History & Origins
Buckingham Palace wasn’t always a palace — it started as a big house called Buckingham House in 1703, built for the Duke (a royal title) of Buckingham!
Buckingham Palace (UK) - Facts for Kids
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Facts About Buckingham Palace (UK) For Kids
Buckingham Palace became the official (main) home of British kings and queens in 1837 when Queen Victoria became the first monarch (ruler) to live there!
When Buckingham Palace was first built, the land it sits on was just a mulberry garden where silkworms lived to make silk (fancy smooth fabric) for King James I!
Before Buckingham Palace existed, the site (place) was a marshy (wet and muddy), owned by monks (religious people) from Westminster Abbey!
King George III bought Buckingham House in 1761 as a cozy family home for his wife Queen Charlotte, and their 15 children. It became known as the “Queen’s House,” and 14 of those children were actually born there!
The first garden party at Buckingham Palace was held in 1868 by Queen Victoria, and today about 30,000 people still attend (go to) garden parties there every year!
During World War II, Buckingham Palace was bombed nine times, but King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother) refused (said no) to leave, showing bravery to the British people!
In 1982, a man named Michael Fagan managed (was able) to climb up a drainpipe and sneak into Queen Elizabeth II’s bedroom — security (safety guards) has been much stricter ever since!
The famous balcony (outdoor platform) where the Royal Family waves to crowds was added to Buckingham Palace between 1847 and 1849 during Queen Victoria’s reign (time as queen)!
Architecture & Design
Buckingham Palace has an amazing 775 rooms, including 52 royal and guest bedrooms, 188 staff bedrooms, 92 offices, and 78 bathrooms!
Buckingham Palace’s famous facade (front view) is about 354 feet (0.11 km) wide — that’s a bit longer than a football field!
The tallest part of Buckingham Palace is 79 feet (24 m) high — about as tall as seven giraffes standing on top of each other!
There are 760 windows in Buckingham Palace, and they’re all cleaned every six weeks!
Buckingham Palace has its own post office, police station, doctor’s office, and even a swimming pool!
Buckingham Palace’s largest room, the Ballroom, is 120 feet (37 m) long, 60 feet (18 m) wide, and 45 feet (14 m) high — big enough to fit four school buses inside!
Buckingham Palace has 1,514 doors — imagine having to remember which key goes to which door!
Fun Numbers & Measurements
The Buckingham Palace garden is so big (39 acres) that you could fit 22 soccer fields inside it. It’s the largest private garden in London!
There are more than 350 clocks and watches in Buckingham Palace, and two staff members (workers) spend all their time winding them up!
Buckingham Palace has about 39 acres of perfectly manicured (carefully cut and cared for) lawns — that’s like 30 football fields of grass to mow!
Buckingham Palace’s wine cellar can hold over 20,000 bottles — that’s enough to fill a small swimming pool!
The Queen’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace displays (shows) about 450 works of art at a time, but the Royal Collection has over 1 million pieces!
Buckingham Palace has over 100 miles of electrical cabling (wires) — if you laid it out straight, it would reach from London to Bristol!
More than 800 staff members (workers) work at Buckingham Palace — that’s more people than most elementary schools!
Buckingham Palace’s kitchen can serve dinner to 600 people at the same time!
The largest chandelier (fancy hanging light) in Buckingham Palace weighs about 1,500 pounds (0.68 t) — as heavy as a small car!
Buckingham Palace’s garden has about 1,500 beautiful roses that bloom in summer, all planted in special beds inside the Rose Garden!
Interesting Features
Buckingham Palace has its own ATM (money machine) in the basement for royal family use!
Buckingham Palace has its own cinema (movie theater) where staff can watch movies, and sometimes the royal family joins them!
In Buckingham Palace’s garden, there’s a special pink rose named after Queen Elizabeth II — it blooms in summer and smells like sweet honey!
Buckingham Palace has an indoor swimming pool where Prince William and Prince Harry learned to swim!
There’s a special room in Buckingham Palace just for cleaning chandeliers (fancy lights) — they have to be lowered from the ceiling for cleaning!
Buckingham Palace has its own helicopter landing pad in the garden!
There’s a special clockmaker who lives at Buckingham Palace just to take care of all the antique (old and valuable) clocks!
Buckingham Palace has its own phone exchange (phone system) with four full-time operators (people who connect calls) connecting calls!
Under Buckingham Palace, there are special air raid shelters (safe rooms) built during World War II that are still there today!
Cultural Significance
The Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace has been happening for over 180 years!
When the Royal Standard flag is flying above Buckingham Palace, it means the King is at home!
Every year, about 50,000 people visit Buckingham Palace as guests for garden parties, dinners, and special events!
Buckingham Palace’s Throne Room has been used for royal wedding photos since 1840!
The Music Room at Buckingham Palace is where many royal babies have been christened (blessed in a religious ceremony), including Prince Charles!
Buckingham Palace’s State Rooms are only open to visitors for 10 weeks each summer!
More than 500,000 tourists visit Buckingham Palace each year — that’s like filling 6,250 school buses!
The first public tours of Buckingham Palace started in 1993 to help pay for repairs after a big fire at Windsor Castle!
Buckingham Palace’s famous gold piano has been played by some of the world’s most famous musicians since 1856!
Every Christmas, a giant Christmas tree (usually about 20 feet (6 m) tall) is displayed (shown) in Buckingham Palace’s grand entrance!
Modern Day Facts
Buckingham Palace now has its own Instagram account with over 10 million followers!
Buckingham Palace uses special vacuum cleaners just for cleaning the historic (old and important) carpets and tapestries (fancy wall hangings)!
Solar panels (sun-powered energy makers) were installed (put in) on Buckingham Palace’s roof in 2016 to help save energy!
Buckingham Palace now uses special LED lightbulbs that last much longer than regular ones!
