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Palace of Westminster - Court Yard Conservation, London

Palace of Westminster - Court Yard Conservation, London

London United Kingdom Palace of Westminster, Court Yard Clean Galena United Kingdom

The "New Palace of Westminster” was constructed between 1843 and 1860 to designs by Charles Barry with the support of Augustus Pugin. The inner courtyards of the palace were an integral part of the design, clad in ashlar and finished with Gothic ornaments similar to those on the external elevations. Cloister Court includes the surviving cloister of the College of St Stephen’s, founded by Edward III in 1348. The Courtyards Conservation Project included the cleaning and careful repair of the stonework, with the aim of restoring the architectural integrity of the inner courtyards by reviving lost features and cleaning and repairing damaged elements.

Reference identification data
Construction project:
Facade restoration Facade restoration / natural stone
Building type:
Historically protected / historically valuable buildings
Other buildings
Office and administration buildings
Short description
The first phase of the project to renovate the inner courtyards involved cleaning and repairing masonry in the courtrooms used by chancellors and government officials in the House of Lords. Special cleaning methods were required for the windows of the Royal Gallery. Temporary protection and vibration monitoring were necessary in order to eliminate any risk of damage to the wall painting “The Death of Nelson” by Irish artist Daniel Maclise, as well as ensuring that the House of Lords could continue with its sittings uninterrupted. Remmers Clean Galena was the perfect solution because it can be applied and removed by hand without the need for machinery or pressurised water.
Client:
Parliamentary Estate Directorate
Designer:
Donald Insall Associates
Contractor:
DBR London Ltd
Site address:
London
Date / completion:
2019
Can the work be viewed?
No

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