New U.S. embassy looks like something out of 'Star Trek' and it has a moat
Crazily expensive, incredibly secure, and visually stunning.
These are the first things that spring to mind when you see a medieval castle.
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And those are also the main concepts behind the new U.S. embassy in London, a de facto urban fortress on the River Thames, in the newly-developed Nine Elms district, whose interiors were just revealed for the first time.
The £750 million (more than $1 billion), 12-story glass cube is designed by Philadelphia-based architect James Timberlake who in 2010 said he was inspired by European castles.
The idea was to avoid walls and fences and use the landscape instead as a natural defence against potential terror attacks. For this purpose, the embassy is set back from the street behind a 100ft "seclusion zone" and has its own, 30m-by-150m, half-moon shaped "moat" around one side.
Yes, a medieval castle-style moat.
The 518,000 sq ft building has 6-inch triple-glazed and blast-proof glass walls, raised terraces, and sunken trenches, according to The Times. It even features a Faraday cage to prevent electronic eavesdropping.
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Sitting on a hill, just like a castle, the area will have natural features (waterfall, tall grass, hedges) hiding defensive walls, CBS News reports.
The embassy will open on 16 January, and will have about 1,000 visitors a day, but President Donald Trump is expected to inaugurate it in spring.
Topics Politics
