The official Buckingham Palace website was visited more than 100 million times in its first year, making it one of the most popular locations on the Internet.

There were 35 million visits to the site during the week of Diana, Princess of Wales's funeral, and some 600,000 people sent electronic messages of condolence.

Thousands sent electronic messages of condolence after Diana's death

During its first 12 months, the website has been expanded from its initial 150 pages to more than 400, including many pictures.

Plans are now being developed to launch an electronic picture gallery on the Internet to display works of art in the Royal Collection.

The palace website is most popular in Britain and also in north America, Europe, the Far East and South America, notably in Brazil.

Messages of sympathy

According to 110,000 feedback messages sent by e-mail, most visitors to the site are aged 31 to 45, although a growing number of under-17s are interested.

People continue to send messages of sympathy to Prince William and Prince Harry, writing about their personal reaction to the death of Diana and also asking after the teenage princes' welfare.

Among other features are a downloadable copy of the Royal family tree, opening hours of palaces, personal profiles of the main family members and a guided tour through the renovated Windsor Castle. It even includes a guide to what cars the Royals drive - one of the most frequently asked questions.

Contrary to some Internet myths, the Royals themselves are not involved in maintaining the site - this job is done for them by the Central Office of Information, a government department.

Also on Monday, for the second year running, the Queen's message marking Commonwealth Day is published on the palace site.

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