Great castles & palaces

86 Pages·1973·19.227 MB·English

by  Geoffrey Hindley

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Golden Highlights Library
Great
Castles
&
Palaces
Geoffrey Hindley
Golden Press
1
Published in 1973 by Golden Press, New York, Contents
a division ofWestern Publishing Company Inc.
Library ofCongress Catalog Card Number: 73-81306 4 The Vatican Palace
Created, designed and produced for 6 Windsor Castle
TWresetweirnnCPoubplpilsehsintgonCeomPupbalniyshIinnc.gbLytd, London 9 Buckingham Palace
Edinburgh Castle
Printed in Italy by 1
Ofncine Grafiche Arnoldo Mondadori, Verona 13 Caernarvon Castle
Filmset by Photoprint Plates Ltd, Raylcigh, Essex
15 Chillon Castle
World rights reserved by
Western Publishing Company, Inc. 16 Neuschwanstein
golden and golden press ® are trademarks 20 The Alcazar, Segovia
ofWestern Publishing Company Inc.
23 The Tower ofLondon
ISBN: o 307 43111 8
26 Chateau Gaillard
29 Krak des Chevaliers
31 The Doge's Palace
36 The Villa d'Este
38 Nymphenburg Palace
40 Blenheim Palace
43 Versailles
47 Fontainebleau
Schonbrunn
49
5i The Royal Palace, Madrid
The White House
53
The Kremlin
54
58 The Winter Palace
58 Tsarskoye Selo
Acknowledgments
The Alhambra, Granada
63
The photographs in this book were provided by:
Aerofilms, London: 23, 29b; Lala Aufsberg: i8t, b, 66 Topkapi Palace
J9> 31* 33b, 34b, 35, 50b, 65, 66; Barnaby's Picture 68 Dolmabahce Palace
Library: 53t; Bavaria Verlag: 1, 32, 39, 45t, 48, 49b,
56t, 57b, 64t, 66, 69b, 77, back cover (t); British 72 Malmaison
Museum: 24t; British Tourist Authority: 3, 7b, 8b, Drottningholm
74
9b, 10b, 12, 13, 24t, 25, 4K, 51, 79; Bulloz: 43;
Camera Press: 6, 13b;J. Allan Cash: 9t, 13t, 14, 20, 76 Hampton Court
26, 63; Colour Library International: 17; Trewin Compton Wynyates
78
Copplestone: 56b; Photographie Giraudon: 71, 72,
73; Godfrey Goodwin: 70t, b; Sonia Halliday: 67, 68;
Michael Holford: 8t, 21, 27, 28, 40, 44, 45b, 49;
R. Hood: 33t, 34t; Victor Kennett: 58, 59t, b, 62;
A. F. Kersting: 7t, iot, 11, 29t, 30, 38, 42, 47, 54,
56-7, 78t, 80; Emily Lane: 36; MAS: 22; Novosti Opposite Theprocession of the Knights of the
Press Agency: 55, 6ot, b, 61 ; Picturcpoint: 41b, 46, Garter entering thegreat West Door ofSt
6ot, 76, 78b, back cover (b); Royal Swedish Embassy: George's Chapel, Windsor. Members of Europe's
75t, b; Scala: 5, 52; Toni Schneiders: sot; Spectrum: oldest order ofchivalry, the Garter knights each
4- 1(r>- 37, 53b, 64b, front cover; Swiss National have their own stalls in the choir ofthe Chapel
Tourist Office: is with their banners hanging over them.
Pomp and pageantry
THE
world's great palaces and castles are cent colorful panoply that lived in them in the
monuments ofa bygone age ofkings and days of their greatness belongs to the past.
princes; of an age when in theory, and often Security guards and ticket clerks have taken
enough in practice, the destinies of whole the place of ceremonial guards and powerful
peoples might be subject to the whim and chamberlains. Instead ofbeing conducted into
power of a single man. In this book we shall a royal presence by costumed flunkies the
visit a few of the greatest mansions, palaces visitor is taken on a conducted tour by uni-
and fortresses ofthe old world-and one in the formed guides. But there are still palaces
new. Some remind us of war, some speak of occupied by the successors of the rulers that
past political greatness, some are grand homes, built them and where the ceremonial of the
others are treasure houses ofart. past is still alive. In this chapter we discuss five
Today they are for the most part massive such places, and we begin with one which is the
curios, visited by tourists and studied by residence ofan autocratic ruler, which indeed
historiansand connoisseursofart. The magnifi- is actually ail independent state.
The first papal election or conclave at the
Vatican was held in the same year, when
Gregory died. But the papacy had many
troubled years ahead. The conclave elected an
Italian pope, but the French party would not
give up, and four astonishing decades followed
during which Europe had two popes and at
times even three. Some popes went in fear of
their lives-one even built a passage linking the
house at the Vatican to the Castle of Sant'
Angelo nearby. Eventually the scandal of a
divided Church was settled at the Council of
ConstanceconvenedbytheEmperorSigismund
in 1415. The election of Martin V two years
later gave the Church a single head, but the
papacy resolved that never again should a
General Council have such power.
Martin and his successors set about the
restorationofpapalauthorityand thesplendors
of the papal court. Nicholas V (1447-55)
This is the Vatican Palace in Rome. It is transformed the house at the Vatican into a
bounded on one side by the huge basilica of palace, and in 1473 Sixtus IV commanded the
St Peter's and the colonnade ofits piazza, and building of the Sistine Chapel. The popes
the palace is encircled by walls which enclose became great patrons of the Renaissance
an area ofapproximately one-sixth ofa square scholars and artists, and when the ancient
mile. This is the independent state of Vatican basilica ofSt Peter's showed signs ofcollapsing
City, set up in 1929 by the Lateran Treaty they seized the opportunity to rebuild on the
between the government of Italy and the magnificent scale we see today the work took
;
papacy. Here the pope is absolute ruler, the more than a century. Much other building was
last one in the western world. The state has a put in hand at the same time, but the Vatican,
resident population of about 1000, but is the with its great schemes of painting, provides
place of work of many more, for this is the one ofthe most magnificent sights ofthe age.
headquarters ofthe Roman Catholic Church, The first oftheseschemes was the decoration
one of the largest international organizations of the Sistine Chapel, begun in 1481. The
intheworldtoday. Thesecurityoftheterritory building is 133 feet long and 43 feet wide, and
rests with various bodies of which the most down each of the long sides seven frescoes
famous is the historic Swiss Guard, recruited depicted episodes from the lives ofChrist and
from the Catholic Cantons. This, the personal Moses. This work was done by such great
bodyguard of the pope, was founded in 1505 artists as Botticelli and Pinturicchio. Then,
byJulius II. Its colorful uniform, traditionally from 1508 to 1512, Michelangelo decorated
claimed to have been designed by Michel- the simple barrel-vaulted ceiling with an epic
angelo, is a regular part ofthe scene at Vatican series of masterpieces on themes from the
City, and the Guards play a prominent part in book of Genesis beginning with the creation
the ceremonies ofthe papal court. of the world. Yet more great work was still
The Emperor Constantine the Great built to come.
the first St Peter's in the early fourth centurvT In 1534, at the command of Paul III, the
It was a large basilica modeled on the admini- great artist embarked on his majestic altarpiece
strative hall ofjustice of a Roman town. Two ofthe LastJudgment. It covers the end of the
hundred years latera house wasbuilt beside the chapel; before the work could be started two
great church for distinguished visitors; the windows had to be walled in and two of the
popes themselves lived at the Lateran Palace side wall frescoes, both by Perugino. were
at this time. Then at the beginning of the paintedout. Itissomemeasureoftheseemingly
fourteenth century a line of French popes limitless talent of Renaissance Italy that the
moved the papal court to Avignon. In 1378 work ofsuch a master could be obliterated to
Gregory XI returned to Rome; finding the make room for something even finer. The
Lateran in ruins he took up residence at the decoration ofthe scries ofrooms known as the
Vatican. Stanze and Loggia provides a still more
Opposite Behind thegreat basilica ofSt Peter's Below The Sistine Chapel, looking towards
and the walls ofVatican City lie thegardens of Michelangelo'sgreat masterpiece The Last
thepapalpalace. Judgment.
The halberds that the Swiss Guards carry were
the historic weapons that once made the Swiss
the mostfeared soldiers in Europe.
startling instance. Many magnificent frescoes
by Perugino, Lorenzo Lotto, Picro della
Francesca and others were already completed
when the brilliant young Raphael Sanzio
arrived in Rome. The work ofhis predecessors
was simply blanked out and Pope Julius II
gave him the sole commission to decorate the
apartments throughout. Raphael's Disputation
ofthe Holy Sacrament and the School ofAthens
are regarded among the purest expressions of
the Renaissance spirit.
Many more great artists are represented in
the picture gallery, the Pinacoteca, while the
Museo Pio Clementino contains a host of
famous classical sculptures, among them the
renowned Laocobn group. The Vatican also
boasts one of the world's greatest libraries,
with some 60,000 rare manuscripts and
hundreds of thousands of priceless printed
books. Some ofthe most valuable treasures for
the faithful of the Catholic world are housed
in the Sancta Sanctorum. These are the relics
ofthe Christian martyrs; among them are two
cloaks believed to have been worn by St Peter
and StJohn the Baptist.
The history ofthe papacy is a rich mixture
ofreligious faith and scandal. Perhaps the most
notorious occupant of the chair of St Peter
was Alexander VI, the head of the Borgia
family. The Borgia Rooms, opened to the
publicby Pope Leo XIII, are a suite ofapart-
ments built by Nicholas V and decorated at
the commission of Pope Alexander by
Pinturicchio.
The Vatican is important today because it is
the center of an international administration
and thehome ofthe world's greatest museums,
but the palaces and the beautiful gardens
behind them remind us ofits past importance,
when the popes were numbered among the
great powers ofEurope.
Like the papacy, the English monarchy is an
institution surviving from Europe's past which
has lost much ofits earlier power but still has
considerable vitality. The Queen still lives at
Windsor, a castle-palace that has been a
residence ot her predecessors for 900 years. It is
in fact the oldest inhabited castle in the world
and was founded by William the Conqueror
.
The first castle was a wooden tower on an
artificial mound or motte surrounded by
wooden palisades; it was built as a part ofthe
chain of forts that William set up to control
the defeated English. A century later Henry II
decided to build in stone, and set up a Round
Tower on the motte of the Norman castle.
The lower course of masonry of the present
.
Round Tower dates from this period, but the
rest ofthe structure is much more recent. The
upper 30 feet ofthe tower and the Gothic-style
battlements are part ofthe picturesque modifi-
cations ordered by King George IV. He also
commissioned the stately private apartments
in the east terrace and the magnificent south
terrace with its turreted gateway. All these
additions were designed by Jeffry Wyatt, a
young unknown, who won the competition
for the work from the famous John Nash,
builder of Regent Street in London. By the
time work at Windsor was finished Wyatt was
a rich and fashionable architect; he received a
knighthood and royal permission to change his
name to Wyatville.
Wyatt was not the only architect who felt
his name had been made by Windsor. After Top A dramatic shot inside thegrounds of
Henry II's death, his sonJohn, who attempted Windsor Castle. St George's Chapel is on the
to maintain his father's tough policy against left and in the distance the Round Tower can be
the barons, faced civil war, and in 1215 was seen
besieged at Windsor by the rebels. It was the
last time that the castle was involved in Above Seenfrom the river, Windsor is almost
warfare, but John's son Henry III made a hidden by trees. During the middle ages the slopes
number of additions to the fortifications. But would have been bare togive clear lines offire
the next great era ofbuilding at Windsor was during a siege.
to be directed by William o\ Wykcham and
William of Wynford. master mason, for
Below Theprocession during the installation of Bottom The Round Tower at Windsor, seen on
new knights ofthe Order ofthe Carter at the right, wasfounded by Henry II in the
St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle. twelfth century.
King Edward III. Wykeham was already
Master ofthe King's Works, but thanks to his
success at Windsor, he was created Bishop of
Winchester. It was clear that Windsor had
madehisreputationandcareer. Theambiguous
inscription, Hoc fecit Wykeham 1356, still to
be seen on the wall of one ofthe towers, can
be taken to mean either "Wykeham made
this" or, as King Edward angrily thought,
"This made Wykeham".
Apart from the Winchester Tower and the
so-called Norman Gateway, little of this
fourteenth-century work survives, most ofthe
state apartments being in the house on the
north terrace, built for Charles II and his
queen, Catherine ofBraganza, by the architect
Hugh May. But the name ofKing Edward
III
is still highly honored at Windsor as the
founder, in 1346, ofthe famous Order of the