Buckingham Palace wasn't meant for the royal coach. When Queen Victoria moved the Marble Arch from the palace's entrance in 1851, it was because the state coach couldn't fit through it. The architects had built a Roman-style triumphal arch without measuring the vehicle that would actually need to pass beneath it.

Victoria was the first monarch to make this her official residence in 1837, transforming what she called a "tiny" palace with new wings, ballrooms, gas lights and eventually electricity in 1887. Before her, St James's Palace had been the senior royal residence since Whitehall Palace burned down in 1698. George III found St James's too cramped and bought Buckingham House as a retreat for his queen, though it quickly became known as the Queen's House.

VoiceMap's self-guided audio tours trace these royal transformations through the Mall's ceremonial route, decode the Changing of the Guard's military pageantry, and reveal why the palace's 775 rooms still play second fiddle to St James's in royal protocol.