 meters and a clock tower of St. Stephen with a height of 98 meters. The clock on the latter has four dials with a diameter of 9 meters each. The well-known astronomer Erie supervised the creation of these. Time is beaten off by the hour bell, which weighs almost 14 tons. This is the famous Big Ben. They are named after Benjamin Hall, who was Minister of Public Works. It was he who supervised the setting of the clock. Big Ben (big Benn) was nicknamed by the people for his rather big weight. At first, the bell was called Big Ben, then the clock, and now the whole tower, which has become the hallmark of London, is called so.

The Royal Passage is located in the Victoria Tower. Through it, on solemn occasions, the royal cortege moved.

A whole complex of premises adjoins the House of Lords. In ancient times, the monarch climbed the Royal Stairs to the Norman portico and from there went to the hall of the Royal mantle. The Hall of the Royal Robe is still adorned with paintings by William Dick depicting scenes from the stories of King Arthur. The Royal Gallery has statues of rulers, ranging from King Alfred the Great to the sculpture of Queen Anne. From the Royal Gallery, the monarch passed 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. Among the decorative elements are 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 the Peers is decorated with the coats of arms of six royal dynasties. Through the Hall of Peers one can get into the Central Hall, which has an octagonal shape. As in the Royal Gallery, there are sculptural portraits of the royal family. The Commons Corridor leads into the Hall of Commons, behind which is the House of Commons. It is less pompously decorated than the House of Lords. The walls are finished with red oak, on the sides there are balconies for the press and spectators. The deputies sit on the central benches upholstered in green leather. Traditionally, representatives of the ruling party sit on the right, and the opposition on the left. Not far from the entrance is the speaker's chair, surrounded by bars.

In the center of the palace is the oldest part - Westminster Hall. It was built in 1097. Many times it was destroyed, but 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 has been operating as a museum. Tours are organized during the summer holidays of the English Parliament - from August 7 to September 16. Tourists begin their inspection 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 see an exhibition on the history of parliamentary democracy in England and look into the gift shop.

The Palace of Westminster in London (in English “The Palace of Westminster”) is the modern face of the United Kingdom, which is proud of its thousand-year history. If Buckingham Palace is the residence of the Queen, then the British Parliament sits in this place. The building fascinates with its grandeur and magnificent panorama that extends over the Thames. This Victorian gothic gem is a constant draw for tourists and Londoners alike. Each of them seeks to plunge into history and see the Palace of Westminster close by, where the main attractions of Great Britain are located: Big Ben, the Royal Gallery and Westminster Hall.

Panorama of the Palace of Westminster

History of the Palace of Westminster

Have you ever wondered why Westminster got that name? Its history goes back to the distant 11th century, when the Anglo-Saxons dominated these lands. They were the first to create a temple here, originally called the western church, that is, “west minster”. Over time, this name spread to the entire area located on the banks of the Thames.

In 1066, the first ever coronation of Duke William took place at Westminster. He turned the palace into his residence. Since then, all monarchs, except for Edward V and Edward VIII, held the ceremony here.

Since the 13th century, the palace has been the meeting place of the British government. And in 1512, after a massive fire in the building, King Henry VIII decides to completely transfer Westminster into the possession of the Houses of Parliament. Since then, the palace has become the center of the political life of the country. However, most of the solemn ceremonies continue to be held here.

During its existence, Westminster was repeatedly destroyed. In 1834, part of the palace was destroyed by another fire. The decision of the Parliament to stay in the building simply saved it from decline, because a partial reconstruction was carried out here so that the Chambers could continue to work.

Another fatal page in the history of the parliament building was World War II. The numerous bombings that London experienced could not but affect the condition of the building. However, Westminster was able to recover fairly quickly. Already in the 50s, the Palace of Westminster, the photo of which is given below, acquired its usual appearance.

Now the palace includes:

• westminster hall where celebrations and various exhibitions are held
• tower of royal jewels, where the hereditary jewels of the British royal dynasty are kept, and an exposition dedicated to the history of Parliament
• Church of the Intercession of St. Mary to which only parliamentarians have access. Here they are allowed to hold marriage ceremonies and baptisms.
• Corridor and meeting rooms separated for staff offices.

Another integral part of the Palace of Westminster is the towers located on its territory. Designed once as a chimney, the Central Tower now has over 400 fireplaces. The Victoria Tower continues to serve as the Parliamentary Archives, with over 3 million documents. Yet the most famous among them is the Elizabeth Tower, which flaunts the work of Sir Edward Beckett - Big Ben.

To the west of the palace is the famous Westminster Abbey. British kings, prominent scientists and politicians found their last refuge in it. Here marriages were born that continued the British royal line, and baptisms of the heirs of the crown were held, changing the course of history. The monastery was built over 500 years, starting from the 13th century, but the first mention of it dates back to the 7th. It is here that you can fully feel the atmosphere that reigned at the coronation of British monarchs. After all, this place has witnessed all the outstanding ceremonies since the 11th century.

Tour of the Palace of Westminster

The Palace of Westminster inside surprises with its grandeur and size. It has 1100 rooms, 100 stairwells, and this despite the presence of only 4 floors, as well as almost 5 kilometers of corridors. The lower, so-called basement floor contains offices, dining rooms and bars. The first floor, which is also called the main one, includes the main halls of the palace: libraries, a meeting room, and a lobby. Two more floors are used for office space for parliament workers.

Every year in November, the opening ceremony of Parliament takes place in Westminster. The monarch is always present on it. During the opening, it passes through the Royal Stairs, the Normandy Veranda, the Royal Gallery, the Prince's Chamber and completes it with the House of Lords. Despite all the destruction that the palace had to experience during the Second World War, and numerous examples of art, in particular wall paintings, destroyed after fires, its modern appearance attracts crowds of amazed tourists. Lush decor, stucco and wooden decoration of the halls, chandeliers that captivate attention - the interior of the parliament is not inferior to the royal residences. Externally, the building looks no less magnificent, its monumentality is breathtaking: sharp spiers, tall walls with stained-glass windows, wide archways. The palace in Westminster, towering over the Thames, really has something to charm the eyes of its guests.

Interesting facts about Westminster Abbey and Palace

Since Westminster Abbey and the Palace of Westminster are some of the most historical sights not only in the United Kingdom, but in the whole world, most of the facts about them are no longer new to the British and even people who have never been here. However, we still found interesting facts for you in the history of the Palace of Westminster.

1. Although Westminster Abbey is known as such among visitors, its real name is St. Peter's Collegiate Church, Westminster.
2. During World War II, the coronation chair was sent to Gloucester Church for preservation, and the stone was buried under Westminster Abbey.
3. Big Ben is not really Big Ben. The tower is called the Elizabeth Tower, and the clock inside is called the Great Clock of Westminster. The origin of the name Big Ben is still unknown.
4. Westminster Hall is the oldest part of the castle from when the palace was built, and its roof is the oldest medieval structure in Britain.
5. The decoration colors of the palace actually carry a hidden meaning: gold is the color of the monarch, red is the color of the House of Lords and green is the color of the House of Commons. Their hierarchy is also followed here - gold on top, red in the middle, and green on the bottom.

Where is the Palace of Westminster located: address, opening hours

You can get to the Palace of Westminster using the underground. The nearest station is Westminster. You can buy entrance tickets on the spot by ordering by phone or online, you can also print them here. Entrance prices range from £18 to £28, depending on whether you use a guide or audio guide. Children under 5 years old are entitled to free admission. Tourists with disabilities can, if necessary, be provided with an escort to move around the territory. Tours are also offered at the Palace of Westminster for groups of 10 people or more.
Please note that tours are held in April, May and August, similar to Buckingham Palace, but it is better to check the exact dates and times on the Internet.

Hanna Koval

The London Parliament Building is one of the most beautiful buildings in the UK. The Palace of Westminster is huge: it stretches along the banks of the Thames, and the total area of ​​​​its corridors exceeds 5 km.

But it is much more than a beautiful neo-Gothic building, it is one of the symbols of the power of Great Britain, it is here that the chambers of the British government are located, and the fate of the country is decided here.

History of the palace

The Palace of Westminster has existed for almost a thousand years (it began to be built in the 11th century), although it has been rebuilt many times and has expanded significantly since that distant time.

The first palace here was built for Canute the Great, king of England, Denmark and Norway. Half a century later, the building underwent reconstruction, it was then that the famous Westminster Hall was built, which has survived to this day.

Westminster Hall

This is the most elegant hall and the heart of the palace. A couple of centuries later, a new chamber was added to the hall, where the meeting of the first Parliament of England took place in 1265, and it sits here to this day. At first, members of the royal family also lived in the Palace of Westminster, and in the 16th century they moved to Whitehall, and the building was completely taken over by Parliament.

Everything went well, the palace grew, got upset and gained its grandeur ... until a fire broke out in 1834. Then the building was badly damaged, but, fortunately, the oldest part of it - Westminster Hall - was not touched by the fire. After that, the building was subjected to a global reconstruction, the restoration work was carried out by the architect Charles Barry, it is thanks to him that now millions of tourists and local residents admire this masterpiece of architecture.

Interesting facts about the Palace of Westminster

Fact #1. The Palace of Westminster has almost 5 kilometers of corridors, 1,100 rooms and 100 staircases.

Fact #2. In fact, Big Ben is not the name of a tower or even a clock, but a huge bell inside.

The bell was named after Benjamin Hall, the building curator. According to another version, it is named after boxer Benjamin Count.

Fact #3. The Elizabeth Tower (in which, in fact, Big Ben is located) had several names: the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster, sometimes it was called the Tower of St. Stephen, and in 2012 it was renamed in honor of the 60th anniversary of the reign of Elizabeth II.

Fact #4. No animals are allowed in the Houses of Parliament, with the exception of guide dogs. So there are a lot of mice here. In special cases, horses and police dogs can be allowed in here.

Fact #5. Westminster Hall was part of an ancient building that burned down in 1834 and was where the royal family once lived.

Fact #6. The Palace of Westminster has its own restaurants, a library, a gym, a shooting range, souvenir shops and even a hairdresser's.

Fact #7. Many echoes of the past have been preserved in the building: for example, in some rooms there are still hooks designed for hanging swords, and here you can also see floor markings on which swords were placed.

Fact #8. The Royal Gallery is one of the largest rooms in the palace.

It hosts the official opening of Parliament, as well as receptions of dignitaries, important dinners and ceremonies. And once there was a room for trials.

Fact #9. In the sitting room of the House of Lords, all the furniture is predominantly red, and in the House of Commons - green.

It also has furniture from Commonwealth countries. By the way, the Commonwealth countries adhere to the same tradition: in Canada, Australia, India and New Zealand, the upper chamber is decorated in red, the lower - in green.

Fact #10. The area of ​​the Palace of Westminster is 112,476 square meters.

Fact #11. Elizabeth Tower is one of the most visited attractions in London.

Fact #12. The tallest tower in the Palace of Westminster is the Victoria Tower.

Its height is 98.5 meters. If the monarch is within the walls of the palace, then this can be recognized precisely by this tower: the official flag of the king flutters on its flagpole. On other days the British flag is raised.

Fact #13. The Palace of Westminster is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (together with Westminster Abbey and St Margaret's Church).

Fact #14. The construction of the Palace of Westminster in the XIX century was carried out for 30 years with periodic delays in funding and cost overruns. In addition, two leading architects died during this period. Interior decoration work continued into the 20th century.

Fact #15. During World War II, 14 bombs hit the Palace of Westminster.

Fact number 16. Within the walls of the palace, obscene swearing, which can offend the dignity of parliament, is officially prohibited. Members of Parliament also cannot insult their colleagues or accuse them of anything.

Fact #17. The only place where the Queen of Great Britain is not allowed is the House of Commons. This tradition dates back to 1642 when Charles I tried to arrest five members of the House for anti-royalist views.

Fact #18. Since the 17th century, it has been forbidden to smoke or drink alcohol within the walls of the palace.

Westminster is one of the centers of political life in the United Kingdom and a household name for the British government system. The Palace of Westminster has been renamed the Houses of Parliament since 1970 and has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987. One of the palace towers, often named after 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 appointment and management

The entire complex is the seat of the bicameral Parliament of Great Britain. The building is located on the north side of the Thames in Westminster, central London. The castle takes its name from the neighboring Westminster Abbey. The old medieval building was the residence and place of residence of the English kings. The Palace of Westminster has always belonged to the monarch by right of the crown and still retains its original status as a royal residence for ceremonial purposes. But the monarch does not appear here for long, and only on special occasions. The building is governed by committees from each parliamentary chamber, with reporting to the Lord Speaker.

old palace

The first royal castle has risen in this area since the 11th century and was the residence of sovereigns, until in 1512 a fire destroyed most of the complex. After that incident, Westminster serves as the meeting place of the English Parliament, which has sat there since the 13th century. Also the halls of the Palace of Westminster in London were used as the seat of the Royal Courts of Justice. The newly rebuilt premises were destroyed by the largest fire that hit the palace in 1834. Very few medieval buildings remained after that: Westminster Hall, dating from the construction of 1097; chapels of st. Stephen and St. Mary Undercroft, as well as the three-story Jewel Tower located separately.

New complex

In the competition held in 1836 for the reconstruction of the palace, preference was given to the architect Charles Barry. He proposed to create the appearance of a 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 m 2 , located symmetrically around two rows of courtyards, and the facade on the Thames side reaches 300 meters. The authoritative Gothic architect Augustus Northmore Pugin collaborated with Charles Barry, who also designed the palace interior.

The construction of the Palace of Westminster of Great Britain began in 1840 and continued for 30 years with long delays and significant cost overruns. During construction, both leading architects died. Intermittent interior work also continued into the 20th century. After the Second World War, major repairs were carried out, including the reconstruction of the House of Commons, which was damaged after the 1941 bombing.

The unique appearance of the modern structure is created by the 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 southwest corner of the Palace is occupied by the Victoria Tower, the highest (98.5 m) tower of the Palace of Westminster. The large square structure as a symbol of the legislature, with a royal entrance to the palace and a fireproof vault for the archives of Parliament, was an iconic part of Barry's competition design. Initially, the architect planned to call the building the Royal Tower and redid the drawings several times. With each change in design, the structure's intended height gradually increased, and upon its completion in 1858, it was the tallest secular building in the world.

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

Elizabeth Tower

At the northern end of the palace rises Elizabeth Tower - the most popular and iconic building in London, better known around the world as Big Ben. The 96-meter-high structure is not much shorter than the Victoria Tower, but much sleeker 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 the current name was given to it in honor of the “diamond” 60th anniversary of the reign of Elizabeth II. The whole structure looks elegant and graceful.

Elizabeth Tower houses the Great Clock of the Palace of Westminster, built by John Dent and designed by amateur watchmaker Lord Edmund Denison. Put into operation since 1859, the mechanism impresses with its accuracy, which is considered impossible for a watch of the 19th century. The time is indicated by a 4.3-meter hour hand and a 2.7-meter minute hand on four 7-meter milk glass discs, which are backlit at night. The BBC, in a documentary about the Victoria Tower, compared the clock face to a giant rose whose petals are edged with gold.

Tower bells and lantern

Five bells hang above the clock in 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 referred to as Big Ben, rings every hour. The first bell with this name broke during testing and was recast. The current Big Ben has also acquired a crack over time, which gives the fight its characteristic sound. Weighing 13.8 tons, this bell is the third largest in the UK.

At the top of the Elizabeth Tower is Ayrton Light - Ayrton's lantern, named after the famous English politician. The purpose of the lantern refers to the interesting facts of the Palace of Westminster. It shines during the evening work of the Parliamentary Chamber and was installed in 1885 at the request of Queen Victoria so that she could observe the time of the Legislative Assembly from Buckingham Palace.

central tower

In the middle of the complex, directly above the Central Lobby, rises an octagonal tower, the shortest of the three. It was added at the urging of Dr. David Reed, who was in charge of ventilating the new Houses of Parliament, and was designed to extract the smoke from the palace's 400 fireplaces. However, since the structure itself provided an opportunity to improve the exterior design of the palace, Barry chose a spire shape for it to balance the massive side towers. As a result, the building did not fulfill its purpose at all, but became notable as the first time that mechanical services had a real impact on architectural design.

Excursions

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

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

You can take advantage of excursions, open to all comers, during the two summer months when Parliament is not in session and is on vacation. But a place for such a visit has to be booked in advance, since the number of people who wish significantly exceeds the number of places in excursion groups.