Last week MYP 3 enjoyed a trip to Houses of Parliament to augment their studies on Governance.
Our tour started off in the Great Hall, site of many a monarch’s lying in state, some dodgy trials (including Charles I) and of course, Henry VIII’s tennis court.
Moving on to the Central Lobby and after some discussion on the mechanics of Parliament, we had the opportunity to see both the House of Commons and the House of Lords in action.
Relaxing outside the Houses of Parliament
Our tour ended in St. Stephen’s Hall, the original House of Commons and site of the demise of the unfortunate Spencer Perceval, the only Prime Minister to be assassinated.
The Great Hall
After a picnic lunch in the sunshine we headed for a tour of Westminster Abbey. Resting place for many a monarch, we could probably use this site as our textbook for a year’s worth of humanities lessons. The highlight was naturally Britain’s oldest door, commissioned by Edward I in the 1050’s, who himself could be found in the central shrine of the Abbey. MYP3 always love our lesson on the phenomenology of doorways!
Britain’s oldest door, dendrochronology tells us the tree was felled around 1032 AD.
And finally, a wander along the river to visit the statues of General Charles Gordon and Sir Bartlett Frere in the Victoria Embankment Gardens. We meet both characters in our studies of colonialism and governance.
There is always time for a quick humanities lesson!
General Gordon, famous for his military service in China during the Taiping Rebellion, losing his head at Khartoum and Sudanese postage stamps.
This was a fabulous trip and one we intend to add to the annual Humanities diary. Thank you to all involved in the organisation and travel on the day.
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