Big Ben is a nickname for the Great Bell of the clock at the northern end of the Palace of Westminster in London and is usually extended to refer to clocks and clock towers. The official name of the tower where Big Ben was originally was the Clock Tower , but its name was changed to Elizabeth Tower in 2012 to mark Diamond Jubilee from Elizabeth II.
The tower was designed by Augustus Pugin in a neo-gothic style. When it was completed in 1859, the clock was the biggest and most accurate four-hour and the most accurate clock in the world. The tower stands 315 feet (96 m) tall, and the climb from the ground to the bell tower is 334 steps. The base is square, measuring 39 feet (12 m) on each side. The clock dials are 23 feet (7.0 m) in diameter. On May 31, 2009, a celebration was held to mark the 150th anniversary of the tower.
Big Ben is the largest of five bells and weighs 13.5 tons in length (13.7 tons, 15.1 tons short). It was the biggest bell in the UK for 23 years. The origin of the bell nickname is open to question; it may be named after Sir Benjamin Hall, who oversees the installation, or heavyweight boxing champion Benjamin Caunt. Four Quarter bells rang at 15, 30 and 45 minutes past the clock and just before Big Ben toll on the hour. The clock uses the original Victorian mechanism, but the electric motor can be used as a backup.
The tower is a recognized icon of British culture around the world. It is one of the most prominent symbols of the British Empire and parliamentary democracy, and is often used in the making of films in London. The clock tower has been part of the class I listed building since 1970 and the UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.
On August 21, 2017, a four-year renovation schedule begins in the tower, which includes the addition of an elevator. There are also plans to re-coat and repaint the clock. With a few exceptions, such as New Year's Eve and Sunday Warnings, the bells should be silent until the work is done in the 2020s.
Video Big Ben
Tower
Origin
Elizabeth Tower, formerly called the Clock Tower but better known as Big Ben, was raised as part of Charles Barry's design for a new palace, after the old Palace of Westminster was destroyed by fire on the night of October 16, 1834. The new parliament was built in neo-gothic style. Although Barry was the chief architect of the castle, he switched to Augustus Pugin for the design of the clock tower, which resembled earlier Pugin designs, including one for Scarisbrick Hall in Lancashire. The design for the tower was Pugin's last design before his last descent into madness and death, and Pugin himself wrote, during Barry's last visit to him to collect pictures: "I have never worked so hard in my life for Mr. Barry for tomorrow I made all the designs to finish the bell tower & it's beautiful. "
Design
The tower is designed in the famous Gothic Revival Pugin style, and is 315 feet (96.0 m) tall. The bottom 200 feet (61.0 m) of the tower structure consists of a brick with sandstone limestone layer Anston. The remainder of the tower height is the spire of cast iron. The tower was erected over 50 feet (15.2 m) square raft, made of 10 feet (3.0 m) thick concrete, at a depth of 13 feet (4.0 m) below ground level. The four-hour fast is 180 feet (54.9 m) above the ground. The interior volume of the tower is 164,200 cubic feet (4,650 cubic meters).
Despite being one of the most famous tourist spots in the world, the tower interior is not open to overseas visitors, although UK residents are able to arrange tours (well in advance) through their Parliamentarians before the current repair works. However, the tower currently does not have an elevator, even though one is being installed, so that the guard must climb 334 limestone stairs up.
Due to changes in soil conditions since construction, the tower tilted slightly to the northwest, about 230 millimeters (9.1 inches) above a height of 55 m, giving a slope of about 1/240. This includes a 22 mm maximum slope plan caused by tunneling for the extension of the Jubilee line. It leans about 500 millimeters (20 inches) in the finial. Experts believe that lean towers will not be a problem for 4000 to 10,000 years. Because the thermal effect it oscillates annually by several millimeters east and west.
Name
Journalists during the reign of Queen Victoria called it St. Stephen's Tower . As a lawmaker originally seated at St. Stephen's Hall, these journalists refer to anything related to the House of Commons as news of "St. Stephens" (The Westminster Palace contains a feature called the St Stephen's Tower, the smaller tower above the entrance general). Permanent use in Welsh, where the Westminster district, and Parliament with extensions, is known as San Steffan .
On June 2, 2012, The Daily Telegraph reported that 331 Members of Parliament, including senior members of the three main parties, supported a proposal to change the name of the Clock Tower to Elizabeth Tower as a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II in her diamond year. This is considered appropriate because the massive western tower now known as the Victoria Tower was renamed to a tribute to Queen Victoria at her diamond party. On June 26, 2012, House of Commons confirmed that the name change can continue. Prime Minister, David Cameron, announced a name change on September 12, 2012 at the start of the Prime Minister's Inquiry. The change was marked by a naming ceremony in which the Chairman of the House of Representatives, John Bercow, launched a name plaque attached to the tower in adjacent Green Speaker.
Maps Big Ben
Clock
Dials
Clock and dial designed by Augustus Pugin. The fast clock is set in a 23 foot (7.0 m) iron frame in diameter, supporting 312 pieces of opal glass, somewhat like stained glass windows. Some pieces of glass can be removed for hand inspection. The sections around the button are plated. At the base of each calling clock in gold letters is Latin:
Oh God, save our Queen VICTORY OVER THE FIRST
Which means God, stay safe of our First Queen Victoria .
Unlike most other Roman clock dial numbers, which indicate the position of '4' as 'IIII', the Great Clock face describes '4' as 'IV'.
Movement
The clock movement is famous for its reliability. Its designers are Amateer lawyers and amateur horologists Edmund Beckett Denison, and George Airy, Royal Astronomer. Construction entrusted to watchmaker Edward John Dent; after his death in 1853, his step Frederick Dent completed his work, in 1854. Since the tower was not complete until 1859, Denison had time to experiment: instead of using the deadbeat and remonto runs as originally designed, Denison found the triple-legged man. escape of gravity. This separation provides the best separation between the pendulum and the clock mechanism. The pendulum is installed inside a windproof enclosed box under the clock room. The length is 13 feet (4.0 m), weighs 660 pounds (300 kg), depending on the spring steel strip of 1/64 inch thickness, and beats every two seconds. The clock mechanism in the room under the weight of five tons.
Above the pendulum is a stack of small pennies; this is to adjust the clock time. Adding coins has the effect of lifting the position of the pendulum mass center, reducing the effective length of the pendulum rod and hence increasing the swing rate of the pendulum. Adding or removing a cent will change the clock speed by 0.4 seconds per day. The hour is a hand wound (takes about 1.5 hours) three times a week.
On May 10, 1941, a German bomb attack destroyed two quick hours and tower roof parts looming and destroying the House of Representatives room. Sir Giles Gilbert Scott's architect designed a new five-story block. Two floors are occupied by today's room, which was used for the first time on October 26, 1950. The clock runs accurately and chimes throughout Blitz.
Details and other incidents
20th century
1916: For two years during World War I, the bells were silenced and the face of the clock was not illuminated at night to avoid guiding the German Zeppelins.
September 1, 1939: Although the bell continues to ring, the face of the clock is not illuminated during the night during World War II to avoid driving a bomber pilot during the Blitz.
May 10, 1941: German bombing raids destroy two quick hours.
3-4 June 1941: Clock stops at 10: 13 pm. until 10:13 am the next morning, after a worker repaired the damage of air strikes to the wall clock dropping the hammer into the work.
1949: The clock slows down about four and a half minutes after a flock of starlings perched in minute hands.
January 13, 1955: The clock stops at 3:24 am because of the snow formed in the north and east. Small electric heaters are placed right inside two dials that face full anger from the winter blast, and this move has helped reduce instances of freezing in recent years.
New Year's Eve 1962: The clock slows down because of heavy snow and ice in the hand, causing the pendulum to break away from the hands of the clock, as it is designed to do under such circumstances, to avoid serious damage elsewhere in the mechanism - the pendulum continues to swing freely. Thus, it replied in 1963 just nine minutes late.
January 30, 1965: The bell was silenced during the funeral of statesman and former prime minister Winston Churchill.
August 5, 1976: First and only major damage. The air brake speed regulator of the chiming mechanism is damaged by torsional fatigue after being used for more than 100 years, causing a total weight of 4 tons to rotate the drum winding out of the movement, causing a lot of damage. The Great Hour was closed for a total of 26 days for nine months - it was reactivated on May 9, 1977. This was the longest pause in operation since its construction. During this time BBC Radio 4 broadcasted pips instead. Although there was a small discontinuation from 1977 to 2002, when the clock maintenance was done by the old watchmaker Thwaites & amp; Reed, this is often fixed within two hours of being allowed and not recorded as termination. Prior to 1970, maintenance was undertaken by the original dent company; since 2002, by parliamentary staff.
April 30, 1997: Hours stopped 24 hours before the election, and stopped again three weeks later.
21st century
27th May 2005: Hours stop at 10:07, probably because of hot weather; temperatures in London have reached 31.8 Â ° C (90 Â ° F). It resumes, but stops again at 10:20 pm, and stays silent for about 90 minutes before continuing.
October 29, 2005: The mechanism was stopped for about 33 hours to allow maintenance work on the clock and the bell. It is the longest maintenance shutdown in 22 years.
7:00 am: June 5, 2006: The "Quarter Bells" clock tower was discharged from the commission for four weeks because the cushion holding one of the quarter bells was worn and needed to be issued for repairs. During this period, BBC Radio 4 broadcast a recording of a British bird song followed by pips in the usual bell spots.
August 11, 2007: Starts 6 weeks stop for maintenance. The cushion in the chime train hour and the "big bell" striker was replaced, for the first time since installation. During maintenance the clock is driven by an electric motor. Once again, BBC Radio 4 broadcasts pips during this time. The goal is that the clock must run accurately for another 200 years before major maintenance is once again required; in fact the repair is enough for ten years.
April 17, 2013: The bell was silenced as a sign of "deep dignity and profound respect" during the funeral of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
August 2015: Clock is found to run fast 7 seconds, and the coin is removed from the pendulum to correct the error, which causes it to run slowly for a while.
21 August 2017: Starts from silencing for 4 years of bells during maintenance and repair work for clock mechanisms, and repairs and repairs to build clock towers. During this time, the fast, the hand, and the light will be removed for recovery, with at least one dial - by hand driven by an electric motor - left intact, functioning, and visible at any given time. Plans also include installing elevators. However, the bells will continue to blend for events like New Year's Eve and Anniversaries.
Bell
Great Bell
The main bell, officially known as Great Bell, but is known as Big Ben, is the largest bell in the tower and part of the Great Hour of Westminster.
The original bell was a 16-ton (16.3 ton) clock bell, thrown on August 6, 1856 in Stockton-on-Tees by John Warner & Children. The bell may be named in honor of Sir Benjamin Hall, and his name is written there. However, another theory for the origin of the name is that the bells may be named after contemporary heavyweight boxer Benjamin Caunt. It is estimated that the bell was originally called Victoria Victorian or Royal Victoria in honor of Queen Victoria, but a lawmaker suggested a nickname during the Parliament debate; comments are not recorded at Hansard.
Since the tower has not been completed, the bell is installed at New Palace Yard but, during the test it is cracked and repaired and replacement must be done. The bell was rearranged on April 10, 1858 at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry as a 13 ½ ton (13.76 ton) bell. The second bell was transported from casting to the tower with a trolley drawn by sixteen horses, with a cheering crowd; it was then drawn 200Ã, ft (61.0 m) to the clock tower clock tower, a feat that took 18 hours. It is 7 feet 6 inches (2.29 m) tall and 9 feet (2.74 m) in diameter. The new bell was first heard in July 1859; in September it was also cracked under the hammer. According to foundry manager, George Mears, the Denison horoscope has used a hammer more than twice the maximum weight specified. For three years Big Ben was expelled from the commission and his hours were struck at the lowest part of the quarters bell until repaired. To make an improvement, a piece of square metal is cut out of the circle around the crack, and the bell is given one eighth of a spin so the new hammer strikes in different places. Big Ben has chimed in a slightly different tone since then, and is still used today with cracks that have not been fixed. Big Ben is the largest bell in the British Isles to "Great Paul", the 16Ã,¾ ton (17 tons) bell that is currently hanging in St. Paul's Cathedral, cast in 1881.
Bell
Along with the Great Bell, a bell tower hanging fourteen bells that played Westminster Quarters during the quarter-hour hours. Four-quarters bell sounds G ? , F ? , E, and B. They are thrown by John Warner & amp; Children in their Foundry Crescent in 1857 (G , F and B) and 1858 (E ). The Foundry is in Jewin Crescent, in what is now known as The Barbican, in the City of London. The bell is sounded by a hammer drawn by a cable coming from the connecting room - a low ceiling chamber between the clock room and the bell tower - where the mechanism translates the train movement into the sound of each bell.
Quarter bells play the sequence once, 20-lap records and four changes in key from E major: 1-4 in the past quarter, 5-12 on the past half, 13-20 and 1-4 in the quarter to, and 5-20 on the hour (which sounded 25 seconds before the main bell weighed on the clock). Since the low bell (B) was hit twice in a row, there was not enough time to pull the hammer back, and it was fitted with two key hammers on the side opposite to the bell. The song is from Cambridge Chimes, first used for the bells of Great St. Mary's church, Cambridge, and supposedly a variation, attributed to William Crotch, based on a violin phrase from the air "I know my Redeemer lives" in Handel Messiah . The notional words of the bell, again derived from the Great St. Mary's word and in turn an allusion to Psalm 37: 23-24, are: "All this time/God became my guide/And with your strength/No feet will glide ". They are written on a plaque on the wall of the clock room.
One of the requirements for hours is that the first jump of the clock bell should be true in one second per day. Tolerance refers to Greenwich Mean Time (BST in summer). So, at twelve o'clock, for example, it was the first strike of twelve clocks-a bell that marked the hour (New Year's New Year's Eve at midnight). The time marked by the last of "six pips" (UTC) may differ by fractional.
Nickname
The origin of the nickname Big Ben is the subject of some debate. The nickname was first applied to the Great Bell; it may be named after Sir Benjamin Hall, who oversees the installation of the Great Bell, or after British heavyweight champion Benjamin Caunt. Now Big Ben is often used, with extension, to refer to clocks, towers and bells collectively, although the nickname was not universally accepted as referring to clocks and towers. Some writers about towers, clocks and bells avoided trouble using the first Big Ben words in the title, then went on to clarify that the subject of this book is the clock and the tower as well as the bell.
In August 2017, The Rochdale Herald satire website published a spoof article stating that the bell will be renamed "Massive Mohammed". Many people think of this as genuine news and are widely laughed at in social media. This even inspired the creation of two online petitions.
Cultural significance
The clock has become a cultural symbol of the British Empire, especially in the visual media. When a television or movie maker wants to show a generic location in the country, a popular way to do this is to display a tower image, often with a red-decker bus or black cab in the foreground.
In 2008, a survey of 2,000 people found that towers are the most popular landmarks in the UK. It has also been named the most iconic movie location in London.
Clocking clock sounds have also been used this way in audio media, but since Westminster Quarters sounds from other clocks and other devices, the sound is by no means unique. Big Ben is the focal point of New Year's celebrations in the United Kingdom, with radio and television stations airing bells to welcome New Year's beginnings. To welcome the year 2012, the clock tower is lit with fireworks that explode on every Big Ben toll. Similarly, on Memorial Day, Big Ben's bells are broadcast to mark 11 hours 11 days 11 months 11 and the start of a two minute silence. The Londoners living far away from the tower and Big Ben could, by listening to the bells, both live and on analogue radio, heard the bell strike thirteen times. This is possible because electronically transmitted bells arrive instantaneously, while the "live" sound is delayed through the air because the speed of sound is relatively slow.
The News Opening Order of ITN News at Ten previously featured a tower image with the sound of Big Ben's bells that emphasized the day's main news announcement. Big Ben's bells (known in ITN as "The Bongs") continue to be used during the headlines and all ITV News bulletins use charts based on Westminster dial hours. Big Ben can also be striking hours before several news bulletins on BBC Radio 4 (6 pm and midnight, plus 10 pm on Sundays) and BBC World Service, a practice that begins on December 31, 1923. The bells are sent directly from the microphone. permanently installed in the tower and connected by a path to the Broadcasting House.
At the close of elections for the 2010 general election the results of national polls are projected onto the south side of the tower. On July 27, 2012, starting at 8:12 am, Big Ben chimed 30 times, to welcome the 30th Olympic Games, which officially began that day, to London.
Some Conservative MPs want Big Ben to join at Brexit on March 29, 2019.
2017 renovation
The tower is undergoing major renovations starting in August 2017 and is expected to last four years. The Big Ben bell was silenced on the afternoon of August 21st. Important maintenance will be done on the clock, which will be stopped for several months, where there will be no bells. Attacking and chiming will be retained for important events like New Year's Eve and Sunday Warnings. Big Ben will continue attacking and chiming in 2021.
The purpose of the renovation is to improve and conserve the tower, improve the facilities needed, and ensure its integrity for future generations. The last significant renovation work was done to the tower in 1983-85. The most significant addition to the tower is the installation of elevators. The face of the clock should be repainted and re-plated, and many broken glass panels are also replaced on the clock.
Initially, renovations are estimated to cost between Ã, Â £ 29 million and Ã, Â £ 45 million; However, in September 2017, that number increased to Ã, £ 61 million.
See also
- Victoria Tower
- Big Ben Aden
References
External links
- The official website of Big Ben in the British Parliament
- The Palace of Westminster in the British Parliament
- Big Ben at Whitechapel Bell Foundry
- Clapper Big Ben at Houghton-le-Spring Heritage Society
- Photos of the tower interior on Flickr United Kingdom
- The Story of Two Towers: Big Ben and Pisa transcript of lectures by prof. John Burland
Video
- Big Ben's Movie Genius (2017) by Discovery
- Big Ben a Hundred (1959) newsreel by British PathÃÆ'Â ©
- Big Ben Cleaning (1955) by British PathÃÆ'Â ©
- Big Ben (1948) by British PathÃÆ'Â ©
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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