Friday, April 18, 2014

A to Z Blogging and British Isles Friday: Palaces


In order to combine posts today I needed to come up with an England sort of thing that starts with P. And so that's how I've ended up with palaces!

If you ever go to England (or anywhere in Great Britain.. or even anywhere in Europe) be prepared to see a lot of palaces and castles. Which, by the way, I'm not sure what the difference is except that castles make me think of old ruined buildings and palaces make me think of newer currently used buildings. Am I right? What do you think the difference is?

But regardless, here's hoping you are fascinated with seeing these buildings because it's truly a key part of any British Isles Experience!

Anyway, here's a few pictures of the different castles and palaces we've been able to visit.

Windsor Castle

Bamburg Castle

Blenheim Palace

Edinburgh Castle

Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh

Ollerton Manor

Warwick Castle

York Castle ruins
British Parliament Building
(housed in a former palace)

Tower of London
White Tower

Stirling Castle, Scotland
Buckingham Palace


9 comments:

  1. I was thinking about the differences between castles and palaces this morning, too, when I looked at Jackie's photos of Windsor Castle. Are castles mostly used as a residence and palaces mostly used for government activities and events?

    Terrific photos! I'm really looking forward to seeing castles on our trip to England. I hope to see Nunney Castle. It's ruined, but I have ancestral ties to the Prater family who owned it in the 16th & 17th century.

    Joy's Book Blog

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  2. Now you've got me wondering about the difference between a palace and a castle. Maybe they're from different languages. I'd like to see the castles and palaces in the British Isles one day.
    The View from the Top of the Ladder

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  3. What a great collection of palaces you've visited.

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  4. As far as I'm aware, the difference is that castles are fortified - built for defence - whereas palaces are primarily residential. So to that extent your definition about older/newer is kinda right. But also palaces were thought of as places where top royalty or achbishops could dwell, whereas any old rich type could own a castle.

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  5. "Palace= the official residence of a sovereign, archbishop, bishop, or other exalted person.
    Castle= a large building or group of buildings fortified against attack with thick walls, battlements, towers, and in many cases a moat.

    A castle is a fortified building or series of buildings designed to withstand enemy attacks and sieges.

    A palace is a leisure building, designed to maximize the comfort of its inhabitants, and impress the visitors.

    Castles are created to withstand an enemy attack. Palaces were meant for leisurely living, not warfare."

    There you have it. :)

    Beautiful pictures. Thank you for sharing.

    Stopping by from the #atozchallenge !
    @JLenniDorner

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  6. I really hope to see one of these some day!!

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  7. I love them all! I have a big photo of Warwick Castle that I took on my visit there in my office at work.

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  8. that was a fun whirlwind tour!

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  9. What a great challenge. Congrats on completing it. I have not been to the British Isles but these castles look like they would be fun to explore. Hope you link up with my #SmallVictoriesSundaylinky starting at 8pm tonight and #ThrowbackThursdaylinkup later this week.

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