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WINDSOR CASTLE
1830
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Windsor Castle
is the largest and the oldest inhabited castle in the world
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It is one of
the Queen's three official residences, the other two being
Buckingham Palace and Holyrood House(in Scotland).
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The royal family visit Windsor frequently, the Queen
regularly spends weekends there and it is used for
ceremonial visits from Heads of State.
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When the Queen
is in residence the royal standard is flown from the Round
Tower and the changing of the guard takes place in the
quadrangle.
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Most of the kings and queens of England have had a direct
influence on the construction and evolution of the castle,
which has been their garrison, fortress, home, official
palace, and sometimes prison.
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When the country has been at peace the castle has been
expanded by the additions of large and grand apartments.
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When the country has been at war the castle has been more
heavily fortified.
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This pattern has continued to the present day.
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The Round Tower
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The
dominant structure of Windsor Castle is the Round
Tower, or Keep, 24.5 m high, built on the site where,
according to tradition, King Arthur sat with
the Knights of the Round Table.
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It was
used as a prison until 1660.
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This Tower
is built in the form of an amphitheatre, on the highest
part of the mount.
Another distinctive building is Saint George's Chapel,
begun about 1474 by King Edward IV and completed
in 1528 by King Henry VIII.
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It is the
burial place of ten British sovereigns.
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The chapel remains one of the finest examples of late
medieval architecture and has been the scene of many
royal marriages, the latest of these being the wedding
of the Earl and Countess of Wessex in 1999.
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St George
Chapel |
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1749 |
The Lantern
Lobby |
History
The castle was founded by William the
Conqueror in 1075.-
Henry I was the first sovereign to live
within the castle.
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He
replaced the original wooden structure with a
stone keep.
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The Round Tower was added by Henry II.
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He
also built the first of the castle's medieval
state apartments.
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Edward III was born in the castle in 1284
and was often referred to as "Edward of
Windsor".
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He
built the largest crown building project of the
medieval period.
In 1348 Edward III established the Order of
the Garter, whose annual ceremony still
takes place in St George's Chapel.
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Following the restoration of the monarchy in
1660, a new set of State Apartments were built
by Charles II, transforming the medieval
castle into a splendid Baroque palace including
the King's Dining Room, the Queen's Presence and
Audience Chambers.
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George IV built the Waterloo Chamber to
commemorate the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle
of Waterloo in 1815.
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Queen Victoria built the mausoleum at
Frogmore, in the grounds of Windsor Great Park.
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Queen Eilzabeth II decided in 1952 to
make Windsor her principal week-end retreat. The
private apartments were renovated an modernised,
and the Queen, Prince Philip and their two
children took up residence. This arrangement has
continued to the present day.
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The Grand
Staircase |
The King's room |
The Most Noble Order of the Garte
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Various legends have been described to explain the origin of the
Order.
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The most popular
legend involves the "Countess of Salisbury":
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The story goes that while the Countess, a notable beauty who
was rumored to be the king's mistress, danced at a court
function, she chanced to loose a garter.
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King Edward III
gallantly picked it up and tied it to his own leg.
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When he
observed the snickers of those around him, Edward remarked "Honi
soit qui mal y pense" (Shame on he who thinks evil of this).
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This offhand
remark became the motto of the order.
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The Most Noble
Order of the Garter is the world's oldest national order of
Knighthood .
The Order, consisting of the King and twenty-five knights, is
the highest reward for loyalty and for military merit.
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The Order included among its Companions William Shakespeare
and the Lord Mayor.
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In 1987, The Queen decided that women should be eligible
for the Garter in the same way as men.
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Women are
therefore included in this number and currently Lady Thatcher
(formerly Margaret Thatcher, first female prime minister of
Great Britain) and Lady Soames (the youngest daughter of
Sir Winston Churchill, also a holder of the Order of the Garter)
hold this honour..
Today the Order consists of Her Majesty the Queen, Sovereign of
the Order, His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales and 24 Knight
Companions.
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Garter Knights
in 1863
The great fire
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On 20 November
1992 a fire which began in the Queen's private chapel.
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The fire raged
for 15 hours until it had destroyed nine of the principal
state rooms.
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A restoration programme was embarked upon, using authentic
materials and craftsmanship.
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A decision was
reached that the damaged rooms would be completely restored,
while rooms that were destroyed would be rebuilt to a new
design.
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Restoration
works were completed five years later, on 20 November, 1997
at a cost of 37 million pounds.
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A large
percentage of the money (70%) was raised by opening
Buckingham Palace to the public.
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Historical events
at Windsor Castle
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the marriage of Henry I of England
and his second wife (1121)
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the birth of King Edward III of
England (1312)
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the marriage of Edward, the Black
Prince ans Joan of Kent and (1361)
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the burial of King Edward IV of
England (1483)
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the marriage of the future King
Edward VIII of the United Kingdom and Alexandra of
Denmark (1863)
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the burial of King George VI of
United Kingdom (1952)
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the marriage of Prince Edward, Earl
of Wessex and Sophie Rhys-Jones (1999)
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the burial of Princess Margaret,
Countess of Snowdon (2002)
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the death and burial of
Queen Elizabeth, the Queen
Mother (2002)
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the twenty-first birthday of Prince
William of Wales (2003)
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the blessing of the marriage of
Prince Charles of Wales and Camilla Parker Bowels (2005)
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- The Long
Walk
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- Charles
II from 1680-1685 planted a double avenue of elm trees.
- The central
carriage road was added by Queen Anne in 1710.
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