London is the capital of the United Kingdom and the home of its queen, Elizabeth II. It’s also the largest city in Europe. About 7 million people call London home.
Millions of people visit London every year from all over the world. If you travel there, you’ll find many fascinating things to see and do.During August and September, you can visit Buckingham Palace. That’s where the queen lives most of the year. It has about 600 rooms, but you’ll see only state rooms where the queen entertains guests. In the morning, a colorful ceremony called “changing of the guard” takes place in the palace courtyard. One group of palace guards marches off duty, and another troop arrives to replace them.
You can tour the Tower of London, a historic fortress that was once a royal palace. It was also used as a prison for hundreds of years. Two of the wives of King Henry VIII—Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard—were put to death here. The Crown Jewels are a popular attraction at the Tower. This collection of jeweled crowns, swords, scepters, and other royal objects is only used on special occasions, such as the crowning of a new ruler.
A quick and easy way to get from place to place in London is by Tube, a network of underground trains. You’ll see more, however, if you travel around London by bus.