Picture of
Big Ben | History of the Houses of Parliament
Officially called the Palace of Westminster, the Houses of Parliament, in Westminster, serve as the meeting place of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two branches of the United Kingdom's legislature. The bell, clock, and clock tower are referred to as Big Ben, which will be included in most pictures of the palace.
The buildings stand on the site where Edward the Confessor built an original
palace in 1099. They were remodeled during the late 1300's. Later, in 1547, the
royal residence was moved to Whitehall Palace. The Lords met at Westminster,
while the Commons met in St. Stephen's Chapel. For almost 300 years, the commons
met in St. Stephen's Chapel in the Palace of Westminster, until the fire of 1834.
The chief building that survived the 1834 fire was Westminster Hall, although
most of the records of the house were destroyed.
After 1834, a competition was commissioned to build a new building in the Gothic style. Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin won it. Prince Albert requested artists to create fresco-like designs depicting British history to decorate it. The facade was made to be over 300m long. These new buildings were not finished until 1860. The clock was designed in 1859 by E. Denison and E. Dent and is 96m high. The Big Ben bell is only one of five bells but weighs over 13 tons and so is the largest. The two imposing towers are the clock tower and the Victoria tower on which the national flag flies.
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The Great Council of EnglandDeveloping from a council of nobles and high-ranking clergy to advise the early kings of England, after 1066, this informal advisory group became a formal assembly called the Great Council. During the early 1200's, King John began to call knights elected from the shires (counties) to some meetings of the Great Council. In the mid-1200's, the council, was called Parliament, and enlarged to include elected representatives from towns, shires, and boroughs. In 1707, the Act of Union joined England, Scotland, and Wales together to form a united kingdom of Great Britain establishing a single parliament for the nation.
During the 1800's, some districts with almost no voters had representation, while districts with large populations had none. Few citizens had the right to vote. In 1832, Parliament passed a reform act that reduced the property requirements for voting to give most middle-class men, but no women, the right to vote. The Reform Acts of 1867 and 1884 extended the vote to nearly all adult males. It was not until 1928 that women received full voting rights. |
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Conflicts for Power
Twice in British history, political conflict between the king and the council or Parliament became a military conflict. Firstly, under King John who was trying to raise taxes without their approval, it was resolved with the adoption of the Magna Carta or Great Charter on June 15, 1215 at Runnymede. Secondly, in 1628, King Charles I refused to sign the Petition of Right, a document limiting royal power and did not allow Parliament to meet from 1629 until 1640. Civil war began and the king lost. In 1649, he was beheaded. The legislature, led by Oliver Cromwell, declared England a republic and ruled until 1653. Cromwell then ruled as Lord Protector until his death in 1658. In 1660, a new Parliament restored the monarchy.
In 1909, a new struggle broke out between the two houses of Parliament after the Lords rejected a budget approved by the Commons. It resulted in the Parliamentary Act of 1911 under which the House of Lords lost its veto power. The Parliamentary Act of 1949 reduced the House of Lords' power to postpone bills. In 1999, legislation abolished the right of hereditary peers to inherit a seat in the Lords along with their title. |
Plots of Destruction
The most famous attempt to destroy the Houses of Parliament occurred on Nov. 5, 1605. It was named the Gunpowder Plot and included Guy Fawkes. The conspirators were discovered and were executed. A festival is held every November 5, when Guy Fawkes is burnt in effigy. During World War II, German bombs destroyed part of the House of Commons. It was rebuilt after the war. Another time, a terrorist bomb slightly damaged the hall in 1974.
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