Buckingham Palace is the London residence of the British monarch. It is located in the West End section of the city.
Buckingham Palace has four main wings that form a rectangle around a courtyard. It has 600 rooms. The grandest rooms are used for ceremonies and formal social events. The King’s Gallery exhibits some of the royal collection of fine furniture and works of art. Sentries perform the famous changing-of-the-guard ceremony at the front gates of Buckingham Palace. Behind the palace lies a walled 40-acre (16-hectare) garden.
The palace was originally a smaller residence built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1705. In 1762, King George III bought the house. His son King George IV decided by 1819 that the British monarch should have a more impressive home. But arguments between the king and the British government over the design and cost of the building caused many delays. The work was not completed until the 1840’s, over 10 years after the king’s death.
Later monarchs added the east and south wings to the building. In the mid-1820’s, the residence was named Buckingham Palace in honor of its original owner. The palace’s east front was refaced in 1913. During World War II (1939-1945), the palace was hit by bombs and needed renovation.
