Elizabeth Tower is the London landmark popularly called Big Ben and helps mark New Year’s Eve in the United Kingdom.
The tower stands at the north end of the Palace of Westminster. Its official name became Elizabeth Tower in 2012, during celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee. Before that, it was commonly known as the Clock Tower. Big Ben properly refers to the great bell inside the tower, not the tower itself.
The clock began operating in 1859. Its four clock faces and chiming bell made the structure a powerful public time signal, and broadcasts of its chimes helped turn it into an international symbol of London. On New Year’s Eve, crowds and viewers follow the midnight chimes as fireworks take place around the city.
The tower’s popular name remains so widespread that “Big Ben” is often used for the entire structure. That usage is understandable but technically imprecise. The landmark is part of the Palace of Westminster, which is also known as the Houses of Parliament.