Palace of Westminster

Palace of Westminster
Palace of Westminster
	The Palace of Westminster with Elizabeth Tower and Westminster Bridge, viewed from across the River Thames
Location	City of Westminster, London, England
Area	112,476 m2 (1,210,680 sq ft) (internal)
Built	1016
Demolished	1834 (due to fire)
Rebuilt	1840–70
Architectural style(s)	Perpendicular Gothic Revival
UNESCO World Heritage Site
	Official name: Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey, and St Margaret's Church
Type	Cultural
Criteria	i, ii, iv
Designated	1987 (11th session)
Reference No.	426
Country	United Kingdom
Region	Europe
Extensions	2008
Listed Building – Grade I
	Official name: Houses of Parliament / The Palace of Westminster
Designated	5 February 1970
Reference No.	1226284

The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, in London, is where the two Houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom meet.

Westminster Hall and its hammerbeam roof, in the early 19th century. The Hall is the only original piece of Gothic architecture in the Westminster Palace. The rest is Gothic revival.

In 1605, Guy Fawkes attempted to blow the Palace up. He was caught and later executed. This was called the Gunpowder Plot, and is celebrated on 5 November every year.

The original building was used as a palace and home to the Parliament of England. After a fire in 1834, the building was used as a Parliament building.

Westminster Palace, Westminster Abbey and Saint Margaret's Church make up a UNESCO World Heritage Site.^[3] Westminster Palace is an example of Gothic Revival architecture.^[3]

The building is in bad shape. There have been falling stonework, 10 fires, and an incident of potential asbestos exposure since 2020. There are leaking pipes and a serious risk of fire. The water, electric, sewage and gas pipes need to be replaced. To do this work the politicians would have to move to somewhere else.^[4]

Palace Of Westminster Media

Excerpt from the manuscript "Théâtre de tous les peuples et nations de la terre avec leurs habits et ornemens divers, tant anciens que modernes, diligemment depeints au naturel". Painted by Lucas d'Heere in the 2nd half of the 16th century.
Detail from A Panoramic View of London, from the Tower of St. Margaret's Church, Westminster (1815) by Pierre Prévost, showing the Palace of Westminster. The original Westminster Bridge is at left, and the roof of Westminster Hall at centre.
A detail from John Rocque's 1746 map of London. St Stephen's Chapel, labelled "H of Comm" (House of Commons), was adjacent to Westminster Hall; the Parliament Chamber—labelled "H of L" (House of Lords)—and the Prince's Chamber were to the far south.
J. M. W. Turner watched the fire of 1834 and painted several canvases depicting it, including The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons (1835).
Westminster Bridge and Houses of Parliament, c. 1910
The old chamber of the House of Commons was in use between 1852 and 1941, when it was destroyed by German bombs in the course of the Second World War.
UK Parliament lit up for Queen's 90th Birthday.jpg

UK Parliament lit up for Queen Elizabeth II's 90th Birthday, 2016
The Victoria Tower was the most conspicuous feature of Charles Barry's design for the New Palace of Westminster. At the time of its completion, it was the tallest secular building in the world.
The fame of the Elizabeth Tower has surpassed that of the Palace itself. The structure has largely become synonymous with Big Ben, the heaviest of the five bells it houses.
The slender form of the Central Tower, which was designed as a spire, markedly contrasts with the more massive square towers at the ends of the Palace.