QUEEN VICTORIA’S marriage in 1840 to her 20-year-old cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha posed an immediate problem: what was the purpose of her new husband, other than providing an heir to the throne? There was no job description for a prince consort—even that title was, grudgingly, not granted to him by his adopted country until 1857. ‘In my home life I am very happy and contented,’ he wrote to a friend back in Germany, ‘but the difficulty in filling my place with the proper dignity is that I am only the husband, and not the master in the house.’
That was soon to change. The Queen’s frequent pregnancies— nine over the first 17 years of her marriage—meant that the Prince was able quickly to manoeuvre himself into a position of control over their domestic affairs. One issue soon became pressing: the need for larger and better accommodation for the growing Royal Family. Albert took the lead in the acquisition, design, decoration and furnishing of two new houses, at Osborne and Balmoral, the layout of their gardens and the creation of estate buildings. Despite the fact that he never made an architectural drawing, the Prince’s involvement in these projects was so close that he deserves to be described as their architect. Although the buildings for which he was responsible were modest by the standards of the palaces commissioned by European royal dynasties in the 19th century, their status as the favourite homes of the monarch of the world’s most powerful nation gave them great influence.
Denne historien er fra August 07, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra August 07, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Tales as old as time
By appointing writers-in-residence to landscape locations, the National Trust is hoping to spark in us a new engagement with our ancient surroundings, finds Richard Smyth
Do the active farmer test
Farming is a profession, not a lifestyle choice’ and, therefore, the Budget is unfair
Night Thoughts by Howard Hodgkin
Charlotte Mullins comments on Moght Thoughts
SOS: save our wild salmon
Jane Wheatley examines the dire situation facing the king of fish
Into the deep
Beneath the crystal-clear, alien world of water lie the great piscean survivors of the Ice Age. The Lake District is a fish-spotter's paradise, reports John Lewis-Stempel
It's alive!
Living, burping and bubbling fermented masses of flour, yeast and water that spawn countless loaves—Emma Hughes charts the rise and rise) of sourdough starters
There's orange gold in them thar fields
A kitchen staple that is easily taken for granted, the carrot is actually an incredibly tricky customer to cultivate that could reduce a grown man to tears, says Sarah Todd
True blues
I HAVE been planting English bluebells. They grow in their millions in the beechwoods that surround us—but not in our own garden. They are, however, a protected species. The law is clear and uncompromising: ‘It is illegal to dig up bluebells or their bulbs from the wild, or to trade or sell wild bluebell bulbs and seeds.’ I have, therefore, had to buy them from a respectable bulb-merchant.
Oh so hip
Stay the hand that itches to deadhead spent roses and you can enjoy their glittering fruits instead, writes John Hoyland
A best kept secret
Oft-forgotten Rutland, England's smallest county, is a 'Notswold' haven deserving of more attention, finds Nicola Venning
