Big Ben Tower

Facts
Big Ben is one of the most popular places of interest in London and symbols of England. It is located at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London.
Every year many people visit the capital of Great Britain to see it and take some photos with it in the background. It is thought that Big Ben is a high tower with a very big clock, but that’s not really true.

This tower is called Saint Stephens Tower, but people, even those who live in the UK, are used to calling it "Big Ben." Actually, Big Ben is the huge bell inside the building. Its weight is about thirteen tons and it rings every hour daily: once at one o'clock, twice at two o'clock and so on.
However, people who live near the tower can hear at New Year’s Night how the bell strikes thirteen. It’s considered to be the biggest bell ever made in the country. The bell was firstly used in 1859 and was cracked soon because of the heavy hammer, which struck too strong. After this situation the hammer was changed, but that crack is still there.
Some facts

Origin of the name
There are many hypotheses for the origin of the name “Big Ben”. The most popular one suggests that the bell was named after Sir Benjamin Hall, who was responsible for the installation. Some of people say he was really tall and that’s why this bell is called Big and Ben is shot for Benjamin. But the majority believe it is called Big because of its size.