Travel – Windsor Castle (Part Two)

Posted on April 14, 2015 by barbara

Windsor Castle has been an official Royal residence for 39 British monarchs including the present Queen Elizabeth II. In Windsor Castle – Part One, I discussed the history of Windsor Castle dating back over 1000 years to when it was built shortly after the Norman Conquest. In Part Two, I will discuss the architecture of the main buildings and give a short tour of some of the rooms inside Windsor Castle as well as a brief description of St. George’s Chapel.

In general, Queen Elizabeth frequently spends weekends at Windsor Castle when she is not required to be in London for formal appearances or special occasions. The castle is located about 22 miles from Buckingham Palace, the monarch’s official London residence. In the spring, every year during the Easter season (April – March), the Queen will remain at the castle for several weeks. In June the Order of the Garter ceremony takes place at St. George’s Chapel and prior to the service a luncheon is held in the Waterloo Chamber in Windsor Castle. The Royal Ascot horse races are also held in June and of course the Queen, Prince Philip and the other members of the Royal family attend the festivities. At various times throughout the year Windsor Castle is also used to host State Visits for foreign heads of state and diplomatic dignitaries.

A tour of Windsor Castle

Windsor Caste is a British Royal residence located on 13 acres in Berkshire about 22 miles from Buckingham Palace, London. The castle consists of three distinct sections known as the Middle Ward, the Upper Ward and the Lower Ward. The ancient fortifications were built as a line of defensive by William the Conqueror, a Royal palace was first built and then expanded over several centuries with an adjacent small town with shops and a nearby railroad station.

The Middle Ward

The Middle Ward is considered the heart of Windsor Castle with a stone tower, known as the keep, which is set upon a large mound. The mound is approximately 50 feet high and the keep, fittingly called the Round Tower, is 30 feet across and was originally built in 1170 by King Henry II. Throughout the years it has been rebuilt several times and is currently being used to store the Royal Archives. To the east of the Round Tower is the Norman Gatehouse which was built in the 14^th century and features a vaulted ceiling decorated with medieval carvings and it serves as an impressive entrance into the Upper Ward of Windsor Castle.

The Upper Ward

The Upper Ward is surrounded by a wall made of Bagshot Heath stone which encloses several buildings forming a central quadrangle. In this area of Windsor Castle the State Apartments are located on the north side with the private rooms of the Royal Family to the south side. Adjacent to the Upper Ward is the North Terrace which overlooks the River Thames and was built in the 17^th century by King Henry VIII.

Visitor tours enter the State Apartments through the doors off the North Terrace. During the reign of King Charles II the State Apartments were renovated to rival the rooms of Versailles in France, the ceilings were originally painted by Antonio Verrio and decorative carvings by Grinling Gibbons. Today, the State Apartments are furnished with artwork from the Royal Collections, including paintings by Rembrandt and Rubens.

The Grand Staircase features a timbered lantern ceiling which provides plenty of light and a stone base comprising of four stone arches. Located on the landing of the Grand Staircase is a large marble statue of King George VI by Francis Chantrey and several artfully arranged military weapons hanging on the walls and suits of armor displayed. After descending the Grand Staircase, visitors enter the Grand Vestibule with a beautiful plaster fan vaulted ceiling accented with foliage and angels created by Francis Bernasconi. To the left is a large marble statue of Queen Victoria depicted with her collie named Sharp, the statue is by J.E. Boehm. Also displayed in the Grand Vestibule are more military arms and positioned against the walls are several Gothic-style cabinets displaying another military collection including the lead bullet that killed Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson in the Battle of Trafalgar which established the naval supremacy of Britain during the eighteenth century.

The next set of State Apartments rooms were designed by Jeffry Wyatville during the reign of King Charles II. This area of Windsor Castle was originally used for State officials and visiting dignitaries; later guest accommodations were moved to the south side of the Castle. Today, visitors on the Windsor Castle tour will pass through the Ante Throne Room and into the King’s Drawing Room. During the 19^th century the King’s Drawing Room was known as the Rubens Room because Prince Albert decorated this room with several paintings by the renowned Flemish Baroque painter Peter Paul Rubens which are part of the permanent Royal Collection. The room also features an elaborate plaster ceiling decorated with the coat of arms of King George IV and the Garter Star. The carved cornice and the paneled doors were created by Grinling Gibbons and the Siena marble chimneypiece was designed by Wyatville. (Royal Note: The bay windows in the King’s Drawing Room offer visitors a great view of Eton located across the River Thames where just a few years ago both Prince William and Prince Harry attended the elite boarding school)

Completing the King’s suite of rooms are the King’s Bed Chamber, the King’s Dressing Room, the King’s Closet and the King’s Dining Room. The first of two rooms of note is the King’s Bed Chamber which features walls covered in red damask, a plaster ceiling decorated with the Stuart coat of arms, a carved cornice by Gibbons and a white marble chimneypiece by William Chambers that was originally used in Buckingham House. The elaborate bed by French woodworker Georges Jacob is draped with green and purple fabric similar to those used when French Emperor Napoleon III came for a State visit in 1855; the intertwined initials of both Napoleon and his Empress Eugenie are embroidered on a fabric panel at the foot of the bed.

The second room of note is the King’s Dining Room originally used by King Charles II when he dined in front of the pubic on specific days of the week. But unlike the other rooms of the State Apartments that had ceilings painted by Verrio, in Windsor Castle there are only three that have survived, and this one appropriately depicts a banquet of the gods featuring magnificent fruit, fowl and fish paintings. Once again the intricate wood carvings in the room are by Gibbons and two large Brussel tapestries showing the coat of arms of King William III and Queen Mary II hanging on the walls were designed by Daniel Marot.

The Queen’s suite of rooms in the State Apartments included the Queen’s Audience Chamber, the Queen’s Presence Chamber, the Queen’s Guard Chamber and finally the Queen’s Ballroom. The Queen’s Ballroom is where, during a State Visit to Windsor Castle, visiting foreign heads of State are received by the British monarch and the Diplomatic Corps. This large room was extensively renovated by Wyatville for King William IV and the three beautiful glass chandeliers were originally commissioned by King George III. As mentioned previously, during the reign of Queen Victoria her husband, Prince Albert, grouped many of the paintings in the Royal Collection by the prominent artist to decorate several of the rooms in Windsor Castle and in this case in the Queen’s Ballroom has on display several paintings by the Flemish Baroque artist Anthony Van Dyck including “Charles I in Robes of State” (1636).

Another room visitors will see on the tour of Windsor Castle is the magnificent 180 foot long St. George’s Hall. In the 1820s when Wyatville was renovating this part of Windsor Castle he choose a Gothic-style of decoration with the walls hung with military weapons and suits of armor on display. The original plaster ceiling had been created to resemble wooden beams and decorated with the coat of arms of the Knights of the Order of the Garter. Then, several centuries later, in 1992 the Windsor Castle fire completely destroyed the ceiling and the east wall of St. George’s Hall. (More on the 1992 Windsor Castle Fire later in this post) A new oak hammerbeam roof was constructed and the shields of the Knights of the Garter were painstakingly recreated and repositioned on the new ceiling. (Royal Note: Another important addition which was part of the restoration is an equestrian figure positioned at the east end St. George’s Hall known as the King’s Champion. In centuries past the King’s Champion would ride into the Coronation Banquet in Westminster Hall and throw down his gauntlet three times in a challenge to anyone that would deny the new monarch, the last time this was done was at the Coronation of King George IV in 1821.

The Windsor Castle tour continues into the Semi-State Apartments which were originally the private apartments created for King George IV by the architect Wyatville The rooms of the Semi-State Apartments include the Lantern Lobby, the Green Drawing Room, the Crimson Drawing Room, the State Dining Room, the Grand Reception Room, the Garter Throne Room and the Waterloo Chamber. Unfortunately these rooms were severely damaged by the fire of 1992, later to be completely restored, and are currently used by the present Queen for official entertaining when in residence at Windsor Castle. Below are highlighted some of the rooms of the Semi-State Apartments.

One room of note is the Lantern Lobby which is located on the former site of Queen Victoria’s Private Chapel and the unique octagonal-shaped room is at the northeast corner of the Castle situated between St. George’s Hall and the Royal Family Apartments. It is here where the devastating 1992 fire of Windsor Castle started and a stone plaque commemorates the event and notes the date of the completion of the five year restoration. The former chapel was completely gutted and eight oak columns support an intricate Gothic-style vaulted ceiling with a central lantern. The inlaid floor is set in English marble and features the Garter Star in the center of the room.

Another room in the Semi-State Apartments, which can be seen from the Crimson Drawing Room, is the Green Drawing Room. This room survived the 1992 fire but was heavily damaged by the water used to extinguish the blaze. The beautiful Axminster carpet was originally displayed at the Great Exhibition of 1851 as a fine example of English manufacturing before it was installed in the Green Drawing Room during the reign of Queen Victoria, the carpet survived the fire but it is in such a fragile condition that the room is closed to visitors on the Windsor Castle tour. (Royal Note: The Green Drawing Room is the setting of the painting “The Family of Queen Victoria” which was painted in 1887 by Laurtis Regner Tuxen to commemorate the occasion of the Queen’s Jubilee and features Queen Victoria and her large extended family)

The Garter Throne Room is one of the most historic rooms in Windsor Castle and this is where for centuries the new Knights and Ladies of the Order of the Garter are invested by the British monarch before their installation ceremony in St. George’s Chapel. The previous painted ceiling by Verrio was replaced by a moulded plaster ceiling designed by Wyatville which appropriately features the insignia of the Order of the Garter. At one end of the room is a Giltwood canopy which dates back to the late 18^th century which is hung with beautiful velvet hangings. On a raised platform sits a Giltwood throne originally made for the 1953 Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and hung in the Garter Throne Room is a State portrait by James Gunn which depicts the Queen dressed in her Coronation robes and dress.

The Waterloo Chamber is one of the largest rooms in Windsor Castle and it is dedicated to the 1815 military defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte at Waterloo by British forces which were led by the Duke of Wellington. Wyattville had the previous Horn Court of King Edward III enclosed with a ceiling designed to resemble the timbers of a ship. The paneled walls were created by Gringling Gibbons. The Indian carpet, said to be the largest seamless carpet in existence, was created to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee and luckily the immense carpet was able to be saved during the 1992 fire when it took 50 soldiers to roll-up and remove it from Windsor Castle.

King George IV commissioned Thomas Lawrence to paint portraits of the monarchs, statesman and military commanders who contributed to the victory over Napoleon at Waterloo. The large portrait of the 1^st Duke of Wellington hangs on the east wall of the Waterloo Chamber and additional portraits hung around the room included Tsar Alexander I of Russia, King William III of Prussia and Emperor Francis I of Austria and Pope Pius VII as well as Emperor Napoleon II.

Set in the center of the Waterloo Chamber, running almost the entire length of the room, is the massive mahogany dining table created by Thomas Dowbiggin in 1846. Every year in June, Queen Elizabeth holds the Garter luncheon for the Knights and Ladies of the Order of the Garter. The magnificent tables is beautifully set with wonderful gilt silver, china place settings from the historic Royal Collection and elaborate floral decorations for the fifty to sixty invited guests.

The Lower Ward

The Lower Ward of Windsor Castle is located just west of the Round Tower through the Norman and is divided into two areas, the College of St. George comprising of residences for the Dean and Canons of Windsor located in the northern section and the historic St. George’s Chapel located in the southern section of the Lower Ward. The Gothic-style St. George’s Chapel completed in the 16^th century is considered the spiritual home of the Order of the Knights of the Garter and is a Royal Peculiar meaning that it owes allegiance directly to the Sovereign. The interior wooden choir stalls have brass plates bearing the cost of arms of the individual Knights of the Garter from the past six centuries. Within St. George’s Chapel are the tombs of ten Sovereigns; including Henry VIII and two of his six wives, Catherine of Aragon and Jane Seymour, and King Charles I. In 2002, the funeral of Princess Margaret, the sister of Queen Elizabeth, took place at the Chapel and a few months later that same year Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother was buried beside her husband, King George VI. On a more joyful occasion, in 1999 Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones were married in St. George’s Chapel and in 2005 the dedication and prayer service of Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales and Camilla Parker Bowles, the Duchess of Cornwall after they were married in a civil ceremony at the Windsor Guildhall. (For more information on St. George’s Chapel and the Order of the Garter, please click on the links)

Windsor Castle - St. George's Chapel exterior

Windsor Castle - St. George's Chapel interior

Other Windsor Castle points of interest

Queen Mary’s Dollhouse –

Displayed in a special room located in Windsor Castle is the Queen Mary’s Dollhouse which is considered one of the largest and most famous dollhouse in the world. It was originally built for Queen Mary, the Royal Consort of King George V, who is the grandmother of the current Queen Elizabeth and it was built between 1921 and 1924 by one of the leading British architects of the time, Edwin Lutyens, as a gift from the British people. It is a wonderful example of a miniature aristocrat’s house created on the scale of 1:12 (one inch to one foot). The house is filled with thousands of details, such as furniture, draperies and carpets which were made by finest English craftsmen and the dollhouse also is complete with electricity for lights, running hot and cold water and fully equipped bathrooms. The library is filled with original stories by well-known writers such as Arthur Conan Doyle, J.M Barrie and Rudyard Kipling which are bound into miniature books. In addition, the dollhouse is filled with fine china and silver, monogrammed linens and even miniature cars in the garage with engines that actually work. The dollhouse also features a hidden garden that is revealed when a large drawer beneath the main building is opened, the garden is a traditional English garden complete with miniature greenery and garden tools.

The 1992 Fire at Windsor Castle

The former site of Queen Victoria’s Private Chapel is where the 1992 disastrous Windsor Castle fire started and it has been reported that a work light had fallen and set fire to the curtains near the altar causing the fire that would quickly spread to other areas of the Castle. More than 200 firefighters battled the fire for over 12 hours and it was the worst disaster in the castle’s history. Luckily when the fire was first detected the castle staff was able to empty the rooms of many valuable paintings and decorative pieces. During the lengthy five year restoration process to repair the fire damage, the rooms in this area of Windsor Castle were rebuilt to resemble their original appearance using modern materials and concealing modern structural improvements whenever possible. It was a very costly project and at first it was said that the British taxpayers would finance the restoration but the public was outraged at the idea. Ultimately, it was decided that both Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle would be partially opened for seasonal tours to raise the funds required for the restoration project. On November 20, 1997 Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip held a ball to mark their 50^thwedding anniversary and officially reopen Windsor Castle.

Travel – Windsor Castle (Part One)

Posted on April 9, 2015 by barbara

Windsor Castle is a British Royal residence located about 22 miles from Buckingham Palace, the monarch’s official London residence. Because of the relatively close location to the city, Queen Elizabeth frequently spends her weekends there when she is not required to be in London for formal appearances or special occasions. In Windsor Castle Part One, I will discuss the history of Windsor Castle which dates back over 1000 years to when it was built shortly after the Norman Conquest. In Part Two, I will discuss the architecture of the main buildings and give a short tour of some of the rooms inside the castle as well as St. George’s Chapel and the surrounding grounds of Windsor Great Park.

The history of Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle was built by William the Conqueror when he was establishing a line of defensive fortifications around London shortly after the Norman Conquest in 1066. The site for Windsor Castle was located within an easy 20 mile march from the London and conveniently positioned on the River Thames, which at the time, was a main medieval route through England. The castle was also located near Windsor Forest which had been a royal hunting preserve used by the previous Saxon kings. The first building constructed on the site was a wooden structure known as a keep, which is a fortified tower built within a castle, set on the top of a man-made mound and protected by an outer wall. A second structure was later built to the east forming what is known as the Upper Ward and several years later a third structure was built to the west, known as the Lower Ward, thereby enclosing the entire castle.

The first royal resident to use Windsor Castle was King Henry I (reign 1100-1135). During his time, the mound on which the original keep was built had begun to collapse and it was reinforced with timber supports and stone, also a low protective wall was added. Later, King Henry II (reign 1154-1189) ordered an extensive refurbishment of Windsor Castle. The original wooden keep was completely replaced with a stone structure and the mound was again reinforced with a new massive stone foundation. The wooden walls surrounding the Upper Ward where replaced with a stone walls and the King’s Gate was built. The interior castle buildings were also completely reconstructed in stone.

Then, during the reign of King John (1199-1216) Windsor Castle was besieged, meaning armed forces surround the castle, in 1214 during the time known as the revolt of the English Barons. From Windsor Castle, King John held negotiations to settle the disagreements before he eventually signed the Magna Carta in nearby Runnymede in 1215. A year later, the castle was again under attack by the baronial troops which were then aided by the French, Windsor Castle held and the outside forces were defeated. But, during the second siege, the castle was severely damaged and extensive repairs were required to strengthen its defenses, the construction lasted from 1216 to 1221. At that time, the stone walls of the Lower Ward were rebuilt and three new towers were constructed; the Curfew, the Garter and the Salisbury towers. The Middle Ward was also heavily reinforced and an additional stone wall was built with the Edward II tower at one end and the Henry III tower on the other end.

King Henry III (reign 1216-1272) built a lavish palace in the Upper Ward in the years from 1240 to 1263 and Windsor Castle eventually became his favorite residence. New buildings were built in the Lower Ward which included the Lady Chapel, a large 70 foot long chapel built on the south side, and repairs were done to the Great Hall with a new kitchen; but unfortunately the Great Hall was destroyed by a fire in 1296. With these new changes made to Windsor Castle there became a distinct division between the Upper Ward which became an area that was part of the royal family private residence and the Lower Ward which provided a public space for royal ceremonies and other events.

During the reign of King Edward III (1327–1377) he established the Order of the Garter in 1348. Since Windsor Castle would be the headquarters of this new order, the King planned to have the castle completely renovated to reflect a more lavish style. Between 1350 and 1377, an exorbitant amount of money was spent on the construction of the new castle and on the interior design with expensive furnishings and other decorations. In addition, three new buildings were built; the Little Cloister, King’s Cloister and a Kitchen Court in the Upper Ward. In the front of the main portion of the castle; the St. George’s Hall, the Great Chamber and the Rose Tower was constructed and designed for the king’s private use at the west end of the castle. In the Lower Ward the Lady’s Chapel was enlarged and renovated.

St. George’s Chapel, which had begun construction in 1461, was finally completed during the reign of King Henry VII (1485-1509). St. George’s Chapel was built in a Gothic style of architecture in the Lower Ward. St. George’s Chapel is dedicated to the patron saint of the Order of the Carter, which was an organization that had become inactive during the previous century but had recently been revived. The Order is the oldest British order of chivalry and St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle is where the traditional Garter ceremony takes place; today the ceremony is still performed every June. (For more information on St. George’s Chapel, please click on the link to Windsor Castle – Part Two)

At the beginning of the 16^th century, the young King Henry VIII (1509-1547) was in power. In addition to Hampton Court, King Henry also frequently visited Windsor Castle. In keeping with his active lifestyle of hunting and jousting, the king also enjoyed the game of tennis and he had a tennis court constructed near the base of the mound near the Round Tower in the Upper Ward in 1510. Originally, due to his close association with Cardinal Wolsey, the King had commissioned the Lady Chapel to hold an elaborate mausoleum built for his closest spiritual and political adviser upon Wolsey’s death. After Wolsey’s failed in an attempt to seek an annulment for the King and his first wife, he quickly fell out of favor and was eventually striped of his power. He died at Leicester Abbey before his scheduled execution and was buried in the abbey’s church. The mausoleum was never completed and when King Henry died in 1547 he was buried in a vault under the floor originally intended for Wolsey and it is marked by a simple black gravestone in the Lady Chapel section of the St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.

In 1642, as England broke into a Civil War, Parliament became concerned that the troops of King Charles I (1625-1649) would advance on London and Windsor Castle was seized to protect the route along the River Thames. Unfortunately, with troops occupying the castle, looting of many valuable gold and silver items were taken including the unfinished tomb of King Henry VIII. Eventually the Earl of Essex used Windsor Castle as his headquarters and also parts of buildings were used as a prison to hold captured Royalists and the Lady Chapel held guns and ammunition. In 1647, King Charles was taken prisoner and brought to the castle under house arrest before his execution in 1649; he was later buried in St. George’s Chapel.

At the beginning of her long reign, Queen Victoria (1837-1901) and Prince Albert made Windsor Castle their principal royal residence and it was frequently used for entertaining foreign diplomats and nobility. One major change to Windsor Castle came in 1848 when Parliament passed a law which limited public access to the grounds of the castle and roads were re-routed or closed within Windsor Park to allow a measure of privacy for the Royal family. Modern improvements were eventually made to Windsor Castle during this time with interior running water provided by a nearby reservoir and initially only limited electric lighting was installed because the Queen preferred candlelight. After the death of Prince Albert in December 1861, Queen Victoria made the room where he died a shrine and in her state of exaggerated mourning she ordered that it remain unchanged until her own death several years later. Ultimately an elaborate mausoleum was built at Frogmore in Windsor Park as a lasting tribute to the Queen’s beloved husband and that it where his body is interred.

After the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, her son became King Edward VII (1901-1910). The British monarchy moved from one that had been suspended in a period of prolonged mourning with a relatively somber court to one that became extremely active with almost constant activity and entertaining. As a result Windsor Castle underwent a massive interior redecoration which eliminated the Victorian-style clutter and replaced with furnishing in Edwardian-style elegance. Finally, the room were Prince Albert had died and in which Queen Victorian had made into a shrine all those years ago was finally cleared. More modern conveniences were added during this time, such as electricity in all the rooms along with central heating throughout the castle and the installation of telephone lines which made communication so much easier and quicker.

After the death of his father, King George V (1910-1936) set about further re-decorating the interior of Windsor Castle. Queen Mary had a passion for collecting antiques and many pieces of furniture, paintings and other decorative items were acquired during this time. The Queen also enjoyed collecting miniatures and the famous dollhouse which is still currently on display within a room at the castle. It was designed by renowned architect Edwin Lutyens and furnished with miniature furniture and items made by British craftsmen. (From more information about Queen Mary’s dollhouse, please click on the link to Windsor Castle – Part Two)

In 1936, after the death of King George V his eldest son became King Edward VIII in January. Unfortunately by December of that same year he had abdicated the throne with a radio speech broadcast from one of the rooms in Windsor Castle and his brother went on to become King George VI (1936-1952). During his reign, King George revived the annual Garter Service which holds their annual ceremony annually in June at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. (For more information of the Order of the Garter, please click on the link)

During World War II, Windsor Castle was prepared for war with tightened security. Since the castle would be a major target for the German bombers, the structure was reinforced with sandbags to prevent any significant damage and the windows were blacked-out as a precaution. In addition, valuable artwork and fragile items such as the crystal chandeliers were either removed or stored for safe keeping. Although the King and the Queen remained at Buckingham Palace during the duration of the war their children, Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret, were moved to the safety of Windsor during the worst of the German bombings of London which became known as “the Blitz”. The King and Queen frequently joined their daughters at Windsor on the weekends. After the war was over it took several years to restore Windsor Castle, repairing any damages and returning the interior to its former grand style and pre-war condition.

After the death of her father, Queen Elizabeth II (1952 to the present) decided at the start of her reign that she and her family would frequently spend weekends at Windsor Castle when she is not required to be in London for formal appearances or special occasions. Throughout the years, she has ordered continued maintenance of the castle and when necessary minor repairs to the exterior of the buildings as well as the grounds and periodic renovations of the interior rooms of the castle.

Then on November 22 1992, Windsor Castle was severely damaged in a major fire started while the Private Chapel in the State Apartments was being renovated. It has been reported that a work light had fallen and set fire to the curtains near the altar causing the fire that would quickly spread to other areas of the castle. More than 200 firefighters battled the fire for over 12 hours and in the end nine State Rooms had been extensively damaged and several other rooms also sustained minor damages, it was the worst disaster in the castle’s history. Luckily when the fire was first detected the castle staff was able to empty the rooms of many valuable paintings and decorative pieces. The five year restoration was very costly and at first it was said that the British taxpayers would finance the project but the public was outraged. Ultimately, it was decided that both Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle would be partially opened for seasonal tours to raise the funds required for the restoration project. On November 20, 1997 Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip held a ball to mark their 50^thwedding anniversary and officially reopen Windsor Castle.

St George's Hall, Windsor Castle Photo: EZM

For additional information, please check out Windsor Castle – Part Two which discusses the architecture of the buildings and give a short tour of some of the rooms inside the castle as well as St. George’s Chapel and the surrounding grounds of Windsor Great Park.

Personal travel note: When we visited England in 1998, my son and I were able to tour Windsor Castle but not Buckingham Palace. I highly recommend if you have an interest in British history or the Royal Family these tours are a wonderful idea.

The House of Faberge

Posted on March 31, 2015 by barbara

The House of Faberge is known for designing the beautiful jeweled Russian Imperial Eggs which were created for the Russian Tsars, Alexander III and Nicholas II, between 1885 and 1917. 54 Imperial Eggs were completed during that time and only 42 are known to have survived with many displayed in museums throughout the world or held in personal collections. (For readers interested in more detailed information about the Faberge Eggs, please click on the link to the previous blog post)

In this post I will discuss the men behind the House of Faberge and the history of the company. In addition to the Imperial Eggs, Faberge created a variety of items ranging from jewelry pieces to decorative boxes and desk sets to cigarette cases and perfume bottles to photograph frames and timepieces to semi-precious stone and floral figurines. I will show some examples of these beautiful pieces. But as most things will come to an end, I will discuss what happened to the House of Faberge and to Peter Carl Faberge and his family in the years after the Russian revolution.

A brief history of the House of Faberge

In the early 17^th century, the Favris family was living in the small village of La Bouteille located in northern France. After the revocation of the Edict of Nantes by King Louis XIV hostilities erupted between the Catholics and the Protestants (also known as Huguenots) and for this reason the Favris family left the country in 1865 because of religious persecution. Over time, as the family progressed east across Europe settling near Berlin, Germany and then in the early 1800s in Pernau in the Baltic province of Livonia, the name of Favris eventually changed to Faberge.

In the 1830s, Gustav Faberge (1814–1893) moved to Saint Petersburg located in Imperial Russia to work as a goldsmith, When his apprenticeship with Andreas Spiegel was completed Gustav had earned the title of Master Goldsmith. In 1842 he opened a small retail jewelry store. Later that year he married Charlotte Jungstedt and they had a son named Peter Carl who was born in 1846. Throughout the following years The House of Faberge proved to be a very prosperous business allowing Gustav to retire in 1860 and the family moved to Dresden located in southern Germany. The Saint Petersburg store in Russia remained open and managed by Peter Hiskias Pendin. After arriving in Dresden, Gustav and Charlotte had a second son named Agathon who was born in 1862.

Meanwhile, Gustav’s oldest son, Peter Carl, had completed his formal education in Dresden and was gaining his business experience by serving his apprenticeship under the guidance of renowned goldsmiths in Germany, France and England. Peter Carl then returned to Saint Petersburg to begin his work at the House of Faberge which had now developed a respected business reputation for quality work and craftsmanship that attracted numerous affluent customers. By 1881, the company had outgrown their small store and moved to a large building on the Bolshaya Morskaya in Saint Petersburg.

House of Faberge - Saint Petersburg circa 1842

In 1882, with the death of his mentor Pendin, Peter Carl took over sole responsibility for the House of Faberge. By this time, his younger brother Agathon had joined him in Saint Petersburg and he was a talented designer who created numerous sketches and wax models so that every jeweled piece would be perfectly crafted with special attention given to every minute detail. At the Pan-Russian Exhibition in Moscow, the brothers caused a sensation with their finely crafted jewelry and decorative items, they received the prestigious gold medal. Tsar Alexander III was so impressed with some of the Faberge pieces displayed at the Exhibition that he granted them the title of Goldsmith by special appointment to the Imperial Crown. Faberge was given full access to impressive Hermitage Museum collection which inspired him to revive the lost art of enameling.

In 1885, Tsar Alexander III commissioned the House of Faberge to create the first of what would become known collectively as the Imperial Eggs. Easter is an important celebration in the Russian Orthodox Church and wealthy members of Russian society had started the custom of giving expensive jeweled eggs. That year the Tsar wanted to give a special gift to his wife, Empress Maria Fedorovna. The first Faberge Egg created, known as the Hen Egg, was crafted of gold with a white enameled shell which opened to reveal a series of delightful surprises. The first was a golden yolk which opened to reveal a golden hen which also opened to display a miniature replica of the Imperial Crown created in diamonds and rubies. (Currently, all that remains is the outer gold and enamel shell with the golden yolk and unfortunately the golden hen and miniature crown have been lost.)

When this first egg proved to be a success with the Empress, the Tsar commissioned Faberge to create additional Imperial Easter Eggs every year with the only requirement being that each would contain a hidden surprise. Faberge was given complete creative freedom and his designs became more elaborate and intricate with each passing year. When Alexander III died in 1894 his son Nicholas II continued the family tradition and presented a Faberge egg to both his wife, Empress Alexandra and his mother, now Dowager Empress Maria, every year until 1916. A total of 54 Imperial Eggs were completed and only 42 are known to have survived with many currently displayed in museums throughout the world or held in personal collections. (For readers interested in more detailed information about the Faberge Eggs, please click on the link to the previous blog post)

The Imperial Eggs may be the best known items made by the House of Faberge but with their fine designs and expert techniques they also created numerous types of decorative art objects for the home as well as continuing with their line of exquisite jewelry pieces. Made in gold or silver, enameled and embellished with precious and semi-precious jewels some of the items created were decorative boxes and desk sets, cigarette cases, perfume bottles, photograph frames and timepieces. Shown below are a few examples of these types of items.

Some of the most popular items created by Faberge were their miniature carvings made from semi-precious stones and embellished with gold or silver and semi-precious stones. Some of these hardstone carvings included animal figures such as elephants and pigs. Other items included flower sculptures which featured intricate carved semi-precious stone flowers set in small vases with clear rock crystal or quartz used to simulate the water in the vase. Shown below are a few examples of these types of items.

Faberge hardstone elephant with original box

Faberge - lilies of the valley in a vase

Business was so successful that the House of Faberge opened additional stores in Moscow, Odessa, Kiev and London. With over 500 craftsmen and designers in their employment, Faberge produced between 150,000 to 200,000 objects between 1882 and 1917. Faberge’s work was put on display to represent Imperial Russia at the 1900 World’s Fair in Paris. The House of Faberge did not compete in the event but it still received a gold medal in recognition of their superior work. Peter Carl Faberge was given the most prestigious French award of a knight of the Legion of Honor.

In 1917, in the midst of World War I, Imperial Russia was in a state of crisis due to poor working conditions, high inflation, social unrest and severe poverty. On March 15, 1917 Tsar Nicholas II was forced to abdicate and he and his family were placed under house arrest. By the fall of 1917, the Russian provisional government was overthrown by the Bolsheviks and by the spring of 1918 civil war had broken out across the country. On July 17, 1918, the Tsar and his family were murdered by the Bolsheviks in Yekaterinburg, Russia. This tragedy brought about the end of more than three centuries of the Russian Imperial rule by the Romanov dynasty.

During this turbulent time, Peter Carl Faberge and his family fled to various parts of Europe, two of his sons were imprisoned in Russia. The new government eventually seized control of the House of Feberge and the stores were ransacked and their contents disappeared. The contents of the Russian Imperial palaces were confiscated by the Bolsheviks. Large amounts of Imperial gold, silver and jewels were inventoried, packed in crates and taken to the Kremlin Armory in Moscow by order of Vladimir Lenin. Most of the Faberge Imperial Eggs went to the Moscow, some had disappeared during the uncontrolled looting of the palaces and the Dowager Empress was able to escape with one Faberge egg, the Order of St. George Egg.

By 1927, Joseph Stalin had come to power in Russia and the vast Imperial treasures were rediscovered in the storage rooms of the Kremlin. Desperately in need of financing to support his new communist regime Stalin ordered that the Imperial Crown Jewels be appraised and then sold. In a strange twist of fate, Peter Carl Faberge’s son, Agathon, who was currently being held in a Russian prison, was released to evaluate the value of the individual pieces of the Imperial treasures held at the Kremlin Armory. Between 1930 and 1933, fourteen of the Faberge Imperial Eggs were sold and sent to Paris and London.

Ten of the Faberge Eggs were bought by Armand Hammer, an American entrepreneur, a socialist sympathizer and a personal friend of Lenin. He recognized that the treasures of the Romanov dynasty needed to be preserved and he purchased thousands of items including Russian jewels and artwork. His intent was to sell them in the United States but at the time the country was in the midst of the Depression and at first there was very little interest in purchasing such expensive items. Some of the Faberge Eggs were sold at auction for only four or five hundred dollars. Finally after several years the quality of these magnificent pieces of art was fully recognized and the price dramatically increased and the Faberge Eggs are now valued in the millions of dollars. Throughout the years many wealthy Americans and Europeans have acquired the Faberge Eggs, some of those collectors have included Marjorie Merriweather Post and Malcolm Forbes. Currently of the 54 Imperial Eggs made by Faberge, only ten remain in the Kremlin. The remaining ones are displayed in museums throughout the world or held in private collections and eight of the Imperial Eggs are still missing.

The personal life of Carl Faberge and his family

Peter Carl Faberge married Augusta Jacobs in 1872 and they had four sons: Eugene, Agathon, Alexander and Nicolas.

After the Bolsheviks revolution in 1917, with the help of the British Embassy, Peter Carl Faberge escaped from Russia traveling by train to Germany. He was later joined by his wife, Augusta and their oldest son, Eugene who had also escaped from Russia. While in Germany, Peter Carl finally received confirmation that the Tsar and his family had been brutally murdered by the Bolsheviks. Peter Carl was devastated at the loss of his personal friend, with the additional loss of several other members of the Imperial Family and the confiscation of the House of Faberge by the new government, Peter Carl realized he would never return to his beloved Russia. His family was very concerned when he became gravely ill and he traveled with his son Eugene to receive medical treatment in Lausanne Switzerland, his wife remained in Germany. Sadly, Peter Carl died in 1920 and followed by his wife Augusta in 1925. Several years later, in 1929, Eugene took his father’s ashes from Lausanne and had them buried in his mother’s grave at the Grand Jas Cemetery in Cannes, France.

Eugene (1874–1960) the oldest son eventually moved to France in 1924 and opened Faberge et Cie in Paris with his brother Alexander. The new store had only a modest success making and selling jewelry items in the familiar Faberge style. To distinguish their pieces from those made in Russia before the Revolution, they used the trademark Faberge, Paris whereas the original Russian company’s trademark was just Faberge. As a lucrative sideline, the store also repaired and restored the original items made by the House of Faberge that were fortunate to have survived the former Imperial Russia. Eugene died in Paris, France in 1960. (There are no records of any marriage or children)

Agathon (1876–1951) the second son was imprisoned by the Bolsheviks and after the revolution, under orders from the new government, he was released in 1921 to work on appraising and cataloging the Imperial Royal Crown Jewels collection while under constant supervision and surveillance. Eventually, Agathon with his first wife Maria (Borzova) and their son Oleg were able to escape from Russia in 1928. He eventually settled in Finland, studied philately and lived a relatively quiet life. Agathon remarried and his second wife, Lydia (Trueber) had five sons named Agathon, Peter, Fedor, Igor and Rurik. Agathon Faberge died in Helsinki, Finland in 1951.

Alexander (1877–1952) the third son was also imprisoned but only briefly because he managed to escape from prison after bribing the guards. He eventually moved to France in 1924 and opened Faberge et Cie in Paris with his brother, Eugene. He married his first wife Nina (Belicheva) and had a daughter named Irina. He married his second wife and they had a son also named Alexander. Alexander Faberge died in Paris, France in 1952. (The Faberge et Cie continued in business until 2001)

Nicolas (1884–1939) the fourth son went to England in 1906 to work at the House of Faberge location in London and he was still there in 1917 at the time of the Russian revolution. Afterwards, he chose to remain in England and not join his family in Europe. He married Marion Tattershall and they had no children. Later, Nicolas became a photographer and he had a relationship with Doris Cladish whom he had previously met when they worked together at the Bond Street branch of Fabergé. Doris and Nicolas Fabergé had a son Theo in 1922. Nicolas died in Paris France in 1969.

Travel – Mega Caverns, Louisville, Kentucky

Posted on March 29, 2015 by jeff0006

Hello everyone, it’s Jeff again and this time I’m posting about our recent trip to Louisville, Kentucky and a visit to the Louisville Mega Cavern. (Barbara may be planning on writing a post on the caverns, but I thought I would beat her to it!). The Louisville Mega Cavern offers visitors several adventure opportunities, such as zip lining rope courses, it is a little pricey but alot of fun!! In this post I will talk about the history of the caverns and the available entertainment.

History of the Mega Caverns in Louisville, Kentucky The mine was first known as the Louisville Crushed Stone Company in the 1930 which provided construction material for the building of the roads and bridges around the Midwest. The mine shut down in 1972 100 acres of materials had been removed and the space left about 17 miles of underground space. It was purchased in 1989 and it became the Louisville Underground, LLC. which was a company designed to provide ultra-safe, ultra-secure storage.

The caverns are huge, over 4 million square feet and the space was used for several purposes such as a dumping ground / recycling center for inorganic materials, a worm farm, a storage facility for the city’s road salt supply, secure temperature controlled storage and my favorite, a huge civil defense shelter! The caverns were slated to house over 50,000 people should there be a nuclear attack on the United States. The city of Louisville had about 788,000 people at the time it would have only been able to house about 16% of the local population so not everyone was invited. You needed to be on a secret list which included the governor, soldiers from Fort Knox, important people and supposedly Colonel Sanders of KFC fame!

More recently the owners decided to stray away from storage and started installing some first class entertainment! After backfilling some 50-60 feet of the cavern, Louisville Mega Caverns were born. The attractions include a tram ride, “Mega Quest” – a rope adventure area, “Mega Zip” – underground zip lines and opening soon, “Mega Underground Bike Park”. The bike park is a great idea in my mind because it will be available year round – weather will never again be a factor!

The Facility

The facility is a big cavern (cavern, not cave as it is man made) that has been partially filled in over time. It is the largest building in Kentucky and one of the most eco-friendly as the large amount of limestone which provided insulation for keeping the facility at a constant 58 degrees.

There is a decent parking lot close to the entrance and a small covered area, which I assume is where you meet for the tram rides. The entrance takes you down a long hall with posted lists on facts for visitors to read and be entertained. The corridor is made of fairly plain sheetrock with no real embellishments, but it is just getting you to the real entrance. Before you get there however you pass part of the storage area and some really HUGE fans! Those really impressed me. They are probably 15 feet tall!

The entrance to Mega Quest / Mega Zip is quaint, but when you get in the facility is nice. There is a seating area with tables that will fit a large number of people. They section parts off for “private” parties. There is a small gift shop and an area serving snacks and drinks with free refills. Take advantage of this – “mega questers” will get thirsty with all that strenuous activity.

The staff is very nice and helpful and they operate more like a family business that a corporate machine giving the place a very nice feel. I’ll talk a little more about the specifics of each attraction as I get there.

Mega Tram

When we visited Mega Caverns it was winter and the tram was not running, but here is the description stolen shamelessly from their web site:

The Historic Tram Tour will take you on an underground adventure rich in history, geology, mining, recycling, green building technology, and just simply HUGE in scale!

The man-made cavern spans under a number of roadways above and is part of 17 miles of corridors located beneath the city of Louisville, Kentucky. It’s a great tour for all ages—whether you want to learn about science and history or simply want to see what a giant man-made cavern of this magnitude looks like!

You’ll hop on an SUV-pulled tram and be joined by a MEGA Cavern expert who will guide you on your underground adventure. It’s a 60-70 minute tour, strategically lit to enjoy highlights such as:

Some Early Cavern Formations
A Historic Replica of the Cuban Missile Fallout Bunker
A Worm Recycling/Tasting Room
Sights and Facts of the Early Mining Operation
Hear About our Storm Dog and Pigeon Eating Hawk
And More Surprises Wait Around Every Corner!

Mega Quest

Mega Quest was the purpose of our visit. We thought our daughter would enjoy it. Our family enjoys exploring caves (see these posts on Wind and Jewel Caves and Mammoth Cave) I’m guessing the facility was about 9,000 square feet, which would have been impressive in itself, but it was also 20 – 30 feet tall! It was lit with cool blue, red and green lights. It felt like the lights kept changing colors, but I am really not sure about that. You climb around on 76 different challenges with a small zip line on one side of the course. My daughter and her friend spent three hours there and would have continued had they not been so tired!

I was extremely impressed with the safety measures they have in place. First, they provide visitors a helmet and harness, but they go way beyond that. They have a double hooked, self-managed belay system and seriously train everyone to always keep one hook attached. The mechanism is also built to prevent both hooks from being detached at the same time. I felt perfectly safe while my daughter was 30 feet in the air dangling on a thin rope bridge or zipping 100 feet on her own.

They say the course is good for everyone from about 5 to 90, but I think 5 is a bit young and while the course looked fun, I feel it is better geared to the 8 to 18 year old. Of course I am saying this without actually having been on the course myself.

Mega Zip

My daughter and her friend were going to spend three hours on the Mega Quest ropes so I thought I would try something else. Mega Cavern also offers underground zip lining. I had never been zip lining, it was my near my birthday and Barbara encouraged me so I thought “Why not?”. First, let me say I really enjoyed it. I was in a group of 9 people, the max is 12 and it took us a good two hours to go through the course. The guides were experienced, friendly and fun.

The tour starts in the equipment area. There you get your gear on and there is a short practice zip line. As the participant you do nothing, the guides attach all the cables and basically take care of everything. After the practice line you walk quite a way underground, past the entrance and the soon to be opened Bike Park to the first real zip line. I believe the first is called the Highway to Hell. It has fun, campy decorations and it is a fairly long line. I can’t remember the names of the others but they were quite long, one was some 90 feet in the air and the dual racing at the end was fun.

What I do remember was that after the second or third line we mounted platforms and did not touch the ground until the end. Those of you who know me might find this odd, but I am afraid of heights. While we were kept attached to dual guide lines the entire time we were off the ground and were perfectly safe, I struggled with the challenge bridges. I really only felt safe once I was zipping through the darkness which is the part that scares most other people. Go figure…

Bike Park

The latest attraction at Mega Caverns is an underground bike park. It is an off road track designed by Jeff Perkins and offers 40-plus trail lines covering 320,000 square feet. The park is now open (it wasn’t when we were there). Here is the spiel from Mega Caverns:

The only UNDERGROUND bike park in the world
The largest indoor bike park on the planet!!!
No spectators allowed at this time
ADVANCED RESERVATIONS SUGGESTED BUT NOT REQUIRED
WALK-INS WELCOME
320,000 square feet
10 stories or 100 feet underground
Over 45 trails
Bike rental available in April 2015 (not available now)
Helmets are required

Pictures

For the Mega Quest and Zip Lining, probably also for the bikes they offer pictures. They come in two price points – generic and personal. The personal tag costs $10 and you get unlimited pictures. The generic tag takes pictures as well, but they cost more at the end. We purchased the personal tag (which you get to take home), but I was disappointed with the pictures. There were a couple of stock pictures (see below), but most of the pictures of me and my daughter were blurry, too dark, or of someone else or I was looking away. I would recommend sticking with the generic tags and if you get a good picture, pay the price.

Cost

My only complaint, although that is probably too strong a word, with the Mega Caverns is the cost. The zip lining was $80, the Mega Quest was $40. My choice on the pictures added another $10 to that. For the Mega Quest it works out to about $14 an hour which isn’t too bad. At $40 an hour for the zip line it was somewhat expensive, but I would consider doing it again. The gift shop has items of decent quality, but of tourist attraction gift shop prices. The bike park seems to be very reasonably priced.

Summary

Mega Caverns is a fun adventure with something for the whole family. For those who can’t or don’t want to walk there is the tram. For those more adventurous there is Mega Quest and if old / large enough (you need to be at least 75 lbs) there are the zip lines. The cavern has other events, particularly at Christmas and it is a decent value. Both my daughter and I enjoyed our adventures and we will go back. Hopefully Barbara will go on the zip lines with us!

Doris Day’s Birthday

Posted on March 29, 2015 by barbara

Doris Day … she was one of the “it” girls of the 1950s and 1960s. She was an entertainment triple threat meaning that she could sing, dance and act. Doris started her career as a singer with a big band in the early 1940s, later she went to Hollywood where she made many romantic comedies in which she also sang and danced. Doris also received critical acclaim in several dramatic films. When her movie career was coming to an end, she starred in a television series in the late 1960s. Currently, Doris is enjoying her retirement in Northern California and she is an earnest animal activist.

Doris Day was born Doris Kappelhoff on April 3, 1922 (possibly 1923) in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her mother and father were Frederick Kappelhof, a music teacher, and Alma Welz who both came from German immigrant parents. Doris had two older brothers named Richard, (who died before she was born) and Paul. Her parents eventually separated and this did not stop Doris from pursuing her interest in dance but unfortunately a car accident in 1937 caused her legs to be seriously injured and ended her dreams as a professional dancer.

While recovering from her injuries, Doris spent her many idle hours at home listening to the big band music on the radio and she soon discovered she had a talent for singing. Her mother quickly hired a music teacher, remember her parents were separated at this time, and after eight months of lessons Doris took her first professional job as a vocalist on a local radio program. Shortly after her first radio performance, Doris was invited to audition as a singer for Barney Rapp’s small band. He suggested that she change her professional name to the easier sounding Doris Day. Eventually, Doris went onto work for several famous bandleaders such Bob Crosby and Les Brown. It was while Doris was with the Les Brown Band that she recorded a hit song with the group called “Sentimental Journey” which was released in 1945. Her professional singing career was taking off and she quickly recorded six more Top Ten hits before she left the Les Brown Band in 1946, at the time she was the highest paid female band vocalist.

Touring almost continuously and also performing on Bob Hope’s weekly radio program with the Les Brown Band gave her maximum exposure that allowed Doris the opportunity to showcase her singing talent which ultimately lead to her first starring role in a motion picture. The story goes that while she was in Hollywood, her agent arranged for her to attend a party at the home of composer Jule Styne. As was sometimes customary at Hollywood parties, Doris was invited to sing and her rendition of “Embraceable You” impressed not only Styne but also his partner Sammy Cahn and they recommended her for a role in a Warner Brothers film called “Romance on the High Seas. Over the next few years she had roles in several musical films, such as “On Moonlight Bay” and its sequel “By the Light of the Silvery Moon”. In 1953, Doris starred in the film musical, “Calamity Jane” which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Secret Love”. In 1954, under the advice of her third husband Martin Melcher, Doris did not renew her film contract with Warner Brothers.

Doris Day - By the Light of the Silvery Moon

Now under the management of Melcher, Doris took on some more challenging parts in her movies. Her first dramatic role was in the 1955 movie, “Love Me or Leave Me, in which she co-starred with James Cagney and many people in the industry were surprised when she did not receive an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of singer Ruth Etting. Next she went on to work for Alfred Hitchcock in the 1956 film, “The Man Who Knew Too Much” with James Stewart. One of the songs from the movie, “Que Sera, Sera” (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) won an Academy Award for Best Original Song.

In 1959, Doris’ career once again changed directions and she left the darker dramatic roles and took on parts in lighter romantic comedies. The 1959 movie, “Pillow Talk” had her co-starring with Rock Hudson and Tony Randall; she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress but did not win. Later Doris went on to film two more movies with Hudson and Randall, the 1961 “Lover Come Back” and the 1964 “Send Me No Flowers”. In 1960, she took on her last dramatic role in the 1960 mystery-thriller film, “Midnight Lace” co-starring with Rex Harrison. Then, she returned to the popular romantic comedy roles with the 1962 film “That Touch of Mink” co-starring with Cary Grant and two movies with James Garner that were both released in 1963, “The Thrill of It All” and “Move Over, Darling”.

By the end of the 1960s the romantic comedy genre was not as popular with movie audiences. The 1966 film, “The Glass Bottom Boat” proved to be a box office failure. Then in 1967, Doris turned down a part of Mrs. Robinson in “The Graduate” movie because she felt the script’s sexual situations were offensive. She made a few more films and in 1968 her final movie role in “With Six You Get Eggroll” was released. Doris had made 39 films during her movie career and she was one of the world’s biggest movie stars.

During the time Doris was making movies in Hollywood she also continued recording music. From the period of 1945 to 1967, Doris was one of the nation’s most popular and accomplished singers. Starting in 1945, with the Les Brown Band, Doris had several songs in the Top Ten including “Sentimental Journey”. “Secret Love” from the movie “Calamity Jane” was her first big solo record that hit number one on the charts in 1953 and “Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) in 1956 hit number 2.

With the end of her film career virtually coming to a close in the late 1960s, Doris branched out into television. The story goes that after her manager and third husband, Martin Melcher, died suddenly in 1968 and she found out that he and his business partner Jerome Rosenthal had embezzled almost all of Doris’ earnings leaving her on the verge of bankruptcy. Melcher had also committed her to doing a television series and Doris was unhappy about the thought because at the time it would have been considered a backward step down for a popular movie star. Unfortunately she was contractually obligated to precede with the television series, it ran on CBS from September 1968 until March 1973 for five seasons and 128 episodes. Meanwhile, Doris filed a lawsuit against Rosenthal and eventually won settlement of $20 million dollars, the largest civil judgement case in the state of California at the time, but she later settled the case for about $6 million.

Doris received several awards in the years that followed; she received the Cecil B. DeMile Award for Lifetime Achievement Film in 1989. In 2004, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her achievement not only in the entertainment industry but also for her work as an animal activist but she did not attend the ceremony due to her fear of flying. In 2008, she was offered a special tribute from the American Film Institute and also a Kennedy Center Honors tribute but she declined both. She received Grammy Hall of Fame Awards for her three of her most popular records; in 1998 for “Sentimental Journey”, in 1999 for “Secret Love” and recently in 2012 for “Que Sera, Sera”. In 2008, she received a Grammy for Lifetime Achievement in Music but once again she did not attend the ceremony.

After leaving Los Angeles, Doris retired from show business to live in the beautiful city of Carmel, California. She always had an interest in animals and now she reignited her commitment to animal welfare by co-founding the organization, Actors and Others for Animals in 1971. A few years later, Doris started her non-profit organization, the Doris Day Animal Foundation which later partnered with the Humane Society of the United States. Doris lives quietly in Carmel, she owns the Cypress Inn in town, and she enjoys her life with her adopted stray animals.

In regards to Doris Day’s personal life, she published her autobiography, “Doris Day: Her Own Story” co-written with A.E. Hotchner in 1975. In the book, she wrote about her early childhood in Ohio, touring with the Big Bands and later making movies in Hollywood. She also wrote about her three marriages, she later married for a fourth time.

Her first husband, Al Jorden, was a trombonist and they were married from 1941 to 1943. They had one child, a boy named Terrence or better known as “Terry” in 1942. The short marriage was a volatile one and Jorden was said to have been physically abusive, they divorced and Jorden later committed suicide in 1967.

Her second husband, George Weidler, was a saxophonist and they were married from 1946 to 1949. He is responsible for introducing her to Christian Science.

Her third husband was Martin Melcher, who went on to manage Doris’ career and produce several of her movies, and they were married from 1951 until his death in 1968. During that time Melcher adopted Doris’ son, Terry. Terry went on to be a successful musician and record producer but sadly he died in 2004 from melanoma.

Her fourth husband was Barry Comden, a businessman and restaurateur, and they were married from 1976 to 1981, Comden later died in 2009.

The Enchanted Manor

a lifestyle blog by Barbara Jones

Travel – Windsor Castle (Part Two)

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Travel – Mega Caverns, Louisville, Kentucky

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