APRENDE INGLÉS – BUCKINGHAM PALACE

Originally, the London home of British monarchs was at The Palace of Westminster or St James’s Palace. However, in 1761 Buckingham Palace was bought by King George III for £21,000 from a descendant of the Duke of Buckingham. However, it did not become the official home of the British royal family until the reign of Queen Victoria in 1837.

In fact, although Buckingham Palace is the official London home of the Queen, she is not the owner of it (unlike her other homes at Balmoral and Sandringham). Buckingham Palace is the property of the British State – along with much of its superb collection of art and furniture. In fact, recently Buckingham Palace’s 19 State rooms have been opened to visitors during August and September while the Queen makes her annual visit to her Scottish home at Balmoral.

Buckingham Palace is very large and has 775 rooms – and 77,000 m2 of floor space! This includes 19 State rooms, 52 Royal and guest bedrooms, 188 staff bedrooms, 92 offices and 78 bathrooms! The building itself is 108 metres long across the front and 120 metres deep (including the central courtyard) and it is 24 metres high. It also has the largest private garden in London (17 hectares – 42 British acres) which has its own lake!

Buckingham Palace’s value as real estate is hard to imagine – as it is in the centre of London!Buckingham Palace is one of the most famous buildings in the UK. It is, of course, the London home of the Queen and it is the obvious focal point of Britain’s constitutional monarchy. It is where State dinners are held for important people and where the Queen lives when she is London.GLOSSARY

Treasures -Tesoros
Treasures –Tesoros

The State rooms have some of Britain’s greatest treasures including paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens, Poussin and Canaletto. The rooms are also beautifullyfurnished with some of the best French and English furniture ever made. This means that Buckingham Palace is not only important as a Palace but that it is also a world famous museum. It is therefore well worth visiting – if you are interested in historic objects and architecture!Day to day, Buckingham Palace is a working building and houses the offices and staff of the British Royal family. Some 450 secretaries, functionaries and other people work in the Palace. These people support the work of the Queen and the other members of the royal family.