Location: Westminster, Central London Date completed: built 1840-1870 Designers/builders: Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin Function: Centre of Parliamentary government of the United Kingdom

Had other decisions been made, our parliament might operate from Buckingham Palace. In 1834 much of the then houses of parliament were ravaged by fire. Only the Westminster Hall, the cloisters of St Stephens, the Chapel of St Mary Undercroft and the Jewel Tower survived. King William IV offered Parliament Buckingham Palace, which he strongly disliked as a home, but it was rejected, together with other alternative sites. Instead, Parliament made the decision to rebuild on a grand scale using the old site, together with an area reclaimed from the adjacent River Thames. A competition for the new parliament was won by the architect Charles Barry, who proposed a building the fashionable revived perpendicular gothic style. He was assisted by the young Augustus Pugin, a leading authority on the neo-gothic style. While Barry designed and co-ordinated the entire scheme, Pugin was responsible for the gothic interiors, including furnishings, carvings, wall-paper and windows. He also designed the iconic Clock Tower, later known around the world as "Big Ben" and today called the Elizabeth Tower. Work on the rebuilding started in 1840 and went on for 30 years, hampered by numerous delays and cost overruns. Both Barry (in 1860) and Pugin (in 1852) died before the work was finally completed. The new Palace of Westminster was larger than the old one, occupying some 8 acres (3. 24 hectare) comprising over 1,100 rooms. The 873 ft (266 m) principal façade overlooks the River Thames. 

Parliament had its origins in the Great Councils summoned by the Norman kings to advise and assist with raising money through taxation. Building on the Magna Carta of 1215, in 1264 the French-born Simon de Montfort summoned the first Parliament without consulting the king, Henry III. Parliament grew in influence during the reign of Edward I and for some time the power and influence of Parliament depended on the strength or weakness of the monarch. In the 17th Century the growing conflict between monarch and Parliament erupted into war. Since then, the monarch has assumed an increasingly subsidiary, if constitutionally important, role. Today the imposing houses of Parliament are a symbol of our democracy.