Big Ben in the UK, London resort
Rating: 8,9/10 (834 votes)  The symbol of Great Britain is Big Ben - the Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster, located in London. The name of the tower was given by the bell located inside it.
The tower is called the voice of London, its clock has been showing the exact time since 1859. Big Ben was built in 1858 during the reign of Queen Victoria. Until recently, the tower was officially called the Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster or St. Stephen's Tower. However, in honor of the 60th anniversary of the accession to the throne of Queen Elizabeth II, the main attraction of London was renamed the Elizabeth Tower.
In height, Big Ben reaches 96 meters, the largest bell of the tower weighs 13 tons, it is three meters long at the base, and two meters high. The tower clock is 55 meters away from the ground. The diameter of the dial is 7 meters, the length of the hands is 4.2 and 2.7 meters. With such impressive parameters, Big Ben's movement was considered the largest in the world for many years.
Many tourists in the first place ask why the bell was named Big Ben. There are several versions on this score. One of them says that the bell was named after the manager Sir Benjamin Hall, who was engaged in casting the bell. According to another version, the bell got its name from the workers who transported it from the place of casting. In those years, their idol was the heavyweight boxer Benjamin Count.
Big Ben and small bells emit a beautiful chime of the following phrase:"Through this hour the Lord keeps me, and his strength will not allow anyone to stumble." When the striking of the clock ends, striking Big Ben marks the beginning of a new hour with great precision. The movement is carefully checked and lubricated every two days. This watch is already a century and a half old, but it still demonstrates excellent performance.
Hour dials are turned to all cardinal directions. The basis for them was the Birmingham opal, the hour hands were cast from cast iron, the minute hands were forged from a sheet of copper. It is estimated that the minute hands go around a distance of 190 km per year. At the base of each dial is an inscription in Latin, which means"God save our Queen Victoria".
Alas, many tourists have to admire Big Ben from the side - the entrance to the Clock Tower is open only to British residents.
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