Westminster: A Biography: From Earliest Times to the Present

'That terrible place' was the chilling description given to the small plot of land that we now call Westminster. Physically, the place has changed beyond all recognition since a twelfth-century monk created this awesome image in a faked Anglo-Saxon charter.
Image making and intrigue have characterised Westminster since it became Edward the Confessor's political and spiritual capital. A thousand years later, Westminster remains the centre of power and royal ceremony. The Abbey, the Houses of Parliament, Downing Street, Horse Guards, the Cenotaph and Whitehall are recognized around the world. Behind these global icons is the story of a very political village. Historic conflicts between church and state, monarchy and parliament, conservatives and radicals, politicians and the press are etched into its fabric. Stately pomp and sudden violence have co-existed from the start - banquets and bombs, coronations and coups, fanfares and fires, processions and plots, regalia and riots. In many ways, this story is a microcosm of the history of Britain.