Please read and enjoy our article and watch your FREE LONDON MUSIC VIDEO at the end When is a Palace not a Palace? Buckingham Palace was originally known as Buckingham House. The building which forms the core of today's Buckingham Palace was a large London townhouse built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1703. It was acquired by George III in 1761 as a private residence, and became known as "The Queen's House". The 'house', in the west end of London, was enlarged over the next 75 years, principally by architects John Nash and Edward Blore, three wings being formed around a central courtyard. | The house finally became Buckingham Palace , the official royal palace of the British monarch, on the accession of Queen Victoria in 1837 .
At the time, the Buckingham Palace state rooms were a riot of gilt and colour in the best Victorian traditions. However, the facilities of Buckingham Palace were somewhat less luxurious. It was rumoured, for example, that the chimneys in Buckingham Palace smoked so much that the fires had to be put out, leaving their royal majesties to shiver in icy magnificence.
Ventilation was so bad that the interior smelled, and when gas lamps were installed, there was a serious worry about the build-up of gas on the lower floors. The Buckingham Palace staff were lax and incompetent and the palace was not kept clean. | | The Palace from St James's Park | Following the Queen's marriage in 1840 , her husband, Prince Albert , totally and quickly reorganised the Buckingham Palace household offices and staff, and sorted out many of the palace's design faults.
By 1847 , the couple had found Buckingham Palace too small for court life and their growing family, and consequently a new wing, designed by Edward Blore , was built by Thomas Cubitt enclosing the central quadrangle.
The large East Front facing The Mall is today the "public face" of Buckingham Palace and contains the balcony from which the Royal Family acknowledge the crowds on momentous occasions and annually after the Trooping the Colour ceremony.
Before Prince Albert's death, the palace was frequently the scene of musical entertainments and the greatest contemporary musicians entertained at Buckingham Palace including Mendelssohn and Strauss .
Widowed in 1861 , the grief-stricken Queen Victoria withdrew from public life and left Buckingham Palace to live at Windsor Castle , Balmoral Castle , and Osborne House . For many years Buckingham Palace was seldom used, and even neglected.
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|  | | Queen Victoria standing guard | Eventually, public opinion forced Queen Victoria to return to London though, even then, she preferred to live elsewhere whenever possible. Court functions were still held at Windsor Castle rather than at the palace, presided over by the sombre Queen Victoria habitually dressed in mourning black.
The unloved Buckingham Palace remained shuttered for most of the year. | | The impressive Palace Gates | The Buckingham Palace state rooms today form the nucleus of the working palace and are used regularly by Queen Elizabeth II and members of the royal family for official and state entertaining.
Buckingham Palace is one of the world's most familiar buildings and more than 50,000 people visit the palace each year as guests to banquets, lunches, dinners, receptions and the royal garden parties.
50,000 is an awful lot of people. But Buckingham Palace is a major London tourist attraction and one of the most popular places to visit in London.
So today, many more stand outside with faces eagerly pressed against the Buckingham Palace railings, outside looking in. | In our ordinary lives many of us must wonder about the fairytale that, in our minds at least, has taken place and indeed goes on today, inside those ornate gates and behind those royal walls.
If only, if only…. many of us must think as we turn away from the majesty of Buckingham Palace and head off to catch the tube! |
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