Back in the day Whitehall Palace was the principal London residence of the Royal family. All that remains now is the Banqueting House. But what a remnant. Some say that it is the finest room in London. It is one the best examples of Palladian architecture in the UK. Charles I walked to his execution here. Come with me to discover inside the Banqueting House, Whitehall.
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Inside the Banqueting House, Whitehall
Reclining to admire the Rubens ceiling at the Banqueting House is one of the favourite London things to do for the Cultural Wednesday family. Yes the room has perfect proportions, a double cube. But it is the ceiling that grabs your attention.
Rubens ceiling at the Banqueting House
James I started to talk to Peter Paul Rubens about creating a ceiling for his new Banqueting House but died before the contract was signed. His son Charles I finally Rubens in 1629. They were to celebrate the magnificent of the Stuart Kings, the Divine Right of Kings and the union of the Scottish and English crowns.
What you see is the largest surviving work by Rubens at 22 square metres. The King paid £3,000 and a heavy gold chain for the work. Unfortunately when the painting was delivered it didn’t fit. The Flanders foot and the British foot were different lengths and the paintings had been made in Flanders to British measurements. Thankfully some judicious cut and paste saved the day.
History of the Banqueting House
Banqueting House is the only remaining part of Whitehall Palace. It was the first building that Inigo Jones designed using the Palladian principles that he had seen and admired in Italy. James I commissioned it to replace an earlier wooded banqueting house to host not only banquets but masques and royal receptions.
The party years didn’t last long. 27 years later on 30 January 1649 Charles I walked through the Banqueting Hall and out onto a specially constructed stage to his execution.
Visiting the Banqueting House
For the past few years the Banqueting House has being undergoing restoration. It has a brand new floor, the exterior stone work has been replaced and there is now lift access. Whilst the final touches are being pulled together the the Banqueting House is open only occasionally.
- Banqueting House, Whitehall
- Open: 3 April, 1 May, 29 May, 26 June and 3 August – 20 September 2026
- Thursday – Monday 10am – 4pm (during August and September)
- Admission: £7.50 booking essential,
We have Historic Royal Palaces membership entry to the Banqueting House (plus Hampton Court, Kensington Palace and the Tower of London) is included in membership, why not take a look at my guide to London Museum Membership.
What a great idea! Those beanbags looks really comfy too.
Very comfy. I take a book because the boys are so hard to shift
interesting place #citytripping
Now this is somewhere which has really thought through how to help visitors enjoy it – I definitely think more historic sites could benefit from the odd beanbag. And I never knew that about the canvases, imagine that moment when they realised it didn’t fit. Thanks for linking up with #citytripping
I wonder what happened to the off cuts?
I was wondering why there are bean bags in a place that looks so elegant. Now, I get it and think they are a great idea. Sometimes, you want to enjoy a place but your feet are killing you. It feels great when you can learn and enjoy comfortably.
I love the familiarity of your family that they call it the beanbag place. Unsurprisingly I can see why it’s tempting. History for the grownups, beanbags for the boys! #citytripping
I’ve always wanted to visit this place, but wasn’t sure what to expect! I’m so happy to have read this post, I’m definitely going during our next visit, and if my boys complain, I’ll just tell them about the bean bags! #citytripping
I’ve occassionally thought we made a mistake in not getting the Historic Palaces membership for at least one year, and now I know it is. Worth it for the beanbags and the story about the missfitting paintings alone!
We get incredible value from our membership. There are all sorts of member events too, we went to the Ceremony of the Keys or locking up the Tower of London for the night and one of our boys got turn the key!
The Banqueting House is magnificent and STILL on the list! Thanks for joining #FarawayFiles
I didn’t realise this was included as part of the Historic Royal Palaces package. I used to work nearby – lolling on beanbags would have been a good way to de-stress! #FarawayFiles