It is announced by the pompous Queen Victoria Memorial, the 27-meter-high monument that pays tribute to its first resident, Queen Victoria, who lived there from 1837, although it was purchased almost a century earlier by King George III and the works that transformed it into a royal residence date back to 1926, under the direction of architect Nash.
Buckingham Palace is a citadel within the city. In some ways, a Royal Enterprise, providing employment to several hundred people, including officials of the Royal Household, who oversee the public life of the queen. If the royal standard flies above the palace façade, it means that Elizabeth II is within its walls and to see her appear from the central balcony and greet her subjects, one must wait for a very important occasion.
The palace has a staggering number of rooms, about 600, of which only 19 are open to the public, along with a part of the Gardens, the Queen’s Gallery, which hosts art exhibitions, and the royal stables.
Visits are held annually from late July to late September, when the royal family vacations at Balmoral Castle, in Scotland. It is well worth combining them with the spectacle of the ceremony of the Changing of the Royal Guard which, from May to the end of July, is held every day at 11:30 am, and every two days in the remaining months of the year, weather permitting. A suggestive and picturesque moment, although a bit lengthy, about 45 minutes, all accompanied by music.
