This course starts with an overview of the greatest royal castle builders, the Norman and Plantagenet kings, whose structures served as both excellent defence and architectural statements of power. This leads us to the recent restoration of Stirling Castle. Windsor Castle, the Queen’s weekend home, is the oldest continuously inhabited castle in the world. During the 16th century, the Stewarts in Scotland and Tudors in England rivalled Europe’s Renaissance princes. Henry VIII lavished money on Hampton Court Palace making it the apogee of Tudor Renaissance taste. In 1601 Stewart James VI of Scotland inherited the kingdoms of England and Wales, marking the start of Britain’s Stuart dynasty as James I. Hampton Court was made yet more glorious by the later Stuarts, William III and Mary II.
Arguably, the Georgian dynasty left the finest legacy in architectural taste, fashion and design, starting with the theatrical William Kent and culminating in the Regency style of John Nash and the exotic Royal Pavilion, Brighton. The royal narrative of the site of Buckingham Palace can be traced from James I, all bar two of George III’s children were born here and many a royal has stepped out onto its famous balcony to greet the public. It is the current Queen’s official London residence. Victoria and Albert are inextricably associated with the social mores, romance and innovation of the 19th century. In the heart of Scotland’s Highlands they built Scottish Baronial styled Balmoral Castle which remains a favourite for today’s Royal Family. Sandringham House, Norfolk, was a wedding present from Queen Victoria to her wayward eldest son Edward and wife Alexandra, and is now another favourite of her great-great granddaughter Elizabeth II. Today Kensington Palace, Victoria’s childhood home, is better known for its contemporary royal occupants. The architecture of Cambridge has many Royal associations, which will be the subject of a field trip.
