The City of Westminster is a major sightseeing area in London. It is one of the two boroughs within Greater London with city status, the other being the City of London. Westminster is located west of the City of London, and north of the River Thames.
Visitors to this area of London come to view the seat of the British Government, for here you can find the famous Palace of Westminster - also called the Houses of Parliament. At the Palace of Westminster, you will see the tower that houses Big Ben, the famous bell (although the tower itself is often mistakenly called Big Ben too). This is the most iconic and recognizable image of Britain throughout the world. Also within Westminster is Buckingham Palace, Whitehall, Downing Street and the Royal Courts of Justice.
The City of Westminster borough was formed in 1965 from the former Metropolitan Borough of St Marylebone, the Metropolitan Borough of Paddington, and the then smaller City of Westminster, which was granted city status on 29 October 1900. There was originally a City of Westminster which was created in 1541 as the seat of the Diocese of Westminster. The diocese was suppressed in 1550, but the term "city" was still being used without official sanction.
Today, the City of Westminster covers the area south of Oxford Street and Bayswater Road. Among the places within it are Soho, Mayfair, St. James's, The Strand, Westminster, Pimlico, Belgravia, and Hyde Park. The districts in the City of Westminster include Bayswater, Belgravia, Covent Garden, Fitzrovia, Holborn, Hyde Park, Knightsbridge, Lisson Grove, Maida Vale, Mayfair, Marylebone, Milibank, Paddington, Queen's Park, St James's, St John's Wood, Soho including Chinatown, Theatreland, Westbourne Green, West End, and of course Westminster itself. The census of 2001 places the population of the City of Westminster as 181,279.
The railway stations in the City of Westminster are Charing Cross Station, Marylebone Station, Paddington Station and Victoria Station. In addition, the city is served by 27 tube stations and 10 of the 12 Underground lines.
Statue of King George V, Westminster Yard
by Tarquin Binary (Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.5)
Trafalgar Square fountain
by Justinc (Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0)
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Palace of Westminster from London Eye
by ed g2s (GFDL)
Abbey Road, City of Westminster, London
by m.caimary (Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License)
Portcullis House, City of Westminster
by Adrian Pingstone (public domain)
Street in the City of Westminster
by Pilgab (Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0)
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