This revolutionary building, the first in England to be designed in a Palladian style by Inigo Jones and completed in 1622, was intended for the splendour and exuberance of court masques The Banqueting House is probably most famous for one real life drama: the execution of Charles I which took place here in 1649 to the ‘dismal, universal groan’ of the crowd One of Charles’s last sights as he walked through the Banqueting House to his death was the magnificent ceiling paintings by Peter Paul Rubens painted between 1630-4.
Lost Palace of Whitehall
Whitehall Palace was the site of some of the most iconic and dramatic events in British history, until it burnt down. For 8 weeks in summer 2016 the Banqueting house invites visitors to explore the palace for the first time in 300 years using innovative digital techniques, taking people around the modern steets if Whitehall to experience the history that once happened.
