Buckingham Palace., London

Buckingham Palace is the official London residence of the British monarch and is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality. It has been a rallying point for the British people at times of national rejoicing and crisis.

The Palace was built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1703 on a site which had been in private ownership for at least 150 years. It was subsequently acquired by George III in 1761 as a private residence for Queen Charlotte, and known as "The Queen's House". During the 19th century it was enlarged, forming three wings around a central courtyard. Buckingham Palace finally became the official royal palace of the British monarch on the accession of Queen Victoria in 1837. The last major structural additions were made in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including the East front which contains the well-known balcony on which the Royal Family traditionally congregate to greet crowds outside. However, the palace chapel was destroyed by a German bomb in World War II; the Queen's Gallery was built on the site and opened to the public in 1962 to exhibit works of art from the Royal Collection.

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Located in the heart of London (technically in the City of Westminster), Buckingham Palace has been the official residence of the British monarch since 1837. The palace was originally built in 1701 as the residence of the Duke of Buckingham, but it was substantially enlarged and modified in the 19th and 20th centuries that none of the original palace is apparent anymore. Tourists never seem to leave the Queen alone, for there are always masses of tourists and sympathisers gathered outside the palace to take a peek at through the wrought iron gates and to have their picture taken with the statue-like guards. As many know, if the flag is flying, then the Queen is in the palace, otherwise, she's not.

Buckingham Palace is situated in Green Park, which is a short walk away from Trafalgar Square in Central London. it's a nice stroll through the park to get to the palace... quite a lot of ducks there, so bring bread for some fun!

Buckingham Palace is currently open to the public, though the admission price is about twenty pounds, so I don't really see the need to go in as i've been to many other royal residences! this is just for the summer, i believe, and for most of the year it is closed to the public. when that is the case, essentially tourists come, peer through the gates and take lots of snapshots.

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Visit the state rooms while the Queen is in Scotland (Aug-Sept).

The changing of the guard occurs daily at 11:30am from April through June and alternate days the rest of the year.

Cost of Admission: £13.50 (adult), £11.50 (senior), £7.00 (child), free (under 5 years)

Open 9:30 am- 6:30 pm

Buckingham palace had been the home of the royal family in Britain since 1837. Today it is the official residence of the Queen.

The tour is truly a magnificent experience , interior of the building which is very well maintained and the tour was awesome because unlike other tourist attractions, you are not being rushed on from one room to the next, you can spend as much time as one likes in considering the breathtaking decor and magnificent furniture/art.

The rooms that is on the tour were lavishly furnished with some of the greatest treasures from the Royal Collection - paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens, Vermeer, Poussin, Canaletto and Claude; sculpture by Canova and Chantrey; exquisite examples of Sèvres porcelain; and some of the finest English and French furniture in the world.

I went to the Queen's Official Birthday this year. It was a neat experience for someone new to the UK. Nothing mind blowing, but fun to see. It didn't take long and if you get a good spot you can snap a couple pictures of the royal family. I posted photos and more tips on my travel blog at:
http://adams-travel-blog.blogspot.com/2009/06/buckingham-palace-queens-birthday.html

When I arrived in London, the media were reporting the dead of 15 British soldiers in one week in Afghanistan mainly by roadside bombs.
The political row was strong: not enough troops on the ground, critical shortage of helicopters and armoured vehicles not resisting the IEDs.

The public at the change of guard is not always aware that the soldiers parading with great skill are also often on operations abroad. In that week the Welsh Guards had lost in Afghanistan their colonel and a guardsman killed in the explosion of their armoured vehicle.
At Buckingham the parade went on as usual.

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One of the finest working stables in existence, the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace provides a unique insight into the department of the Royal Household that provides transport by road for The Queen and other members of the Royal Family.

The Royal Mews houses the State vehicles, both horse-drawn carriages and motor cars, used for coronations, State Visits, royal weddings, the State Opening of Parliament and official engagements. Visitors can see the Gold State Coach which was last used during The Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002 to carry Her Majesty and Prince Philip to the Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral.

For most of the year the stables are home to the working horses that play an important role in The Queen's official and ceremonial duties. They are mainly Cleveland Bays, the only British breed of carriage horse, and the Windsor greys, which by tradition always draw the carriage in which The Queen is travelling.

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They're changing guard at Buckingham Palace -
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
Alice is marrying one of the guard.
"A soldier's life is terrible hard,"
Says Alice. (A.A. Milne)

Just as Christopher Robin and Alice did, London tourists go to Buckingham Palace to view the Changing of the Guard.
Ever since William the Conqueror won the Battle of Hastings, London is the home of monarchy. In London almost everything is Royal; there are royal parks, royal monuments, royal palaces and, of course the Queen's Guard is also royal.

The attraction Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace takes place at 11:30 daily from May to the end of July when the Guard is dressed in their summer coats of bright reds. ( In August on odd days and in September on even days.)
If you are keen for the best views, you should start arriving hours before, and stand as near as you can to the railings at the Victoria Monument. If you do not reach early enough, you will see the changing of the guards only in someones display screen!
And the following 45 minutes music plays, officers bark orders, and the soldiers march back and forth, back and forth and back and forth............
You should take some photos while you're there, if for no other reason than you can say: The Changing of the Guard?? Oh, I have watched that!!

From here you can easily walk to other sights such as Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament (12 minutes), Horse Guards and the Mounted Guards (15 minutes), 10 Downing Street/Prime Ministers residence (15 minutes), Trafalgar Square (20 minutes), Hard Rock Cafe (10 minutes) to name just a few nearby.
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