London Palace of Westminster. Palace of Westminster (London): photos and reviews. Tour of the Palace of Westminster

Built in the neo-Gothic style, it stretches along the banks of the Thames for three kilometers. (This reminded me of one of the most famous palaces in Russia - the Winter Palace)

Many can recognize this beautiful palace by one of its towers - the famous Big Ben, as everyone calls it.

It's funny, but many people, when they hear "Palace of Westminster", do not immediately understand what it is about. And no wonder - he is known to everyone as London Houses of Parliament.

It is here that both houses of the British government are located, and here its fate is decided.

History of the Palace of Westminster

The palace was built back in the 11th century for King Edward, who ascended the throne in 1042, and was completed and expanded over several centuries.

Thus, the famous Westminster Hall - the heart of the palace and the most elegant European hall - was built half a century later for William Rufus. Another two centuries later, Henry III added a new chamber to the hall. And on January 20, 1265, a meeting of the first English parliament took place there. This first parliament appointed (and later elected) individuals from the upper classes, the clergy and the aristocracy.

Parliament shared its residence with the royal one for another century, until the royal couple decided to move to Whitehall in 1547, and the Parliament of London became the sole owner of the Palace of Westminster.

The palace continued to deteriorate until... there was a fire in 1834. Fortunately, Westminster Hall and the crypts were preserved, but the main ensemble of the building was badly damaged. Parliament decided to restore its beloved and now dear residence, but at the same time make several adjustments.

It took more than thirty years to restore this masterpiece of architecture designed by Charles Barry, but it was worth it - now we can admire a beautiful example of a palace in the neo-Gothic style.

How to get to the Houses of Parliament in London

Tourists have two opportunities to visit the Houses of Parliament, while for residents of the UK it is much easier - any Briton can contact Parliament with a question, and also visit the palace with a representative of their region. And most importantly, they can visit Big Ben and see the tower from the inside! Envy-envy-envy.

How cool it would be to see this tower from the inside...

Since we are not British citizens, our options are much smaller.

• You can watch the Parliament debates for free from the guest gallery.
• Buy an audio tour to Parliament or a guided tour.

Free debates in Parliament

Anyone can get to the debate by simply standing in line for the event. Debates are held daily from Monday to Thursday, and also during the sitting of Parliament on Friday.

Debates are different. Okay, off to the debate. "Question Time" Only UK residents are admitted who have a ticket issued to them by their regional representative. Those Britons who don't have a ticket, as well as tourists, can attend this debate if there is space left.

On other debates There is no need to register, but you will have to wait in a long line. The wait usually takes one to two hours.

Schedule of Parliament meetings

Excursion to Parliament

To the joy of our compatriots who do not know English language and not wanting to overpay for individual tour in some agency (if there are any) - excursions to the Parliament are also conducted in Russian.

Audio tours runs from 9.20 to 16.30 on Saturdays, from 13.20 to 17.30 on Mondays and from 9.20 to 17.30 from Tuesday to Friday (from July 31 to August 29, from September 12 to October 19 - tours until 16.30) every 15 minutes. Duration - 1 hour.

Guided tours in English are held from 9.00 to 16.15 (except Mondays, on Mondays they start at 13.20) and start every 15-20 minutes.

Tours in other languages are carried out at a certain time 2-3 times a day.

• In French at 10.00, 12.20 and 15.00
• In German at 10.20, 12.50 and 15.20
• In Italian at 10.40, 13.00 and 15.40
• In Spanish 11.00, 13.20 and 16.00
• In Russian at 13.40 and 16.15

By the way, there is another offer for tourists - “Afternoon tea”. Those. You can drink tea right in the Parliament building! This pleasure costs a lot - £29.00 excluding the cost of a ticket for the excursion.

Afternoon tea is held at 13.30 and 15.15. The audio tour should be taken at least an hour and a half before this time, and the guided tour should be taken two hours in advance. It depends on everyone... but to me it seems like a waste.

Cost of visiting Parliament House

Tickets to individual excursions You can buy it on or order by phone.

Group excursions - only by phone +44 161 425 8677

Photography is prohibited inside. The rules for visiting Parliament and its news can be found on the official website - http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/

Entering the Houses of Parliament is like touching the history and government of Great Britain. Of course, you won't be allowed to see the entire Palace of Westminster. You can only follow a clearly defined route visiting several rooms:

• Queen's Robing Room
• Royal Gallery
• Prince's Chamber
• House of Commons
• Lords Chamber
• Glossary (Moses Room)
• Central Lobby
• Members' Lobby
• Aye Lobby
• St Stephen's Hall
• Westminster Hall

How to get to the Palace of Westminster?

Metro station: Westminster.

Bus: all with a stop near Parliament Square

On this page you can see all the entrances to the Palace of Westminster, and how to get there.

Photo: Houses of Parliament - Palace of Westminster

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Considering London as one of the most attractive cities, it is impossible not to mention its traditions, culture and many valuable attractions, one of which plays a leading role in Foggy Albion. This is the Palace of Westminster.

In 2004, the British authorities decided to open the Palace of Westminster for public access. All tourists visiting London have an outstanding opportunity to see with their own eyes all the splendor of the internal halls and even observe the efficiency of the work process of the Lords and representatives of the House of Commons.

If you have the chance to visit the Houses of Parliament, you should not miss the opportunity to see Westminster Hall, the surviving legendary building built for the son of William the Conqueror. It is also important to mention that Westminster Hall became the venue for a memorial service for Winston Churchill.

History of reconstruction and significant significance

The first version of the parliamentary building was erected about a thousand years ago in a swampy area, then still uninhabited. Its construction was necessary for only one purpose - to replace the Tower, which in the expanded city was surrounded by the poverty of the poor living in that quarter.

Authorities began to experience difficulties associated with such a “foul-smelling” neighborhood. This fact simply forced them to organize a move to some distance from the lower class of citizens. King Edward of England and members of his family also moved to the new residence, completed by the middle of the 11th century. It is worth noting an important detail that the first Palace of Westminster did not have any similarities with the current rich building.

The Palace of Westminster acquired historical importance after the signing of a key agreement that influenced the formation of the political system of England in the 13th century. We are talking about the Magna Carta, signed under pressure from society by the English King John the Landless.

Nowadays, this decree has become, in a sense, exemplary, demonstrating a model of a modern full-fledged state, the fundamental principles of which should be democracy, getting rid of tyranny and bureaucratic delays. With the entry into force of the “liberties”, the king lost the rights of sole governance of the country, then most of the decisions made fell on the competent shoulders of the people’s parliament. The power of the monarchical dynasty remained symbolic, essentially performing only representative functions of leadership.

New Westminster

The construction and expansion of the Houses of Parliament was constantly carried out over the next several centuries. The turning point in its history was a terrible fire in 1834, after which the main bulk of the building turned into ashes, but two parts of the palace survived: Westminster Hall and the tower that preserves the jewels.

The planned restoration of an architectural monument in London remained the first item on the agenda of the parliamentary meeting. The government immediately announced a competition for the most preferred option for the new Parliament House. The grand tender was won by Charles Barry. Collaborating with Welby Pugin, they completed their task and erected the colossal Palace of Westminster, which became the hallmark of modern London.

In accordance with the construction project of Charles Barry, who meticulously approached the layout of each room, the construction of the new building was approved in the new Gothic style. Thousands of workers were involved in lengthy, voluminous labor, as construction dragged on for almost 50 years.

As a result, 1888 was marked by the completion of the Palace of Westminster and St. Stephen's Tower, which can still be admired today. The famous British Big Ben is St. Stephen's Tower, which is known on all continents.

Inside the epoch-making palace

All the luxurious rooms, corridors and halls defy simple description, and you can only feel the weight of the structure by visiting it in person. Moreover, if you believe today's architectural figures, then any attempt to find something similar in the world will end in vain.

The incredible area of ​​the building does not seem huge due to its execution in the neo-Gothic style. The Palace of Westminster consists of 11 courtyards, each of which is original and unique in its own way, about 100 staircases, almost 5.5 kilometers long corridors and more than 1000 rooms. Giving the impression of grace, it fits harmoniously into modern London.

The famous parliament is represented by two chambers: the House of Commons and the House of Lords of England. Each of them is located at opposite ends of the structure, so the path from one chamber to another turns into a real journey through the picturesque heritage of the British past. All the walls of the halls are occupied by wall paintings depicting fragments of British history, and according to the guides, these works of art are truly priceless. An impressive part of the paintings belongs to the brushes of world classics, who began to create since the reign of the English King Arthur.

I can continue to describe the sculpture, the incomparable stucco molding and the golden decor of the premises ad infinitum. However, it is worth noting the most compelling and richest part of the palace premises - the House of Lords of England. Its purpose is to consider the main decisions for the state, where the Lords speak with their eloquent monologues.

A special feature of the House of Lords is the absence of a speaker, but his functions are taken over by an ordinary bag of sheep's wool. Even in ancient times, the sale of wool brought a significant share of income to the state treasury, and as a sign of gratitude to the valuable export product, he was appointed “Speaker” of the House of Lords.

In contrast to the pathos of the first chamber, the House of Commons received more modest decorations, since the Lords are not present there. At the same time, it is here that the main and important resolutions for the entire country are adopted. The House of Commons contains representatives of the ruling and opposition parties. The specially created distance between their stocks is equal to the length of two swords held out in the hands. The foresight of such a “green corridor” was explained by the medieval hot temper of political opponents - this way they would not be able to harm each other with a sword. Although disputes are not resolved by force in the House of Commons in Great Britain. Indeed, despite changes in the political structure, the parliamentary monarchy retained the main role, and therefore the behavior of members of the House of Commons, vested with powers from the people, is comparatively different from the meeting of deputies in the post-Soviet powers.

Having a long and fascinating history, the English Parliament House has become famous throughout the world for the uniqueness of its architectural form. The huge architectural structure is recognizable among millions of people. Travelers and tourists from dozens of countries constantly follow each other on excursions around the legendary house. All these facts indicate that the Palace of Westminster is one of the main attractions in all of Europe.

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Royal residence and symbol of parliamentarism, gothic building, built in the 19th century, 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, amazingly embodying in stone the imperial spirit combined with the desire for freedom. In terms of recognition, it is quite comparable to Egyptian pyramids or the Moscow Kremlin. And we must admit - the British are rightfully proud of their Houses of Parliament.

A little history

There is a suspicion that on the site of the current Palace of Westminster there once stood a temple of Apollo, erected by the founders of Laundanum - Roman legionnaires on the marshy island of Thorney at the confluence of the Tyburn River with the Thames. The ruler of Denmark, England and Norway, Canute 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 council in 1265.

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

What to see

A huge building of 1,200 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 river, then on the right stands the Elizabeth Tower, familiar to everyone as Big Ben. Its clock has been chiming since 1859.

On the left, the façade is completed by the Victoria Tower - the state archives. To ensure the safety of documents, it was erected on a cast iron frame. On the side you can see the pointed Sovereign's Entrance, 15 m high, through which the monarch enters the Parliament building for the annual opening ceremony of the next session. During 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 all the fires. Its grandiose vaults are supported not by columns, but by complex arched brackets, built by carpenter Hugh Erland in 1393. Coronations took place here, royal courts worked, and the famous trials of Charles I, Thomas More, and the arsonist Guy Fawkes took place here.

Parliament House is open to tourists on Saturdays and between sessions. Excursions are conducted by appointment; visitors explore the meeting rooms of the House of Lords and the House of Commons, their lobbies decorated with statues of English monarchs and commanders, the room where the Queen puts on regalia and jewelry before going out to the deputies, and the room with portraits of all the wives of Henry VIII.

Practical information

Address: London, Westminster. Website (in English).

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

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

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

In official documents, the Houses of Parliament are still referred to as the "Palace of Westminster" or "New Palace of Westminster" and have the status of a royal palace.
When the court left the Palace of Westminster, which housed the Royal Court from the time of Edward the Confessor until the reign of Henry III, and moved to Whitehall Palace, Westminster was left with two most important inhabitants - parliament and the judiciary.


The courts held their sessions in Westminster Hall, and Parliament had to share two rooms: the House of Commons occupied St. Stephen's Chapel, and the House of Lords was the former premises of the Court of Petitions, dissolved in 1641.
Old Palace of Westminster(in the background - Westminster Abbey) from the side of the River Thames.

From the end of the eighteenth century until the accession of William IV, there was talk that Parliament needed a new building; Sir John Soane, the architect of the Bank of England building, presented his project for discussion, other architects followed his example, but the conversations were in vain.

But one night in 1834, the problem was resolved in just a few hours. Someone sent to burn the wooden dies from which treasury bills were printed went a little overboard in keeping the fire going; the flames, fanned by the sharp October wind, instantly engulfed the park and ancient buildings, of which soon only smoking brands remained.

Fire brigades rushed to the scene of the fire, but the flames were too strong for them to cope with. However, descendants are still indebted to the valiant London firefighters who saved Westminster Hall on that terrible night.

When young Victoria ascended the throne, she was surprised to find that her parliament had no refuge. Several years were spent clearing the area after the fire and holding a competition among architectural designs; The competitors were given one condition - the new building should be in the Gothic or Elizabethan style.

Victoria Tower(view from the monastery courtyard of Westminster Abbey).

Not since the building of St. Paul's Cathedral has a larger or more magnificent building been erected in England; its long river frontage, with the elegant Victoria Tower above the main building at one end and the Clock Tower at the other, is an architectural masterpiece, immediately recognized throughout the world as "quintessentially London".

No other view of London, even St. Paul's Cathedral, has been depicted so often on the canvases of foreign artists. Preference was given to the project of Charles Barry.

Parliament Square, Parliament House and Westminster Hall (left), Victoria Tower (right).

Clock tower, also known as Big Ben, was officially renamed Elizabeth Tower in honor of the reigning Queen of Great Britain Elizabeth II. Big Ben, by the way, is not a clock, but a large bell, named after Sir Benjamin Hall, who served as Chief Commissioner for public works in those years when bells were hung on the tower. Its special, low and booming hum (associated, as they say, with a crack in the metal) penetrates literally into every corner of the globe.

A narrow spiral staircase of three hundred and seventy-four steps leads up; If bells begin to ring as you rise, a trembling permeates the stone slabs.

Westminster Hall- what remains of the old Palace of Westminster.

It is believed that the colossal oak trees, from the wood of which this majestic ceiling is made, sprouted from acorns no later than the sixth century. If this is true, then the ceiling of Westminster Hall is one of the oldest and most venerable architectural details not only in England, but in the whole world.

Acorns sprouted in England, shrouded in the darkness of the Dark Ages. This was the time of Celtic saints and tiny monasteries like Iona and Lindisfarne, the time of Viking bands fighting their way to the ruins of ancient Roman settlements; This was England, in which the ringing of the bell calling for prayer and the cry of the seagull were often drowned out by the cries of the rabble in horned helmets, who sailed to rob and kill, fill the longships with booty and return home to the North Sea.

For centuries, the Saxons and Normans hunted deer, wild boar and wolves on the very spot where Westminster Hall now stands; here they made love and had feasts. Meanwhile, the oak trees grew, becoming thicker in girth and casting ever denser shadows, and the world around was changing, the Middle Ages arrived, and in 1397 the foresters of King Richard II came here, looking for the oldest oak trees in Sussex, to restore the roof of the royal palace in Westminster . They cut down mighty trees - the same trees that were called old already in the reign of Alfred the Great (Anglo-Saxon king).

Parliament Square - big square in the center of Westminster, created in 1868 with the aim of streamlining traffic around the Palace of Westminster. Parliament Square has a symbolic layout and represents all branches of government. On the eastern side, the legislative power is represented by the Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster), on the northern side it is embodied executive power serves as Whitehall, on the western side - the judicial power is personified by the building Supreme Court, and in the south the seat of spiritual power is Westminster Abbey.

Methodist Central Hall- Westminster Central Hall or Methodist Central Hall in Parliament Square is a public building used for holding meetings of the Methodist Church. It was built in 1912 in the French Renaissance style. Big hall crowned by a huge dome, this room is considered the second largest in the world in terms of capacity; it can accommodate 2,352 people at the same time.

The building to the right of Westminster Abbey.

Buckingham House- the official London residence of the British monarchs - became a royal palace, so to speak, involuntarily; this is a perfect illustration of the typical English reluctance to build palaces on a grand scale.

The area on which Buckingham Palace stands was occupied by mulberry plantations during the reign of James I; Yakov believed that sericulture “can save the people from idleness and the vices it engenders.” However, this theory died with Jacob, and on the site of the plantation a roadside inn arose, to which the gentlemen of Charles II brought their ladies and treated them to pies with mulberries.
In the Queen Anne etchings we see a handsome square red brick house in the Dutch style; two semicircular colonnades connect it with the stables and outbuildings. In front of the house there is a wide courtyard with a fountain, an iron fence and wrought iron gates, decorated with the crown and coat of arms of the Duke of Buckingham - the Garter and St. George.

Looking out of the windows of the upper floor, the Duke saw an alley of elms and lindens - the current Mall. In the distance rose the dome of St. Paul's Cathedral, surrounded by the spiers of the City churches, and a little closer and to the right, beyond the meadows and park, the bell tower of Westminster could be seen. When looking at the Mall, the Duke had a view of the long canal and duck pool, dug by order of Charles II; today it is a lake in St James's Park.

Talking about the new house in a letter to a friend, the Duke said that right under the windows there was a patch of forest where blackbirds and nightingales lived. Immediately after the coronation, Victoria moved to this palace, and she rebuilt it; The queen's first order concerned the installation of a ceremonial throne at Buckingham Palace.

A crowd awaits the rehearsal of the parade marking the 60th anniversary of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

Now let's just walk around London. As I mentioned before, you won't realize you're in London until you're near a famous landmark. This is a very green city.

Although, without a doubt, the spirit of such aristocracy reigns here that you still won’t be deceived :)

The entire city (as well as all other cities in Great Britain) is decorated with flags dedicated to the anniversary of the Queen's coronation.

One evening we went in search of King's Cross Station, from which Harry Potter was leaving for Hogwarts from the magical platform 9¾. There is a more remarkable building next to this station St Pancras station(St. Pancras station).

Architecturally, the station consists of a main room - a landing stage, enclosed in the facades of the neo-Gothic building "Midland Grand Hotel" (now the Renaissance Hotel).

But here we go King's Cross station(King's Cross - “Crossroads of Kings”).

On the top floor of the station, under the station clock, there is a giant bronze sculpture of a young couple, “The Meeting Place.”