Romantic castles and palaces : as seen and described by famous writers
"The pneumatics of Hero of Alexandria" by of Alexandria Hero is a scientific treatise written in the 1st century AD. It sets out the principles and marvels of air, steam, and water pressure, detailing fountains, automata, and other mechanical devices that turn natural forces into spectacle and practical mechanism. The opening of this volume presents an illustrated anthology, introduced by a preface that explains the choice of notable castles and palaces for
their architectural beauty, historical resonance, and legendary associations, and then lists a wide-ranging table of contents. Early selections move from a vivid account of Conway Castle—its role in Edward I’s conquest, its architecture as half-castle, half-palace, and surrounding Welsh legend—to an opulent tour of Venice’s Ducal Palace, its gates, stairways, wells, grand halls hung with Tintoretto and Veronese, and the Bridge of Sighs and prisons. Next come Linlithgow’s royal history and local lore, including the ruse of William Binnock’s hay-wain and the palace’s later burning; Arundel’s lowland-and-downland setting and long line of owners framed by pastoral Sussex; and Florence’s Palazzo Vecchio as the stage of civic power, Savonarola’s council hall, and Cosimo I’s calculated statecraft and patronage. The section closes by recasting Kensington Palace as the intimate, domestic face of royalty—expanded under successive monarchs, Dutch in William III’s taste, and associated with tea-table sociability more than pomp. Overall, the beginning establishes the book’s pattern: celebrated writers evoke place, memory, and design to animate each fortress or palace. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Editor | Singleton, Esther, 1865-1930 |
|---|---|
| Title | Romantic castles and palaces : as seen and described by famous writers |
| Original Publication | New York: Dodd Mead & Company, 1901, pubdate 1911. |
| Contents | Conway Castle, by Grant Allen -- The Ducal Palace, by Theophile Gautier -- Palace of Linlithgow, by Sir Walter Scott -- Arundel Castle, by Alice Meynell -- Palazzo Vecchio, by Alexandre Dumas -- Kensington Palace, by Leigh Hunt -- The Mikado's Palace, by Pierre Loti -- Warwick Castle, by Lady Warwick -- The Alhambra, by Edmondo De Amicis -- Lambeth Palace, by John Richard Green -- Château de Blois, by Jules Loiseleur -- Futtehpore-Sikri, by Louis Rousselet -- Caernavon Castle, by William Howitt -- A Ball at the Winter Palace, by Theophile Gautier -- Fontainebleau, by Grant Allen -- The Riccardi Palace, by Alexandre Dumas -- Raby Castle, by William Howitt -- Castle del Monte, by I. Edward Lear, II. Henry Swinburne -- The Generalife, by Theophile Gautier -- Château de Chenonceaux, by Jules Loiseleur -- Dublin Castle, by Lady Wilde -- Sans Souci and other Prussian palaces, by William Howitt -- Whitehall Palace, by Leigh Hunt -- The Castle of Kronborg, by Horace Marryat -- Chaumont sur Loire, by Jules Loiseleur -- Windsor Castle, by The Marquis of Lorne -- The Palace of Urbino, by John Addington Symonds -- Alnwick Castle, by Cuthbert Bede -- The Palace of Saint-Cloud, by J. J. Bourrassee -- Stirling Castle, by Nathaniel Hawthorne -- The Palace of the Bosphorus, by Theophile Gautier -- Plessis-les-Tours, by J. J. Bourrassee -- Hampton Court Palace, by Ernest Law -- The Palace of Shah Jehan, by Bholanauth Chunder -- Edinburgh Castle, by I. Robert Louis Stevenson, II. James Norris Brewer -- Lambton Castle, by William Howitt -- Aranjuez, by Edmondo De Amicis -- Glamis Castle, by Lady Glamis -- Château de Chinon, by J. J. Bourrassee -- The Summer Palace, by Maurice Paleologue -- Berkeley Castle, by Arthur Shadwell Martin -- The Castle of Chillon, by Nathaniel Hawthorne -- Rocca Malatestiana, by Charles Yriarte -- The Wartburg, by L. Puttich -- Château d'Amboise, by Jules Loiseleur -- Blarney Castle, by Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall -- Château de Loches, by J. J. Bourrassee -- The Palace of Blenheim, by Nathaniel Hawthorne. |
| Credits | Karin Spence and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | G: Geography, Anthropology, Recreation |
| Subject | Palaces |
| Subject | Castles |
| Category | Text |
| EBook-No. | 77405 |
| Release Date | Dec 5, 2025 |
| Copyright Status | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 1469 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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