The Isle of Man Government Legislative Buildings, are known locally as 'The Wedding Cake' due to their resemblance to the nuptial confectionary! Its appearance when built in 1855 was somewhat different though, with a distinctive red colour due to its brickwork.
It was originally the head office of the Bank of Mona, a subsidiary of the City of Glasgow Bank, however in 1878 when the Scottish bank collapsed, the Bank of Mona, though itself solvent, was forced to close. In 1879, the building was bought for £3,700-00 by the Government who had initially planned to locate to Tynwald Street in Douglas. It was fully refurbished and modernised between 2004 and 2006 for the sum of £11m.
The building houses the Tynwald parliament, which is of Norse origin and the oldest continuous parliament in the World. Sittings of the House of Keys, Legislative Council and Tynwald Court are held in this building. Members of the Keys and Council will sit together on Tynwald Hill, in St Johns, during the Tynwald Day ceremony which is held on (or close to) 5th July each year.
Scheduled tours are held every Monday at 2pm and every Friday at 10am (except on Bank Holidays).
Unfortunately there isn’t wheelchair access to all three political chambers, but stair-lifts are available which could assist people with mobility issues. Disabled toilets for wheelchair users are on the ground floor.
We are very grateful to The Tynwald Seneschal for permission to incorporate the Virtual cache within the Legislative Buildings.
Please note that all items are located on the ground floor, in the reception and foyer areas. You are NOT permitted to go in other areas and certainly NOT up any stairs, without an appointment or expressed permission of the reception staff by prior appointment.
Please Geocache in the spirit of the game and be respectful to others.
To claim a 'find' for this Virtual cache it is not necessary to complete a Tour or attend a sitting. You should look for the answers to the questions in the order they are set out below. They can be found in and around the reception and foyer areas and sent to me via Geocaching Message Centre. Do not post answers in your log.
1. Who is the historical figure in Michael Sandle’s proposal? (found in the Reception area)
2. How many Swords of State have there been? (found at the foot of the stairs in the foyer area)
3. According to Customary Law 1417, the three Clearkes are in their ‘what’? (found by the front door in the foyer area)
4. How many stars are there on John Murrays coat of arms? (found on the tapestry in the foyer area)
5. Please take a photo of you, or your GPS or mobile device, or something to identify you, including the OUTSIDE of the building as proof that you have visited the Wedding Cake. Logs with incorrect answers or without a photo will be deleted.
Virtual Rewards 2.0 - 2019/2020
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between June 4, 2019 and June 4, 2020. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 2.0 on the Geocaching Blog.