St. Paul’s CathedralSt. Paul’s Cathedral is the spiritual focus of the Nation, it stands in the heart of the City. St. Paul’s was built after the ‘Great Fire’ of 1666, the architect was Sir Christopher Wren who designed it to give a feeling of space and light. The Cathedral is a hundred and ten metres high from the floor to the top of the cross and you can climb the 627 steps up to the dome, under it there is Whispering Gallery, it is called in this way because if you whisper close to the wall on one side of the dome you can be heard on the other side. In St. Paul’s there was the Royal wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana, today the Church belongs to the people of the Nation: they can be married or have a funeral service here. St. Paul’s in an island of peace in the noisy business district of London.

WestminsterWestminster is a district within the city of Westminster in London. It is situated south-west of the city of London on the north bank of the river Thames. Historically the name was used to describe the area around Westminster Abbey, the ‘West Minster’. It’s the political centre of the United Kingdom, the home of British Parliament, in fact the Nation’s leaders and the men and women who represent the British people meet in the two Houses of Parliament: the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

The Houses of ParliamentThe House of Commons has 646 members known MPs (Members of Parliament) each of whom is elected by local electors to represent an area of the country in Parliament. The main purpose of the House of Commons is to make laws.The House of Lords consists of nearly 700 non-elected members. It has a symbolical function but they have the duty to revise ‘bill’ that is to say a proposed new law.Next to Parliament there is Westminster Abbey.

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey has been setting for every coronation since William the Conqueror in 1066. It has a Gothic style and it’s not only a great monastery but also a place for burial of English monarchs, today there is a famous part of the Abbey called the ‘Poets Corner’ where the fathers of English literature are buried.

At the north-east of Westminster Palace, there is Big Ben.

Big Ben Big Ben is the nickname applied to the Great Bell by Sir Benjamin Holl, now Big Ben is used , by extension, to refer the clock , the tower and the bell. It is , in the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London. The Tower is officially called “the Elisabeth Tower” because English people celebrated the Diamond Jubilee of Elisabeth II in 2012.This tower has four faces. The Tower was started in 1834 and it was completed in 1858. On 10 May 1941 a German bombing raid damaged two clock dials and destroyed the House of commons chamber. The clock is the symbol of the United Kingdom.