WESTMINSTER. 



St. Jamu's Palace.— T\t&i the fovereign of the Britifh 

 empire was far lefs fuitably lodged in his capital than are 

 numbers of his fubjefts, has by foreigners been often re- 

 marked, and by natives been fometiraes converted into a 

 comphment to the fovereign and to the nation. But the faft 

 is, that St. James's palace was in its origin an hofpital, of 

 part of which Henry VIII. availed himfelf to conftruft 

 the prefent buildings, as an appendage to the palace of 

 Whitehall, with which it was conneded by St. James's 

 park. Having been allotted for the refidence of the prin- 

 cefs, afterwards queen Anne, and her hufband George of 

 Denmark, St. James's has ever fince continued to be occu- 

 pied for court or ftate purpofes. The buildings are neither 

 grand nor regular : the front, overlooking the park, has 

 alone a certain air of dignity : and the ftate apartments, 

 although they contain nothing peculiarly magnificent in the 

 furniture ot the decorations, are commodious and handfome. 



Connefted with this palace is the park of the fame name, 

 ornamented with a long canal in the middle, and with broad 

 walks, feparated by rows of trees on the fides, the only 

 fpecies of improvement of which its flat fituation is well 

 fufceptible. Near the centre of the canal, a wooden bridge, 

 in the Chinefe ftyle, has been built acrofs the water. On 

 the north-weft of St. James's-park is an open fpace, called 

 the Green-park, capable, from its elevation and variety of 

 ground, of much greater improvement : but its principal 

 recommendation is that, being in fad a wide extended 

 green field, it furnifhes a delightful promenade in all direc- 

 tions, and welcome relief from the hard pavement of the 

 ftreets. 



Buctingham-Houfe. — This edifice, now fettled on the pre- 

 fent queen in lieu of Somerfet-houfe, and hence called the 

 Queen's palace, pofleffes peculiar attraAion, as much from 

 its very favourable fituation, as from its hiftory. It was 

 built by John Sheffield, duke of Buckingham, about the year 

 1 700, and its gardens were adorned with terraces, canals, &c. 

 The building is of brick, and moft of the apartments are 

 fmall. In this palace for feveral years were held his ma- 

 jefty's levees, while his health permitted his appearance. 

 Annexed to the palace are an oftagon and other apart- 

 ments, containing the king's library, rich in various works 

 of value, particularly in early editions of books. Interior 

 views of the chief rooms, with an ample hiftory of this edi- 

 fice, &c. are given in Pyne's Hiftory of the Royal Palaces. 



Carlton Houfe, the refidence for a number of years of 

 the prince of Wales, regent of the united kingdom, as 

 formerly of the princefs dowager of Wales, his majefty's 

 mother, occupies a fituation in between Pail-Mall and St. 

 James's park. The chief front towards the ftreet prefents 

 the fingular incongruity of a lofty and highly enriched Co- 

 rinthian portico, giving entrance into a low rufticated edi- 

 fice. Between the houfe and the ftreet is a court-yard, 

 bounded by a low wall, fuftaining an open colonnade, with 

 an entablature. The interior has undergone many changes, 

 and is fitted up in the moft coftly and fumptuous manner. 

 The library, confervatory, and the armoury, are very fine 

 and fplendid. The work juft referred to contains feveral 

 beautiful prints of the different rooms ; alfo a particular 

 account of the houfe and its contents. 



The ancient palace of Somerfet-houfe has now difap- 

 peared, being fupcrfeded by the magnificent ftrudlures 

 comppCng Somerfet-place. Of the Savoy a few portions 

 itill exift, but much changed from their original deftiiiation ; 

 and in a few years, perhaps, even the whole may be effaced. 



The plan of Somerfet-place, as formed by fir William 

 Chambers, was to comprehend within one vaft edifice pro- 

 10 



per apartments for tranfafting many branches of the national 

 bufinefs ; and to this purpofe, incompkte as it is, it is now 

 applied. Befidcs thefe departments, Somerfet-place con- 

 tains handfome fuites of rooms for the Royal and Anti- 

 quarian Societies, and for the Royal Academy of the Fine 

 Arts. The front towards the Strand, of regular architec- 

 ture, is fpacious and lofty ; but, on the whole, having the 

 air, as in faft it is, of the entrance to a ftrudlure of great 

 extent and magnificence. The front confifts of nine arcades 

 on the ground- floor, the three in the middle forming the 

 entrance, by three colonnades fupported on coupled co- 

 lurhns. Above the bafement is a range of ten Corinthian 

 femi-columns extending over two ranges of windows. 

 Above the three centre windows rifes an attic, with ftatues. 

 The whole is, however, a very great work, and cannot fail, 

 when beheld from the river, or the new bridge adjoining, ] 

 to have a powerful effeft on the fpeftator. Situated on a 

 rapid defcent to the river, the labour and expence of raifing 

 the fquare to the level of the ftreet has been prodigious ; 

 and the flcill fliewn in conftrufting the whole edifice well 

 merits admiration. 



Part of the old palace of Whitehall, as already noticed, 

 may be traced in the building ufually called the Treafury ; 

 but that part which faces the parade in the Park is com- 

 paratively modern, and conftrufted in a ftyle announcing 

 ftrength as well as dignity and accommodation for bufinefs. 

 Clofe to this edifice Hands that called the Horfe-Guards, 

 becaufe a party of that clafs of troops daily do duty there. 

 Conftrufted on a plan and elevation intended to recal the 

 idea of an antique fortrefs, it contains the chief departments 

 of bufinefs comprehended under the title of the War-OfBce; 

 The neighbouring office of Admiralty, fpacious and lofty, 

 is greatly indebted to the fkreen erefted by the Adams, 

 by which the enormous portico is brought to bear appa- 

 rently fome degree of proportion to the building. 



The theatres of Drury-lane, Covent-garden, the Hay- 

 market, and Opera-houfe, have been all noticed in the 

 defcription of London. See London. 



At no great diftance from the magnificent pile of So- 

 merfet-place, and fimilarly fituated over the Thames, ftands 1 

 an extenfive range of buildings called the Adelph't. The 

 ereftion of thefe, a vaft enterprife for private individuals, is 

 the work of the celebrated architefts, Meffrs. Adam. The] 

 terrace, which commands the river and furrounding build- 

 ings, and the ftreets and buildings, are elevated on arcades 

 rifing from the edge of the wster, adapted for warehoufes, | 

 and opening into roads leading up to the Strand. In the j 

 Adelphi is a handfome edifice, belonging to the Society for 

 the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce. 

 The great hall exhibits a feries of paintings, unique in modern 

 times, by James Barry. An eftabliftiment of a pecuhar cha- 1 

 rafter has lately begun to appear on the bank of the Thames, 1 

 a ftiort way above the extreme buildings of Weftminfter. 

 This is the Penitentiary, defigned for the puniftiment, employ- 

 ment, and reformation of offenders of fecondary criminality. 

 When, by the emancipation of the Britifh colonies in North I 

 America, tranfportation of offenders to that country necef- 

 farily terminated, the plan was adopted of removing them, 

 to contribute to the colonization of the newly-acquired ter- 

 ritories in the xA.fiatic feas. The fyftem, however, when 

 applied to cafes of limited expatriation, being highly ob- 

 jectionable, the fcheme of the rifing eftabliihment has been 

 approved, and its execution begun. The criminals are con- 

 fined in circular buildings, fo conftrufted that the overfeers 

 may, from-a central fituation, unfeen, obferve every room. 

 The edifice will, when complete, form externally a hexagon, 



con- 



