Queen's House

The Queen’s House in Greenwich is an early 17th-century royal residence in southeast London designed by Inigo Jones and completed in the first half of the 1600s. It is widely recognised as one of the first classical buildings in England.

The house contains important interior features such as the cantilevered Tulip Staircase and the Great Hall, and it is used to display art and historical collections as part of Royal Museums Greenwich. Visitors go for the architecture, period interiors and changing exhibitions.

Commissioned in the reign of James I for Anne of Denmark and completed under the direction of Inigo Jones, the building passed from royal residence to various institutional uses over the centuries before becoming part of the museum complex in Greenwich.

The Queen’s House stands on the north bank of the River Thames in Greenwich, adjacent to Greenwich Park and the National Maritime Museum, within greater London.

• Architectural significance: Designed by Inigo Jones and begun in the early 17th century, the building is one of England's first examples of classical architecture.
• Current use: Today the house forms part of the Royal Museums Greenwich complex and is open to the public as a historic house and gallery space.

What to See #

• Tulip Staircase: The Tulip Staircase is an early 17th-century cantilevered spiral stair noted for being one of the first geometric self-supporting spiral staircases built in Britain.
• Great Hall / architecture: The Great Hall and the building's classical façades reflect Inigo Jones's design and the house's role as an early example of Palladian-influenced architecture in England.