Buckingham Palace destruction of the Palace of Westminster by fire in 1834, William considered converting the palace into the new Houses of Parliament. Buckingham Palace finally became the principal royal residence in 1837, on the accession of Queen Victoria, who was the first monarch to reside there; her predecessor William IV had died before its completion. While the state rooms were a riot of gilt and colour, the necessities of the new palace were somewhat less luxurious. For one thing, it was reported the chimneys smoked so much that the fires had to be allowed to die down, and consequently the court
Buckingham Palace Road 116 Victoria Street. It was in that building that the Boy Scouts' International Bureau (now the World Scout Bureau) was inaugurated in 1920. The UK Scout Headquarters remained at that address until December 1974, when it moved to Baden-Powell House. The Girl Guides Association (now Girlguiding) rented offices within Scout Headquarters until 1929 when there was no longer storage space for the Association's records. Following a national fundraising campaign called "Save Our Stuff" the Guides were able to move into their own purpose-built headquarters at 17-19 Buckingham Palace Road, which they still occupy today. The entrances to the Royal Mews