I’m sitting here in the gently rocking train carriage, watching the English countryside float by. In vast fields of new morn barley, wind turbines twirl. Flocks of blackbirds scratch the ground for their lunch, as fuzzy sheep meander in another field, also looking for their lunch. Overhead, cotton-candy clouds hold up the sky, the air beneath brisk, and the sunshine warm.
Yesterday, we walked Oxford’s well-worn streets and lanes, many of which hadn’t changed in centuries. Christ Church, part of the University of Oxford, called out, beckoning us with its ancient stone walls and fabled history. Entering through one of its massive oak doorways, a mountain of stone steps greeted us. Another door led us into a famous room, the college’s dining hall, which inspired the dining room at Hogwarts.
The cathedral was closed due to the Queen’s passing. However, we attended Evensong and were allowed in. Again, gothic arches and stained glass reigned supreme, the rose window spectacular.
While in England, we’ve traveled by plane, cab, the tube, and the ferry. We departed for Blenheim Palace via a city bus. We had front-row seats for the lovely ride through the city, but the road was bumpy. I was glad I had my real teeth. Forgive me; I digress. 😂
Blenheim Palace is the largest house in Britain and one of the largest in the world. It’s the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. I saw the bedroom where he was born. Words escape me when it comes to describing it. Overwhelming in size, magnificent in luxury, and steeped in the annals of English history, the house cost over 600 million dollars to build in today’s money. Pictures don’t do it justice.
Strolling through the house, I was amused by one bit of history. The 1st Duke of Marlboro went to war with Louis 14th. The Battle of Blenheim was a decisive win for the English. The Duke went home in triumph, and Louis went home to Versailles, head tucked under his hat of feathers and lace.
The 1st Dutchess of Marlboro, happy with the Duke’s victory and the Crown’s money that came with it, commissioned a set of gilded furniture, its upholstery unusual. On the seats of each chair, the face of dear, defeated Louis’ smiling face appeared. He’s still there today. Poor Louis. How many Royal a-doubles has he seen over the centuries? Again…I digress. 😂
And that, dear friends, is the latest news from moi. York is calling. Big hug! 🥰
(Originally published September 18, 2022)
Oxford. Entrance to Christ Church. As I walked through this gate, I thought how dear Mr. Wilde had stepped on the very path stones on which I was now stepping, stood amazed at the carved entrance, and walked into the large courtyard beyond. The courtyard with the morning sunlight trasping across it.
Christ Church College is part of the University of Oxford dormitories.
Oxford College staircase vaulted ceiling.The vaulted staircase ceiling. Oxford College Dining Room which was the instrpraiton of the dining room at Hogwarts of Harry Potter fame. Another view of the dining room. King Henry VIII’s portrait. He founded Christ’s College. Some of the lovely gardens that dot the landscape around the college. More of the gardens. The grass is brown. The gardner told me it hadn’t rained in two months. The old weeping willow brought back memories of the one in our backyard at 5204 Greater Avenue in Biloxi, Mississippi. The steeple of Christ’s Church. Christ Chruch’s High Alter, choir stalls, and a memorial picture of the Queen. A WWI war memorial on an Oxford street. A quintessential vintage building in old Oxford town. The side entrance gates that we went though to enter the vast courtyard of Blenheim Palace. Very grand indeed! Sam taking a snap of the courtyard and the front entrance of the palace. The palace’s columned entrance. Moi on the portico of the palace, which gives you an idea of how large the palace is. The portico’s famous eyes, which to me, were sorta creepy. Here’s a bit of history: The decoration of the portico dates to 1928 and the patronage of Gladys Deacon, the second wife of the 9th Duke of Marlborough, who commissioned British war artist Colin Gill to paint the eyes of her and her husband in 1928. The duchess allegedly scaled Gill’s ladder waving a silk scarf so that he might perfect the exact shade of her famously disarming eyes. The soaring entrance hall as our enter it. The entrance hall ceiling. The palace dining room which is entered via the entrance hall. The paintings that cover the dining room’s walls. The lady in blue gives you an idea of how large this magnifcent room is. A hallway off the entrance hall with a painting of one of the Duke’s of Marlborough. This painting of Sir Winston Churchill was huge! It hangs in one the many hallways in the palace and was painted by Ms. Edith Wheatley. The simple bedrrom in Blenheim Palace where Sir Winston was born. It’s simplicty stood in stark contast to the palace’s other sumptous rooms. The grand Tapestry Room. Fireplace in the Tapestry Room with Consuelo Vanderbilt’s portrait above it. She was the American wife of the 9th Duke of Marlborough. The famous Louis XIV chair in the Tapestry Room with dear Consuelo looking down at it from her perch above the fireplace. The famous painting of the 9th Duke’s family by John Singer Sargent painted in 1905. He and Consuelo’s marriage was not a happy one. Her daddy’s money didn’t buy either of them happiness, but it did save the palace. The library with his thousands of books. The smell of old leather and paper permeated the libray’s long hall. that was lined with books. The palace organ. Oh! How I wished the palace guides would have allowed Sam to play it. I can hear Vidor’s Toccata now. An aerial view of the palace indicating how massive it is. We entered through the arched entrance with the cars, then walked through the second arched entrance, only to be overwhelmed by the expansive courtyard with the palace looming in the background, beckoning with its treasures and immersive history.
