The legacy of the Great Exhibition
In 1854, the much-loved ‘Crystal Palace’ of the people was transported, pane by pane to the area in South London that still bears its name. And there it remained until 1936, when it was tragically destroyed by fire. A crowd of 100,000 gathered as the fires raged, including Winston Churchill who remarked: ‘This is the end of an age’. And by that time, after the First World War and on the brink of the Second, Britain’s vast Empire was indeed on the wane.
You can still see the footprint of the original building in Hyde Park, marked out by South Carriage Drive. And you can also take a 'virtual tour' of the original Crystal Palace as well.
The Great Exhibition was a runaway success both with the public, and financially. And its legacy lives on. Prince Albert insisted that part of the profits was used to establish some of London’s best-loved museums – the Science Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Natural History Museum. This area of London, with its concentration of riches, became known as ‘Albertopolis’. It’s a permanent reminder of some of the most extraordinary industrial, scientific, cultural artifacts and innovations in the world.
A celebration of human invention and ingenuity.
