Monopoly 10) Whitehall

 

Whitehall is a thoroughfare connecting Trafalgar Square to the Houses of Parliament in the Palace of Westminster and to Westminster Bridge. The thoroughfare passes through some of the area formerly occupied by the royal palace of Whitehall, hence the name, and was the monarch’s principal residence within what we now think of as London from the reign of Henry VIII until it burned down in 1698. It was called the White Hall because of he stone from which it was originally built.

Nowadays Whitehall is a term which doesn’t just apply to the Street. Whitehall Palace was the centre of Government administration from Henry VIII’s time, and this continued even after the Palace burned down since many Government ministry headquarters were sited along Whitehall, and some still are. So the word Whitehall can also refer to government policy and to the Civil Service, who administer it.

Coming back to the thoroughfare, there’s lots of notable things associated with it as well as the Ministry buildings. Whitehall is where the Cenotaph stands, and the Remembrance Day Ceremony takes place. The entrance to Horseguards Parade is always flanked by ceremonially dressed members of the Household Cavalry. Dowing Street, home of the UK Prime Minister, can be accessed from Whitehall, but only if you have a pass. Just off Whitehall, linking it with Northumberland Avenue, is a street called Great Scotland Yard, where the original headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Force were located. Whitehall itself is punctuated with half a dozen statues and memorials, most of which commemorate figures from the history of the British Armed Forces.