FeaturesPalaces & Buildings

Windsor Castle: from retirement home to heart of a dynasty

During the reign of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, Windsor Castle was made their primary royal residence despite the Queen complaining early on in her reign that the castle was “prison-like” and “dull and tiresome.” She would often prefer Osborne and Balmoral as holiday residences. The growth of the British Empire and the Queen’s dynastic ties to Europe would…
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British Royals

Westminster Abbey Dean campaigned for Sir Elton John to sing at Diana's funeral

Papers released by the National Archives suggest there were concerns ahead of Sir Elton John’s poignant performance of “Candle in the Wind” at the Funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales. With concerns the lyrics would be deemed “too sentimental,” the Dean of Westminister Abbey, at the time, came forward to appeal the case and to have John perform. The original song…
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Queen Elizabeth II

Buckingham Palace barred ethnic minorities from jobs in the 1960s, papers show

Buckingham Palace barred ethnic minorities from jobs in the 1960s according to information discovered in royal household archive documents. In the documents unearthed by The Guardian newspaper, Lord Tryon, the keeper of the privy purse at the time spoke of minorities in the royal workforce. In 1968, The Queen’s financial manager informed civil servants that “it was not, in fact, the…
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