Whitehall

Whitehall is the wide central London street that has become synonymous with British government, lined with the great departments of state and running from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament. It takes its name from the vanished Palace of Whitehall, once the largest royal residence in Europe before fire destroyed it in 1698. Along its length stand the Cenotaph, Horse Guards and the entrance to Downing Street. Grand ministry buildings give the thoroughfare an air of authority, and its name is shorthand for the civil service.