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Facts and places of interest in and around Westminster and

Southbank

Interesting Facts about Westminster and Southbank

• The Queen has opened Parliament every year except 1959 and 1963, when she was expecting Prince Andrew and Prince Edward respectively.

• The Queen has 9 Royal Thrones, one at the House of Lords, two at Westminster Abbey, and six in the throne room at Buckingham Palace.

• Did you know that there are over 2 miles of passages in the Houses of Parliament.

• Did you know that the first person buried at poets corner in westminster abbey was Geoffrey Chaucer

• The Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace takes place daily.

• The Clock Tower at the end of the House of Commons is famous for Big Ben, a massive bell inside the tower. The tower is 316ft high. The clock was completed in 1859 and the clock mechanism weighs 5 tons. T here are 4 dials on Big Ben, each measuring 23ft sq. The minute hand is 14ft long, and the figures themselves are 2 ft high.

Places of Interest in and around Westminster and Southbank

Albert Embankment  

Albert Embankment was constructed during the 19 th Century and is a riverside walk about a mile long from Lambeth Palace in the north to Vauxhall Bridge in the south. There is plenty of seating available, with benches raised on plinths so the River Thames can be easily viewed over the river wall. The wall is decorated with iron lamp standards in the shape of dolphins.

Apsley House  

Paintings, porcelain, gold and silver, field marshal's batons and other memorabilia adorn the Duke of Wellington's town house. The house was built in the 18 th century and the Waterloo gallery was added in 1829 and contains a portrait of Wellington by Goya, as well as the Water Seller of Seville by Velazquez. A large chandelier hangs from the moulded ceiling and a huge nude statue of Napoleon stands at the foot of the Grand Staircase. The table in the dining room has a silver-guilt centrepiece of cavorting nymphs. The Plate and China Room has an ornate silver-gilt shield presented to Wellington by City bankers after the Battle of Waterloo.

Buckingham Palace  

Buckingham Palace was rebuilt from the former Buckingham House of 1703. John Nash started rebuilding for George IV in 1825, but the first monarch to live there was Queen Victoria in 1837. The façade was added in 1913. The palace has around 600 rooms and the gardens cover more than 40 acres. The Changing of the Guard takes place daily.

The Mall  

Processional approach to Buckingham Palace , set out in 1910 to replace earlier mall dating from the 17 th century. The present route links the Victoria Memorial to Admiralty Arch.

Cabinet War Rooms  

This is a warren of nearly 70 rooms – 19 of which are open to the public. The area extends for three acres underground and was used for top-level meetings during World War II. There are brown linoleum floors, metal furniture and army cots which make up the Spartan furnishings. Names of ministers remain at their places on the cabinet table. The Map Room is set up much as it was during the war with maps on the walls with graphs and marker pins. A scrambler telephone gave Churchill a direct line to the White House. Churchill's bedroom, from which live radio broadcasts were made, adjoins the Map Room.

The Cenotaph  

Portland-stone memorial to the dead of World Wars I and II, designed by Sir Edward Lutyens and unveiled in 1920.

Clarence House  

A white stucco building that was once the home of the Queen Mother; built by John Nash in the early 19 th century.

Downing Street  

Only numbers 10, 11 and 12 remain of houses built by George Downing in 1720. No 10 has been the Prime Minister's official residence since the 18 th century.

Green Park  

Green Park is a Royal park of 53 acres originally planned by Charles II. Expanses of grass and large groups of trees compensate for the lack of flower beds and water features.

Houses of Parliament  

The Houses of Parliament are officially named New Palace of Westminster and stand on a site of principal royal residence from the time of Edward the Confessor to Henry VIII. The present Gothic-style buildings were constructed between 1840 and 1860 by Sir Charles Barry and A W Pugin, and comprise of a central hall and corridor with the Houses of Lords and Commons on either side. The Interior of the House of Lords is decorated in scarlet and gold, with canopied gold throne from which the monarch addresses the lords and commoners. The House of Commons was destroyed during World War II and restored by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott.

The Clock Tower at the end of the House of Commons is famous for Big Ben, a massive bell inside the tower. The tower is 316ft high. The clock was completed in 1859 and the clock mechanism weighs 5 tons. T here are 4 dials on Big Ben, each measuring 23ft sq. The minute hand is 14ft long, and the figures themselves are 2 ft high.

Next to Clock Tower is Westminster Hall, which survives from the original Palace built as a banqueting hall by William Rufus in 1097. There is a statue of Oliver Cromwell standing outside.

Hyde Park Corner  

A state of the Duke of Wellington astride a favourite horse, Copenhagen , stands on the island at the centre of a traffic junction.

Imperial War Museum  

The Imperial War Museum is housed in a building built 1812-15 and has displays covering Britain 's wars since 1914. Two gigantic naval guns – each weighing 100 tons – stand before the portico.

Displays include reconstructions of the 1914 recruiting office and trench system. Other exhibits include a Spitfire from World War II, one of the ‘little ships' from the evacuation of Dunkirk, Lawrence of Arabia's Arab headgear and rifle, and original surrender document of all German forces in World War II. The museum's art galleries house paintings of battle scenes by well known artists.

Victoria Embankment  

Promenade follows the River Thames from Westminster Bridge to Blackfriars Bridge . Lining the route are iron lampposts decorated with dolphins, and benches with sphinxes at each end. Statues along embankment include Cleopatra's Needle and bomb damaged lions, Queen Boudicca, poet Robert Burns and Brunel.

Westminster Abbey  

Westminster Abbey was originally built by Edward the Confessor in about 1050, replacing the little timber church of St Peter 's. Rulers of England have been crowned here since William the Conqueror in 1066. The present buildings were constructed between 13 th and 16 th centuries.

West towers, designed by Wren and Hawksmoor, were built during the 18 th century. A portrait of Richard II, dating from the 14 th century, hangs near the west door. Memorials to Lloyd George, Clement Attlee, David Livingstone, Isaac Newton and Winston Churchill can be found in the Chapel of St George. The grave of the Unknown Warrior of World War I, surrounded by poppies is also here.

The North transept has statues of Pitt, Gladstone, Castlereagh and Disraeli and the south aisle contains Poets' Corner, including the tomb of Geoffrey Chaucer. St Edward the Confessor Chapel contains a shrine to the saint. The Coronation Chair stands here, carrying Scotland 's Stone of Scone on a shelf beneath the seat.

All around are tombs of medieval kings and queens.

Henry VII Chapel has a fan-vaulted ceiling, and banners of Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath . Tombs of Henry VII, Mary Tudor and Elizabeth I are here. Abbey plate, mostly 17 th century, is displayed in Pyx chamber.