Castles and a palace in England

The beautifully landscaped area around the keep of Windsor Castle, Windsor, England.

There are castles that are fairly humble or which have fallen down over the centuries, primarily crude forts and places of safety. However, England has some of the grand ones open for visitors to see, preserved for posterity by the National Historic Trust. Private families have found operating and maintaining castles as private homes to be financially impossible, especially as taxes on wealth have increased in the United Kingdom after World War I and again after World War II.

One tends to pair castles with kings and queens, and that is true sometimes. However, the British aristocracy built grand castles, as the lords maintained armies that were used to help the king. They stood guard over their territory, and the lords also had political control of the lands they owned.

The castle is a village in purpose. There are craftsmen of all types, soldiers, cooks, farmers and gardeners, and a fool or two whose clownish acts and wit entertained the lord. Many had a dungeon or gaol (jail), too. The upper floors, in the 900’s to 1200’s contained the great hall - where important meetings were held and communal meals were served, bed chambers and a library - if the wealthy lord was fortunate enough to have books.

As time went on, the rooms on the upper floors became grander and a show of the wealth of the family. Living conditions for the servants below floors changed very little. Life in a stone castle with open windows in cool, rainy England would not always be comfortable. As the upstairs levels became grander, they also became warmer, with huge fireplaces in every room.

When electricity and running water became commonplace, it cost a fortune to retrofit the castles, and American nouveau riche heiresses became a popular source of funds for castle restoration.

Warwick (pronounced war-ick) Castle is located in the English Midlands, and the first fortification on the site was built by the legendary Anglo-Saxon warrior princess, Ethelfreda, while fighting off the Vikings. The wooden fortress was gradually replaced by cut stone over the next few centuries. A child-friendly video explained the evolution of the fort clearly.

The family grew wealthy and accumulated fantastic art to decorate the imposing castle. During the War of the Roses, the family sided with the Duke of Lancaster, who lost to the Tudors. The House of Warwick retained wealth and importance, a neat trick in those days. The earl for many years was a kingmaker, deciding who would wear the crown when several people had legitimate claims to be king or queen.

The huge round keep is a towering presence in the countryside. Visitors can tour the castle and take part in the activities there every day of the year except Christmas day. A birds of prey presentation demonstrates the sport of falconry, and instructors teach elementary archery. For those so inclined, glamping on the castle grounds is available. The sturdy canvas tents have real beds and wooden floors, quite an upgrade from sleeping on the ground on an air mattress.

Like most venues of its sort, Warwick Castle has cafés and tea rooms. The least expensive choice is doughnuts and coffee or tea consumed while sitting on a bench enjoying the activities. There are many wooden swords in the gift shop, so be warned if taking children.

Blenheim Palace is just a few miles from Warwick Castle, but has a distinctly different feel. The differences between a castle and a palace are immediately evident. Broad parklands lead to the palace, which cannot be seen until the road curves just a bit. The first Duke of Marlborough was granted the land in 1704 after leading more than 25,000 men in the last war against the French in Great Britain, defeating the forces of Louis XIV.

The king and queen gave a tremendous amount of money for the construction of a palace for the Marlboroughs, and Duchess Sarah was a close friend of Queen Anne. Eventually there were difficulties, the duke and duchess no longer served the royal couple, but the only punishment was that funds for palace construction dried up. Now it was on the Marlboroughs to finish the place.

The finished palace is considered the finest in the world, and the paintings and sculptures include many masterpieces. There are also collections of fine porcelain and exquisite china. Tons of marble were used for trim, and the finest stone cutters and wood carvers in the country embellished those materials.

The Duke of Marlborough, surname Churchill, died without a male heir, and Parliament passed a special bill allowing his daughter Henrietta to inherit the title and estate. She married a Spencer, and her son Charles inherited the title. After Charles, well, the saying “shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations” fits the family. The fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh earls were profligate spenders with bad habits who added little value to their own lives or to the estate.

The eighth earl was a lover of science who invented a telephone system for use in the house, wired the house for electricity and generated his own power on the estate. He sold many paintings to raise capital for his improvements, but died at the age of 48. At some time, the family added the name Churchill back, reflecting the first Duke of Marlborough’s name.

The ninth Duke of Marlborough inherited a rundown estate badly in need of cash, and the solution was to marry an American heiress, Consuelo Vanderbilt. It was a loveless marriage, but the palace was restored, and her parents guaranteed incomes for them. In an age when he was not supposed to work, there was no other means of acquiring cash for such a titled gentleman.

The ninth Duke was also a first cousin of Winston Spencer Churchill, who was born in the palace, the son of an American, Jennie Jerome, and Lord Randolph Churchill. His father had a busy political career, and his upbringing was mainly at Blenheim Palace, overseen by his nanny and his grandmother Churchill.

Winston and Sunny Marlborough were first cousins and close all of their lives. Winston proposed to Clementine Hozier at a little temple on the grounds of the estate. Their happy marriage of 56 years stands in stark contrast to Sunny Marlborough’s disastrous marriages.

Beautifully built and decorated, the Great Hall is at the main entry of the palace. Marble floors, grand fireplace and two full stories of space enhanced by a gallery of sculptures, busts and paintings are very impressive. Antique tapestries hundreds of years old with barely discernible stitches enhance the walls in several of the first floor rooms.

One hundred and eighty feet long, the library has an amazing collection of books with an upper level reached by library ladder. Book lovers salivate at the sight of it. The grand dining room has a beautiful table that stretches to seat 40 people and was set with beautiful china, sterling and crystal. People who ponder the difference between the salad and dessert forks were impressed by the array of flatware. The family still celebrates with Christmas dinner here each year.

Blenheim Palace has grounds which were designed and laid out by several master landscape architects, primarily Capability Brown and Achille Duchene. Miles of walkways amble about the grounds, with sweeps of blooming daffodils at this time of year. Ducks, pheasants and even otters are present. Streams, lakes and waterfalls add to the beauty.

Windsor Castle is visible from miles away, a classic location for a medieval castle. The hillside below the castle walls is quite steep, and the sheer size makes Windsor Castle the largest inhabited castle in the world. About 500 people live on the castle grounds, including Queen Elizabeth. It is her favorite weekend residence. A modern influence is that the castle is in the flight path to Heathrow International Airport.

The St. George Chapel is a marvel of Renaissance church building, with arched supports carrying the ceiling to beautiful heights. A number of British monarchs and other notable people are buried in the chapel. The quire (English for choir) is made of beautifully carved wood, and rising above the choir stalls are statues of Knights of the Garter and their coats of arms.

The state apartments at Windsor Castle are where kings and queens entertain heads of state and government officials, and are, by design, emblematic of the power and wealth of the British Empire. Rubens painted many of the portraits of the royal family, and they are beautiful.

The Waterloo Room was created to celebrate the people who were important in the defeat of Napoleon of France. Large portraits of military leaders Admiral Nelson, who won the naval Battle of Trafalgar, and the Duke of Wellington, British leader at the victorious Battle of Waterloo, are joined by portraits of diplomats and Pope Pius VII, who had been imprisoned by Napoleon for six years. These victories over Napoleon are celebrated annually, 200 years later, so great are their importance to the British.

For fine dining, the Bull Inn, which is near Norwich, is a gastropub, producing gourmet food in a casual atmosphere. Pork tenderloin rounds, wrapped in bacon, baked and served on a bed of sauteed greens were tender and delicous. The steak was perfectly grilled, and accompaniments were perfect. Pork belly was tender and perfectly cooked, with rich sauce and delicious vegetables.

High tea at Lynford Hall on the edge of Mundford was a grand treat, served in the bar, where well-behaved dogs were welcomed. Two kinds of crustless sandwiches, tuna salad and a vegetable combination were served, with three different sweets, all of which were delicious. Pots of hot tea were served, along with a glass of Proseco when the barman heard of a birthday celebration.

Tea with dessert at Brown’s Café in Mundford offered an array of desserts that was stunning, including carrot cake, chocolate cake, a tart, sticky toffee date pudding, a fruit crumble, Eton berry mess and several other choices.

The sticky toffee pudding was a dense cake with a caramel topping and thick cream for pouring over. The Eton berry mess was served in a sundae glass with strawberries and blueberries in their juices at the bottom, pieces of meringue next, strawberry ice cream, a generous serving of whipped cream and a perfect strawberry sliced into a fan, the whole thing dusted with confectioners’ sugar. Perfect with Earl Grey tea after a long walk in the Thetford Forest with a Labrador!