John Martin Robinson

I enjoyed looking through this guidebook on Windsor Castle. It's definitely something that would have been more useful if I was actually walking around the grounds as much of the text refers to things that are not shown in the photos. Still, it was a fun read for some history, inspiration, and excitement-building. My husband and I go to England in September. It will be my fourth time and his first. Can't wait!

We bought this well illustrated book on the history of the Dukes of Norfolk, the leading Catholic aristocratic family in England, on our Easter Saturday visit to their ancestral seat, Arundel Castle. It follows the history from: the 1st Duke, who fought at Bosworth on Richard III's side; through the most famous scions of the House in the Tudor period: the 3rd Duke who was one of Henry VIII's chief counsellors, implacable opponent of Thomas Cromwell, and uncle to the two most unfortunate show more Queens Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, both of whom he abandoned to their fates; his son, the poet Earl of Surrey, executed just before Henry VIII's death on trivial charges of misusing his heraldic arms; the 4th Duke who naively plotted to marry Mary Queen of Scots behind Queen Elizabeth's back and was executed for alleged involvement in the Ridolfi plot; and his son St Philip Howard, a Catholic martyr under Queen Elizabeth. The later ducal line (the title itself was in abeyance for nearly a century) was less influential in national affairs, as Catholicism was increasingly pushed underground thereafter, though still it contained some interesting characters, including one or two more tragic or disreputable figures. The last Duke covered in detail here is the 15th Duke, who died in 1917, and the 20th century family is covered very skeletally. A good guide to the history of this influential family and with a fairly detailed family tree at the end to which I had regular recourse. show less

I picked this up because pictures cannot be taken inside Windsor and it was slim enough not to add much to the weight of my luggage. While it is OK as a souvenir, Windsor Castle: A Thousand Years of a Royal Palace edited by Steven Brindle has the level of detail I really wanted and will probably find its way into my library.

Heartbreaking story about 20 huge estates in the UK that were demolished. Explains the grand history of each structure, all architectural wonders, and the sad tale about how they were mainly sold in piecemeal, with the properties often turned into motorways or housing estates.