The Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace

What is the Royal Mews?

The Royal Mews is a department of the Queen’s household and is responsible for all travel by road undertaken by the Queen and her family. It houses the Queen’s carriages and carriage horses as well as a fleet of cars.

Diamond Jubilee State Coach at Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

The history of the Royal Mews

The King’s Mews goes back to the 14th century when Richard II was on the throne, and was originally at Charing Cross, where the National Gallery is now. It was the place where the king kept his falcons and the name mews comes from the falcons mewing, that is, moulting. Henry VIII rebuilt the mews as stables in 1534 but kept the name ‘mews’ and it has been associated with horses ever since.

The quadrangle of the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

The Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace

In 1761, George III bought Buckingham House for his wife, Queen Charlotte. He commissioned the building of the Riding School, which is the oldest part of the Mews. It was designed by the architect Sir William Chambers and built in 1765-6.

After George IV succeeded to the throne in 1820, he decided to rebuild Buckingham House and make it his royal palace. The Royal Mews was built in 1822-5 and was designed by the architect of Buckingham Palace, John Nash. Unfortunately, the foundations were faulty, there was a drainage problem, and the original building work was shoddy so that it was constantly under repair. 

Nash built the Doric-style arch topped with a clock tower leading into the quadrangle of the Mews, but the pediment carving portraying the tale of Hercules catching Thracian horses was added later, in 1859.

The Master of the Horse

Traditionally, the Royal Mews was under the control of the Master of the Horse – a very senior position in the royal household. The Master of the Horse is no longer a hands-on role, and the Royal Mews is now run by the Crown Equerry.

What can you see today?

The Riding School

The Riding School at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

 Semi-state Landau

Semi-state Landau at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

Scottish State Coach

Built in 1830 for the Duke of Cambridge, it was used by his family before being sold to the 9th Earl of Albermarle. The earl converted it into a semi-state landau before giving it to Queen Mary in 1920.

Scottish State Coach at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

Queen Alexandra’s Coach

Used to take the crown to the Houses of Parliament for the state opening of parliament.

Queen Alexandra's Coach at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

Irish State Coach

Originally built in Dublin in 1803-4, the Irish State Coach was bought by Queen Victoria after seeing it at an exhibition in 1852.

Irish State Coach at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

Australian State Coach

A gift to the Queen from the people of Australia, this coach is normally on display in the Royal Mews, but is currently part of the 2017 exhibition at Buckingham Palace, Royal Gifts, until 1 October.

Australian State Coach on display at Buckingham Palace in 2015

Glass Coach

Used by many royal brides to travel to their weddings including Lady Diana Spencer in 1981.

Glass Coach at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

Glass Coach at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

Diamond Jubilee State Coach

This coach is a travelling time capsule. It is full of historical artefacts including a hollow crown on its roof made from wood from HMS Victory and a digital copy of the Domesday book.

Diamond Jubilee State Coach at Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

 The Gold State Coach

The Gold State Coach is on display in the former State Carriage House. It was commissioned by George III, and was first used by the king to travel to the House of Lords to open parliament on 25 November 1762. Despite appearances, the coach is not made of gold, but is gilded all over, with external panels painted by Giovanni Battista Cipriani.

The coach has been used for every coronation since that of George IV in 1821. There is a frieze around the walls showing William IV’s coronation procession in 1831, painted by Richard Barrett Davis (1782-1854).

Gold State Coach at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

Royal car

Royal car at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

The State Stables

The State Stables have a replica landau that visitors may sit in to get an idea of the suspension (or lack of it) in a royal carriage. There are also opportunities here to dress up as a footman and learn how to harness a horse. 

The State Stables at Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

Rachel in the replica landau
in the State Stables,
Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

The working stables

The stables house the Queen’s carriage horses including the Queen’s famous Windsor Greys and Cleveland Bays.

The stables at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

The harness room at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace (2017)

Rachel Knowles writes clean/Christian Regency era romance and historical non-fiction. She has been sharing her research on this blog since 2011. Rachel lives in the beautiful Georgian seaside town of Weymouth, Dorset, on the south coast of England, with her husband, Andrew.

Find out more about Rachel's books and sign up for her newsletter here.

If you have enjoyed this blog and want to encourage me and help me to keep making my research freely available, please buy me a virtual cup of coffee by clicking the button below.

 

Last visited for bloggers' breakfast on 1 August 2017
All photographs © Regencyhistory.net

Scottish Artists 1750-1900 - 2016 exhibition at the Queen's Gallery

Last Friday, I was delighted to visit the Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace, London, for a bloggers’ breakfast and curator-led tour of the new exhibitions—Scottish Artists 1750-1900: From Caledonia to the Continent and Maria Merian’s Butterflies. In this post, I will look at the first of these exhibitions—Scottish Artists.

You can read about Maria Merian’s Butterflies here.

The best collection of Scottish Art outside of Scotland

The Scottish Artists exhibition is a sumptuous display of Scottish art from the Georgian and Victorian periods. But what constitutes Scottish art? I wasn’t sure whether to expect pictures of Scotland or works of art by Scottish artists. The exhibition curator was quick to explain that the exhibition was of works of art by artists born in Scotland, wherever they subsequently worked.

The first room was dominated by the work of two major Scottish artists of the Georgian period: Allan Ramsay and Sir David Wilkie.

First main exhibition room in the Queen's Gallery

Ramsay’s portraits

Allan Ramsay (1713-1784) was born in Edinburgh and was patronised by George III, having been introduced to him by fellow Scotsman, Lord Bute. He was commissioned to paint the state portrait of George III in his coronation robes—a picture with which I am very familiar. Part of the reason for this is no doubt that there are a lot of copies of this portrait around. It was reproduced more than 150 times by Ramsay for members of the royal family, courtiers and the like. The curator assured us that it was the prime version of the state portrait which was on display.

George III by Alllan Ramsay (1761-2)

Detail from George III by Alllan Ramsay (1761-2)

Alongside the state portrait of George III was a picture of his wife, Queen Charlotte, in a less formal setting, with the toddling George IV by her side and his younger brother Frederick, Duke of York, balanced on her lap. The young George, Prince of Wales, aged about two, could be mistaken for a girl as he is wearing a long dress. This is because at this time, boys wore dresses or ‘coats’ until the age of around four to seven when they were breeched, that is, put into trousers for the first time. I love the way that George is pictured with one hand on his hip and a bow in the other.

Queen Charlotte with her two eldest sons
by Allan Ramsay (c1764-9)

Close-up of Queen Charlotte
from Queen Charlotte with her two eldest sons
by Allan Ramsay (c1764-9)

Close-up of George IV from  
Queen Charlotte with her two eldest sons
by Allan Ramsay (c1764-9)

On an adjacent wall were three more Ramsay portraits including a charming one of William IV as a small boy before he was breeched playing a drum bearing his father’s royal cipher.

William IV as a two-year-old
- Prince William, later Duke of Clarence
by Allan Ramsay (c1767)

Royal commissions for Wilkie

Born in Fife, Sir David Wilkie (1785-1841) rose to even greater fame than Ramsay had done. George IV appointed Wilkie as His Majesty’s Painter and Limner in Scotland in 1823 and then Principal Painter in Ordinary to the King in 1830, before knighting him in 1836.

Two of Wilkie’s early royal commissions were on display—Blind-Man’s Buff and its companion piece, The Penny Wedding—together with a number of later works that he had painted on the continent.

Blind-Man's Buff by Sir David Wilkie (1812)
Royal Collection Trust © HM Queen Elizabeth II 2016

The Penny Wedding by Sir David Wilkie (1818)
Royal Collection Trust © HM Queen Elizabeth II 2016

My favourite Wilkie piece was undoubtedly The Entrance of George IV to Holyroodhouse. The painting depicts George IV’s arrival at Holyroodhouse Palace on 15 August 1822 during his tour of Scotland—a significant visit as he was the first reigning monarch to travel north of the border for almost two hundred years. This picture reminded me that George IV did occasionally get things right as his Scottish tour was a great success!

The Entrance of George IV to Holyroodhouse
 by Sir David Wilkie (1822-30)

Detail from The Entrance of George IV to Holyroodhouse
 by Sir David Wilkie (1822-30)

The young Queen Victoria

The second large display room was dominated by the works of Scottish artists patronised by Queen Victoria. These included paintings by David Roberts (1796-1864), James Giles (1801-1870), Sir Francis Grant (1803-1878) and William Dyce (1806-1864), as well as some by her favourite artist, John Phillip (1817-1867), such as The Dying Contrabandista.

A View of Balmoral by James Giles (1848)

Detail from Queen Victoria Riding Out by Sir Francis Grant (1839-40)

The Dying Contrabandista by John Phillip (1858)

Ruins of the Abbey of Holyrood
by David Roberts (1823)

As usual, I was looking at the exhibition from a Georgian point of view and was glad to spot a few earlier pieces in the room, including Ruins of the Abbey of Holyrood (above), painted by David Roberts in 1823, and a wonderfully detailed painting of Georgian Edinburgh—View of the High Street Edinburgh and the Lawn Market (below)—painted by Alexander Nasmyth (1758-1840) in 1824.

View of the High Street Edinburgh and the Lawn Market
by Alexander Nasmyth (1824)

Detail from View of the High Street Edinburgh and the Lawn Market
by Alexander Nasmyth (1824)

There were also several paintings by Wilkie. I loved his painting of Queen Adelaide with Princess Victoria and Members of Her Family showing the 11-year-old Queen Victoria’s first court appearance at St James’ Palace on 24 February 1831.

Queen Adelaide with Princess Victoria  and 
Members of her Family
by Sir David Wilkie (c1831-2)

A later Wilkie showed another momentous occasion in Queen Victoria’s life—The First Council of Queen Victoria on 20 June 1837, shortly after becoming Queen. Unfortunately, Queen Victoria did not like the picture and Wilkie fell out of royal favour.

The First Council of Queen Victoria
by Sir David Wilkie (1838)

A study for the Queen's head for The First Council of Queen Victoria
- the first known portrait of Queen Victoria as reigning monarch
 by Sir David Wilkie (1837)

Georgian princesses in miniature

Amongst the Victorian miniatures in one of the side rooms, I spied a couple of Georgian princesses: Princess Elizabeth and Princess Sophia. They were both painted in 1807 by Andrew Robertson (1777-1845) who was Miniature Painter to the princesses’ brother, Augustus, Duke of Sussex.

Princess Elizabeth by Andrew Robertson (1807)

Princess Sophia by Andrew Robertson (1807)

Tables, marbles and an amazing clock

The main exhibition rooms also had several items of furniture and sculpture on display. These included a pair of pier tables and a writing table supplied to the Palace of Holyroodhouse in 1796; a marble bust of Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, 7th son of George III; and the most incredible pedestal clock.

One of a pair of pier tables made by Young, Trotter and
Hamilton for the Palace of Holyroodhouse (1796)

Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge,
by Lawrence Macdonald (1846)

Second main exhibition room at the Queen's Gallery
showing John Smith's clock

The clock was made by John Smith of Fife c1800-1808 and was exhibited by him in London in 1808. It was both an automaton and a musical clock with a choice of 16 tunes to play and two sets of figures—the higher one of the royal family and the lower one of members of the royal household—who would promenade across one face of the clock every three hours.

Pedestal clock by John Smith (1800-08)

Close-up of the automaton dial of
pedestal clock by John Smith (1800-08)

Close-up of figures waiting to enter the
automaton dial of the pedestal clock
by John Smith (1800-08)

Close-up of the automaton dial of
pedestal clock by John Smith (1800-08)

Don’t forget to pick up a media guide for the exhibition if you are visiting. By selecting the section on the clock it is possible to see the clock in full operation with its music playing and its figures processing around the clock.

Scottish Artists 1750-1900: From Caledonia to the Continent is on at the Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace, London, alongside Maria Merian’s Butterflies, until Sunday 9 October 2016.

Regency History’s guide to Kensington Palace

Kensington Palace (2017)

Where is it?

Kensington Palace is situated in Kensington Gardens in London.

History

Kensington Palace started life as a Jacobean mansion built around 1605. It was bought by William III and Mary II in 1689 and was transformed into a royal palace by Sir Christopher Wren so that the King and Queen could live away from the London air.

The palace is now in the care of Historic Royal Palaces.

Georgian connections

Kensington Palace
from The History of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

George I and George II both used Kensington Palace as one of their principal residences, but after the death of Queen Caroline in 1737, much of the palace fell into disrepair.

Neither George III, George IV nor William IV chose to live at Kensington Palace. They granted “Grace and Favour” apartments to courtiers and members of the royal family. These included:

• George IV's estranged wife, Caroline, Princess of Wales
• Princess Sophia
• Augustus, Duke of Sussex
• Queen Victoria's father, Edward, Duke of Kent

Kensington Palace through the Gold Gates (2017)

Kensington Palace from Kensington Gardens (2017)

Kensington Palace as a tourist attraction

Visiting royal palaces is not a new entertainment. Although not opened to the public until 1899, it was possible to see inside Kensington Palace during the Regency period.

According to Feltham's Picture of London for 1818:

The palace is a large and splendid edifice of brick, and has a set of very handsome state apartments, and some beautiful staircases and ceilings, painted by Verrio and others. He continued: The whole may be seen any day except Sundays, by applying to the housekeeper, for a trifling douceur.1

The State Apartments

The King's Staircase

The King's Staircase, Kensington Palace (2012)

The Great Staircase, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

Queen Caroline's Drawing Room

Queen Caroline's Drawing Room, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

The Queen's Bedchamber

The Queen's Bedchamber, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

The Queen's Dining Room

The Queen's Dining Room, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

The Queen's Gallery

The Queen's Gallery, Kensington Palace (2017)

The Queen's Gallery, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

The Presence Chamber

The Prescence Chamber, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

The Admirals' Gallery

The Admirals' Gallery, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

The Cupola Room

The Cupola Room, Kensington Palace (2017)

The ceiling of the Cupola Room, Kensington Palace (2017)

The Cupola Room, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

The King's Drawing Room

The King's Drawing Room, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

Learning to play Hazard
in the King's Drawing Room, Kensington Palace (2017)

The King's Closet

The King's Closet, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

Queen Caroline's Closet

Queen Caroline's Closet, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

The King's Gallery

The King's Gallery, Kensington Palace (2017)

The King's Gallery, Kensington Palace, from The History
of the Royal Residences by WH Pyne (1819)

Victoria Revealed

Queen Victoria was born in Kensington Palace on 24 May 1819. It is believed that she was born in the North Drawing Room of her parents’ apartments.

Room where Queen Victoria was born , Kensington Palace (2014)

Victoria: A Royal Childhood

Victoria’s father, Edward, Duke of Kent, died suddenly less than a year after her birth, and Victoria and her mother were left virtually penniless. They returned to their apartments at Kensington Palace where Victoria was brought up in relative seclusion.

When William IV visited the palace in August 1836, he discovered that the Duchess of Kent had adopted some of the state rooms and altered them to suit herself. William was furious and publicly complained about the liberties his sister-in-law had taken and announced his wish that he would live long enough for Victoria to reach her 18th birthday, thereby preventing the Duchess from becoming regent. His wish was granted; he died just four weeks after Victoria turned 18.

This post was last updated 7 October 2019.

If you enjoyed this article, you might also enjoy my guides to Kensington Gardens and Kew Palace.

Rachel Knowles writes clean/Christian Regency era romance and historical non-fiction. She has been sharing her research on this blog since 2011. Rachel lives in the beautiful Georgian seaside town of Weymouth, Dorset, on the south coast of England, with her husband, Andrew.

Find out more about Rachel's books and sign up for her newsletter here.

If you have enjoyed this blog and want to encourage me and help me to keep making my research freely available, please buy me a virtual cup of coffee by clicking the button below.

 

Note
1. From Feltham, John, The Picture of London for 1818 (1818)

Sources used:
Feltham, John, The Picture of London for 1818 (1818)
Humphrys, Julian, The private life of palaces (Historic Royal Palaces, 2006)
Pyne, WH, The history of the Royal Residences of Windsor Castle, St James's Palace, Carlton House, Kensington Palace, Hampton Court, Buckingham House and Frogmore (1819)

Kensington Palace official website

Photographs © RegencyHistory.net