REPORT ON VISIT TO THE HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT
Despite heavy traffic and the odd U turn, 47 members and friends arrived at The Houses of Parliament in good time for our whistle-stop guided tour on Monday 16 March. For those of us who had not been before, the sumptuous design and grandeur of the state rooms was a surprise. Our guide explained that, as well as the meeting place of the House of Lords and The House of Commons, this is also The Palace of Westminster, a Grade 1 listed building and Unesco World Heritage site, and the property of The Crown.
Looking upwards in The Westminster Hall, the oldest surviving part of the Palace of Westminster, all of us were impressed by the magnificent hammer beam roof. This was erected in the reign of Richard II and is the largest clear span medieval roof in England. As well as being a banqueting hall this was also used for trials for high treason (including Guy Fawkes and Charles I) and the Lying in State of Winston Churchill and, more recently, The Queen Mother.
Our guide told us that parts of the Palace of Westminster were destroyed by fire on more than one occasion - firstly in 1512 and again in 1834, when it was rebuilt in the Perpendicular Gothic style designed by architects Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin. The building was bombed several times during WW2.
Swiftly moving on into St Stephens Hall we admired the statues of famous parliamentarians and the paintings lining the walls, showing important events in British History. The stained glass windows above depict the arms of cities and boroughs.
Then we cantered into the Ceremonial Rooms used for the State Openings of Parliament when the Queen enters through the Norman Porch and into the highly gilded, Arthurian inspired, Queen’s Robing Room where she changes into her ceremonial costume. Dominating the imposing Royal Gallery, which is also used for grand receptions of visiting foreign dignitaries, are huge pictures painted by Daniel Maclise of The Death of Horatio Nelson at Trafalgar and The Defeat of Napoleon at The Battle of Waterloo
On, at a slow sprint, we went into the octagonal Central Lobby, which is used as a meeting place of Members of both Houses and their visitors. We admired the intricately tiled floor and the mosaic panels of the four patron saints of Great Britain. Then we entered the Members Lobby, which was badly damaged in the Blitz, dominated by a statue of Churchill opposite one of Margaret Thatcher (in bronze not iron) and into the Voting Lobbies.
The difference between the opulence of the Chamber of The House of Lords which contained a huge gilded throne, and the plainly decorated House of Commons was very evident and both chambers seemed much smaller than we expected.
Climbing many stairs we finished our tour in a committee room for an audience with Michael Fallon, MP for Sevenoaks and Secretary of State for Defence. He gave us a flavour of his working life, travelling around the world. Within the space of a few days he has been to Bucharest to discuss the situation of Romania’s borders with Russia, meeting his counterpart at The White House in Washington….and discussing the back fence of St Mary’s Primary School in Swanley! He told us that much of the work of the House happened in rooms similar to where we were where members scrutinise Bills, sit on Select Committees examining evidence as well as attending Question Times and The Main Business of the Day, encompassing legislation, amendments and voting. We then had a question and answer session.
Our challenge then was to endure the rigours of the Jubilee Café where the queues were long and the supply of food limited. Thankfully we had ample time to relax and examine our purchases of souvenirs on our journey home to Swanley.
Christina Tyler, Programme Organiser
Despite heavy traffic and the odd U turn, 47 members and friends arrived at The Houses of Parliament in good time for our whistle-stop guided tour on Monday 16 March. For those of us who had not been before, the sumptuous design and grandeur of the state rooms was a surprise. Our guide explained that, as well as the meeting place of the House of Lords and The House of Commons, this is also The Palace of Westminster, a Grade 1 listed building and Unesco World Heritage site, and the property of The Crown.
Looking upwards in The Westminster Hall, the oldest surviving part of the Palace of Westminster, all of us were impressed by the magnificent hammer beam roof. This was erected in the reign of Richard II and is the largest clear span medieval roof in England. As well as being a banqueting hall this was also used for trials for high treason (including Guy Fawkes and Charles I) and the Lying in State of Winston Churchill and, more recently, The Queen Mother.
Our guide told us that parts of the Palace of Westminster were destroyed by fire on more than one occasion - firstly in 1512 and again in 1834, when it was rebuilt in the Perpendicular Gothic style designed by architects Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin. The building was bombed several times during WW2.
Swiftly moving on into St Stephens Hall we admired the statues of famous parliamentarians and the paintings lining the walls, showing important events in British History. The stained glass windows above depict the arms of cities and boroughs.
Then we cantered into the Ceremonial Rooms used for the State Openings of Parliament when the Queen enters through the Norman Porch and into the highly gilded, Arthurian inspired, Queen’s Robing Room where she changes into her ceremonial costume. Dominating the imposing Royal Gallery, which is also used for grand receptions of visiting foreign dignitaries, are huge pictures painted by Daniel Maclise of The Death of Horatio Nelson at Trafalgar and The Defeat of Napoleon at The Battle of Waterloo
On, at a slow sprint, we went into the octagonal Central Lobby, which is used as a meeting place of Members of both Houses and their visitors. We admired the intricately tiled floor and the mosaic panels of the four patron saints of Great Britain. Then we entered the Members Lobby, which was badly damaged in the Blitz, dominated by a statue of Churchill opposite one of Margaret Thatcher (in bronze not iron) and into the Voting Lobbies.
The difference between the opulence of the Chamber of The House of Lords which contained a huge gilded throne, and the plainly decorated House of Commons was very evident and both chambers seemed much smaller than we expected.
Climbing many stairs we finished our tour in a committee room for an audience with Michael Fallon, MP for Sevenoaks and Secretary of State for Defence. He gave us a flavour of his working life, travelling around the world. Within the space of a few days he has been to Bucharest to discuss the situation of Romania’s borders with Russia, meeting his counterpart at The White House in Washington….and discussing the back fence of St Mary’s Primary School in Swanley! He told us that much of the work of the House happened in rooms similar to where we were where members scrutinise Bills, sit on Select Committees examining evidence as well as attending Question Times and The Main Business of the Day, encompassing legislation, amendments and voting. We then had a question and answer session.
Our challenge then was to endure the rigours of the Jubilee Café where the queues were long and the supply of food limited. Thankfully we had ample time to relax and examine our purchases of souvenirs on our journey home to Swanley.
Christina Tyler, Programme Organiser