The Building of England: How the History of England Has Shaped Our Buildings

There they came into contact with French, Dutch and Italian architecture and, with Charles's restoration in , there was a flurry of building activity as royalists reclaimed their property and built themselves houses reflecting the latest European trends. As the century wore on, this resolved itself into a passion for the Baroque grandeur which Louis XIV had turned into an instrument of statecraft at Versailles. Formal, geometrical and symmetrical planning meant that a great lord could sit in his dining chamber, at the physical as well as the metaphorical centre of his world, with suites of rooms radiating out in straight lines to either side.

His gardens would reflect those lines in long, straight walks and avenues. The British Baroque was a reassertion of authority, an expression of absolutist ideology by men who remembered a world turned upside down during the Civil War. The style is heavy and rich, sometimes overblown and melodramatic. The politics which underpin it are questionable, but its products are breathtaking. Greenwich Hospital was built from onwards. St Paul's Cathedral , London, is not only one of the most perfect expressions of the English Baroque, but also one of the greatest buildings anywhere in England.

It was designed by Wren to replace the old cathedral which had been devastated during the Fire of London in Although built in the 18th century, the ideology behind Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire lies firmly in the 17th century. Conceived as a monumental homage to the Duke of Marlborough, whose victory over Louis XIV's army at Blenheim in Bavaria gives the palace its name, it was designed by John Vanbrugh and is the nearest thing Britain has to a Versailles.

To the Whigs who came to power on the accession of George I in , the Baroque was inextricably linked with the authoritarian rule of the Stuarts. A new style was needed for a new age, and the new ruling class, which aspired to build a civilisation that would rival that of ancient Rome, looked for a solution in antiquity. Or so it thought. Actually, the solution was found in an antiquity which had been heavily re-interpreted by the 16th century Italian architect Andrea Palladio Palladio's Four Books of Architecture methodically explored and reconstructed the buildings of ancient Rome.

They also provided illustrations, in the form of its author's own designs for villas, palaces and churches, of a way in which the early Georgians might adapt those rules to create an architecture of the classical tradition - the yardstick by which all civilised activity was measured. By the end of the 18th century, the idea of a single national style of architecture had had its day.

But architects soon found the Palladian search for an ideal architecture pointlessly limiting. Whilst the buildings of the ancients should 'serve as models which we should imitate, and as standards by which we ought to judge', a more eclectic approach was called for. In the words of the later 18th century's greatest architect, Robert Adam, 'Rules often cramp the genius and circumscribe the idea of the master'. Austere neo-classical masterpieces were still being produced; but so too were huge mock-abbeys, battlemented castles, picturesque sixteen-bedroomed cottages and even, as the 19th century dawned, oriental palaces such as John Nash's Royal Pavilion at Brighton.

The Cult of Styles had arrived. In case anyone was slow to appreciate where Burlington's architectural allegiances lay, he had Michael Rysbrack design two statues to flank the entrance stair with Palladio on the left, and his earliest English disciple Inigo Jones on the right. Kedleston Hall , Derbyshire , is a high point of British neo-classicism.

The Palladian layout had already been established when the up-and-coming Scottish architect Robert Adam was asked to take over the project in by the owner, Sir Nathaniel Curzon. The austere, delicate interiors, with their remarkably unified decoration, show Adam at the height of his powers. Kedleston, the Glory of Derbyshire, was one of the most consistently praised of all Georgian houses.

Over the next three decades Walpole transformed the uninteresting villa he had bought by the Thames at Twickenham into one of the landmarks of the Gothic Revival in Britain. Strawberry Hill aroused enormous interest - Walpole had to issue tickets to restrict the number of visitors coming to see it - and demonstrated that native medieval architecture could be every bit as valid as classicism.

In the early 19th century, the French Revolution was recent enough to provide an awful example of what might happen if the upper classes lost control, whilst Peterloo and demonstrations against the Six Acts in were a reminder that it could happen here. The building classes took refuge in a fictitious past, such as the Middle Ages of Walter Scott's Ivanhoe or the romantic Elizabethan style of Kenilworth The myth of Merry England, with its strictly ordered society and its chivalric code of values, had a strong appeal for a ruling elite which felt under threat from social and political unrest at home and abroad.

The huge glass-and-iron Crystal Palace, designed by Joseph Paxton to house the Great Exhibition of , shows another strand to 19th century architecture - one which embraced new industrial processes.

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But it wasn't long before even this confidence in progress came to be regarded with suspicion. Mass production resulted in buildings and furnishings that were too perfect, as the individual craftsman no longer had a major role in their creation. Railing against the dehumanising effects of industrialisation, reformers like John Ruskin and William Morris made a concerted effort to return to hand-crafted, pre-industrial manufacturing techniques.

Morris's influence grew from the production of furniture and textiles, until by the s a generation of principled young architects was following his call for good, honest construction. Pugin, replaced the building destroyed by fire in A good example of the period's confused love affair with the past, it was summed up earlier this century as classic in inspiration, Gothic in detailing, and carried out with scrupulous adherence to the architectural detail of the Tudor period. With its quiet, unassuming love for the vernacular of Kent and Sussex, and its rejection of Victorian pomposity, Philip Webb's Red House at Bexleyheath is the building which started the Arts and Crafts movement.

It was originally designed for newly-weds William and Janey Morris. Castell Coch , near Cardiff , is a piece of inspired lunacy by William Burges, best known for his restoration of Cardiff Castle, an opium habit and the fact that he used to relax at home with a pet parrot perched on the shoulder of his hooded medieval robe. This reconstruction of a 13th century chieftain's stronghold - right down to the working portcullis - is scholarly, at least as far as the exterior is concerned. The interior is downright weird, combining High Victorian romanticism with Burges' own eclectic drawings from ancient British history, Moorish design and classical mythology.

Charles Rennie Mackintosh's Glasgow School of Art , proves that there were a few dissenting voices raised against the Victorian trend to return to the past. Mackintosh was uncompromising in his rejection of historicism, and his buildings have more in common with the vertical geometry and sinuous curves of Art Nouveau work in France, Belgium and Austria.

But his decadent approach to design met with hostility in Britain and, a few years after the School of Art was completed in , he gave up architecture. The most important trends in early 20th century architecture simply passed Britain by. Whilst Gropius was working on cold, hard expanses of glass, and Le Corbusier was experimenting with the use of reinforced concrete frames, we had staid establishment architects like Edwin Lutyens producing Neo-Georgian and Renaissance country houses for an outmoded landed class. In addition there were slightly batty architect-craftsmen, the heirs of William Morris, still trying to turn the clock back to before the Industrial Revolution by making chairs and spurning new technology.

Only a handful of Modern Movement buildings of any real merit were produced here during the s and s, and most of these were the work of foreign architects such as Serge Chermayeff, Berthold Lubetkin and Erno Goldfinger who had settled in this country. Local authorities, charged with the task of rebuilding city centres, became important patrons of architecture.

After the Second World War the situation began to change. The Modern Movement's belief in progress and the future struck a chord with the mood of post-war Britain and, as reconstruction began under Attlee's Labour government in , there was a desperate need for cheap housing which could be produced quickly. The use of prefabricated elements, metal frames, concrete cladding and the absence of decoration - all of which had been embraced by Modernists abroad and viewed with suspicion by the British - were adopted to varying degrees for housing developments and schools.

This represented a shift away from the private individuals who had dominated the architectural scene for centuries. Since the War it has been corporate bodies like these local authorities, together with national and multinational companies, and large educational institutions, which have dominated British architecture. By the late s the Modern Movement, unfairly blamed for the social experiments implicit in high-rise housing, had lost out to irony and spectacle in the shape of post-modernism, with its cheerful borrowings from anywhere and any period.

But now, in the new Millennium, even post-modernism is showing signs of age. It was hailed as one of the most magnificent examples of civic planning in Britain but, in retrospect, its deeply conservative architecture also seems both arrogant and strangely out of touch with contemporary building in the rest of Europe. It goes without saying that it failed, but the recent restoration of the Pavilion's clean, sweeping lines is a cause for national celebration. The festival buildings were important for the opportunity they afforded of presenting a showcase for good modern architecture and Martin's concert hall, while not exactly earth-shattering, is a timely reminder of what good festival architecture looks like.

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Adrian Tinniswood is an author, lecturer and broadcaster. His books include His Invention So Fertile: This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets CSS enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. All the glass on the south dial was blown out, but the hands and bells were not affected, and the Great Clock continued to keep time accurately. Following the destruction of the Commons Chamber, the Lords offered their own debating chamber for the use of the Commons; for their own sittings the Queen's Robing Room was converted into a makeshift chamber.

As the need for office space in the Palace increased, Parliament acquired office space in the nearby Norman Shaw Building in , [35] and in the custom-built Portcullis House , completed in This increase has enabled all MPs to have their own office facilities. The Palace of Westminster, which is a Grade 1 listed building , is in urgent need of extensive restoration to its fabric.

A pre-feasibility report set out several options, including the possibility of parliament moving to other premises while work is carried out, also at this time the option of moving Parliament to another new build location was discounted for the preference of staying at the Westminster site. MPs decided in to vacate the building for six years starting in Sir Charles Barry 's collaborative design for the Palace of Westminster uses the Perpendicular Gothic style, which was popular during the 15th century and returned during the Gothic revival of the 19th century.

Barry was a classical architect , but he was aided by the Gothic architect Augustus Pugin. Westminster Hall, which was built in the 11th century and survived the fire of , was incorporated in Barry's design.

Pugin was displeased with the result of the work, especially with the symmetrical layout designed by Barry; he famously remarked, "All Grecian, sir; Tudor details on a classic body". In Charles Barry toured Britain, looking at quarries and buildings, with a committee which included two leading geologists and a stonecarver. A crucial consideration was transportation, achieved on water via the Chesterfield Canal , the North Sea, and the rivers Trent and Thames. Barry's New Palace of Westminster was rebuilt using the sandy-coloured Anston limestone.

However, the stone soon began to decay due to pollution and the poor quality of some of the stone used. Although such defects were clear as early as , nothing was done for the remainder of the 19th century even after much studying. In it was deemed necessary to use Clipsham stone , a honey-coloured limestone from Rutland , to replace the decayed Anston. The project began in the s but was halted by the outbreak of the Second World War, and completed only during the s. By the s pollution had again begun to take its toll. A stone conservation and restoration programme to the external elevations and towers began in , and ended in The Palace of Westminster has three main towers.

Of these, the largest and tallest is Originally named "The King's Tower" because the fire of which destroyed the old Palace of Westminster occurred during the reign of King William IV , the tower was an integral part of Barry's original design, of which he intended it to be the most memorable element. The architect conceived the great square tower as the keep of a legislative "castle" echoing his selection of the portcullis as his identifying mark in the planning competition , and used it as the royal entrance to the Palace and as a fireproof repository for the archives of Parliament. At the base of the tower is the Sovereign's Entrance, used by the monarch whenever entering the Palace to open Parliament or for other state occasions.

On all other days the Union Flag flies from the mast. At the north end of the Palace rises the most famous of the towers, Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben. Charles Barry asked Pugin to design the clock tower because Pugin had previously helped Barry design the Palace. Medieval windows above that and then it hits the grey slate roof, its greyness relieved by those delicate little windows again picked out in gold leaf. And then rises up again in a great jet of gold to the higher roof that curves gracefully upwards to a spire with a crown and flowers and a cross.

It's elegant and grand and has fairy tale qualities. Five bells hang in the belfry above the clock. The four quarter bells strike the Westminster Chimes every quarter-hour. The first bell to bear this name cracked during testing and was recast; [58] the present bell later developed a crack of its own, which gives it a distinctive sound. It was installed in at the request of Queen Victoria—so that she could see from Buckingham Palace whether the members were "at work"—and named after Acton Smee Ayrton , who was First Commissioner of Works in the s.

It was added to the plans on the insistence of Dr. David Boswell Reid , who was in charge of the ventilation of the new Houses of Parliament: Apart from the pinnacles which rise from between the window bays along the fronts of the Palace, numerous turrets enliven the building's skyline. Like the Central Tower, these have been added for practical reasons, and mask ventilation shafts. There are some other features of the Palace of Westminster which are also known as towers. There are a number of small gardens surrounding the Palace of Westminster.

Victoria Tower Gardens is open as a public park along the side of the river south of the palace. Black Rod's Garden named after the office of Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod is closed to the public and is used as a private entrance. Old Palace Yard , in front of the Palace, is paved over and covered in concrete security blocks see security below.

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Cromwell Green also on the frontage, and in enclosed by hoardings for the construction of a new visitor centre , New Palace Yard on the north side and Speaker's Green directly north of the Palace are all private and closed to the public. College Green , opposite the House of Lords, is a small triangular green commonly used for television interviews with politicians. The Palace of Westminster contains over 1, rooms, staircases and 4. The ground floor is occupied by offices, dining rooms and bars; the first floor known as the principal floor houses the main rooms of the Palace, including the debating chambers, the lobbies and the libraries.

The top-two floors are used as committee rooms and offices. Some of the interiors were designed and painted by J.

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Crace , working in collaboration with Pugin and others. For example, Crace decorated and gilded the ceiling of the Chapel of St. Instead of one main entrance, the Palace features separate entrances for the different user groups of the building. The Sovereign's Entrance, at the base of the Victoria Tower, is located in the south-west corner of the Palace and is the starting point of the royal procession route, the suite of ceremonial rooms used by the monarch at State Openings of Parliament.

Members of the House of Lords use the Peers' Entrance in the middle of the Old Palace Yard front, which is covered by a stone carriage porch and opens to an entrance hall. A staircase from there leads, through a corridor, to the Prince's Chamber. Members of Parliament enter their part of the building from the Members' Entrance in the south side of New Palace Yard.

Their route passes through a cloakroom in the lower level of the Cloisters and eventually reaches the Members' Lobby directly south of the Commons Chamber. From New Palace Yard, access can also be gained to the Speaker's Court and the main entrance of the Speaker's House, located in the pavilion at the north-east corner of the Palace. St Stephen's Entrance, roughly in the middle of the building's western front, is the entrance for members of the public. From there, visitors walk through a flight of stairs to St Stephen's Hall, location of a collection of marbles, which includes Somers [74] [75] Mansfield , [75] Hampden , [76] Walpole , [76] Pitt [76] and Fox.

This hall is flanked by symmetrical corridors decorated with fresco paintings, which lead to the ante-rooms and debating chambers of the two Houses: Another mural-lined corridor leads east to the Lower Waiting Hall and the staircase to the first floor, where the river front is occupied by a row of 16 committee rooms. Directly below them, the libraries of the two Houses overlook the Thames from the principal floor. It was designed for the use of the monarch, who travels from Buckingham Palace by carriage every year for the State Opening of Parliament.

The Sovereign's Entrance is also the formal entrance used by visiting dignitaries, [78] [79] as well as the starting point of public tours of the Palace. From there, the Royal Staircase leads up to the principal floor with a broad, unbroken flight of 26 steps made of grey granite. The staircase is followed by the Norman Porch, a square landing distinguished by its central clustered column and the intricate ceiling it supports, which is made up of four groin vaults with lierne ribs and carved bosses. The Porch was named for its proposed decorative scheme, based on Norman history. Queen Victoria is depicted twice in the room: The sixteen plinths intended for the statues now house busts of prime ministers who have sat in the House of Lords, such as the Earl Grey and the Marquess of Salisbury.

A double door opposite the stairs leads to the Royal Gallery, and another to the right opens to the Robing Room. The Queen's Robing Room usually referred to simply as "the Robing Room" lies at the southern end of the ceremonial axis of the Palace and occupies the centre of the building's south front, overlooking the Victoria Tower Gardens.

A panel of purple velvet forms the backdrop to the chair, embroidered by the Royal School of Needlework with the royal arms, surrounded by stars and VR monograms. The decorative theme of the room is the legend of King Arthur , considered by many Victorians the source of their nationhood. Each scene represents a chivalric virtue; the largest, between the two doors, is entitled Admission of Sir Tristram to the Round Table and illustrates the virtue of Hospitality.

The Robing Room was also briefly used as the House of Lords' meeting chamber while the House of Lords Chamber was occupied by the House of Commons, whose chamber had been destroyed by the Blitz in Immediately north of the Robing Room is the Royal Gallery. The decorative scheme of the Royal Gallery was meant to display important moments in British military history, and the walls are decorated by two large paintings by Daniel Maclise , each measuring Each depicts a monarch during whose reign a key battle or war took place.

The panelled ceiling, Thanks to its location, it is a place where members of the Lords meet to discuss business of the House. Several doors lead out of the room, to the division lobbies of the House of Lords and to a number of important offices. The theme of the Prince's Chamber is Tudor history, and 28 oil portraits painted on panels around the room depict members of the Tudor dynasty.

They are the work of Richard Burchett and his pupils, and their creation entailed extensive research, which contributed to the founding of the National Portrait Gallery in They are scheduled to be fixed in the Prince's Chamber in the following months. The room also contains a statue of Queen Victoria, seated on a throne itself placed on a pedestal and holding a sceptre and a laurel crown, which show that she both governs and rules.

However, the size and location of the group, in the archway opposite the doors to the Royal Gallery which are removed before State Openings of Parliament to facilitate the royal procession , indicate that it was meant to be seen from a distance, and to symbolically remind the monarch of their royal duties as they would walk down the Royal Gallery on their way to deliver their speech.

The lavishly decorated room measures The upper part of the Chamber is decorated by stained glass windows and by six allegorical frescoes representing religion, chivalry and law. At the south end of the Chamber are the ornate gold Canopy and Throne; although the Sovereign may theoretically occupy the Throne during any sitting, he or she attends only the State Opening of Parliament.

Other members of the Royal Family who attend the State Opening use Chairs of State next to the Throne, and peers' sons are always entitled to sit on the steps of the Throne. In front of the Throne is the Woolsack , an armless red cushion stuffed with wool , representing the historical importance of the wool trade, and used by the officer presiding over the House the Lord Speaker since , but historically the Lord Chancellor or a deputy. The House's mace , which represents royal authority, is placed on the back of the Woolsack. In front of the Woolsack is the Judges' Woolsack, a larger red cushion that used to be occupied during the State Opening by the Law Lords who were members of the House of Lords , and prospectively by the Supreme Court Justices and other Judges whether or not members , to represent the Judicial Branch of Government.

The Table of the House, at which the clerks sit, is in front. Members of the House occupy red benches on three sides of the Chamber.

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The Lords Temporal nobles sit according to party affiliation: Some peers, who have no party affiliation, sit on the benches in the middle of the House opposite the Woolsack; they are accordingly known as crossbenchers. The Lords Chamber is the site of nationally televised ceremonies, the most important of which is the State Opening of Parliament , which is held formally to open each annual parliamentary session, either after a General Election or in the autumn.

At this occasion every constitutional element of the government is represented: The Sovereign, seated on the Throne, delivers the Speech from the Throne , outlining the Government's programme for the year and legislative agenda for the forthcoming parliamentary session. The Commons may not enter the Lords' debating floor; instead, they watch the proceedings from beyond the Bar of the House, just inside the door.

A small purely formal ceremony is held to end each parliamentary session, when the Sovereign is merely represented by a group of Lords Commissioners. Following the Blitz, which destroyed the chamber of the House of Commons, the Lord's chamber was occupied by the Commons. The Lords temporarily used the Robing Room during the reconstruction. The State Opening Of Parliament was carried out as normal, with the new rooms being used. Evidence can still be seen of this today, with damage clearly visible on one of the doors where they were struck by Black Rod.

Directly north of the Lords Chamber lies the Peers' Lobby, an antechamber where Lords can informally discuss or negotiate matters during sittings of the House, as well as collect messages from the doorkeepers , who control access to the Chamber. The walls are faced with white stone and each is pierced by a doorway; above the arches are displayed arms representing the six royal dynasties which ruled England until Queen Victoria's reign Saxon , Norman , Plantagenet , Tudor , Stuart and Hanoverian , and between them there are windows stained with the arms of the early aristocratic families of England.

Of the doorways, the one to the south—which leads into the Lords Chamber—is the most magnificent, and sports much gilding and decoration, including the full royal arms. It is enclosed by the Brass Gates, a pair of elaborately pierced and studded doors together weighing 1. To the north is the vaulted Peers' Corridor, which is decorated with eight murals by Charles West Cope depicting historical scenes from the period around the English Civil War.

It lies directly below the Central Tower and forms a busy crossroads between the House of Lords to the south, the House of Commons to the north, St Stephen's Hall and the public entrance to the west, and the Lower Waiting Hall and the libraries to the east. Its location halfway between the two debating chambers has led constitutional theorist Erskine May to describe the Lobby as "the political centre of the British Empire", [] and allows a person standing under the great chandelier to see both the Royal Throne and the Speaker's Chair, provided that all the intervening doors are open.

Constituents may meet their Members of Parliament here, even without an appointment, [] and this practice is the origin of the term lobbying. In front of them stand four bigger-than-life statues of 19th-century statesmen, including one of four-time Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone. The East Corridor leads from the Central Lobby to the Lower Waiting Hall, and its six panels remained blank until , when they were filled with scenes from Tudor history. One of the scenes is probably not historical: Continuing north from the Central Lobby is the Commons' Corridor.

It is of almost identical design to its southern counterpart and is decorated with scenes of 17th-century political history between the Civil War and the Revolution of In this room, Members of Parliament hold discussions or negotiations, and are often interviewed by accredited journalists, collectively known as " The Lobby ". The room is similar to the Peers' Lobby but plainer in design and slightly larger, forming a cube The archway of the door leading into the Commons Chamber has been left unrepaired as a reminder of the evils of war, and is now known as the Rubble Arch or Churchill Arch.

It is flanked by bronze statues of Winston Churchill and David Lloyd George , the prime ministers who led Britain through the Second and First World War respectively; a foot of each is conspicuously shiny, a result of a long tradition of MPs rubbing them for good luck on their way in before their maiden speech. The Lobby contains the busts and statues of most 20th-century prime ministers, as well as two large boards where MPs can receive letters and telephone messages, designed for the use of the House and installed in the early s.

The Chamber of the House of Commons is at the northern end of the Palace of Westminster; it was opened in after the Victorian chamber had been destroyed in and re-built under the architect Giles Gilbert Scott. The Chamber measures 14 by Members of the public are forbidden to sit on the benches.

Other parliaments in Commonwealth nations, including those of India , Canada , Australia and New Zealand , have copied the colour scheme under which the Lower House is associated with green, and the Upper House with red. In front of the Speaker's Chair is the Table of the House, at which the clerks sit, and on which is placed the Commons' ceremonial mace. The Table was a gift from Canada. There are green benches on either side of the House; members of the Government party occupy benches on the Speaker's right, while those of the Opposition occupy benches on the Speaker's left.

There are no cross-benches as in the House of Lords. The Chamber is relatively small, and can accommodate only of the Members of Parliament [] —during Prime Minister's Questions and in major debates MPs stand at either end of the House. The King sought to arrest five Members of Parliament on charges of high treason , but when he asked the Speaker, William Lenthall , if he had any knowledge of the whereabouts of these individuals, Lenthall famously replied: Black Rod has to strike the door three times with a staff, to be admitted and issue the summons from the monarch to the MPs to attend.

When repairs after the World War II bombing were completed, the rebuilt chamber was opened by King George VI on 26 October who was invited to an "unofficial" tour of the new structure by Commons leaders. The two red lines on the floor of the House of Commons are 2. It is said that the original purpose of this was to prevent disputes in the House from degenerating into duels. However, there is no record of a time when Members of Parliament were allowed to bring swords into the Chamber; historically, only the Serjeant at Arms has been allowed to carry a sword, as a symbol of their role in Parliament, and there are loops of pink ribbon in the Members' cloakroom for MPs to hang up their swords before entering the Chamber.

In the days when gentlemen carried swords, there were no lines in the Chamber. Westminster Hall, the oldest existing part of the Palace of Westminster, was erected in , [] at which point it was the largest hall in Europe. The new roof was commissioned in In Westminster Hall, the favourite heraldic badge of Richard II—a white hart, chained, and in an attitude of rest—is repeated as many as eighty-three times, without any of them being an exact counterpart of another. Westminster Hall has the largest clearspan medieval roof in England, measuring Westminster Hall has served numerous functions.

Until the 19th century, it was primarily used for judicial purposes, housing three of the most important courts in the land: In , these courts were amalgamated into the High Court of Justice , which continued to meet in Westminster Hall until it moved to the Royal Courts of Justice in The St Stephen's Porch end of the Hall displays under the stained glass window the Parliamentary War Memorial listing on eight panels the names of Members and staff of both Houses of Parliament and their sons killed serving in the First World War; the window itself, installed in , commemorates members and staff of both Houses who died in the Second World War.

In , a new stained glass window commemorating Elizabeth II's diamond jubilee was installed opposite this window, at the other end of the hall. Westminster Hall has also served ceremonial functions. From the twelfth century to the nineteenth, coronation banquets honouring new monarchs were held here. The Hall has been used for lyings-in-state during state and ceremonial funerals. Such an honour is usually reserved for the Sovereign and for their consorts; the only non-royals to receive it in the twentieth century were Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts and Winston Churchill The two Houses have presented ceremonial Addresses to the Crown in Westminster Hall on important public occasions.

It is considered a rare privilege for a foreign leader to be allowed to address both houses in Westminster Hall. Under reforms made in , the House of Commons uses the Grand Committee Room next to Westminster Hall as an additional debating chamber. Although it is not part of the main hall, the room is usually spoken of as such. The seating is laid out in a U-shape, in contrast with the main Chamber, in which the benches are placed opposite each other.

This pattern is meant to reflect the non-partisan nature of the debates held in Westminster Hall. The Palace of Westminster also includes state apartments for the presiding officers of the two Houses. The official residence of the Speaker stands at the northern end of the Palace; the Lord Chancellor's apartments are at the southern end.

Each day, the Speaker and Lord Speaker take part in formal processions from their apartments to their respective Chambers. The Strangers' Bar is one of the numerous bars, cafeterias and restaurants in the Palace of Westminster, with differing rules regarding who is allowed to use their facilities; many of them never close while the House is sitting. These officers, however, have primarily ceremonial roles outside the actual chambers of their respective Houses. Security is the responsibility of the Parliamentary Security Director. Parliament has its own professional Security force. Tradition still dictates that only the Serjeant at Arms may enter the Commons chamber armed.

With rising concern about the possibility that a vehicle full of explosives could be driven into the building, a series of concrete blocks was placed in the roadway in The Serious Organised Crime and Police Act made it illegal to hold a protest near the Palace, or anywhere else within a designated area extending up to 1 kilometre 0.

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The Act also restricted the operation of loudspeakers in the designated area. Members of the public continue to have access to the Strangers' Gallery in the House of Commons. Visitors pass through metal detectors and their possessions are scanned. To this end, they placed large quantities of gunpowder beneath the House of Lords, which one of the conspirators, Guy Fawkes, would detonate during the State Opening of Parliament on 5 November If successful, the explosion would have destroyed the Palace, killing the King, his family and most of the aristocracy.

However, the plot was discovered and most of the conspirators were either arrested or killed while trying to evade capture. The survivors were tortured in the Tower of London , tried for high treason in Westminster Hall, convicted and gruesomely executed by hanging, drawing and quartering. Since then, the cellars of the Palace have been searched by the Yeomen of the Guard before every State Opening of Parliament, a traditional precaution against any similar attempts against the Sovereign.

The previous Palace of Westminster was also the site of a prime-ministerial assassination on 11 May While in the lobby of the House of Commons, on his way to a parliamentary inquiry, Spencer Perceval was shot and killed by a Liverpool merchant adventurer, John Bellingham. Perceval remains the only British Prime Minister to have been assassinated. The first bomb, a black bag containing dynamite, was discovered by a visitor on the steps towards the Chapel of St Mary Undercroft.

The explosion and the resulting fire, which was fed by a ruptured gas main, injured 11 people and caused extensive damage. The attack occurred on 30 March , one day after the announcement of that year's general election ; [] both the Irish National Liberation Army and the Provisional IRA claimed responsibility for Neave's assassination, [] but it is now accepted that the former were responsible.

The Palace has also been the scene of numerous acts of politically motivated " direct action ", which often took place in the Chamber of the House of Commons. In July , a man in the Strangers' Gallery threw two canisters of tear gas into the Chamber to protest against the use of such gas in Northern Ireland; a MP and two members of the House's staff were taken to hospital and the sitting was suspended for almost two hours.

The new barrier does not cover the gallery in front of the Strangers' Gallery, which is reserved for ambassadors, members of the House of Lords, guests of MPs and other dignitaries, [] and in May protesters from Fathers 4 Justice attacked Prime Minister Tony Blair with flour bombs from this part, after obtaining admission by bidding for a place in the visitors' gallery in a charity auction. In September of the same year, five protesters opposed to the proposed ban on fox hunting disrupted the proceedings of the House of Commons by running into the Chamber, the first such occurrence since King Charles I 's unauthorised entry in , which triggered the English Civil War.

The House of Lords has also been targeted by protesters. On 2 February , the House debated the Local Government Bill 's controversial Clause 28 , a measure to prohibit the promotion of homosexuality in schools. Similar actions have been carried out outside the Palace of Westminster. Early in the morning of 20 March , two Greenpeace members scaled the Clock Tower to demonstrate against the Iraq War , raising questions about the security around such a likely target of terrorist attacks.

In February , five campaigners from the Plane Stupid group gained admittance to the building as visitors and then moved up to the roof to demonstrate against the proposed expansion of Heathrow Airport ; from there they hung two banners they had smuggled past security. MPs and security experts found it worrying that the protesters made it to the roof in spite of the heightened security measures, [] and the prosecution at the activists' trial argued that they may have received help from a House of Lords employee.

Some of them climbed down after nearly five hours, while the rest spent the night on the roof. On 22 March an Islamist -related terror attack happened in which a man stabbed a police officer after ploughing into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge. Five people were killed, including the attacker and the police officer. Smoking has not been allowed in the chamber of the House of Commons since the 17th century. Despite persistent media rumours, it has not been permitted to smoke anywhere inside the Palace since Men are expected to wear formal attire, women are expected to dress in business-like clothing and the wearing of T-shirts with slogans is not allowed.

Members are not allowed to have their hands in their pockets— Andrew Robathan was heckled by opposing MPs for doing this on 19 December Other than people, the only animals allowed in the Palace of Westminster are guide dogs. Speeches may not be read out during debate in the House of Commons, although notes may be referred to. Similarly, the reading of newspapers is not allowed. Visual aids are discouraged in the chamber.