Big Ben - The name of the largest of the five bells of Westminster Palace in London , it is often considered to be the name of the clock , and the clock tower as a whole . At the time of the casting of Big Ben was the largest and heaviest ( 13.7 ton ) bell of the United Kingdom . In 1881, the bell gave primacy Great Sex ( Eng. ) Russian . ( 17 tons ) .Name [edit | edit wiki text] It is believed that the bell was named Big Ben ( Big Ben ) in honor of Sir Benjamin Hall , the curator of construction works . According to another version , it is named in honor of Benjamin Count , Russian . , A popular boxer in the heavyweight division . Tower [edit | edit wiki text] The tower was built by English architect Augustus Augustus Pugin in 1859 , the clock tower started May 31, 1859 [ 4 ] . The height of the tower , including the spire - 96.3 meters. The lower part of the clock mechanism is located at a height of 55 meters. The official name until September 2012 was " The Clock Tower Palace of Westminster ," the press it was often called the Tower of St . Stephen [ 5 ] . According to the decision of the British Parliament renamed the Elizabeth Tower in honor of the 60th anniversary of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II [ 6 ] .
The big clock on the tower of the Palace of Westminster in London is often called Big Ben. But Big Ben is really the bell of the clock. It is the biggest clock bell in Britain. It weighs 13.5 tons.
The clock tower is 318 feet high. You have to go up 374 steps to reach the top. So the clock looks small from the pavement below the tower. But its face is 23 feet wide. It would only just fit into some classrooms. The minute-hand is 14 feet long. Its weight is equal to that of two bags of coal. The hour-hand is 9 feet long.
The clock bell is called Big Ben after Sir Benjamin Hall. He had the job to see that the bell was put up.
Sir Benjamin was a big man. One day he said in Parliament, "Shall we call the bell St. Stephen's?" St. Stephen's was the name of the tower.
But someone said for a joke, "Why not call it Big Ben?" Now the bell is known all over the world by that name.
The tower was built by English architect Augustus Augustus Pugin in 1859 , the clock tower started May 31, 1859 [ 4 ] . The height of the tower , including the spire - 96.3 meters. The lower part of the clock mechanism is located at a height of 55 meters. The official name until September 2012 was " The Clock Tower Palace of Westminster ," the press it was often called the Tower of St . Stephen [ 5 ] . According to the decision of the British Parliament renamed the Elizabeth Tower in honor of the 60th anniversary of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II [ 6 ] .
The clock tower is 318 feet high. You have to go up 374 steps to reach the top. So the clock looks small from the pavement below the tower. But its face is 23 feet wide. It would only just fit into some classrooms. The minute-hand is 14 feet long. Its weight is equal to that of two bags of coal. The hour-hand is 9 feet long.
The clock bell is called Big Ben after Sir Benjamin Hall. He had the job to see that the bell was put up.
Sir Benjamin was a big man. One day he said in Parliament, "Shall we call the bell St. Stephen's?" St. Stephen's was the name of the tower.
But someone said for a joke, "Why not call it Big Ben?" Now the bell is known all over the world by that name.