None of the rooms are open to the public, as state functions are still carried out within. The changing of the guards occurs at the front courtyard every two hours. The "Phra Thinang Chakri Maha Prasat" (พระที่นั่งจักรีมหาปราสาท; ) is situated on the northernmost part of the Phra Thinang Chakri group. The throne hall forms the front or the façade of the entire building group. In front of the throne hall is the Rathakit Field; on either side of the throne hall are the Phrom Sopha Gates. The throne hall is constructed in an eclectic style, a blend of Thai and European (more specifically Renaissance or Italianate) styles. The lower part of the structure is European, while the upper part is in Thai-styled green and orange tiled roofs and gilded spires or "prasats". After a trip to Singapore and Java, in the East Indies (present day Indonesia) in 1875, King Rama V brought back with him two Englishmen, the architect John Clunich and his helper Henry C. Rose to design and construct the Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall. Construction began on the 7 May 1876. At first the King wanted an entirely European structure with domes. However at the insistence of Chao Phraya Si Suriyawongse (Chuang Bunnag), his Chief Minister, the King decided to add the gilded spires and Thai roofs. In 1878 the King personally supervised the raising of the final central spire of the building. The throne hall was completed in 1882, on the centenary of the House of Chakri and the Grand Palace. Thus the new throne hall was given the name "Phra Thinang Chakri", meaning literally 'the seat of the Chakris'. The throne was constructed as part of a building group in a rotated 'H' shape plan, with two parallel buildings running on an east to west axis. In between is an intersecting hall, with an axis running north to south. The northerly end of the structure is the Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall; all other buildings are hidden behind it. The throne hall consists of three stories, with three seven tiered prasats on each of the three major pavilions along the axis.