The Houses of Parliament

A more conventional view of London, this is the Palace of Westminster - the Houses of Parliament, the seat of British government. Taken from Lambeth Bridge, the picture shows the beautiful gothic buildings, which were built over a period of 30 years following a fire in 1834. They were the work of architect Sir Charles Barry and his assistant, Augustus Welby Pugin. They incorporate parts of older buildings such as the medieval Westminster Hall. The tower on the left is known as the Victoria Tower, whilst to the far right you can see the Clock Tower, housing the bell called Big Ben.

There is a slight connection to Saltaire, in that Titus Salt was a Liberal MP in the House of Commons from 1859 to 1861, so he would regularly have attended when these buildings were very new. Parliament, however, was not to his liking and he resigned, citing ill-health. He was made a baronet by Queen Victoria in 1869, taking the title Sir Titus Salt of Saltaire.