Buckingham Palace

The palace that became known to the world as Buckingham is the official residence, the place of work and residence of Elizabeth II, Queen of England.

Buckingham Palace (England) became famous back in the 18th century, when the Duke of Buckingham lived in his walls. Actually, the name itself was also received at that time. Even then, according to contemporaries, the building was shining with luxury and was considered the most beautiful house in London. And already then he was worthy of accepting kings, which could not help but appreciate George III, who bought in 1762 a building for the wife of Charlotte. Buckingham House immediately became both the residence and the "Queen's House" with its growing family.

Thanks to George III. The house was enlarged and modernized: facade was simplified, a large library was built (now it contains a huge collection of valuable and unique books). To decorate the interior, the king ordered to transfer from his other palaces to Buckingham Palace in London numerous works of art. A collection of magnificent paintings by mainly Italian artists was purchased. And the leading artists of the time, Benjamin West, Zoffany, Gainsborough, Ramsey were invited to work on portraits of the royal family.
But the real symbol of the kingdom and the pride of all England made Buckingham Palace Queen Victoria. At its 64-year-old board it has transferred one more, large reconstruction, costing to treasury almost in two third of one million pounds sterling (640 000).

Today, Buckingham Palace is open to visitors. Those who wish can see the main apartments designed for banquets, receptions, and official ceremonies. Among the ceremonial rooms, the Green Living Room, located in the center, first served as a salon under the reign of Queen Charlotte, and later a meeting room for delegations.

Now in the Green Living Room you can admire the collection of paintings, handmade art furniture, exclusive furnishings, the luxurious and the world's best collection of porcelain, which began to collect more George IV. Here is the unique work of Karlin (XVIII century) - chest of ebony, decorated with gilded bronze and inlaid with semiprecious stones.

Behind the living room follows the hall of the Throne, leading to the picture gallery. This room is the largest, occupying an area of about 400 square meters. The gallery was reconstructed and redecorated in 1914, at that time the lighting was changed, giving priority to the upper light lamps. The interior was also changed: black fireplaces began decorating white marble with sculptured bas-reliefs of Van Dyck, da Vinci, Albrecht Durer, Titian.

Rubens, Van Dyck, Hals, Rembrandt are represented in the constantly changing exposition. However, Buckingham Palace, of course, does not store the whole collection of the British crown. Parts of the royal collection are distributed in Kensington Palace, Windsor Castle, in the palaces of Osborne-xayc, Hollyrude House, Hampton Court. The whole collection consists of several thousand paintings, without any equal.

It is quite natural that the priceless collection, which Buckingham Palace stores, is not shown to all comers, remaining closed to the general public. You can view the collection only with a special invitation. But the paintings can be seen in exhibitions sometimes organized in the Gallery of the Queen, built opposite the palace.

The Grand Dining Room for 600 persons and the White Room in white and gold colors are open for visitors.

Buckingham Palace resembles a small town, which has its own police station, two post offices, two sports clubs, a swimming pool, a cozy cinema, a disco.

In the palace there are about three hundred rooms and about seven hundred people of service personnel.

In the adjoining territory is a luxurious garden with a lake and waterfalls, which dominate the fabulous flamingos, whose peace is not disturbed even by royal helicopters.