Downing Street is named after Sir George Downing - informant of Oliver Cromwell - a man who challenged the English monarchy and paid with life and death. His corpse was dug up and ceremonially hunged up. Downing traded in real estate and made a fortune buying the entire street that now bears his name. Initially, there were three houses here. The house holding number ten used to be number five. Finally, all three properties were combined into one and became a famous address: Downing Street 10. This residence was intended for the treasurer of His Majesty and then for the Prime Minister. An interesting fact is concerning a door. She is black. Only once in the history of the house has the door been painted green. It was 1908 when Henry Asquith took over as head of government. In that year, the pension was introduced, the fifth Olympic Games were held, and the door changed from black to green to promote liberalism. The famous English cat, the chief mouse catcher, also lives in the house. This is an ancient tradition. Among the main mouse-catchers were the long-liver Wilberforce, who lived for 18 years, the Munich Mouse-catcher, who survived Chamberlain and Churchill, and the cat, Larry, who came here from a shelter. Larry is not particularly keen on catching mice but makes a big bully with a neighbour's cat Palmerston - a mouse catcher of the Treasury Department.
This four-hour walk in London introduces us to Westminster, the heart of the English monarchy. We will visit the old abbey, find the lawn on which the football game was born, and taste ale in the oldest pub. Look into the Winston Churchill bunker, find out who catches mice at 10 Downing Street, get acquainted with the ceremonies of Buckingham Palace and walk through the parks. We will visit the famous Piccadilly Street and its neighbour, where tailors rented rooms to Rothschild and Isaac Newton. We will relax in Trafalgar Square if we wish, we will visit the National Gallery. Finally, we will find ourselves in the theatre district and the Soho quarter. Let us go!