QUEEN VICTORIA A SCOTTISH LOVE AFFAIR
HISTORY • HERITAGE • TRAVEL
British Ancestry How to trace your family origins
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A Great British Holiday WORTH £5,000
Northern Saints Relics and ruins on the new pilgrim trail
Richard III
THE TRUTH ABOUT THE CONTROVERSIAL KING
Ancient crafts
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SCOTT ANTCLIFFE
POSTCARDS
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Wish you were here... Inspiring postcards from around the British Isles
BAMBURGH, NORTHUMBERLAND Castle landscape at sunrise named among the year’s best historic photographs The annual Historic Photographer of the Year competition is not solely restricted to British subjects, yet it counts Historic England among its official partners, so tends to have a strong showing from these shores. This year’s overall winner was Steve Liddiard for a dramatic shot of Whiteford Point Lighthouse in south Wales, yet we particularly loved Scott Antcliffe’s stunning capture of Bamburgh Castle at sunrise which was shortlisted in the “Where History Happened” category. The judging panel included broadcaster and historian Dan Snow. “It was once again a pleasure and a privilege to be able to sift through the outstanding images from this year’s entrants,” he said. “It was perhaps all the more poignant and redolent for the fact that there has been so much restriction, constraint and hardship for so many over the past couple of years.” ➤ www.historicphotographeroftheyear.com
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POSTCARDS
PIEL ISLAND, CUMBRIA Local council seeks to fill a unique vacancy that is fit for a king Barrow Borough Council is recruiting for an unusual vacancy: landlord of the Ship Inn on Piel Island, a tiny islet half a mile off the Cumbrian coast. Not your usual desk job, this particular role comes with several stipulations. You must be prepared to sign a 10-year lease, manage the 50-acre island, and be comfortable with isolation – aside from occasional visitors to the pub and the ruined Piel Castle, there are only three other residents. You must also accept the title of “King of Piel” in an ancient ceremony that involves being doused in beer. On the plus side, the successful applicant will have incredible sunsets, wildlife and natural beauty on their doorstep. The council hopes to fill the role by April when the weekend ferry resumes again after its winter break. www.pielisland.co.uk
ERDDIG, WREXHAM
GREENBURN/ALAMY/NATIONAL TRUST IMAGES/JOHN MILLAR
Seasonal delights await at one of Britain’s best Georgian gardens Spring is the best time to visit this elegant Welsh country house, thanks to the impressive array of tulips that spring forth amid all the neat topiary. The garden was always a primary concern for successive generations of the Yorke family who owned Erddig for more than 250 years. Such continuity meant that Erddig was able to escape the ravages of fashion, with the 18th-century walled garden perhaps the best surviving example of its kind in Britain, while the wider estate includes 1,200 acres of landscaped pleasure gardens. Inside, Erddig has a reputation as “the most evocative Upstairs, Downstairs house” in Britain, a reference to the 1970s TV series that portrayed both the family and the servants of an aristocratic house. ➤ www.nationaltrust.org.uk/erddig
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POSTCARDS
EDINBURGH, LOTHIAN Book a stay in a historic house and feel on top of the world Edinburgh’s Calton Hill is one of the most photographed sights in the Scottish capital. And now you can wake up to those views in a historic building on top of that hill. Observatory House is one of the very few extant buildings designed by James Craig, the planner of Edinburgh’s first New Town. This 18th century building is the final part of the hilltop site redeveloped by the non-profit arts organisation Collective, which also includes the Gardener’s Cottage restaurant. The house has been sensitively restored using Harris Tweed accessories, Lusso stone and specially commissioned art. The main house is now open to book with a new apartment in the basement available from early 2022. Visitors can also explore the house on occasional open days. www.observatory-house.art/book
SOUTHAMPTON, HAMPSHIRE
As 2021 drew to a close, Historic England compiled a list of 284 new sites that were added to the National Heritage List in the past year. “Listing these significant historic sites means we can protect our valuable heritage for future generations to learn from and ensure they are on the map for local people and visitors to be proud of and enjoy,” said Heritage Minister, Nigel Huddleston. Highlights included the now grade II-listed The Brown Jug in Broadstairs, Kent, a farm cottage converted into a public house in the 18th century. Perhaps the grandest structure saved for the nation is Wilfred Mangan’s Roman Catholic Church of St Boniface in Southampton. Built in 1927, it received a grade II-listing on account of the elegant bell tower and elaborate marble interiors. n www.historicengland.org.uk/listing
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ANNA HENLY/HISTORIC ENGLAND/JAMES O DAVIES
Neo-Byzantine church one of nearly 300 sites added to protected list in 2021
QUEEN VICTORIA’S SCOTLAND
VISIT SCOTLAND/NORTH EAST 250/DAMIAN SHIELDS
This image: Balmoral Castle in Royal Deeside, one of just two personal and private residences owned by the Royal Family
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Queen Victoria’s
SCOTLAND From the “splendid spectacle” of Edinburgh to the privacy of the Highlands, the country “north of the border” provided a welcome escape for the great monarch, as Natalie Marchant explores
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CSFOTOIMAGES/ANDY ROLAND/ISTOCK/GETTY
QUEEN VICTORIA’S SCOTLAND
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NORTH EAST 250/VISIT SCOTLAND/DAMIAN SHIELDS/GRANGER HISTORICAL PICTURE ARCHIVE/ALAMY
QUEEN VICTORIA’S SCOTLAND
Above: Balmoral Castle and Gardens today Left: A portrait of Queen Victoria by Bertha Müller after Heinrich von Angeli, 1900, based on a work of 1899
design and supervise the building of a new castle, with the active collaboration of the Prince Consort. The foundation stone was laid in 1853 and the castle was built just 100 yards from the existing building, so the family could continue to live on the site during its construction. The old castle was demolished upon the new one’s completion in 1856; nowadays it is commemorated by a stone on the front lawn, marking the position of the original front door. Albert was known for his progressive views, particularly when it came to arts and culture, and he was greatly involved in Balmoral’s Scottish Baronial-style design and construction. By 1859, extensive landscaping works led by Albert, including new houses, stables, workshops and schools, were completed. He then turned his hand to making improvements to the estate’s farm buildings and, in 1861, plans for a model dairy were drawn up. But he was never able to see the completion of his work as he suddenly died from typhoid at Windsor on 14 December of that year. Victoria was devastated by the death of her beloved husband but continued with his works at Balmoral as planned. Later additions to the estate included the Garden Cottage for her children; Baile-na-Coille for her Highland servant, John Brown;
and Karim Cottage for her Indian attendant, Abdul Karim. Albert himself was commemorated by a pyramid-shaped cairn on the estate. Victoria entered a prolonged state of mourning; indeed, the “widow of Windsor” wore black for the rest of her life in tribute to her husband. She started spending prolonged periods at Balmoral, thanks to its happy memories and welcome solitude, often arriving there by train at Ballater railway station. The station was formerly the terminus of a branch line from Aberdeen and housed a private waiting room for the queen, as well as an unusually long platform to accommodate royal arrivals until the 1960s. It burnt down in a blaze in 2015 but reopened three years later after a faithful reconstruction to its original grandeur, now featuring a museum, cafe, restaurant and information centre. Also nearby is the site of the Braemar Gathering, an annual Highland Games event which has received royal patronage since it was first attended by Victoria in 1848. By the mid-1860s, Victoria’s family and ministers became increasingly frustrated by her constant absence amid a rise in republican sentiment. She eventually ➤ returned to a more public life in 1871, after her son
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