Houses of Parliament

The Houses of Parliament, known also as the Palace of Westminster is where the two Houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (the House of Lords and the House of Commons) conduct their sittings.

The Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster) lie on the north bank of the River Thames in the London borough of the City of Westminster, close by other government buildings in Whitehall.

The oldest part of the Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster) is still in existence, Westminster Hall, which dates from 1097.The palace originally served as a royal residence, but no monarch has lived in it since the 16th century.

Most of the present Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster) structure dates from the 19th century, when the Palace was rebuilt after it was almost entirely destroyed by a fire in 1834. The architect responsible for rebuilding the Palace was Sir Charles Barry and Augustus Welby Pugin, and the building is an example of Gothic revival.

One of the Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster) most famous features is the clock tower, a notable London tourist attraction that houses the famous bell Big Ben.

The Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster) contain over 1,000 rooms, the most important of which are the Chambers of the House of Lords and of the House of Commons. The Houses of Parliament also include committee rooms, libraries, lobbies, dining-rooms, bars and gymnasiums.

The Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster) are the site of important state ceremonies, most notably the State Opening of Parliament. The Palace is very closely associated with the two Houses, as shown by the use of "Westminster" as a metonym for "Parliament". Parliamentary offices overspill into nearby buildings such as Portcullis House, and Norman Shaw Buildings.

Sir Charles Barry's Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster) includes several towers. The tallest is the Victoria Tower 98 m (323 ft), a square tower at the south-western end of the Palace. The tower was named after the reigning monarch at the time of the reconstruction of the Palace, Queen Victoria.

At the base of the Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster) Victoria Tower is the Sovereign's Entrance to the Palace. The monarch uses this entrance whenever he or she enters the Palace of Westminster for the State Opening of Parliament or for any other official ceremony.

At the north-western end of the Houses of Parliament (Westminster Palace) is the most famous of the towers, the Clock Tower (Big Ben), which is 96 m (316 ft) tall.

The Clock Tower houses a large clock known as the Great Clock of Westminster, and on each of the four sides of the tower is a large clock face.The largest and most famous of the bells is Big Ben (officially, the Great Bell of Westminster), which strikes the hour, and which is the third heaviest bell in England, weighing 13 tons 10 cwt 99 lb (about 13.8 t).

Further information can be found on the Houses of Parliament official website or the Palace of Westminster official web pages

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