Editing 10 Downing Street (section)

== Rooms and special features ==

=== Front door and entrance hall ===
[[File:Gandhi outside 10 Downing Street, London.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Mahatma Gandhi]] outside Number 10 in 1931. Dignitaries and visitors often pose for a photograph outside the door.]]
[[File:Number 10 front door (7500511890).jpg|thumb|The front door of 10 Downing Street, showing the letter-box inscribed with "First Lord of the Treasury"]]
Number 10's door is the product of the renovations Charles Townshend ordered in 1766; it was probably not completed until 1772. Executed in the Georgian style by the architect [[Kenton Couse]], it is unassuming and narrow, consisting of a single white stone step leading to a modest brick front. The small, six-panelled door, originally made of black oak, is surrounded by cream-coloured casing and adorned with a semicircular [[fanlight]] window. Painted in white, between the top and middle sets of panels, is the number "10". The zero of the number "10" is painted in a very eccentric style, in a 37° angle anticlockwise. One theory is that this is in fact a capital 'O' as found in the [[Trajan lettering|Trajan alphabet]] that was used by the Ministry of Works at the time. A black iron [[Door knocker|knocker]] in the shape of a lion's head is between the two middle panels; below the knocker is a brass [[letter box]] with the inscription "First Lord of the Treasury". The doorbell is inscribed with "PUSH" although is rarely used in practice. A black ironwork fence with spiked [[newel]] posts runs along the front of the house and up each side of the step to the door. The fence rises above the step into a double-swirled archway, supporting an iron [[gas lamp]] surmounted by a crown.{{sfn|Minney|1963|pp=84}}<ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68058&filename=figure0748-118-a.gif&pubid=748 figure0748-118-a] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826184737/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-118 |date=26 August 2021 }}, british-history.ac.uk</ref><ref name="multiref10">British History Online: From: '[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68058 Plate 118: No. 10, Downing Street: main doorway and kitchen] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203022507/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68058 |date=3 December 2013 }}', Survey of London: volume 14: St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II (1931), pp. 118. Date accessed: 20 July 2008.</ref> In modern times the door cannot be opened from the outside; there is always someone inside to grant entry.<ref>{{cite news|last=Greene|first=Bob|title=Who has the key to front door of No. 10 Downing Street?|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=4vJVAAAAIBAJ&pg=6832%2C748254|access-date=21 April 2013|date=2 October 1988|archive-date=1 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220601201126/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=4vJVAAAAIBAJ&pg=6832%2C748254|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Virtual Tour of Number 10|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/history/10-downing-street#take-the-tour|work=10 Downing Street|access-date=30 April 2013|archive-date=1 September 2013|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130901101847/https://www.gov.uk/government/history/10-downing-street%23emergence-of-downing-street#take-the-tour|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=QI: Quite interesting facts about 10 Downing Street|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/lifestyle/9297300/QI-Quite-interesting-facts-about-10-Downing-Street.html?oo=41647924|access-date=21 April 2013|newspaper=The Telegraph|date=29 May 2012|author=Molly Oldfield|author2=John Mitchinson|location=London|archive-date=7 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131207104106/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/lifestyle/9297300/QI-Quite-interesting-facts-about-10-Downing-Street.html?oo=41647924|url-status=live}}</ref>

After the [[Downing Street mortar attack|IRA mortar attack in 1991]], the original black oak door was replaced by a blast-proof steel one. Regularly removed for refurbishment and replaced with a replica, it is so heavy that it takes eight men to lift it. The brass letterbox still bears the legend "First Lord of the Treasury". The original door was put on display in the Churchill Museum at the Cabinet War Rooms.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://conahanexperience.com/churchill-war-rooms/|title=Churchill War Rooms|publisher=The Conahan Experience|date=18 August 2018|access-date=15 February 2023|archive-date=25 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230225094858/https://conahanexperience.com/churchill-war-rooms/|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Margaret Thatcher Nancy Reagan 1986.jpg|thumb|Prime Minister [[Margaret Thatcher]] with US First Lady [[Nancy Reagan]] in 1986 standing in the entrance hall.]]
Beyond the door, Couse installed black and white marble tiles in the entrance hall that are still in use. A [[10 Downing Street Guard Chairs|guard's chair]] designed by [[Thomas Chippendale]] sits in one corner. Once used when policemen sat on watch outside in the street, it has an unusual "hood" designed to protect them from the wind and cold and a drawer underneath where hot coals were placed to provide warmth. Scratches on the right arm were caused by their pistols rubbing up against the leather.<ref>{{cite web|title=Inside Number Ten: A guided tour |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/inside-number-ten-a-guided-tour-455036.html |work=The Independent |accessdate=24 October 2022 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110408075758/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/inside-number-ten-a-guided-tour-455036.html |archivedate=8 April 2011 |date=28 June 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Number 10 Downing Street has a [[elevator|lift]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.5033746,-0.1275733,3a,75y,65.01h,82.86t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sqMz_Nb88RxUAAAQ0MEzJnA!2e0!3e2!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en&shorturl=1|title=Google Maps|website=Google Maps|access-date=9 November 2016|archive-date=6 January 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240106100659/https://www.google.co.uk/gen_204?v=3&s=tactile&action=vtworker&srt=407&conn=onchange&cad=vws:1670.7550003193319,cr:wccf10,ct:2,jsv:20240103.0,cz:22,w:1400,h:900,sc:1,drv:pa&e=10202786,10202788,10203448,10203509,10204121,10204258,10204417,10205123,10205524,10205539,10206561,10207027,10207392,10207607,10207728,10207741,10207798,10207804,10207821,10207892,10207986,10208000,10208094,10208319,10208494,10208498,10208510,10208620,10203575,47087124,1381938,47058549,47057337,47055961,1381033,1368782,1368785,4861626,4592408,4640515,4897086,4940989,1375050,4536287,47054629,72310157&atyp=csi&ei=QiaZZamwH9270PEP2tu2SA&opi=79508299&rt=noop.1|url-status=live}}</ref>

Couse also added a bow front to the small cottage—formerly Mr Chicken's house—incorporated into Number 10 in Walpole's time.{{sfn|Minney|1963|pp=84}}<ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68066&filename=figure0748-126-a.gif&pubid=748 figure0748-126-a] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826184733/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-126 |date=26 August 2021 }}, british-history.ac.uk</ref><ref name="Plate126">British History Online, From: '[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68066 Plate 126: No. 10, Downing Street: entrance hall and drawing room] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090421054138/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68066 |date=21 April 2009 }}', Survey of London: volume 14: St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II (1931), pp. 126. Date accessed: 22 July 2008.</ref>

=== Main staircase ===
[[File:Barack Obama's trip to the United Kingdom April 2016 (9).jpg|thumb|Main staircase, 2016]]
When William Kent rebuilt the interior between 1732 and 1734, his craftsmen created a stone triple staircase. The main section had no visible supports. With a wrought iron balustrade, embellished with a scroll design, and mahogany handrail, it rises from the garden floor to the third floor. Kent's staircase is the first architectural feature visitors see as they enter Number 10. Black and white engravings and photographs of all the past prime ministers decorate the wall. They are rearranged slightly to make room for a photograph of each new prime minister. There is one exception: Winston Churchill is represented in two photographs.{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=49}}{{sfn|Feely|1982|p=13}} At the bottom of the staircase are group photographs of prime ministers with their Cabinet ministers and representatives to [[imperial conference]]s.{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=49}}<ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68064&filename=figure0748-124-a.gif&pubid=748 figure0748-124-a] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826184733/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-124 |date=26 August 2021 }}, british-history.ac.uk</ref><ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68065&filename=figure0748-125.gif&pubid=748 figure0748-125] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826184832/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-125 |date=26 August 2021 }}, british-history.ac.uk</ref><ref>British History Online, From: '[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68064 Plate 124: No. 10, Downing Street: details] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622065253/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68064 |date=22 June 2011 }}', Survey of London: volume 14: St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II (1931), pp. 124. Date accessed: 20 July 2008.</ref><ref>British History Online, From: '[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68065 Plate 125: No. 10, Downing Street: detail of iron balustrading to main staircase] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622065503/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68065 |date=22 June 2011 }}', Survey of London: volume 14: St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II (1931), pp. 125. Date accessed: 20 July 2008.</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=YouTube – Simon Schama's Tour of Downing Street. Pt4: The Staircase | website=[[YouTube]] |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yxiOK7hUvU |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090709220318/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yxiOK7hUvU&feature=channel |archive-date=9 July 2009 |url-status=live |access-date=1 June 2009 }}</ref>

=== Cabinet Room ===
{{Gladstone's Cabinet of 1868|align=right|caption=Prime Minister [[William Ewart Gladstone|William Gladstone]] (in the foreground) meeting with his Cabinet in 1868<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/largerimage.php?search=ap&npgno=5116&eDate=&lDate=&rNo= |title=Gladstone's Cabinet of 1868 (NPG 5116) |first=Lowes Cato |last=Dickinson |author-link=Lowes Cato Dickinson |work=National Portrait Gallery |location=London |access-date=2 February 2010 |archive-date=6 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606004913/http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/largerimage.php?search=ap&npgno=5116&eDate=&lDate=&rNo= |url-status=live }}</ref> in the Cabinet Room, with its distinctive pair of double columns in the background.<ref name="shannon">{{cite book |last=Shannon |first=Richard |title=Gladstone: 1809–1865 (p.342) |year=1984 |page=580 |publisher=Hamilton |isbn=978-0-8078-1591-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U4xnAAAAMAAJ&q=Lowes+Cato+Dickinson+gladstone+lowe |access-date=2 February 2010 |archive-date=6 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240106100658/https://books.google.com/books?id=U4xnAAAAMAAJ&q=Lowes+Cato+Dickinson+gladstone+lowe |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
In Kent's design for the enlarged Number 10, the Cabinet Room was a simple rectangular space with enormous windows. As part of the renovations begun in 1783, it was extended, giving the space its modern appearance. Probably not completed until 1796,{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=18}} this alteration was achieved by removing the east wall and rebuilding it several feet inside the adjoining secretaries' room. At the entrance, a screen of two pairs of Corinthian columns was erected (to carry the extra span of the ceiling) supporting a moulded entablature that wraps around the room. [[Robert Taylor (architect)|Robert Taylor]], the architect who executed this concept, was knighted on its completion.{{sfn|Minney|1963|pp=117–118}} The resulting small space, framed by the pillars, serves as an [[Antechamber|anteroom]] to the larger area. [[Hendrick Danckerts]]' painting "The Palace of Whitehall" usually hangs in the [[Vestibule (architecture)|vestibule]].{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=43}} It also contains two large bookcases that house the prime minister's library; Cabinet members traditionally donate to the collection on leaving office – a tradition that began with Ramsay MacDonald in 1931.{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=184}}<ref>{{cite AV media |title=Simon Schama's Tour of Downing Street. Pt2 The Cabinet Room |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQxSe3pL7Rc | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/FQxSe3pL7Rc| archive-date=2021-10-30|date=15 June 2007 |publisher=10 Downing Street |last=Schama |first=Simon |via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>The Modern Cabinet Room: Two photographs taken by Prime Minister [[Stanley Baldwin]], c. 1927 [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68061&filename=figure0748-121.gif&pubid=748 View looking toward the screen] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826184830/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-121 |date=26 August 2021 }} and [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68060&filename=figure0748-120.gif&pubid=748 View from the Screen] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826184736/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-120 |date=26 August 2021 }}</ref><ref name="multiref11">{{cite journal |title=Plate 121: No. 10, Downing Street, Cabinet Room |journal=[[Survey of London]] |volume=14 St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II |editor1-first=Montagu H. |editor1-last=Cox |editor2-first=G. |editor2-last=Topham Forrest |publisher=London County Council |location=London |date=1931 |page=121 |via=[[British History Online]] |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-121 |access-date=20 July 2008 |archive-date=20 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150520001738/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-121 |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:British Prime Minister David Cameron and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at 10 Downing Street (26873120142).jpg|thumb|left|[[David Cameron]] showing [[John Kerry]] around the Cabinet Room in 2016]]

Although Kent intended the First Lord to use this space as his study, it has rarely served that purpose; it has almost always been the Cabinet Room. There have been a few exceptions. [[Stanley Baldwin]] used the Cabinet Room as his office. A few prime ministers, such as Tony Blair, occasionally worked at the Cabinet Room table. Painted off-white with large floor to ceiling windows along one of the long walls, the room is light and airy. Three brass chandeliers hang from the high ceiling. The Cabinet table, purchased during the Gladstone era, dominates the room. The modern boat-shaped top, introduced by Harold Macmillan in the late 1950s, is supported by huge original oak legs. The table is surrounded by carved, solid mahogany chairs that also date from the Gladstone era. The prime minister's chair, the only one with arms, is situated midway along one side in front of the marble fireplace, facing the windows; when not in use, it is positioned at an angle for easy access.{{sfn|Seldon|1999|pp=44–45}} The only picture in the room is a copy of a portrait of [[Robert Walpole]] by [[Jean-Baptiste van Loo]] hanging over the fireplace.{{sfn|Jones|1985|p=161}}

=== State drawing rooms ===
Number 10 has three inter-linked state drawing rooms: the Pillared Drawing Room, the Terracotta Drawing Room and the White Drawing Room.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.qftarchitects.com/projects/pages/interiors/10downingstreet.php# |title=The three state drawing rooms as reconstructed by Quinlan Terry 1988–1990 |access-date=25 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130316233330/http://qftarchitects.com/projects/pages/interiors/10downingstreet.php |archive-date=16 March 2013}}</ref>

==== Pillared State Drawing Room ====
[[File:Barack Obama and Gordon Brown in 10 Downing Street.jpg|thumb|Prime Minister [[Gordon Brown]] and US President [[Barack Obama]] in the Pillared Room, 2009]]
The largest is the Pillared Room thought to have been created in 1796 by Taylor. Measuring {{convert|37|ft|m}} long by {{convert|28|ft|m}} wide, it takes its name from the twin [[Ionic order|Ionic]] pilasters with straight pediments at one end. Today, there is a portrait of Queen Elizabeth I over the fireplace; during the Thatcher, Major and Blair ministries, a portrait of William Pitt by [[George Romney (painter)|Romney]] was hung there.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-prime-minister-tony-blair-in-front-of-a-painting-of-his-famous-predecessor-106088802.html|title=Prime Minister Tony Blair in front of a painting of his famous predecessor, William Pitt the Younger (by artist George Romney), at 10 Downing Street|publisher=Alamy|access-date=15 February 2023|archive-date=15 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215221414/https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-prime-minister-tony-blair-in-front-of-a-painting-of-his-famous-predecessor-106088802.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

A [[Persian carpet]] covers almost the entire floor. A copy of a [[Ardabil Carpet|16th-century original]] now kept in the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]], there is an inscription woven into it that reads: "I have no refuge in the world other than thy threshold. My head has no protection other than this porchway. The work of a slave of the holy place, Maqsud of [[Kashan]] in the year 926" (the [[Islamic calendar|Islamic]] year corresponding to 1520).{{sfn|Jones|1985|p=179}}

In the restoration conducted in the late 1980s, [[Quinlan Terry]] restored the fireplace. Executed in the Kentian style, the small Ionic pilasters in the over-mantel are miniature duplicates of the large Ionic pillars in the room. The Ionic motif is also found in the door surrounds and panelling.{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=36}}

Sparsely furnished with a few chairs and sofas around the walls, the Pillared Room is usually used to receive guests before they go into the State Dining Room. However, it is sometimes used for other purposes that require a large open space. International agreements have been signed in this room. [[Tony Blair]] entertained the [[England national rugby union team|England Rugby Union team]] in the Pillared Room after they won the [[Rugby World Cup|World Cup]] in [[2003 Rugby World Cup|2003]]. [[John Logie Baird]] gave [[Ramsay MacDonald]] a demonstration of his invention, the television, in this room.{{sfn|Jones|1985|p=129}}{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=55}}<ref>{{cite journal |title=Plate 126: No. 10, Downing Street, entrance hall and drawing room |journal=[[Survey of London]] |volume=14 St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II |editor1-first=Montagu H. |editor1-last=Cox |editor2-first=G. |editor2-last=Topham Forrest |publisher=London County Council |location=London |date=1931 |page=126 |via=[[British History Online]] |url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-126 |access-date=18 February 2020 |archive-date=3 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201103090358/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-126 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Plate126" />{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=25}} After the [[Apollo 11]] lunar landing in July 1969, [[Harold Wilson]] hosted a reception in the room for the astronauts [[Neil Armstrong]], [[Buzz Aldrin]] and [[Michael Collins (astronaut)|Michael Collins]], in addition to the Cambridge scientist [[Francis Thomas Bacon]], inventor of the [[alkaline fuel cell]] used to generate power for space capsules.<ref>{{cite news |title=Apollo 11 mission 50 years on: The Cambridge scientist who helped put man on the moon |url=https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/apollo-11-mission-50-years-on-the-cambridge-scientist-who-helped-put-man-on-the-moon-9077166/ |access-date=21 July 2022 |work=Cambridge Independent |archive-date=3 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220703183428/https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/apollo-11-mission-50-years-on-the-cambridge-scientist-who-helped-put-man-on-the-moon-9077166/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Terracotta State Drawing Room ====
The Terracotta Room is the middle of the three drawing rooms. It was used as the dining room when Robert Walpole was prime minister.{{sfn|Jones|1985|p=46}} The name changes according to the colour it is painted. When Margaret Thatcher came to power it was the Blue Room; she had it re-decorated and renamed the Green Room. It is now painted terracotta.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/government/2021/09/17/story-behind-the-terracotta-room-at-downing-street/|title=Story behind the Terracotta Room at Downing Street|newspaper=The National News|date=17 September 2021|access-date=15 February 2023|archive-date=15 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215221403/https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/government/2021/09/17/story-behind-the-terracotta-room-at-downing-street/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the renovation of the 1980s,  Quinlan Terry introduced large Doric order columns to this room in the door surrounds and designed a very large [[Palladian architecture|Palladian]] overmantel for the fireplace with small double Doric columns on each side with the royal arms above. Terry also added an ornate gilded ceiling to give the rooms a more stately look. Carved into the plasterwork above the door leading to the Pillared Room is a tribute to Margaret Thatcher: a straw-carrying 'thatcher'.<ref name=Seldon3537>{{harvnb|Seldon|1999|pp=35–37}}</ref>

==== White State Drawing Room ====
The White State Drawing room was, until the 1940s, for the private use of prime ministers and their spouses. It was here that [[Edward Heath]] kept his grand piano. It is often used as the backdrop for television interviews and is in regular use as a meeting room for Downing Street staff. The room links through to the Terracotta Room next door. In the reconstruction during the late 1980s, Quinlan Terry used Corinthian columns and added ornate Baroque-style central ceiling mouldings and corner mouldings of the four national flowers of the United Kingdom: rose (England), thistle (Scotland), daffodil (Wales) and shamrock (Northern Ireland).<ref name=Seldon3537/>

=== State Dining Room ===
When [[Frederick John Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich|Frederick Robinson]] (later Lord Goderich), became Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1823, he decided to leave a personal legacy to the nation. To this end, he employed [[John Soane]], the distinguished architect who had designed the [[Bank of England]] and many other famous buildings, to build a State Dining Room for Number 10. Begun in 1825 and completed in 1826 at a cost of £2,000, the result is a spacious room with oak panelling and reeded mouldings. Accessed through the first floor, its vaulted, arched ceiling rises up through the next so that it actually occupies two floors. Measuring {{convert|42|by|26|ft|m}}, it is the largest room in Number 10. Soane was the guest of honour when the dining room was first used on 4 April 1826.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OPimTe7hArkC&pg=PA289|title=John Soane: An Accidental Romantic|first=Gillian|last=Darley|year=1999|page=289|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0300086959|access-date=18 March 2023|archive-date=26 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326164811/https://books.google.com/books?id=OPimTe7hArkC&pg=PA289|url-status=live}}</ref>

The room is usually furnished with a table surrounded by 20 reproduction [[Adam style]] chairs originally made for the British Embassy in Rio de Janeiro. For larger gatherings, a horseshoe-shaped table is brought in that will accommodate up to 65 guests. On these occasions, the table is set with the Silver Trust Silver set given to Downing Street in the 1990s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Welcome to The Silver Trust |url=http://www.silvertrust.co.uk/about2.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091117131404/http://www.silvertrust.co.uk/about2.html |archive-date=17 November 2009 |url-status=dead |access-date=9 June 2009 }}</ref> Above the fireplace, overlooking the room, is a massive portrait by [[John Shackleton]] of George II, the king who originally gave the building to the First Lord of the Treasury in 1732.{{sfn|Jones|1985|p=180}} Celebrity chefs such as [[Nigella Lawson]] have cooked for Prime Ministers' guests using the small kitchen next door. Entering through the Small Dining Room, Blair used this room for his monthly press conferences.{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=59}}{{sfn|Minney|1963|p=182}}<ref>{{harvnb|Jones|1985|p=89}} and see also Soane's sketches of several versions of the State Dining Room on p. 84.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GVgXAYAoS4 | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/2GVgXAYAoS4| archive-date=2021-10-30|title=YouTube – Simon Schama's Tour of Downing Street. Pt3: The Dining Room |publisher=Downing Street|website=YouTube |date=11 June 2007 |access-date=11 May 2010}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68070&filename=figure0748-130.gif&pubid=748 figure0748-130] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240106100703/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-130 |date=6 January 2024 }}, british-history.ac.uk</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Sean |first1=Terry |title=Ремонт дверей входных |url=https://zamki-garant.ru/remont-dverej |access-date=12 November 2023}}</ref><ref>British History Online, From: '[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68070 Plate 130: No. 10, Downing Street: Official Dining Room] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622064913/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68070 |date=22 June 2011 }}', Survey of London: volume 14: St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II (1931), pp. 130. Date accessed: 21 July 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68071&filename=figure0748-131.gif&pubid=748 figure0748-131] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826185231/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-131 |date=26 August 2021 }}, british-history.ac.uk</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.profimedia.si/photo/the-state-dining-room-at-no-10/profimedia-0010622957.jpg|title=The State Dining Room at no. 10|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130418124310/http://www.profimedia.si/photo/the-state-dining-room-at-no-10/profimedia-0010622957.jpg|archive-date=18 April 2013|access-date=25 March 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>British History Online, From: '[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68071 Plate 131: No. 10, Downing Street: Official Dining Room] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622070603/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68071 |date=22 June 2011 }}', Survey of London: volume 14: St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II (1931), pp. 131. Date accessed: 21 July 2008.</ref>

=== Great kitchen ===
[[File:No 10, Downing Street, Kitchen 1931.png|thumb|Great kitchen, 1931]]
The great kitchen located in the basement was another part of the renovations begun in 1783, probably also under the direction of [[Robert Taylor (architect)|Robert Taylor]].{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=16}} Seldom seen by anyone other than staff, the space is two storeys high with a huge arched window and vaulted ceiling. Traditionally, it has always had a chopping block work table in the centre that is {{convert|14|ft|m}} long, {{convert|3|ft|m}} wide and {{convert|5|in|cm}} thick.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://archive.org/details/surveyoflondon14londuoft|title=Survey of London|date=26 May 1900|publisher=London County Council [etc.]|via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

=== Smaller Dining or Breakfast Room ===
Above Taylor's vaulted kitchen, between the Pillared Room and the State Dining room, Soane created a Smaller Dining Room (sometimes called the Breakfast Room) that still exists. To build it, Soane removed the chimney from the kitchen to put a door in the room. He then moved the chimney to the east side, running a Y-shaped split flue inside the walls up either side of one of the windows above. The room therefore has a unique architectural feature: over the fireplace there is a window instead of the usual [[chimney breast]].{{sfn|Jones|1985|p=179}}

With its flat unadorned ceiling, simple mouldings and deep window seats, the Small Dining Room is intimate and comfortable. Usually furnished with a mahogany table seating only eight, Prime Ministers have often used this room when dining with family or when entertaining special guests on more personal state occasions.{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=20}}''<ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68069&filename=figure0748-129-a.gif&pubid=748 figure0748-129-a] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826185217/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-129 |date=26 August 2021 }}, british-history.ac.uk</ref>''<ref>British History Online, From: '[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68069 Plate 129: No. 10, Downing Street: breakfast room and smaller drawing room] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622070556/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68069 |date=22 June 2011 }}', Survey of London: volume 14: St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II (1931), pp. 129. Date accessed: 9 August 2008.</ref>

=== Terrace and garden ===
{{Main|Garden of 10 and 11 Downing Street}}
[[File:ImperialConference1923.jpg|thumb|right|Prime Minister [[Stanley Baldwin]] (seated centre with his legs crossed) poses in the garden of Number Ten with representatives to the [[1923 Imperial Conference]].]]
The terrace and garden were constructed in 1736 shortly after Walpole moved into Number 10. The terrace, extending across the back, provides a full view of St James's Park. The garden is dominated by a {{Convert|0.5|acre|abbr=on}} open lawn which wraps around Numbers 10 and 11 in an L-shape. No longer "fitted with variety Walle fruit and diverse fruit trees" as it was in the 17th century, there is now a centrally located flower bed around a holly tree surrounded by seats. Tubs of flowers line the steps from the terrace; around the walls are rose beds with flowering and evergreen shrubs.{{sfn|Jones|1985|p=180}}{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=46}}<ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=68057&filename=figure0748-117-a.gif&pubid=748 figure0748-117-a] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826185217/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol14/pt3/plate-117 |date=26 August 2021 }}, british-history.ac.uk</ref><ref>British History Online, From: '[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68057 Plate 117: No. 10, Downing Street: elevation and general view] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622064752/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=68057 |date=22 June 2011 }}', Survey of London: volume 14: St Margaret, Westminster, part III: Whitehall II (1931), pp. 117. Date accessed: 21 July 2008.</ref> The terrace and garden have provided a casual setting for many gatherings of First Lords with foreign dignitaries, Cabinet ministers, guests, and staff. Prime Minister [[Tony Blair]], for example, hosted a farewell reception in 2007 for his staff on the terrace. [[John Major]] announced his 1995 resignation as leader of the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] in the garden. Churchill called his secretaries the "garden girls" because their offices overlook the garden.{{sfn|Jones|1985|p=138}} It was also the location of the first press conference announcing the [[Cameron–Clegg coalition|Coalition Government]] between [[David Cameron]]'s Conservatives and [[Nick Clegg]]'s [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrats]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/8678370.stm |work=BBC News |title=Welcome to the Dave and Nick Show |date=12 May 2010 |access-date=12 May 2010 |archive-date=3 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201103100855/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/8678370.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Furnishings ===
Number 10 is filled with fine paintings, sculptures, busts and furniture. Only a few are permanent features. Most are on loan. About half belong to the [[Government Art Collection]]. The remainder are on loan from private collectors and from public galleries such as the [[National Portrait Gallery, London|National Portrait Gallery]], the [[Tate Gallery]], the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]] and the [[National Gallery]].{{sfn|Seldon|1999|p=172}}<ref>[http://www.gac.culture.gov.uk/location_results.aspx?Place=1008&lt=thumbnails&sb=ArtistName&tl=1008,1065,1070,1195,1140&pg=1 Government Art Collection] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140330180845/http://www.gac.culture.gov.uk/location_results.aspx?Place=1008&lt=thumbnails&sb=ArtistName&tl=1008,1065,1070,1195,1140&pg=1 |date=30 March 2014 }} gac.culture.gov.uk</ref>

About a dozen paintings are changed annually. More extensive changes occur when a new prime minister takes office and redecorates.<ref>Sheldon. p. 174.</ref> These redecorations may reflect both individual taste as well as make a political statement. [[Edward Heath]] borrowed French paintings from the National Gallery and was loaned two [[Pierre-Auguste Renoir|Renoirs]] from a private collector. When Margaret Thatcher arrived in 1979 she insisted that the artwork had to be British and that it celebrate "British achievers". As a former chemist, she took pleasure in devoting the Small Dining Room to a collection of portraits of British scientists, such as [[Joseph Priestley]] and [[Humphry Davy]]. During the 1990s [[John Major]] converted the first floor anteroom into a small gallery of modern art, mostly British. He also introduced several paintings by [[John Constable]] and [[J. M. W. Turner]], Britain's two best known 19th-century artists, and cricketing paintings by [[Archibald Stuart-Wortley (painter)|Archibald Stuart-Wortley]] including a portrait of one of England's most celebrated batsmen [[W. G. Grace]].{{sfn|Seldon|1999|pp=172–173}}

In addition to outstanding artwork, Number 10 contains many exceptional pieces of furniture either owned by the house or on loan. One of the most striking and unusual is the already mentioned Chippendale hooded guard's chair that sits in a corner of the entrance hall. To its left is a long case clock by Benson of Whitehaven. A similar clock by Samuel Whichcote of London stands in the Cabinet anteroom. The White State Drawing Room contains examples of [[Adam style|Adam furniture]]. The Green State Drawing Room contains mostly Chippendale furniture including a card table that belonged to [[Robert Clive|Clive of India]] and a mahogany desk that is thought to have belonged to William Pitt the Younger and used by him during the Napoleonic Wars. In addition to the large carpet previously described, the Pillared State Drawing Room also contains a marble-topped table by Kent. The State Dining Room contains a mahogany [[sideboard]] by Adam.{{sfn|Seldon|1999|pp=185–188}}{{notetag|name="note1"}} Until the late 19th century, Prime Ministers were required to furnish Number 10 at their own expense with furniture, tableware, china, linens, curtains and decorations. This arrangement began to change in 1877 when [[Benjamin Disraeli]] took up residency. He insisted that the Treasury should bear the cost of furnishings at least in the public areas. The Treasury agreed and a complex accounting procedure was developed whereby the outgoing prime minister was required to pay for "wear and tear" on furnishings that had been purchased by the Treasury. This system was used until November 1897 when the Treasury assumed responsibility for purchasing and maintaining almost all of the furnishings in both the public and private areas except decorating the walls with art work. In 1924 when Prime Minister [[Ramsay MacDonald]] took office, he did not own nor have the means to buy an extensive art collection. He had the Government Art Collection loan pieces. The arrangement became the standard practice.{{sfn|Minney|1963|pp=285–286}}