Elizabeth Tower
Home of the Great Clock and Big Ben, the Great Bell.
United Kingdom · Europe · Available experience
London
A short evening walk beside the Thames.
Explore a stylised Westminster riverside, look up at Elizabeth Tower, and discover what the name Big Ben originally referred to.
Westminster at dusk
Scene details
This is a stylised, bounded riverside walk. The tower, Palace frontage and path use approximate proportions and spacing.
Preparing the scene
Learn more
Click the scene. Walk with W A S D or the arrow keys. Drag to look.
Drag the pad to walk. Drag the scene to look.
Westminster DiscoveryComplete the mission to earn it
Cultural notes
This is a stylised, bounded riverside walk. The tower, Palace frontage and path use approximate proportions and spacing.
A tower built after a fire
VerifiedFire devastated the Palace of Westminster in 1834. Architect Charles Barry included a clock tower in his plans for the new Palace, and construction of the tower began in 1843.
Source: UK Parliament, A brief history of Big Ben and Elizabeth Tower. Accessed 2026-11-13.
District
Westminster
The walk looks toward the Palace of Westminster from a bounded riverside path.
Elizabeth Tower
The tower at the Palace of Westminster houses the Great Clock and Big Ben, its Great Bell.
From the riverside, find a clock face. Which part tells the time, and which part strikes the hour?
Trace the clock faces
The Great Clock shows the time on four dials, one on each side of Elizabeth Tower.
UK Parliament · Facts and figures: Big Ben and Elizabeth Tower (opens in a new tab)Find the hour bell
Above the dials, in the belfry, Big Ben strikes the hour. Four smaller bells sound the quarter chimes.
UK Parliament · A brief history of Big Ben and Elizabeth Tower (opens in a new tab)What is Big Ben?
VerifiedBig Ben is the Great Bell that hangs in the belfry of Elizabeth Tower. The tower also houses four other bells.
Source: UK Parliament, Facts and figures: Big Ben and Elizabeth Tower. Accessed 2026-11-12.
Four clock faces
VerifiedThe Great Clock has a dial on each side of Elizabeth Tower. Augustus Pugin designed the clock faces.
Source: UK Parliament, The towers of Parliament. Accessed 2026-11-12.
How Big Ben rang again
VerifiedBig Ben first struck in July 1859 and cracked later that year. In 1863 the bell was turned a quarter turn and fitted with a lighter hammer, so it could strike the hours again.
Source: UK Parliament, A brief history of Big Ben and Elizabeth Tower. Accessed 2026-11-13.
Played in the scene above
Mission
The Westminster clock
Walk to the tower viewpoint, read the landmark note, and answer one question.
- Reach the tower viewpoint. Follow the riverside path to the marked spot.
- Read the Elizabeth Tower note. Open the note when you reach the viewpoint.
Westminster Discovery. You found Elizabeth Tower and identified the Great Bell.