Chamber to the White Hall in 1801, as it needed more space to accommodate Irish peers after the Act of Union with Ireland. When used as the House of Lords, the King's throne was located on a dais at the south end of the White Hall, with the Lord Chancellor's woolsack and a table in front for the house's clerks and mace, surrounded by benches on three sides - for the government, the opposition, and the non-partisan crossbenches. Tapestries were hung from the walls, showing the defeat of the Spanish Armada. It was lit by high, semicircular windows. The vacated Queen's Chamber, and the Prince's Chamber, were pulled down by Sir John Soane in 1823 to create a new Royal Gallery and Staircase. The White Chamber survived, but was gutted in the devastating fire in 1834. The fire started in the cellar below the White Chamber, where piles of unwanted tally sticks were being destroyed in two furnaces used to warm the chamber above. Many of the other principal rooms of the palace were severely damaged, including the Painted Chamber and St Stephen's Chapel. The Great Hall was largely unscathed. The Painted Chamber and White Chamber were re-roofed so the House of Lords could move temporarily to the former, and the Commons to the latter. The ruins of the White Chamber were demolished in September 1851 to make way for the building of the new Palace of Westminster. References Greater Medieval Houses of England and Wales, 1300–1500: Volume 3, Southern England, Anthony Emery, Cambridge University Press, 2006 The Palace of Westminster, Cracroft's Peerage Meeting places of the medieval Parliament, parliament.uk Location of Parliaments in the 13th Century, parliament.uk Location of Parliaments in the later middle ages, parliament.uk The House of Lords 1801-1834 , parliament.uk Reconstructing the Lesser Hall: An Interim Report from the Medieval Palace of Westminster Research Project Burned buildings and structures in the United Kingdom Former buildings and structures in the City of Westminster Palace of Westminster Buildings and structures demolished in 1851