Public buildings

The Houses of Parliament is the home of the UK Parliament and consists of two 'houses' - the Commons (elected) and Lords (unelected). It is possible to take a tour, even take tea, or watch a debate. Information about visiting can be found on the UK Parliament's website - link below.

The Houses of Parliament is situated on the site of Edward the Confessor's 11th century palace and is still known as 'the Palace of Westminster'. It has been the traditional home of the English parliament since medieval times and much of the UK's parliamentary democracy developed here. However, most of the current building dates from the 19th century and was designed by Charles Barry, following a disastrous fire in 1834 that destroyed most of the old palace. The oldest building on the site is the magnificent Westminster Hall, which has witnessed 900 years of British history.

Peterborough Guildhall is a notable feature of the pedestrianised Cathedral Square.  It was built between 1670-1 to celebrate the restoration of King Charles II. It is believed that the Guildhall replaced an earlier timber framed Moothall and Guildhall standing on the northern side of the square and that it is situated on or near the site of a covered ‘Butter Cross’, the town’s old dairy market. Its upper floor was in use for council meetings until the 1930s and currently houses electrical equipment.  It is not open to the public.

Scotland's Parliament was dissolved with the Act of Union between Scotland and England in 1707; there would be just one parliament, in Westminster. The Scotland Act of 1998 re-established a Scottish parliament, with certain devolved domestic powers, and it was decided that a new building was needed for it to meet in. The result was the Scottish Parliament Building, one of the most controversial government projects ever undertaken in the United Kingdom. Completion was more than three years late and, at a cost of £414.4 million, it was 10 times over budget. Many consider it ugly, at least externally, but it is interesting to visit and the debating chamber makes more sense than those at Westminster.

The original Temple Bar marked the boundary between the old City of London and the royal area of Westminster. A gate was built there, but this was removed in the 19th century for road widening. The spot is now marked by a Victorian memorial in the middle of the Strand/Fleet Street, close to the Royal Courts of Justice. Temple Bar Gate, after a period of decorating a country house in Hertfordshire, is now in the south-east corner of Paternoster Square, next to St Paul's Cathedral (EC4). The featured article will give you the full story, more or less.

Post code is approximate for the memorial at Temple Bar.

Trinity Bridge is a unique three-way medieval stone arch bridge in the centre of the small Lincolnshire town of Crowland, or Croyland.  It was built by the monks of Crowland Abbey between 1360 and 1390 and once spanned the confluence of the River Welland and a tributary, Cattewater or Cat’s Water.  The rivers were rerouted in the 17th century and the bridge now stands on dry ground near the market place.  The stone structure replaced previous wooden bridges, the earliest mention of which dates back to the reign of King Æthelbald of Mercia in 716 AD. It was also recorded in a charter of King Eadred in 943 AD.