In the depths of Somerset House

A back Blip from the guided tour of Somerset House I went on last week. Originally a Tudor palace, Somerset house was demolished to make way for a masterpiece of Georgian architecture. As our guide explained the new Somerset House played a major role in British history. It was built to house the royal academy of arts and the royal society, as well as some less popular organisations such as the inland revenue. The building was sited much higher than the level of the river so the architect William Chambers built lower foundations and rooms below ground level with wells to provide light for these subterranean levels. Our guide took us down one of these to see the ‘dead’
Room, a passage way containing grave markers of catholic’s who were buried in the catholic chapel located in the original Tudor palace before it was destroyed. Interesting tour and it’s free.