FeaturesHistoryInsight

Queen Anne takes centre stage as 'The Favourite' leads this year's BAFTA nominations

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9th January 2019
Just days after scooping one of Hollywood’s top acting prizes, Olivia Colman’s portrayal of Queen Anne in ‘The Favourite’ has been nominated for another major movie award. The star is in the running for Best Actress at the BAFTAs where the film leads the field with twelve nominations in total. The shortlists for the awards were revealed on January 9th 2019 and put Olivia Colman in line to…
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History

The farmer who could have been Norway’s king

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27th December 2018
The Knut Alvsson is, outside Norway, a name that few have ever heard. Still, the name represented one of the biggest riots in Norway’s history. Knut Alvsson was born in 1455 and was a wealthy farmer and landowner in Norway who then was a part of the Kalmar Union. From 1497…
FeaturesHistory

Queen Victoria's Winter Sledge

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24th December 2018
Queen Victoria’s winter sledge became synonymous with the Windsor Christmas, at least during the lifetime of Prince Albert, who is rightly credited with popularising Christmas traditions in England, including that of the Christmas tree. The royal trees were decorated with coloured wax candles, sweets, toys and artificial snow, whilst the gifts exchanged by the Royal Family were gathered beneath…
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FeaturesHistory

The death of Prince Albert - Part One

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14th December 2018
In a two-part series, our Historian, Elizabeth Jane Timms, looks back at the death of Prince Albert: Prince Albert, the beloved husband and Prince Consort of Queen Victoria, died on 14 December 1861, at Windsor Castle. So enormous were the consequences of this death, both for the British monarch publicly and Queen Victoria privately, that we can sometimes overlook the death itself, although any…
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FeaturesHistory

Royal Snow and Snowmen

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5th December 2018
The onset of winter provides another opportunity to look again at the links between the many fascinating outdoor pastimes and pursuits enjoyed by royalty, which I touched on in my article of December 2017, Snow and Royalty. Whilst the German Christmas was much popularised by…
FeaturesHistory

A Brief History of Frogmore Cottage

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4th December 2018
With the announcement that Frogmore Cottage will become the residence of The Duke and Duchess of Sussex at Windsor, it is perhaps interesting to briefly review Frogmore Cottage’s history. Contrary to popular imagination, it is not the first time that the building has…
FeaturesHistory

The Story of the Effigies of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

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3rd December 2018
The effigy of Queen Victoria has its own story. It rests next to that of the Prince Consort in the Royal Mausoleum at Frogmore, one of the most remarkable buildings that was ever to be built in Victorian Britain, constructed as a burial place for Prince Albert and Queen Victoria. The recumbent effigy of the Queen was made at the same time as that of Prince Albert, although Queen Victoria was to…
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