Buckingham Palace

We went to Buckingham Palace.

It was originally called Buckingham House. In 1705 it was a large townhouse built for the Duke of Buckingham. Later it was expanded and has been the "official" London residence and office for Britain's royalty since 1837 when Queen Victoria moved in. (For some time-frame perspective and a fun fact for you Mormons out there, the original Nauvoo temple was built in the 1840's.)

I was so, so excited to be there! I really didn't think we would make it to London at all. So I was on cloud nine all weekend long.



















The weather this weekend was chilly, so the soldiers were wearing long gray coats instead of their typical red coats. Also, I was a little surprised to note that the soldiers were pretty relaxed. They were fidgety. And when it rained, they left their post and stood in the archway. I guess I was comparing them with the American soldiers who guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I shouldn't do that. It's not fair to the Brits.







In front Buckingham Palace is the Victoria Memorial. The memorial was dedicated in 1911. Queen Victoria herself is carved on the front. On the other three sides sit the angels of Justice, Truth, and Charity. The gold statue on top represents Peace and Victory. The bronze statues on the outside are varied and were added in 1924.































We were lucky to have time to see the Changing of the Guard. Unfortunately, we didn't realize that the actual ceremony takes place on the inside of the gate. We thought it would occur out in front. Whoops!

But we still got to see some good moments. And we had a great view of the street and the palace.







Here is a police officer making sure people stay out of the street. He and several other officers warned us to look out for pickpockets:













The mounted soldiers are known as the Queen's Life Guard. They rode through first on their horses.







Next came the Guard band. I didn't know we would be entertained with music. It made for a fun parade.












Now comes the Queen's Guard. Soldiers have been protecting the Monarch of Britain at their residence since the 1600's. The big changing of the guard ceremony now really only occurs for the benefit of the tourists. They cancel it if it rains. I'm so glad it didn't rain. I loved watching this fun tradition.












After the soldiers marched past, we were done seeing what we could see. Turns out that the changing of the guard is actually really long and somewhat boring. Ha ha! So our location was perfect for skipping out early. As we were walking away, Erick was able to see over the other tourists heads and snag a few last photos. It's nice to be married to a tall man.