The Royal Palaces of London

The Royal Palaces of London
Author: David Souden
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2008
Genre: Palaces
ISBN: 9781858944234

'The Royal Palaces of London' brings together the stories of these buildings and the characters, events and art that have filled their grand spaces and intimate corners from the Norman Conquest to modern times.

Crown & Sceptre

Crown & Sceptre
Author: Tracy Borman
Publisher: Grove Atlantic
Total Pages: 399
Release: 2022-02-22
Genre: History
ISBN: 0802159117

An in-depth look at the British monarchy that’s “a superb synthesis of historical analysis, politics, and top-notch royal gossip” (Kirkus Reviews). Since William the Conqueror, duke of Normandy, crossed the English Channel in 1066 to defeat King Harold II and unite England’s various kingdoms, forty-one kings and queens have sat on Britain’s throne. “Shining examples of royal power and majesty alongside a rogue’s gallery of weak, lazy, or evil monarchs,” as Tracy Borman describes them in her sparkling chronicle, Crown & Sceptre. Ironically, during very few of these 955 years has the throne’s occupant been unambiguously English—whether Norman French, the Welsh-born Tudors, the Scottish Stuarts, and the Hanoverians and their German successors to the present day. Acknowledging the intrinsic fascination with British royalty, Borman lifts the veil to reveal the remarkable characters and personalities who have ruled and, since the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, more ceremonially reigned. It is a crucial distinction explaining the staying power of the monarchy as the royal family has evolved and adapted to the needs and opinions of its people, avoiding the storms of rebellion that brought many of Europe’s royals to an abrupt end. Richard II; Henry VIII; Elizabeth I; George III; Victoria; Elizabeth II: their names evoke eras and the dramatic events Borman recounts. She is equally attuned to the fabric of monarchy: royal palaces; the way monarchs have been portrayed in art, on coins, in the media; the ceremony and pageantry surrounding the crown. Elizabeth II is already one of the longest reigning monarchs in history. Crown & Sceptre is a fitting tribute to her remarkable longevity and that of the magnificent institution she represents. “Crown & Sceptre brings us in short, vivid chapters from William the Conqueror to Elizabeth herself, much of it constituting a dark record of bumping off adversaries, rivals and spouses, confiscating vast estates and military invasions…. [A] lucid, character-rich book.” —Minneapolis Star-Tribune “Borman’s deep understanding of English royalty shines.” —Chris Schluep, Amazon Editors’ Picks, The Best History Books of February 2022

Buckingham Palace Redesigned

Buckingham Palace Redesigned
Author: Terry Farrell
Publisher: Papadakis Publisher
Total Pages: 106
Release: 2003
Genre: Palaces
ISBN: 1901092402

Terry Farrell's plans for the full integration of London's Royal parks and palaces into the fabric of London in a positive and creative way.

Whitehall Palace

Whitehall Palace
Author: Simon Thurley
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 220
Release: 1999-01-01
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 0300076398

Compiles information about a myriad of topics, ranging from the arts and life sciences to computers and the zodiac. 8 yrs+

The Story of Hampton Court Palace

The Story of Hampton Court Palace
Author: David Souden
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2015
Genre: Palaces
ISBN: 9781858946313

Hampton Court Palace, to the south-west of London, is one of the most famous and magnificent buildings in Britain. The original palace was begun by Cardinal Wolsey, but it soon attracted the attention of his Tudor king and became the centre of royal and political life for the next 200 years. In this new, lavishly illustrated history, the stories of the people who have inhabited the palace over the last five centuries take centre stage. Here Henry VIII and most of his six wives held court, Shakespeare and his players performed, and Charles I escaped arrest after his defeat in the Civil War. William III and Mary II introduced French court etiquette, and Georgian kings and princes argued violently amid the splendid interiors. Alongside the royal residents, there have been equally fascinating characters among courtiers and servants. Queen Victoria opened the palace to the public in the nineteenth century, and since then millions of visitors have been drawn to Hampton Court by its grandeur, its beauty and the many intriguing stories of those great and small who once lived here.

Palaces of Revolution: Life, Death and Art at the Stuart Court

Palaces of Revolution: Life, Death and Art at the Stuart Court
Author: Simon Thurley
Publisher: HarperCollins UK
Total Pages: 560
Release: 2021-09-16
Genre: History
ISBN: 0008389977

The story of the Stuart dynasty is a breathless soap opera played out in just a hundred years in an array of buildings that span Europe from Scotland, via Denmark, Holland and Spain to England.

Kensington Palace

Kensington Palace
Author: Tom Quinn
Publisher: Biteback Publishing
Total Pages: 274
Release: 2021-01-12
Genre: History
ISBN: 1785905910

For more than 300 years, Kensington Palace has played host to a colourful cast of kings, queens and assorted aristocratic hangers-on. A stone's throw from the bustling streets of central London, this grand building has served as the stage for some of the most dramatic and bizarre events in the history of the royal family. It was here that the young Queen Victoria was held a virtual prisoner for eighteen years; and it was here that George II installed both his wife and his mistress, giving the latter rooms so damp that there were said to be mushrooms growing on the walls. More recently, the palace has witnessed an extraordinary series of scandals, from Princess Diana's bombshell TV interview with a journalist smuggled into the palace disguised as a salesman, to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's shock departure – first for Frogmore Cottage, and then for America – amid rumours of a rift with William and Kate. With exclusive interviews with palace staff past and present, fascinating historical details and a fully updated postscript considering what life after Kensington holds for Harry and Meghan, Kensington Palace: An Intimate Memoir from Queen Mary to Meghan Markle offers a rare behind-the-scenes insight into one of Britain's most iconic residences.

Royal Britain

Royal Britain
Author: Jane Struthers
Publisher: IMM Lifestyle Books
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2011-06
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781780090092

The stunning historic palaces, castles and houses of the British monarchy have captured the interest and imaginations of the millions who flock to visit them each year. The magnificent and occasionally eccentric architecture, often-sumptuous gardens and lavish interiors of these buildings have made them extremely popular tourist destinations. Royal Britain: Historic Palaces, Castles and Houses takes the reader on a tour of more than 30 key historic locations in England, Scotland and Wales - among them some of the most recognised royal buildings, such as Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and Hampton Court, the most infamous, such as the notorious Tower of London, prison to many a royal monarch in the past, and also locations that are slightly more off the beaten track, such as Harlech Castle in North Wales. Each entry includes: key information about the historic building under discussion; an engaging essay putting the location in political, social and cultural context; boxes highlighting features of special interest to visitors; vital contact information, including useful websites and travel links - and beautiful photographs of the exteriors and interiors of these key royal buildings.

The Tower of London Moat

The Tower of London Moat
Author: Graham Keevill
Publisher: Oxford Archaeological Unit
Total Pages: 340
Release: 2004
Genre: History
ISBN:

It is easy to take our most important historic monuments for granted, and there is a commonly-held view that we know everything about them. Archaeology, however, has the capacity to surprise us by revealing new, unexpected aspects of even the most familiar sites. So it was at the Tower of London, when Historic Royal Palaces established the Tower Environs Scheme in the mid 1990s to improve the area around the castle and provide it with a setting worthy of its status as a World Heritage Site. The idea of reflooding the moat was one of the most exciting proposals under consideration, and a major programme of archaeological and technical investigations was undertaken to assess its feasibility. This led in 1995 to the very unexpected discovery of top-quality stonework at the bottom of a small trench in the moat. The discovery was difficult to interpret, so a much larger excavation took place during 1996-7, revealing previously unknown parts of the Tower's 13th-century defences. This report provides a full description and analysis of the remarkable discoveries, representing a major advance in our understanding of Henry III's expansion of the castle. Many other interesting aspects of the moat's development and environment are also described, and there are extensive entries on artefacts such as a wickerwork fish trap - and the fish trapped inside it.

Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle
Author: Steven Brindle
Publisher: Royal Collection Editions
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2018
Genre: ARCHITECTURE
ISBN: 9781909741249

"As England's largest castle and premier royal residence, Windsor Castle is of outstanding importance: historically, architecturally, artistically and in the life of the nation. This authoritative history of the Castle, the first to be published in 100 years, draws upon new research and primary sources to present a general account of Windsor Castle and its immediate environs from around AD700 to the present day, setting this iconic building against the background of wider social, political and cultural events in the life of the monarchy and the nation. Not only is the book richly illustrated with historical drawings, watercolours and photographs from the Royal Collection and elsewhere, it also includes newly commissioned photography and 3D reconstructions of the Castle at key points in its development, showing how this historic site has changed and evolved over 13 centuries."--