Buckingham Palace

In the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace, members of the royal family including Her Majesty the Queen conduct official business. George IV transformed Buckingham House into a splendid palace in the year 1825, and he created the 19 state rooms that make up Buckingham Palace today. The finest French and English furniture, several works of art from the Royal Collection, and well-known works by artists like Van Dyck and Canaletto are used to decorate the state chambers. Many of the chambers, including the throne room and the White Drawing Room where the Queen entertains visitors, are still used for official events today.

The Throne Room is beautifully designed by John Nash, the architect George IV chose to transform the House into a Palace. You can clearly see the architect's theatrical training in the throne room, which is all red and has dramatic red velvet drapes. The Chairs of Estate, which were used when Her Majesty the Queen was crowned in this space in 1953, are housed in the Throne Room's centre. The solitary Queen Victoria Throne Chair, constructed in 1837, is also kept in the Throne Room.

The Ballroom, which is 120 feet long, 59 feet wide, and 44 feet high, is the largest State Room at Buckingham Palace. The Ballroom was finished in 1855, during the reign of Queen Victoria. The Ballroom contains a musician's gallery with all the instruments because it used to be known as the Ball and Concert Room. The chairs made for them are displayed in the room in a very dramatic manner because that is where King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra were crowned in 1902. The big horse-shoe table with more was once used by Queen Victoria to hold balls, but today the royal family uses it to host state dinners.

Originally known as the Bow Drawing Room, this space was changed because Queen Victoria and King Albert enjoyed singing and playing the piano together. Since then, nothing has been changed in this space. Queen Elizabeth II, however, used the space for more than just music. In this room, she had all of her children and her first grandchild baptised using water that had been brought from the Jordan River. One of the finest examples of English craftsmanship, the floor in this room is built of a variety of woods including satinwood, rosewood, tulipwood, mahogany, and a number of other woods.

One of the most significant spaces in Buckingham Palace for the Royal Family is the Picture Gallery. During the time of George IV, the architect John Nash constructed the 47-meter-long "Gallery." Beautiful works of art, paintings, and portraits from the Royal Collection are on show at the Picture Gallery. As Her Majesty the Queen lends artwork from the Royal Collection for display in exhibits in England and abroad, the pictures in the Picture Gallery are constantly changing. Today, events honouring a particular facet or sphere of life are held in the photo gallery by Her Majesty the Queen and the royal families.

When King George IV was turning Buckingham House into Buckingham Palace, he recruited architect John Nash, who created the Grand Staircase. This staircase was designed by the architect in a large and dramatic manner, and you can see how theatre has influenced this piece of architecture. Huge images of Queen Victoria's immediate family are displayed on the Grand Staircase. Her parents, the Duke and Duchess of Kent, her uncle William IV, and her grandparents, King George III and Queen Charlotte, are all depicted in the pictures.

The 16 hectare-long Palace Garden is a historic park and garden that is classified on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. A mulberry tree in the garden is supposed to have been there when King James I bought this area for mulberry farms in the late 1500s. A 150-meter herbaceous border, a summer house, a rose garden, the enormous Waterloo Vase, and the Palace tennis court—where King George IV and Fred Perry used to play in the 1930s—are all still present in the garden today. Her Majesty the Queen still hosts sizable garden parties in the garden nowadays.

One of the most well-known traditions at Buckingham Palace is the Changing of the Guard, which is performed every day. Visitors travel from all over the world, not just England, to see one unit of guards take over another. Detachments from St. James' Palace and Buckingham Palace make up the Queen's guards. The New Guard, a group of guards who take over as the Queen's guards during the ceremony, march from Wellington Barracks to Buckingham Palace while being accompanied by music. In the summer, the ritual happens every day at 11 a.m.; in other seasons, it depends on the weather.

Each item in the Royal Collection that is used to decorate a room in Buckingham Palace has a unique backstory. You will see these magnificent items when touring Buckingham Palace and learn a great deal about the royal family's past. However, if you have read about the items before visiting the palace, it will be easier for you to relate to them and the stories that surround them.