Historic Royal Palaces and Stately Homes with Royal Connections


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Ludlow Castle


It was of course from Ludlow that the new young King, Edward V began his journey to London and was intercepted by his uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester. It was in this castle that Arthur Prince of Wales died in 1501. Mary spent time at Ludlow when she was young and in the favour of her father King Henry VIII.

Hatfield House: Childhood Home of Queen Elizabeth I

Hatfield House and the older Royal Palace (the Banqueting Hall in the grounds,) are stunning.

Last but not least, Audley End which was bought by King Charles II as a retreat for himself and his friends.

Audley End House | Historic Essex Guide
 
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Here are some photos I took of this castle, which is quite ruined, but is very large, positioned wonderfully with a small bay on one side and the main river on another - and which has a really good and really large museum in one section.

All the towers can be climbed - and even on a warm sunny day, are so high, they really catch the wind when you have access to the outside.
 

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Edward VIii, then Prince Edward, was invested as Prince of Wales at Caernarfon on what he described as 'a sweltering hot summer day....before some ten thousand people' in July 1911.

Edward, then a midshipman of 16, objected to having to wear a costume for the ceremony of white satin breeches and purple velvet mantle and surcoat edged with ermine, but was persuaded into it by his mother.

Lloyd George, the Welsh Chancellor of the Exchequer, whose idea it had been to hold the ceremony, taught the Prince some Welsh phrases that he could remember years later, among them 'Mor o gan yw Cymru I gyd' ('All Wales is a sea of song') which Lloyd George, whom Prince Edward liked, got him to repeat over and over.

At the ceremony Winston Churchill, then Home Secretary, proclaimed the Prince's titles. (He told him later that he'd practised them on the golf course) then, with the vast ruined castle as a backdrop, King George invested his son, putting on his head a coronet cap as a token of principality 'and into my hand the gold verge of government and on my middle finger the gold ring of responsibility.'

'Then, leading me by the hand through an archway to one of the towers of the battlements, he presented me to the people of Wales. Half fainting with heat and nervousness, I delivered the Welsh sentences that Mr Lloyd George, standing by in the ancient garb of Constable, had taught me.'

The above is from 'A King's Story', the memoirs of the Duke of Windsor, Pages 78-79.
Edward claimed that the ceremony made him realise that he recoiled from being required homage. I think he realised from his teens that he was not cut-out for kingship, and this ceremony spurred this realisation.
 
Here are some of the photos I took when I visited Kew Palace.

There is no extra charge to visit here when you go to Kew Gardens.
 

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Interesting. Lovely photos, Sun Lion, thanks for posting those.

King George Iii adored Kew. He had a large observatory built, where he observed the Transit of Venus. George would stay at the Dutch House and would also drive over to the growing botanical gardens. At times he would relax in the thatched cottage Queen Charlotte had built. They would take tea there and listen to their daughters playing on the harpsichord and mandolin, or help them with their sketching.

It's sad that the palace King George planned for himself at Kew remained unfinished and was finally demolished by the Prince Regent in 1828.
 
An historic 14th century mansion which bears the signature of Henry VIII's doomed second wife Anne Boleyn etched into a window pane has gone up for sale for £3.5million.
The Grade-II listed Yaldham Manor, near Sevenoaks in Kent, was the setting for the courtship of one of history's most famous couples - with rumours the ill-fated lovers once danced together in the Great Hall while the King was still married to his first wife, Katherine of Aragon.
The manor, set in 30 acres, is now on sale with Strutt and Parker estate agents for £3.5million.
The eight-bedroom home is best known for its 14th-century great hall, which also features a large Tudor window, and its impressive ornamental chimneys.

Yaldham Manor where Henry VIII wooed Anne Boleyn on sale for £3.5m | Daily Mail Online
 
Since I live half an hour away from Maidstone, I decided to visit Leeds Castle on Sunday. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit and it was interesting to learn about the history of the castle, since I didn't know much about it beforehand (I knew it had some sort of royal connection but I didn't know which royals it was connected to). The grounds are beautiful, and it is a very family friendly place so I would recommend it to everyone, but especially those who have young children.

Leeds Castle was built in 1119 and its first royal resident was Edward I who owned the castle in 1278. Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon resided there overnight whilst they were on their way to the Field of the Cloth of Gold. In Stuart and Georgian times it was owned by Sir Cheney Culpepper and the Fairfax family. The last resident of the castle was Olive Cecilia, Lady Bailie who was American born and purchased the castle in the 1920s. Leeds Castle was the location of the Northern Ireland Peace talks in 2004 and Princess Alexandra is visited the chapel in the '70s and according to one of the tour guides, she still pays occasional visits to the staff there.

A few of my photos of the castle:
 

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:previous: Thanks Hereditary Princess beautiful castle. You are very lucky you have so many castles there to visit.:)
 
:previous: Thank you! :flowers: I guess I am lucky, there are quite a lot of historic castles and palaces near me.
 
I've been busy lately as I visited Audley End House in Essex on Sunday, which is another stately home that has royal connections. The original building was built in 1538 and was used as a Benedictine monastery, called Walden Abbey. However a much larger mansion was built on top of the old site to entertain James I. Audley End was purchased by Charles II in 1668 as he wanted to use it as his residence when he visited Newmarket for the races, which is very nearby. During the course of a century after Charles II died, Audley End was gradually demolished and reduced to the size it is today. It then became the home of the Baron Braybrookes until 1941 when it was offered to the government for war purposes. In 1948 it was then sold to the Ministry of Works, now English Heritage.

Audley End is also the only country house in Britain to have an indoor coal room.

Here are a few photos of my visit:
 

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Homebuyers are being offered the opportunity to move into an historic manor house which has been owned by no fewer than eight British monarchs.

Arreton Manor on the Isle of Wight dates back to at least 872AD and its earliest known royal owner was King Alfred the Great.

The eight-bedroom Grade II listed mansion in the village of Arreton saw Charles I review troops on its lawn and visitors can still see a conifer tree in the front garden planted by Queen Victoria.

Sam Biles, from Biles & Co estate agents, said: "Arreton Manor is one of the most historic houses on the Isle of Wight - royal connections, wonderful Elizabethan architecture, original features, monastic history and a secret room - it has the lot.

"It's royal background is incredible, owned by at least eight monarchs - Alfred the Great, Edward the Confessor, William the Conqueror, Henry VIII, Mary I, Elizabeth I, James I and Charles I.”
Read more: Yours for £2.1m, 9th-century manor house that is fit for a king (or several) - Telegraph
 
Kenilworth Castle: From above
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zWaZ8JEtM0

King James I of Scotland had a new entrance block built on the east side of Linlithgow Palace. The raised entranceway was accessed by a ramp and drawbridge.

Scarborough Castle is in North Yorkshire, England. In 1312, King Edward II's lover Gaveston took refuge in Scarborough Castle and was starved into surrendering.
 
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Blair Castle in Scotland where Queen Victoria and Prince Albert once stayed, and where The Queen visited in 2015.

Here are a few photos I took in 2014.
 

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A few more photos from my visit to Blair Castle.
 

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