Parliament

On Saturday we visited Parliament and learned all about the British government with it's house of commons, house of Lords, and monarchy.  We couldn't take any pictures inside except in the first main hall.  

 Outside Parliament

 Queen Victoria tower.  On the other side of Parliament is Queen Elizabeth tower, where Big Ben (the bell) is.

 Oliver Cromwell, member of Parliament, opposer of King Charles I, and head of the Commonwealth of England, the brief period of time after the British civil war when Britain did not have a monarchy.

 This is the oldest part of the building, built in the 11th century at the order of Edward the Confessor.  The roof and beams (show in pictures below) date back to the 13th century.  The rest of the building was destroyed and rebuilt several times - first by fire in 1512, then again by fire in 1834, and finally by bomb in 1941, during the second world war.

 These ceiling beams date back to the 13th century