Westminster Tour. 1. Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square was built to commemorate Admiral Horatio...

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Westminster Tour

Transcript of Westminster Tour. 1. Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square was built to commemorate Admiral Horatio...

Page 1: Westminster Tour. 1. Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square was built to commemorate Admiral Horatio Nelson, who lost his live in 1805, fighting the Spanish.

Westminster Tour

Page 2: Westminster Tour. 1. Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square was built to commemorate Admiral Horatio Nelson, who lost his live in 1805, fighting the Spanish.
Page 3: Westminster Tour. 1. Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square was built to commemorate Admiral Horatio Nelson, who lost his live in 1805, fighting the Spanish.

1. Trafalgar Square• Trafalgar Square was built to commemorate Admiral Horatio Nelson, who lost his live in

1805, fighting the Spanish fleet at Cape Trafalgar in Southern Spain.• This impressive neo-classical square was designed by John Nash in the 1820’s, with

work commencing in 1829. Sadly, Nash died before the square was completed in the 1840’s. Nevertheless, his original plans were followed through to the letter and the square before you is the exact vision that Nash had imagined.

• Nelsons Column, in the centre of the square, was built in 1842, with the four lions around it being added in 1867. The column measures 185 feet.

• As well as the Statue of Nelson, there are other statues depicting soldiers and one even depicts the King George IV on horseback.

• There are several important buildings around Trafalgar square including the National Gallery, South Africa House and Canada House.

• The three domes on the National Gallery are said to represent salt, pepper and mustard.

• To continue your tour, you need to head to Whitehall, the wide road directly in front of you, behind Nelsons Column. To reach the road, cross the square. As you make your way to Audio point 2, you will pass Admiralty Arch. This archway was built in 1911 and used to house offices and living quarters for high ranking military officers. Audio point 2 is on the corner of Whitehall.

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2. The Corner of Whitehall• You are now at the corner of Whitehall which is the closest point to

modern London that there is.• The statue of Charles the 1st on horseback, in the middle of the

roundabout actually marks the point in London that all distances are measured from. Before this statue was erected, a large cross was here to mark the last resting place of Edward the 1st’s wife funeral cortège. The cross was situated here for 400 years.• You now need to start walking along Whitehall, away from Trafalgar

Square. This street is one of the most important and famous streets in the country due to it’s strong Royal and Government links. • Some of the important buildings that line Whitehall include the

Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Health and the Treasury.• Audio point 3 is at Horse guards on your right hand side. The Gate

should be easy to spot due to the 2 guards on horseback outside the gates.

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3. Horse Guards• You should now be outside Horse guards. (It is just after the statue in

the picture to the right.) It was built in 1745 and is named after the equestrian troops who have been the reigning monarchs lifeguard since the monarchy was restored in 1660.

• Horse guards was, until Trafalgar Square was completed, the only entrance to Buckingham Palace and St. James’s Palace but it still remains the ‘official’ entrance to both Palace’s.

• It has become better known for the changing of the guard ceremonies in which sees the arrival of 12 mounted guards dressed in traditional uniform. (This ceremony takes place at 11am Mon to Sat and at 12pm on Sun.)

• You can walk through he archway and see the impressive parade ground beyond.

• To continue, carry on along Whitehall until you reach the turning to the right which leads to Audio Point 4. This entrance to Downing Street is Audio Point 4. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

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4. Downing Street/ London Eye/ Cenotaph Memorial

• Downing Street is the home to the Prime Minister, currently David Cameron, and the chancellor of the exchequer, currently George Osborne.

• The street is named after George Downing, who bought the land in 1680 and built a street of houses here. Downing died just 4 years after buying the land and in 1732, King George II gave one of the houses to the then Prime minister, Sir Robert Walpole. But Walpole refused the house as an outright gift and instead proposed that it should be the residence f all future leaders and since then, number 10 Downing Street has remained the official residence of the prime minister.

• For 250 years, number 10 was open to the public until Margaret Thatcher put up walls and gates in 1989 because of security fears. Indeed in 1991, the IRA planted 3 bombs in downing street but thankfully no one was hurt. Currently, number 10’s entrance door is always manned by at least one policeman for security reasons as well.

• If you turn with your back to Downing Street, you can catch a glimpse of the London Eye. This huge Ferris wheel, constructed to celebrate the new millennium, has unsurpassed views of the houses of Parliament and this whole area of London. The London eye is now recognised as London’s most popular tourist attraction.

• In the middle of Whitehall, just a few yards to your right is the Cenotaph memorial, meaning empty tomb, which celebrates the lives lost in both world wars although in recent years, it has become a memorial for all lives lost in military action around the world. The monument bears the simple inscription, ‘The Glorious Dead’. On remembrance day, the 11th of the 11th, there is a nationwide 2 minute silence held for the soldiers who lost their lives defending this country.

• To continue the tour, you need to carry along Whitehall which will soon become Parliament Street. Audio point 5 is on the far right-hand corner of Parliament Street.

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5. Big Ben/ Houses of Parliament/ Westminster Abbey

• The name Big Ben doesn’t refer to the magnificent gothic tower in front of you but the massive 13-ton bell that hangs in the bell tower.

• There is some doubt into how the tower was named. The most popular belief is that an overweight MP, by the name of Sir Benjamin Hall, gave an impassioned speech at a debate to decide the bells name at the end of which a fellow MP shouted “Why not call it Big Ben and be done with it?!”.

• The houses of Parliament is the centre of British Politics. It is a neo-gothic masterpiece that was designed by Charles Barry, who designed it to match the architecture of Westminster Abbey. The building sustained serious damage from a fire in 1834 and the only part of the building to have survived was Westminster Hall. This is the famous hall where the trial of Guy Fawkes was held in 1605 for his crimes of plotting to blow up the houses of Parliament.

• Westminster is a great pilgrimage site. The abbey has also been used for Royal ceremonies, such as Coronations, weddings and funerals. Every British monarch since William the Conqueror was crowned here, with the exception of Edward the 5th and Edward the 8th, who were never crowned.

• To continue the tour, you need to walk to your right, along the north side of Parliament Square to audio point 6 at the corner of Great St. George’s street and Horse Guard road.

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6. The Corner of Great George Street and Horse Guards Road

• Opposite, you will see St. James’s Park and it’s famous lake should be clearly visible.

• To continue the tour, you need to goo up Horse Guards Road and enter the park at Audio point 7, just before you reach the lake.

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7. St. James’s Park• Make your way along the left-hand bank of the lake until you reach Audio

Point 8 on a small bridge going over the lake.• St. James’s Park is the oldest royal park in London, having been bought by

King Henry VIII for the purpose of hunting. In addition, future kings have kept exotic birds here, hence the name of birdcage walk the road that runs to the left hand side of the park. You will probably still see birds such as Pelicans, rare ducks and geese on the lake.• Although surrounded by 3 palaces, this park used to be nothing more than

marshland; over the years it was developed by successive monarchs and was used for many fairs and fetes by Queen Elizabeth the 1st during her reign.• Charles the 2nd radically altered the layout of the park by planting lawns

and avenues of trees. The majority of the trees you can see will be plain trees that thrive on the sooty air that has been present in London since the industrial revolution.• Audio point 8 is on a small bridge over the lake. You can reach it by walking

along the left hand of the lake.

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8. St. James’s Park Bridge• This bridge is one of the best views points to photograph

Buckingham Palace. The all round view from this unassuming little bridge is spectacular. If you look in the opposite direction, you can get a fantastic view of some white brick buildings and the London eye.• If you look at Buckingham palace, it has a flag pole on top

of it. If a union jack is flying, she is not there. If however the queens personal standard (see right) is flying, she is indeed there.• To continue the tour, cross the bridge and follow the path

ahead of you until you reach the exit of St. James's Park, directly opposite Marlborough Road. This will be Audio Point 9.

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9. The Mall/ Buckingham Palace• This is the perfect place to get a closer look at Buckingham

palace. To get this view (see below), walk along the mall to the left – this should take no more than a few minutes but you will have to return to this point to continue the tour.• You now need to cross the mall and walk to the far end of

Marlborough road. On your way, you will pass Friary Court on the left and on the right is the Queens Chapel.• Audio Point 10 is at the far end of Marlborough Road, turn

left and head for the guarded entrance of St. James’s Palace.

Entrance to Marlborough Road

Exit from Marlborough Road

The view of Buckingham Palace from the Mall.<<<<<<<<<<<

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10. St. James’s Palace• St. James’s is the senior Palace of the sovereign and was the main residence

of Kings and Queens for over 300 years. To this day, it remains the residence of the sovereign though, since Queen Victoria’s reign began in 1837, the monarch has traditionally lived in Buckingham Palace.

• This palace was mainly built by Henry VIII, between 1531 and 1536 although it as been enlarged and enhanced by other monarchs over the years.

• During daylight hours, uniformed guards are stationed outside the main gate. To some, this is the only indication that the building is in fact a royal palace.

• The guards, in their real bearskin hats, are usually quite happy to have their photo taken. The bearskin hats are the trademark piece of clothing that all royal guards wear. They are traditionally made from real bear fur. This has caused a lot of controversy with animal rights organisations, such as PETA.

• To continue your tour, you need to turn away form the palace, cross Clevedon row and start walking up the right hand side of St. James’s street.

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11. On the Corner of St. James's Street and King’s Street

• St. James’s Street is best known for it’s fine range of luxury stores.• For many years, this part of London has had strong Royal connections and you will see on many

buildings Royal Crests, which mean the business is patronized by a member of the royal family. There are only 3 crests in use – those of the queen, the duke of Edinburgh and the prince of wales.

• Before you move on, take a look down King’s Street, where you will notice a row of dark red flags hanging from a building on the left. This is the famous auction house, Christie’s. Christie’s is regarded as the first fine art auction house in the world and was founded by James Christie in 1766.

• To continue your tour, you need to carry on along St. James’s street until you reach the corner of St. James's Street and Piccadilly.

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12. Piccadilly• Piccadilly has a reputation for being one of London’s finest

shopping areas. To the left is the Ritz hotel, one of the capitals most celebrated hotels whilst to the left is the legendary department store, Fortnum and Mason.• Long ago, Piccadilly was the London home for many of the

world’s airlines, with the head offices of many airline companies being based here. Nowadays, the street is predominantly retail based, with only a few airline offices left.• Piccadilly is also famous for being on the family favourite

board game, monopoly.• To continue the tour, cross the road to and carry on along

Piccadilly until you come to a large archway with flags on it. This is the Royal academy of Art and audio point 13. >>>>>

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13. The Royal Academy of Art• The name ‘The Royal academy’ does not actually refer to

the building in front of you but an independent, privately funded art institute that supports contemporary artists and promotes interest in the arts.• It is well worth stepping into the courtyard for a quick look.• The Royal academy has over 85,000 members; all of them

practicing artists and it’s exhibits attract over a million paying visitors a year.• The general public is allowed to submit their own work for

the summer exhibition. Every year, thousands of aspiring artists send in their work to be considered. The judging panel is notoriously harsh.• To continue the tour, carry on along Piccadilly until you

reach Piccadilly Circus.

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14. Piccadilly Circus• For many years, this junction of 5 busy London streets has

been a famous landmark.• The name Piccadilly derives from a famous 17th century tailor

by the name of Robert Baker who sold various kinds of collars that were referred to as Piccadills.• The circus was built in the year 1819. The famous electric

advertisements have been on the circus since 1910 and have since become a true symbol of Piccadilly circus as well as London itself.• The statue of Eros is another famous icon of Piccadilly circus.

The statue is actually cast in aluminium, which at the time, 1892, was a very rare material.• To continue the tour, make your way around the raight hand

side of the road junction. Continue along Coventry street until you emerge onto Leicester Quare, which is audio point 15.

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15. Leicester Square• The square was developed in the mid to late 17th century. It was

built on the site of Leicester fields which was essentially the front garden of the Earl of Leicester’s mansion.

• The 19th century saw Leicester square developed as n entertainment area with the construction of many theatres and hotels. To this day, there are 4 cinemas in the square – UK film premieres are often held here so you are standing where countless celebrities have stood. 100s of film fans clamber for a glimpse of their favourite film stars on the red carpet at film premieres.

• At the centre of square is some gardens in which there are some statues representing famous historical figures including William Shakespeare, Isaac Newton, William Hogarth and Charlie Chaplin.

• To continue the tour to the final destination, head diagonally across the square to Irving Street. Head along Irving Street until you emerge onto Charing Cross Road. Just ahead and to the right is the National Portrait Gallery and audio point 16.

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16. The National Portrait Gallery• Free to visit, the national gallery contains some 30,000

portraits from oil paintings of Tudor kings to modern photography.• It was the first portrait gallery in the world when it

opened in 1856.• The three people largely responsible for the founding

of the National Portrait Gallery are commemorated with busts over the main entrance. • To get back to the beginning of the tour, head along

Charing Cross Road and you shall end up back on Trafalgar Square.