68. Sandringham House, Museum

and Gardens:


This is a Royal estate located in Norfolk, England, it is one of the most beautiful of royal homes. Sandringham House is a private home of the Royal Family and is not part of the Royal Estate, just like Balmoral Castle. It is interesting that this became an issue when Edward VIII, the uncrowned King, abdicated in 1938 and did not automatically relinquish the private property at Sandringham and Balmoral he inherited. His brother who replaced him, George VI, had to personally purchase Sandringham House and Balmoral Castle from his older brother, so they could remain private retreats for the monarch.

Sandringham House sits on 8,000 acres of land, including 65 acres of gardens, which have been called ‘the finest of the Royal gardens’, northwest of Norwich, just north of King’s Lynn off 48. One of the oaks in the gardens is said to be over 800 years old. It is mentioned in the Doomsday Book and takes 8 people finger tip to finger tip to embrace it.

The whole estate is over 20,000 acres. It has a fascinating museum of Royal vehicles and mementos. On the grounds is the small parish church of St. Mary Magdalene with its many royal memorials. It was purchased by Queen Victoria at the request of her son and heir Edward VII in 1862 as a home for him and his new bride Princess Alexandra. In 1865 he it enlarged. The resultant red brick was finished in 1870. It was ahead of its time with gas lighting, flushing water closets and even an early version of a shower. One wing was destroyed by fire in 1891 during preparations for his 51st birthday, and it was rebuilt.

After Edward’s death in 1911 his wife Queen Alexandra, who loved Sandringham, lived there alone with her staff until her death in the House in 1924. Her son, George would not have his mother leave the house and did not take possession of it until her death. No one has lived there full time since. George V (1911-1936) loved to come and shoot there and he died here. His son George VI (1938-1952) died there too. George VI actually changed the shape of teh gardens because the visiting public could see him shaving near his bathroom window. Queen Elizabeth II regularly spends Christmas there and she stays until February each year. Diana, Princess of Wales was born at Park House, on the Estate. The House was first open to the public in 1977.

See http://www.sandringham-estate.co.uk/ for directions, open times, tickets and more information on its history and contents.

67. Royal Lodge:

This is a Royal residence in Windsor in Windsor Great Park 3 miles from Windsor Castle. The first Royal occupant was the Prince of Wales, later George IV, who moved in in 1815. It had been adapted from the Deputy Ranger’s Lodge for him between 1812-1822.

In 1830 it was the personal home enlarged by William IV (Queen Victoria’s uncle and predecessor). During Victoria’s long reign in the 19th Century it was occupied by a number of Royal officials. In 1931 it was offered to the Duke and Duchess of York, later George VI and Elizabeth the Queen Mother. When George VI died in 1952, the Queen Mother continued to live there, as well as at Clarence House in London. She died at Royal Lodge in 2002. It has 30 rooms, 7 of which are bedrooms, a 48’ x 30’ salon on 90 acres. A conservatory from the original 1830 version still is there.

With the death of the Queen Mother it stood empty for 2 years. After his divorce in 2004, Prince Andrew, HRH Duke of York sold his home Sunninghill Park close by in Windsor Great Park for 15 m. pounds, and moved into Royal Lodge where he lives today. He also maintains an office in Buckingham Palace and an apartment in St. James Palace in London. Sarah, his divorced Duchess, bought a mansion, Dolphin House, right next door to Royal Lodge, to be near her daughters, who live with Andrew.

See http://www.berkshirehistory.com/ for more information.

66. The Queen’s House:


This marvelous Classical home is at Greenwich and part of the great naval complex there. It was built by Indigo Jones for Anne of Denmark, the Queen of James I in the early decades of the 1600’s, and extended for Henrietta Maria, the Queen of his son, Charles I. It was Indigo Jones’ first major commission and is considered the first ‘Classical’ building to be built in England. It is a ‘Grade 1 Listed Building’ and a ‘Scheduled Ancient Monument, including its vast lawns, stretching 115 feet wide, all the way down to the Thames River.

A colonnade was added in 1807 when it became the Royal Hospital School. In 1933 it became the National Marine Museum, which opened in 1937. It is open daily and is free.

See http://en.wikipedia.org./wiki/Queen House for more information and directions.



65. Pembroke Lodge:


This lodge is located in Richmond Park near London on 2,500 acres. It was built in 1727 as a hunting lodge for George II and used for centuries by Queen Victoria, Edward VII, George V and Queen Mary. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip spent their honeymoon there in 1947. It has been home to a number of Royals as well as other significant individuals. Prime Minister Lord John Russell lived here, as did philosopher Bertrand Russell. In 1955 it became the home of the Royal Ballet Company and today is available for weddings, celebrations and corporate events.

Contact: (44) 02080408207 and see http://www.pembroke-lodge.co.uk/ for more information.


64. Park House:


Park House is on the Sandringham Estate in Scotland near the town of King’s Lynn. Lady Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales was born here (July 1, 1961) and lived there until she was 15 years old. It is not open to the public. Queen Elizabeth II donated the House to the Leonard Cheshire Disability as a hotel for disabled people and their caregivers.

See: http://www.cdisability.org./?lid=3611 for more information.

63. Osborne House:


This is a Royal estate on the Isle of Wight, the private home of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert who bought the property in October 1845. It is not really a Royal palace as much as a private home for them.

It was designed by Prince Albert on the Italian Palatinate style looking west down the lawns across the Solent to Southampton which reminded him of the Bay of Naples. Osborne House was their personal home. They loved it there. It was built between 1845-1851. When Albert died prematurely in 1861 Victoria retreated more and more to Osborne and its quiet and memories of him. She died there in January, 1901.

Upon her death her son, Edward VII, hating the house, tried to give it to a number of royal relatives – e.g. his son George, the Duke of York and wife Mary, but they refused. He gave it to the Royal Navy to serve as a training college. The private rooms of Victoria and Albert, however, were always retained as left and off limits to the academy and the public.

In the late 1990’s Osborne was opened to the public, including these private rooms. This is a must. The grounds are huge and sprawling. The view of the Solent magnificent. The trees so deliberately planted by Prince Albert are still majestically there. Even though long gone, one can feel them there and the peace it brought them. Nearby is the little Wigginham Church, St. Helen’s, Queen Victoria’s parish church, where she went each Sunday until, later in age she had a chapel built at Osborne House. Her youngest and most devoted daughter Beatrice was married and is buried there, along side her husband. Get the Red Line ferry in the Southampton harbor. A must see!! My wife and I and aunt M visited Osborne House in 2007.

See http://www.english-heritage/ for maps, tickets, open times and more information.

62. Castle of Mey:


This property was one of the Scottish homes of Elizabeth the Queen Mother located in Caithness, Scotland. She first saw in 1952 when she was mourning the death of her husband, George VI. It was known then as Barrugill Castle. She decided to buy and restore it. It is the most northerly of inhabited Castle in Scotland and she liked its isolation and rustic views. It has beautiful gardens and is open to the public administered by the Castle of Mey Trust.

To contact check the website http://www.castleofmay.org.uk/, and/or call 01847 851473.