Private Tour of the Palaces and Great Houses of Central London with Chauffeurs UK

Apsley House, also known as No. 1 London, is the former residence of the first Duke of Wellington.

The Duke made Apsley House his London home after a dazzling military career culminating in his victory over Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815. Wellington enlarged the house, originally built by Robert Adam between 1771 and 1778, adding the magnificent Waterloo Gallery by Benjamin Dean Wyatt which holds many of the masterpieces from the Duke's extensive collection of paintings. It has been the London home of the Dukes of Wellington ever since.

The seventh Duke gave the house and contents to the nation in 1947, with apartments retained for the family. With its collections of outstanding paintings, porcelain, silver, sculture, furniture, medals and memorabilia largely intact and the family still in residence, Apsley House is the last great aristocratic town house in London.

The magnificent Banqueting House is all that survives of the great Palace of Whitehall which was destroyed by fire in 1698. It was completed in 1622, commissioned by King James I, and designed by Inigo Jones, the noted classical architect. In 1635 the main hall was further enhanced with the installation of nine magnificent ceiling paintings by Sir Peter Paul Rubens which survive to this day. The Banqueting House was also the site of the only royal execution in England's history - the beheading of King Charles I in 1649.

Buckingham Palace is the official London residence of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and serves as both home and office. Its nineteen State Rooms, which are opened to visitors for eight weeks a year, form the heart of the working palace. They are used extensively by The Queen and members of the Royal Family to receive and entertain their guests on State, ceremonial and official occasions. The State Rooms are lavishly furnished with some of the finest treasures from the Royal Collection - paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens, Van Dyck; sculpture by Canova; exquisite examples of Sevres porcelain and some of the most magnificent English and French furniture in the world. The garden walk offers superb views of the Garden Front of the Palace and the 19th-century lake.

Adjacent to Buckingham Palace are the Royal Mews and The Queen's Gallery. The Royal Mews is one of the finest working stables in existence and houses both the horse-drawn carriages and motor cars used for coronations, State visits, royal weddings and the State Opening of Parliament. The Queen's Gallery hosts a programme of changing exhibitions of magnificent works of art from the Royal Collection.

Clarence House is the official residence of HRH The Prince of Wales and HRH The Duchess of Cornwall. It was built in the early 19th century by John Nash for King William IV and was, for many years, the London Home of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. Visitors are given a guided tour of the five rooms on the ground floor.

Kensington Palace has seen such momentous events as the death of King George II and the birth of the future Queen Victoria. The Palace is home to the magnificent Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection, a display of court and ceremonial outfits dating from the 18th century. The collection includes dresses worn on State occasions by Her Majesty The Queen as well as fourteen evening dresses belonging to the late Diana, Princess of Wales. Most recently, the rooms making up the private apartment of the late Princess Margaret have been opened for special exhibitions and displays.

Spencer House, built 1756-66 for the first Earl Spencer, an ancestor of Diana, Princess of Wales, is London's finest surviving 18th century town house. The magnificent private palace has regained the full splendour of its late 18th century appearance, after a ten-year restoration programme.

Designed by John Vardy and James "Athenian" Stuart, the nine state rooms were amongst the first neo-classical interiors in Europe. Vardy's Palm Room, with its spectacular screen of gilded palm trees and arched fronds, is a unique Palladian set-piece, while the elegant mural decorations of Stuart's Painted Room reflect the 18th century passion for classical Greece and Rome.