Lord Andrew Lloyd-Webber has his eye on Highclere Castle in Hampshire, England. He says he would love to buy it and house part of his extensive art collection there.

This isn’t good news for the castle’s owner, however. The estate has been the ancestral home of the Carnarvon clan for over 300 years, and the current Lord Carnarvon frowns upon selling it.

George Herbert, the 8th Earl of Carnarvon told the Daily Mail that the estate “[I]s absolutely a treasured, long-term family estate and I have never discussed selling it to anyone. It is not for sale. [Lord Lloyd-Webber] has not approached me directly and the first I knew about him expressing his interest in this letter was just before a recent council meeting.”

Maintenance has been a struggle for Carnarvon, and the cost of repairing the 150-room stately home is estimated at £12 million. He plans to raise the funds by allowing 15 houses to be built within the 4,000 acre estate. The money from the sales – or rent, should he choose – would go to the repairs. Lloyd-Webber, on the other hand, says if he owned the property he could restore it to its former splendor without having to develop the land.

In his letter to Basingstoke Council, Lord Lloyd-Webber said that he would like to combine his Sydmonton estate and Highclere in order to house his art collection.

I don’t know about everyone else, but I think that perhaps the two men could reach a compromise: Lord Carnarvon could rent part of the estate to Lord Lloyd-Webber so that he may house part of his art collection. The rent money could then be put towards the maintenance of the estate. Carnarvon would still own the property, it would get restored, and Lloyd-Webber would have his space for his artwork.

More:
Andrew Lloyd-Webber in Castle Row

The Swedish Haga Palace is the new official residence for HRH The Crown Princess Victoria and her new husband, Prince Daniel. They will move in upon their return from their Tahitian honeymoon.

King Gustav IV Adolf had envisioned a home in Haga just outside Enskede, so he commissioned architect Carl Christoffer Gjörwell to build a modern palace in the style of an Italian villa. The result looked less like a palace and more like a large, sunny country home. It has been used alternately as a private home and a summer house for several members of the Swedish royal family over the years.

Haga is the birthplace of Princess Victoria’s father, King Carl XVI Gustaf. The King – Prince Carl Gustaf at the time – and his four sisters spent their childhood at this palace with their parents, Hereditary Prince Gustaf Adolf and Princess Sybilla.

Young Carl Gustaf played happily on the grounds with Princesses Margaretha, Birgitta, Désirée, and Christina and they were photographed enjoying their small playhouse in the park. The Swedish media and the public were charmed by the royal children, especially the girls, who became affectionately known as Hagasessornas, “Haga Princesses”.

The death of their father in an airplane crash in 1947 outside Copenhagen, Denmark, devastated the family. Princess Sybilla, who felt as though “the floor fell out from under my feet”, took the children to live in an apartment at The Royal Palace in 1950.

Haga, abandoned as the official home, was left empty for several years. King Gustaf VI Adolf eventually transferred its ownership to the Swedish government for use as a guest house for visiting dignitaries in 1966.

Happily, Haga reverted back to Royal property in 2009. Just after Princess Victoria’s engagement was announced in February 24th of that year, Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt declared that the rights of disposal to the palace would be transferred back to the royal court as a wedding gift to Victoria and her new husband, Prince Daniel. Attempting to echo the sentiments of Winston Churchill upon the wedding of Princess Elizabeth in 1947, Reinfeldt said: “[T]he royal engagement [i]s a beacon of light in the dark times of economic crises.”

This happy, warm palace looks extremely welcoming and should be perfect for the beaming royal couple. Congratulations to Victoria and Daniel upon the return of a very precious family home.

Just what is going on at Kensington Palace?

The former home of Queen Victoria and Diana, Princess of Wales has been turned into an “Enchanted Palace”. The exhibit showcases various avant-garde interpretations of gowns and periods in the palace’s history that are presented in fashion, film, storytelling and dramatic displays. But is ‘enchanted’ the word to use?

The photographs of the exhibition show a spooky, Halloween type of world. A dress that once belonged to Princess Margaret hovers inside a glass display case, with two small red shoes injecting the only burst of color. The princess’ famous Poltimore tiara floats mysteriously above the little dress. It is more of a sad reminder that this is all that is left and the vibrant life that once occupied it.

Further examination brings us to more empty dresses. Some were worn by real princesses (Mary, Anne, Caroline, Charlotte, Victoria) and others are stylized period gowns that represent a designer’s ‘vision’.

Towards the end, a mirror painted in red letters asks visitors if they found the seven princesses during the experience. It is akin to a horror movie’s heroine finding a murderer’s message.

This is what I’ve gleaned from the photos, but what is it really like in there? Fortunately, we have some first-hand accounts to give us the scoop.

Laura Porter is About.com’s London travel guide. You can find her on Twitter as AboutLondon. She has been kind enough to give her thoughts about the exhibition.

Laura reported via Twitter that it is “spectacularly weird at Kensington Palace. No info any building, artworks, residents; just art installations & oddities. I didn’t find the Diana reference in the exhibition but saw pic in last room suggesting I should have seen her. V confusing.”

At her About.com blog, Laura writes: “You enter via back stairs scrawled with children’s drawings and have a map to guide you through the room sets. It’s dark and a bit spooky throughout and you can hardly see the artworks on the walls anymore. Not that it matters as there’s no information to tell you want you’re looking at. (I’m sure everyone walks past the Rubens not knowing.)

I’m sure many visit as it’s the former home of Princess Diana, yet that side of things is so well played down I only spotted one picture of her.”

Would you go to this exhibition? Would you want a more traditional exhibition next time around? Would you like more Diana items, or are you more interested in the past princesses? See more at Laura’s blog for ticket prices if you are in London.

Your thoughts below!

For your interest: These are the photos of our trip to England (October 6th – 14th, 2008). I have finally uploaded all of them, and what better way to share them than to provide them via lightbox? Click on the image to enlarge them.

Enjoy! We certainly did…

Read more…

A great site: The Royal Collection – e-Gallery.

Friends, Romans, Countrymen… lend me your artwork!

Yes, the art pages have returned! “Mandy’s Royal Artists” was a series of pages featuring the public’s works of art based on a royal theme. Found on Mandy’s British Royalty several years ago, the pages were lost during the website’s transfer to a new server. Now they return in the form of an art blog.

If you have previously entered work but don’t see it here, there is a chance it has disappeared. Please resend.

If you would like to submit anew, please see the “About” page to contact me. You can send a scan of your work (in any medium) to be featured here. No more than 3 please.

Castles, Queens, and Culture Captured in Art. Send in Yours. Now at http://mandysroyalty.org/artists