Snow has provided enjoyment for countless generations of children and adults alike; royalty, of course,is no exception to this time-honoured rule. English monarchs have wintered at Windsor since the twelfth century.
Windsor Castle was the preferred royal
residence in whichto spend Christmas for Queen Victoria during Prince
Albert’s lifetime, Osborne House being chosen on occasion…
The royal who really brought the Christmas tree to Britain
4th December 2023
Prince Albert is generally credited with introducing the Christmas tree to Britain, but in fact, it was the work of his wife’s grandmother, Queen Charlotte. Like Prince Albert, Charlotte was born and raised in Germany, where the tradition of bringing a tree inside at…
After the wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten at 11:30 am in Westminster Abbey on 20 November 1947, the bridal gifts given to Princess Elizabeth were exhibited at St James’s Palace, numbering over 2,500. Like the gifts, Princess Elizabeth’s…
The site of Christchurch Greyfriars, is a strange, haunting place, redolent of history. It is now a ruined, public garden and a popular place for Londoners to take their sandwiches for lunch. Long gone is the atmosphere of bells and prayer from the Middle Ages; although in an odd parallel to its previous use as a church, it manages to be a place of peace in the noise of the City and nearby Stock…
A little known royal plaque that marks the arrival of an embattled but defiant queen
5th October 2023
A plaque can be found in the garrison walls at Portsmouth at the location of the old ‘Sally Port’. Its patriotic inscription proclaimsthat “from this place naval heroes innumerable were embarked to fight their country’s battles” but that also, “near this…
The relationship of Henry VIII to the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth of York, raises possible interesting psychological theories about his behaviour towards the six women he later married. These are fascinating to suggest, but will only ever remain speculative…
Anne Neville: Richard III's lost queen and Westminster Abbey
1st August 2023
Amidst the chronicle of lost tombs at Westminster Abbey is that of Queen Anne Neville, wife of King Richard III. Queen Anne’s invisibility in these terms underlines the purported neglect on behalf of Richard III; this lack of a memorial was rectified however when a bronze plaque was placed to Queen Anne’s memory at Westminster Abbey, in an attempt to redress this act of historical forgetting.
The British love of dogs is, of course, well established, the royal affection for them as faithful companions being no exception to the rule. Corgis officially entered the British Royal Family when George VI, then Duke of York, gave two corgis named Dookie and Jane to his…
The accession of a baby who became one of the most famous queens of all
14th December 2022
Mary Queen of Scots was born on 8 December 1542, at Linlithgow Palace, incidentally the birthplace of her father, James V of Scotland, in West Lothian, some fifteen miles distance from Edinburgh. The palace’s name translates literally as the “loch in the damp…
Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s beloved consort, was an eager skater who loved winter sports as part of enduring royal pleasure. Not only did he drive the Queen’s sledge when the royal couple were visiting Brighton during a sudden snowfall, but he also enjoyed charming activities such as building a snowman with the growing brood of royal children. Windsor and the royal Christmas became part of…
