Where the original Palace of Westminster went [THREAD]
We talk a lot about 150 years of the Palace of Westminster. But surely Parliament's older than that?
It is - much older. So why is the Palace only 150?
This is the story of the Great Fire which burned down the Palace ⬇️
We talk a lot about 150 years of the Palace of Westminster. But surely Parliament's older than that?
It is - much older. So why is the Palace only 150?
This is the story of the Great Fire which burned down the Palace ⬇️
It's 1834, and the Palace of Westminster looks like this.
The Exchequer needs to get rid of two carts of wooden tally sticks - remnants of an old accounting system.
When given the job, the Clerk of Works decides to burn these in underfloor stoves beneath the @UKHouseofLords.
The Exchequer needs to get rid of two carts of wooden tally sticks - remnants of an old accounting system.
When given the job, the Clerk of Works decides to burn these in underfloor stoves beneath the @UKHouseofLords.
The morning of the 16th of October, two workmen arrive at the Palace to burn the sticks.
That afternoon, visitors notice heat and smoke seeping from the @UKHouseofLords floor. But the workmen finish, put out the furnace by 5pm, and the Palace is locked for the night.
That afternoon, visitors notice heat and smoke seeping from the @UKHouseofLords floor. But the workmen finish, put out the furnace by 5pm, and the Palace is locked for the night.
6pm - fire! 🔥🔥🔥
The @UKHouseofLords is on fire and in no time at all, the rest of the Palace is ablaze.
Staff are unable to get the fire under control, and at 6:30pm a huge fireball bursts through the ceiling, lighting up the sky and drawing crowds from all over London.
The @UKHouseofLords is on fire and in no time at all, the rest of the Palace is ablaze.
Staff are unable to get the fire under control, and at 6:30pm a huge fireball bursts through the ceiling, lighting up the sky and drawing crowds from all over London.
The light from the fire is so bright you can read the small print of a newspaper from Pedlar's Acre (where the London Eye stands today) as if it were daytime.
It can be seen by the King and Queen from Windsor, and from all the home counties.
It can be seen by the King and Queen from Windsor, and from all the home counties.
Must be quite the picture. But remember, it's 1834 - no one has an iPhone to document events like this.
So before long, the river front is lined with artists, including Turner and Constable, sketching and painting the scene until the fire reaches its height at 11pm.
So before long, the river front is lined with artists, including Turner and Constable, sketching and painting the scene until the fire reaches its height at 11pm.
Inside the Palace of Westminster, it's less relaxed. Despite efforts of 12 fire engines, 64 firemen and hundreds of volunteers, the fire spreads.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer cries instructions to "Damn the House of Commons, let it blaze away!" but "Save, O save the Hall!"
The Chancellor of the Exchequer cries instructions to "Damn the House of Commons, let it blaze away!" but "Save, O save the Hall!"
And they do. By concentrating all their efforts on the wooden beams of Westminster Hall, and aided by a change in wind direction, this part of the Palace is saved.
By 5am the fire is out - but most of the building is destroyed, including the @HouseofCommons and @UKHouseofLords.
By 5am the fire is out - but most of the building is destroyed, including the @HouseofCommons and @UKHouseofLords.
So, the Palace of Westminster was left to rebuild, and in 1870 Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin's Gothic vision of the Palace we know today was completed - 150 years ago.
And to this day, no more tally sticks are stored in the Houses of Parliament.
#Westminster150
And to this day, no more tally sticks are stored in the Houses of Parliament.
#Westminster150
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