The Palace of Westminster is the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Why ‘palace’? Well, it really was a royal palace from around 1016, when King Cnut was on the throne. In 1512 much of the medieval building was destroyed by fire and Henry VIII (the king who worked his way through six wives) moved his royal apartments elsewhere.

The first English Parliament was called at the palace in 1265. In the following century it divided into two bodies: the House of Lords (representing nobles and clergy), and the House of Commons (representing towns and counties). It still remains thus, as the Upper and Lower Chambers of the Houses of Parliament. With such a long and continuous history, since the 19th century it has been called ‘the mother of all parliaments’.

The building looks much older than it actually is. Another fire in 1834 destroyed most of the building and over the following 30 years it was rebuilt in the old Gothic style, resembling the genuine Gothic of Westminster Abbey across the street.