Secret 17th century doorway discovered in parliament during restoration works
The entrance is believed to have been used by the likes of diarist Samuel Pepys and Robert Walpole, the first de facto PM.
Wednesday 26 February 2020 14:45, UK
A secret doorway dating back more than 350 years has been discovered in the House of Commons.
The entrance is believed to have been used by the likes of diarist Samuel Pepys and Robert Walpole, the first de facto prime minister.
The hidden walkway was found as part of the ongoing £4bn restoration project in parliament.
It was originally established for Charles II's coronation in 1660, so guests could go to the new king's celebratory banquet.
MPs later used it to access the Commons, which was originally in the medieval Palace of Westminster before a fire in the 19th century ripped through most of the structure.
Westminster Hall, where the doorway was discovered, was the only part to survive.
It was later incorporated into parliament's neo-Gothic rebuild.
But for the last 70 years it has remained forgotten about, hidden away behind wooden panelling in a cloister that was formerly used as offices by the Labour Party.
A brass plate marks the doorway's location, but historians believed it had been filled in during reconstruction work after the Second World War, when the palace was bombed.
Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle said: "To think that this walkway has been used by so many important people over the centuries is incredible.
"I am so proud of our staff for making this discovery and I really hope this space is celebrated for what it is - a part of our parliamentary history."
Graffiti written by bricklayers who helped architect Sir Charles Barry restore the palace in the wake of the 1834 fire was also found in the room.
One sentence, dated 1851, reads: "This room was enclosed by Tom Porter who was very fond of Ould Ale."
Another features the sign-off "Real Democrats", a working class suffrage Chartist movement which called for men over the age of 21 to have the vote and allowing would-be MPs to stand for office if they did not own property.
But that was not all that was discovered.
Ceiling timbers above the room were dated to trees felled in 1659, while a light switch - probably installed in the 1950s - was found.