History

The Buckingham palace is the official residence of the king in London.

The Buckingham House (the principal building of the palace) was built in 1703 for the first Duke of
Buckingham and Norman by .

In 1762, George III bought Buckingham house for his wife Queen Charlotte. A year after that, the
palace was altered.

In 1826 King George IV decided to transform the house into a palace. John Nash was the project
architect, which cost more than two million pounds. He made a triumphal arch, called "the Marble
Arch", to commemorate the British victories at Trafalgar and Waterloo.

This palace became the principal royal residence in 1837 with the coronation of Queen Victoria.
Queen Victoria and (Prince) Albert needed nurseries and more bedrooms for visitors, so it was
necessary to built a fourth wing. But since 1861, the Royal Family moved to Windsor Castle and
Balmoral Castle, and the Buckhingham palace was used only for public life.

During World War II, the palace was bombed seven times. The worst attack destroyed the palace
chapel in 1940. That was used by the government like an argument to give support to the people:
"the Royal Family is suffering like us".

Interior

The palace has 775 rooms: 19 State rooms, 52 royal and guest bedrooms, 92 offices, 78
bathrooms,etc. The Queen uses private rooms in the North Wing of the palace.

We can see valous art objects at Buckingham palace. There are works of the most important
painting masters in history: Rubens, Rembrandt, Vermeer, etc.

Some rooms of the palace were decorated in oriental style in the 19th century, for example the
Chinese Luncheon Room.

Ceremonies and social life

The most important ceremonies in the palace are:

-Investitures: Knighthoods.

-Presentation of young members of the aristocracy.

-State Banquets, with more than 150 guests.

-Court dress. Today, there is not an official dress code.