The many high profile buildings and landmarks of the British capital require high quality security services. London boasts the majority of the UK\'s most sensitive institutions and national icons. These protective personnel are made up of various units.

Buckingham Palace is protected by arguably the most special security services in London: the Coldstream Guards. Although they may appear to be a largely ceremonial military unit, they are of course fully trained soldiers in the British Army. They are generally stationed in Central London, where naturally, little active combat takes place. Their last battle honour was in 1991, during the first Gulf War. They are the oldest regiment in the regular British Army, having been formed in 1650 by General George Monck in Coldstream, Scotland.

The Houses of Parliament are guarded by one of the other important security services in London - the Metropolitan Police. They, not the military are responsible for keeping the mother of all parliaments safe and secure. They check visitors to these world famous buildings, and are always on the alert for any suspicious activity. The various security services in London which had protected the different parliament buildings have done a good job.

The most famous breach was that of the 1605 Gunpowder plot, in which Roman Catholics conspired to blow up the Houses of Parliament, aiming to kill the King, James the First, his family members - along with a significant portion of the aristocracy. After one of the members was warned not to attend the State Opening of Parliament, where the explosion was planned, a search of the building was conducted, and the gunpowder, along with a certain Mr. Guy Fawkes was discovered.

Security services in London also take the form of Beefeaters - who guard the Tower of London and the world famous crown jewels. Their vibrant red and black uniforms are one of the reasons thousands flock to this ancient building, where so many famous people lost their heads in the heat of political and religious upheaval. Yeomen Warders of Her Majesty\'s Royal Palace and Fortress the Tower of London are their real title, and although historically they were a security service - nowadays they perform more of a tourist attraction/tour guide role.

Security services in London, protecting the various important locations across the capital tends to be the responsibility of the Metropolitan Police. But in terms of day to day security of many corporate and government buildings are protected by one of the many commercial security services in London.

There are of course a great deal of corporations and companies based in London - either their headquarters or large international offices. All of these might be targeted by various groups; along with old fashioned criminal activity conducted by small groups and gangs, there may be threats from anti-capitalist groups, and there is always the threat of a terrorist attack. With iconic buildings such as Tower 42 (formerly the NatWest tower), the Swiss Re building (aka The Guerkin) and 1 Canada Square (the tallest building in the UK) - there are enough high profile targets to require constant guarding by appropriate security services in London.