English monarchs are known throughout the world for their centuries-old history and their Buckingham Palace in London, which, despite being open to tourists, remains the current residence of Elizabeth II. Therefore, official receptions, banquets and ceremonies are held here, and ordinary visitors can also take part in them. Buckingham Palace has a very interesting history with traditions and ceremonies, to look at which specially come here.
In this article, we will reveal the secret of what is inside Buckingham Palace and what is the peculiarity of its protection.
History of Buckingham Palace
Originally, when in 1703 Buckingham Palace was built in the Westminster area on the corner of St. James and Green Park, it was called the "Buckingham House" or Buckingham House and belonged to the Duke. But in 1762 the English King George III bought it for his wife. So this house gradually began to turn into a royal palace: several times there were reconstructions for the expansion and decoration of the facade, and also works of art were brought here to decorate its interior.
The symbol of royal power Buckingham Palace was under Queen Victoria, who ruled for more than 60 years and invested in him a lot of strength and resources. In honor of her in the courtyard is a monument.
| | |
To visit the "Queen's House" you do not need to buy a guide, you can ask the passerby, as any resident of London knows exactly where he is, and will be able to explain how to get to Buckingham Palace.
Interior decoration of Buckingham Palace
For tourists who come to see Buckingham Palace, it is always very interesting to find out how many rooms there are in all, and how they look.
Since 1993, it has become possible to see all this with my own eyes, since the palace was open to visitors.
Of all the 755 rooms in the palace, tourists can see the following rooms:
1. Ceremonial apartments designed for official receptions and consisting of:
- green living room - a room where invited guests from the kings. It contains: very beautiful art furniture, collections of paintings and luxurious items of furniture (watches, vases, candelabra)
- the throne room - the premises where the balls with the participation of the royal family took place;
- a picture gallery - an exposition of which totals about 50 paintings of Flemish and Dutch painting. It is considered the largest in the whole palace: the length is almost 50 meters, and the width is 8 meters.
- a canteen dining room designed for 60 people. On its walls you can see portraits of the kings who ruled England, starting George IV.
| | |
| | |
| | |
2. The white living room is the very last room open for inspection. All objects in it are made in white-gold tones.
| | |
3. The Royal Gallery - where exhibited some of the works of art (usually about 450 exhibits) from the Royal Collection. The gallery is located in the western part of the palace, near the chapel.
| | |
In the months when the queen leaves the palace, virtually all of his rooms are open to visitors. And, of course, tourists can walk almost throughout the park surrounding the palace.
| | |
Who is guarding Buckingham Palace?
In addition to interior decoration, visitors to Buckingham Palace are interested in the ceremony of changing the guard at his gate, which carries the Court Division, consisting of the Guards infantry along with the Royal Horse Regiment. This happens at 11.30 every day from April to August and a day later in other months.
| | |
