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Iconic!
The
Palace
of
Westminster,
also
known
as
the
Houses
of
Parliament,
is
the
iconic
seat
of
the
British
Parliament
comprising
the
House
of
Commons
and
the
House
of
Lords.
The
history
of
the
Palace
of
Westminster
begins
with
Edward
the
Confessor
who
had
the
original
palace
built
here
around
1050.
Until
the
fire
of
1512,
this
palace
was
the
seat
of
the
English
kings;
Eduard
I
Longshanks
is
the
only
king
born
here.
Though
built
as
the
seat
of
royal
power,
it
has
been
the
seat
and
symbol
of
democratic
power
since
the
first
meeting
of
the
English
Parliament
on
20
January
1265.
What
Guy
Fawkes
failed
to
do
on
November
5,
1605,
a
great
fire
succeeded
in
1834:
the
palace
was
largely
reduced
to
ashes.
The
design
competition
that
was
launched
on
this
was
won
by
Charles
Barry.
Between
1840
and
1876,
a
huge,
more
than
1,000-room
building
in
Gothic
Revival
and
Perpendicular
Gothic
Style
was
built.
Barry
was
assisted
in
the
interior
design
by
Augstus
Pugin.
The
most
famous
part
of
the
Palace
of
Westminster
is
of
course
Big
Ben
(officially
the
Elizabeth
Tower
since
2012),
but
the
large,
square
Victoria
Tower
is
also
a
striking
feature.
The
oldest
part
of
the
building
is
Westminster
Hall,
parts
of
which
date
back
to
Norman
times.
A
tour
of
the
democratic
heart
of
the
UK
is
very
interesting,
but
a
view
from
the
outside
is
impressive
too!
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