Horse Guards Parade

This guide to Horse Guards Parade in London traces the daily four o'clock inspection back to Queen Victoria, who paid a surprise visit in the 1890s and found her guards drinking and gambling at their post rather than standing watch. It follows the ground's earlier life as Henry VIII's tiltyard, where armoured knights once jousted for Tudor crowds, through the fire that destroyed Whitehall Palace and the building William Kent designed here in the 1740s. You'll hear how the guard has stood watch since Charles II restored the monarchy in 1660. Look up at the clock face before you leave the courtyard.