The civil list

    The Civil List is the sum provided by Parliament to meet the official expenses of the Sovereign's Household so that King or Queen can fulfil the role of Head of State and Head of the Commonwealth. It is not in any sense “pay” for the Sovereign.     The Civil List dates back to the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660, but the current system was created on the accession of George III in 1760, when it was decided that the whole cost of civil government should be provided by Parliament in return for the surrender of the hereditary revenues by the King for the duration of the reign. Revenue from the Crown Estate amounted to £113.2 million in 1997/98 and this was paid to the Treasury.     About 70 per cent of Civil List expenditure goes to pay the salaries of staff working directly for the Sovereign. Their duties include dealing with State papers, organising public engagements and arranging meetings and receptions undertaken by the Sovereign.     The Civil List also meets the costs of functions such as the Royal Garden Parties official entertainment during State Visits. The Civil List is set by Parliament as a fixed annual amount of £7.9 million for a period of up to 10 years. The Household is currently succeeding in containing Civil List expenditure within inflation, however, and the resulting surplus is being carried forward to reduce the amount of the Civil List for the next 10-year period.     The budget for each year's projected net Civil List spending is reviewed by the Treasury, which audits the accounts and verifies that the Household's financial management is in line with best practice. Details of expenditure are published.

Typical houses in georgian style

    There were attempts in the eighteenth century to create uniform groups of domestic buildings - a few similar buildings placed in a row create a terrace. These could be in many shapes and sizes - long or short, curved to form a crescent, or rectangular forming a square. While in larger towns terraces might be quite extensive, in the small towns it was more common to find units of two houses: it was actually cheaper to build in pairs than singly and in the more prospering towns of the survey there were examples of small groupings of houses. During the reign of King George I in the early 1700's, and King George III later in the century, Britons drew inspiration from the Italian Renaissance and from ancient Greece and Rome. Georgian style refers to a style originating in England in the 1600's based on forms following the classical principals of design developed by Andrea Palladio during the Italian Renaissance.

    In the mid 1600's, architects Indigo Jones and Christopher Wren began designing buildings using Palladios' design principals. This style became wildly popular in England, replacing the medieval. This new style involved new concepts of living. The multiplication of rooms led to increased specialization of rooms into separate rooms for sleeping, cooking, dining and so forth. Fireplaces in the living quarters became smaller and more efficient, since they were used for heating only and the large hearth could be confined to the kitchen only. Comfort, convenience and privacy were beginning to play a role in the colonists' lifestyle as they increased their wealth.