Berkshire, England
Your in-flight movie on Windsor Castle in Berkshire England!
Length 3:32
www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUDD
sZ2I_gk
We have landed in Berkshire, England! Our first visit is Windsor Castle. It has almost 1,000 years of architectural history. The original castle was built in the 11th century following the Norman invasion of England by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I, it has been used by the reigning monarch and is the longest-occupied palace in Europe.
We are not going to spend a lot of time on just one castle! I have been to London, England when I was 16 so Janey gave me the assignment this week. I was at Windsor Castle and remember the guards being the most memorable. So here are some more pictures of Windsor Castle and then we will go into other notable castles around London.
One of the most memorable trips for me from London was the one where we visited Hampton Court. We took a boat to it and it got stuck on the river Thames. I think it was for a couple of hours and we were meeting people at Hampton Court!
Hampton Court was built in 1514 and what I remember most was the beautiful gardens and indoor tennis court! Today, it is open to the public and is a major tourist attraction. We visited the Hampton Court maze as well. I think we got lost! The palace's Home Park is the site of the annual Hampton Court Palace Festival and Hampton Court Palace Flower Show.
During my stay in London we visited another memorable site, the Tower of London. The Tower of London was founded toward the end of 1066 as part of the Norman Conquest. The White Tower gives the entire castle it's name and had been built by William the Conqueror in 1078. During the years of 1100 until 1952 the castle was used as a prison but this was not its primary purpose. It is made up of buildings set within two concentric rings of defensive walls and a moat.
I hope you enjoyed the tour!
Continuing on with out tour of England. 
One of the places we visited and took a bus to get to was Stonehenge. Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument and one of the most famous landmarks in the United Kingdom also regarded as a British cultural icon. Archaeologists believe it was constructed from 3000 BC to 2000 BC.
Two types of stones were used in building Stonehenge: larger sarsens and smaller bluestones. The sarsens which are a type of sandstone, are found in the area naturally at the site. Archaeologists believe that the sarsens came from Marlborough Downs, some 20 miles away. The bluestones, however, came from much further. It is believed they are from Preseli Hills in south-west Wales which is 140 miles away from Stonehenge.
There is speculation about how the rocks arrived. The rocks are not light. The average sarsen weighs 25 tons and the bluestones weigh from 2 to 5 tons. The most believable theory is that humans used waterways and land to haul them. Construction also required ingenuity and feats of engineering. A hole was dug and then timber poles were put at the back of the hole to act as a brace. Ropes were used to position the stones and rubble was used in the hole to hold the stone in place.
Who build Stonehenge is also a great mystery. Researchers have used DNA to determine that around 4000 BCE farmers from the Aegean coast migrated to Britain, making them the most likely to build Stonehenge. Stonehenge has a long history with astronomy mainly because it's aligned with the sunrise of the summer solstice and the sunset of the winter solstice. Gerald Hawkins, an American astronomer, argued in his book Decoded that Stonehenge was used to predict eclipses.
It has been legally protected since 1882 and was added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 1986. Stonehenge is owned by the Crown and managed by English Heritage; the surrounding land is owned by the National Trust. One guess is that it could have been a burial ground in its earliest beginnings.
Here is a video on Stonehenge. Length 3:36
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wf7x
wHFuH2o
One place I wanted to go to but we didn't have the time was Leeds Castle in Kent. I have 2 copies of the brochure for it which I picked up at our hotel. The castle is famous for having King Henry VIII as it's owner at one time. He transformed the castle for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.
Leeds Castle was built in the twelfth century. It occupies a pair of rocky islands in the River Len. In 1974 the castle is now owned by the Leeds Castle Foundation and is open to the public.
My mom says that me and my sister did not want to see Buckingham Palace, but what would be a tour without it? It was originally known as Buckingham House and built in 1703. The Queen's Gallery was built on the site and opened to the public in 1962 to exhibit works of art from the Royal Collection.
That concludes out tour! I hope you enjoyed it. I will blog about it now and post the link.
One of the places we visited and took a bus to get to was Stonehenge. Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument and one of the most famous landmarks in the United Kingdom also regarded as a British cultural icon. Archaeologists believe it was constructed from 3000 BC to 2000 BC.
Two types of stones were used in building Stonehenge: larger sarsens and smaller bluestones. The sarsens which are a type of sandstone, are found in the area naturally at the site. Archaeologists believe that the sarsens came from Marlborough Downs, some 20 miles away. The bluestones, however, came from much further. It is believed they are from Preseli Hills in south-west Wales which is 140 miles away from Stonehenge.
There is speculation about how the rocks arrived. The rocks are not light. The average sarsen weighs 25 tons and the bluestones weigh from 2 to 5 tons. The most believable theory is that humans used waterways and land to haul them. Construction also required ingenuity and feats of engineering. A hole was dug and then timber poles were put at the back of the hole to act as a brace. Ropes were used to position the stones and rubble was used in the hole to hold the stone in place.
Who build Stonehenge is also a great mystery. Researchers have used DNA to determine that around 4000 BCE farmers from the Aegean coast migrated to Britain, making them the most likely to build Stonehenge. Stonehenge has a long history with astronomy mainly because it's aligned with the sunrise of the summer solstice and the sunset of the winter solstice. Gerald Hawkins, an American astronomer, argued in his book Decoded that Stonehenge was used to predict eclipses.
It has been legally protected since 1882 and was added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 1986. Stonehenge is owned by the Crown and managed by English Heritage; the surrounding land is owned by the National Trust. One guess is that it could have been a burial ground in its earliest beginnings.
Here is a video on Stonehenge. Length 3:36
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wf7x
wHFuH2o
One place I wanted to go to but we didn't have the time was Leeds Castle in Kent. I have 2 copies of the brochure for it which I picked up at our hotel. The castle is famous for having King Henry VIII as it's owner at one time. He transformed the castle for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.
Leeds Castle was built in the twelfth century. It occupies a pair of rocky islands in the River Len. In 1974 the castle is now owned by the Leeds Castle Foundation and is open to the public.
My mom says that me and my sister did not want to see Buckingham Palace, but what would be a tour without it? It was originally known as Buckingham House and built in 1703. The Queen's Gallery was built on the site and opened to the public in 1962 to exhibit works of art from the Royal Collection.
That concludes out tour! I hope you enjoyed it. I will blog about it now and post the link.
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