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The Mall () is a road in the City of Westminster, central London, between Buckingham Palace at its western end and Trafalgar Square via Admiralty Arch to the east. Near the east end at Trafalgar Square and Whitehall it is met by Horse Guards Road and Spring Gardens where the
Metropolitan Board of Works The Metropolitan Board of Works (MBW) was the principal instrument of local government in a wide area of Middlesex, Surrey, and Kent, defined by the Metropolis Management Act 1855, from December 1855 until the establishment of the London Coun ...
and
London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kn ...
were once based. It is closed to traffic on Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays and on ceremonial occasions.


History

The Mall began as a field for playing pall-mall. In the 17th and 18th centuries it was a fashionable promenade, bordered by trees. It was envisioned as a ceremonial route in the early 20th century, matching the creation of similar ceremonial routes in other cities such as
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Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
, Oslo,
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
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, Vienna and Washington, D.C. These routes were intended to be used for major national ceremonies. As part of the development – designed by Aston Webb – a new façade was constructed for Buckingham Palace, and the Victoria Memorial was erected. The Victoria Memorial is immediately before the gates of the Palace, whilst Admiralty Arch at the far end leads into Trafalgar Square. The length of The Mall from where it joins Constitution Hill at the Victoria Memorial end to Admiralty Arch is exactly .
St. James's Park St James's Park is a park in the City of Westminster, central London. It is at the southernmost tip of the St James's area, which was named after a leper hospital dedicated to St James the Less. It is the most easterly of a near-continuous ch ...
is on the south side of The Mall, opposite Green Park and St James's Palace, on the north side. Running off The Mall at its eastern end is Horse Guards Parade, where the Trooping the Colour ceremony is held. The surface of The Mall is coloured red to give the effect of a giant red carpet leading up to Buckingham Palace. This colour was obtained using synthetic iron oxide pigment from Deanshanger Oxide Works (Deanox), which was created using the Deanox Process devised by chemist Ernest Lovell. It was David Eccles's decision, as Minister of Works from 1951 to 1954, to make The Mall red. On Victory in Europe Day (8 May 1945), the Palace was the centre of British celebrations, with the King,
Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
and Princess Elizabeth (the future queen) and Princess Margaret appearing on the balcony, with the Palace's blacked-out windows behind them, to the cheers from a vast crowd on The Mall. During state visits, the monarch and the visiting head of state are escorted in a state carriage up The Mall and the street is decorated with Union Flags and the flags of the visiting head of state's country. During the Golden Jubilee celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II in 2002, over one million people packed The Mall to watch the public displays and the appearance of the Royal Family on the palace balcony. Scheduled buses are not allowed to use the Mall and go past Buckingham Palace except by permission of the monarch. This has only happened twice in history; in 1927 and in 1950.


Events

The annual London Marathon finishes on The Mall. It was also the start and finish line for the marathon course, the road race and the race walks of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The women's marathon took place on 5 August and the men's Olympic marathon on 12 August. The men's 20 km walk took place on 4 August, with the men's 50 km walk and women's 20 km walk took place on 11 August. The Paralympic marathons were held on 9 September. In recent years the Mall has also been repeatedly used as the finishing line for UK cycling events, including the 2012 Olympics Road Races, the Ride London Prudential Classic in 2013, and stage 3 of the 2014 Tour de France. The opening ceremony for the 2019 Cricket World Cup was held on The Mall. During the Trooping the Colour events and other big National events, the Mall is used. On 8 September 2022, while the Mall was cordoned off, a heckler jumped the barriers and ran towards the middle. Police officers managed to tackle him to the ground. He was arrested and thrown into a police van. Moments later a convoy went by, carrying King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort.


Potential assassination attempt

In 1981, Marcus Sarjeant fired six blank shots from a starting pistol at Queen Elizabeth II as she and her entourage were making their way down the road on horseback for Trooping the Colour. Sarjeant was immediately apprehended and arrested.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mall, The Mall St James's