Big Ben

The Big Ben is the most representative tower of London and is one of the greater

mechanical clocks of the world.  Big Ben is the name that the world use to identify the tower, but

officially it belongs to the bell that weighs 13.8 tons. The first bell, weighed 16 tons, but it was

broken and replaced. It was designed with a Victorian gothic style. The monument has a height

of 96.3 meters and is located on a base of 225 square meters. The name Big Ben was put to the

original bell of 16 tons of the tower, fused in the 1856.  The tower of the Big Ben has begun to

incline for excavation works of the new tunnels near to Westminster. The inclination is of 0.9

millimeters.

The construction of the Big Ben began in 1843. Charles Barry was in charge of the

reconstruction project. It is the greatest clock of Great Britain. The Big Ben has the most advance

technology of our times and sounded for first time on May 31, 1859. It is a symbol of the British

culture. In 1916, the bells were silenced and the clock wasn’t illuminated during World War I for

avoid the attacks of the Germans. It is one of the clocks more trustworthy than exist because it

support many meteorological clemencies like the snow or the wind. In each spheres of the clock

there is a Latin inscription in golden letters that says “O Lord, keep safe our Queen Victoria the

First.” In order to fit the hour of the clock, an old English penny is used. If the clock is delayed,

someone takes off a penny to the pendulum and put one in it for advance one hour. The theory of

the Big Ben is a scientific model that tries to explain the origin of the big tower and its later

development from a spatiotemporal singularity.  It not has elevator, and contains 334 stone steps.

During World War II the bombs attacks affected seriously the parliament, but they did

not damage the tower of the clock. The actual bell of the tower has a small crack, but it was

repair of a bell taken from the Westminster palace.  Similar structures of the Big Ben can be seen

near to the Victory Station, in addition to one in the city of Paris. In September 7, 1859 the clock

start its operations. The clock of the tower sounds exactly each hour. In 2007, the clock was

stopped during 6 weeks to make certain repairs, replace the mechanism and the hammer of the

great bell for first time of its installation.

The palace contains more than one thousand rooms in where are located the camera of

the lords and the House of Commons. Also they include rooms of meeting, libraries, dining

rooms, bars and gymnasiums. It is the place where important ceremonies of state are made, in

which most important is the ceremony of opening of the parliament. For this reason, the Big Ben

cannot be visited in this days. However, if you want visit the clock, you need ask for an

authorization in where you need explain the reason for make the visit. The office for do this are

in the parliament square.