Sunday 13 April 2008

WALK THIS WAY

Want to go for walkies with me somewhere interesting? It's only a five minute walk up the road from where the 2 leggeds live with me. Follow my wag. . .



This is my side of the river near my house. Be on your guard as you walk around. There is an Enormously Tall Fiecely Ferocious Fox Terrier that lives round here.



Come on, this way, along the bank of the River Thames. See the building on the other side of with the golden gates? That's where we're going, over there.



This is what we came to see. Wow. A real palace. Hampton Court Palace, home to many Kings and Queens of the Realm.



If you.SIT.Beside me I'll tell you the history of the palace.

Long ago there was an ordinary old manor house on this land but in 1514 Cardinal Thomas Wolsey of Olde Tudor England, advisor of the King, decided to covert the house into a grand palace for himself. Now he was pals with King Henry V111, but in 1529 crafty Henry got one over on old Wolsey and deciding the palace suited him better, he executed his kingdomly powers and took the palace for himself. Henry rebuilt the palace stuffing it full of Majesty and Magnificence! An Excess of Extravagance! Fit for a King for Kissing and a-Canoodling with Six Wives! Not six at once, though I think one or two wives might have overlapped a bit if you get my drift. Henry was a very impatient man, tiring of his wives quickly so he divorced them or ruled "off with their heads" And they did. Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived, that's how the rhyme goes. Let that be a warning to you ladies after your Aristocratic Titles.

By 1540 King Henry had added goodness knows what to the palace plus these things too. A Royal Chapel. 36,000 sq ft of Kitchens. (yumm, imagine the bounty of bones from there) The Tilt Yard for jousting,wrestling and general showing off by men wearing tights (or panty hose as our far away cousins say). Tennis Courts. A Great Hall for banquets and bawdiness. Wild Meadow Gardens. "The Great House of Easement" which could sit 28 people at once! Oh, how we would like to sniff around that. And of course he lavished luxury on his own and the Queen's Right Royal Apartments. Henry really went for it.

He also added two Palatial Parks adjoining the palace and filled them with dear little deers. The deer in the parks today are direct descendants of the the ones Henry put in the park. Isn't that dog-a-blogging amazing? I take the two leggeds for walks in Home Park and Royal Bushy Park every week. I'll take you too sometime, the're the most waggalicious walks us pups could go on.

All the hard work of feasting and festivity took it's toll on King Henry and he popped his clogs in 1547. All at the palace remained as it was until 1689 when Sir Christopher Wren, did a bit of a Grand Design job and then way later on a new wing was added in Georgian style.That's why the palace looks like a bit like, well a dog's dinner. I'm only allowed to walk around the outside of the palace but I'll send Mom to sneak photos of the interior of the pawlace and especially the Glorious Gardens in the summer if you would like to see them? Come on then. UP. Follow my tail and try not to dawdle. The place is full of old ghosties and spookies.



The middle section is Tudor, the side sections were built by Wren, and rear of the palace you see in the river photos is Georgian.



Check this dog statue out, he's at least 450 hooman years old.



Hello,here's my new pal.I met him last time I was here. He's from Denver,Colorado. He stopped to talk to me and asked me my name. And guess what his name was? ERIC! Ha, ha! I'm really not making that up am I Mom? (Mom - no, that's the truth Eric, he was called ERIK) I gave him a few kisses as he was smittenkitten with me.His family sensibly took photos of us two together instead of the piles of old bricks.



Pretty flowers for practising your aim on boys? Let's head off to the maze.I tell you though, it's kind of hard to find you way in.



Let's dally around the daffy- dillies in the Wild Meadow Garden.



Now if we nip through this door we can get to the front of the palace again.


Getting late and kind of spooky... let's skeedale.


Wooooooo - see you soooooooooon pals.

21 comments:

Agatha and Archie said...

Smashing tour!!!! We like to give Boston tours too!!!! You are very lucky to have such a lovely place so close to walk too!!! There must be TONS of spooky ghosts at night!!!!!! We have to tell you Eric,that picture of you with Erik LOOKED JUST LIKE AGATHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(she would like to say exceptionally adorable) Looking forward to another tour!!! Love and kisses A+A

Asta said...

Eric
I missed you !!!
I'm back!!
I loved youw touw! how fabulous to have such a tewwific place neaw you to go walkies..that was such a lot of gweat infowmation..I'm glad I don't know any boys like that king henwy guy..nasty to giwls..no wondew that Erik wanted pictuwes of you..you awe soooo handsome
smoochie kisses
Asta
pee ess I've had fouw days of pictoowes of my twip to Wome on my bloggie if you want to see

COL. Sam ASTA-fari Joe H. Pinkerton Peabody, Esq said...

Hello Eric,

What a nice tour you gave us. Very informative. We enjoyed it immensely!!! Sometime, we will have to give you a tour of one of our walks!

i said...

You make a real good tour guide, Eric! Love the pictures!

Jackson's J1 and J2 said...

Hey Eric, the Js have been to Hampton Court but they didn't take me. Boo. J x

umekotyan said...

Good evening Eric.
Wonderful, and photograph of palace and scenery.
And, daffodils are my favorite flowers.
It jokes, and the stage of me and my girl for a moment. :)

from loved ume tyan

Jake of Florida said...

Hey Eric Square Dog,

We left you a message a while back 'cause we wanted to get to know you better. Now we're starting to feel as though we are the only square dogs not in your square of friends!!

Loved your walk -- we don't have too many castles here!!!

Come visit!!!

Jake and Just Harry, two very hip square dogs from South Florida.

Princess Patches said...

That was a great tour, Eric! You make a really great guide! Our mom loves old palaces, but has only seen a few in her all her many years. She has to settle for seeing them on the History Channel!

Aire-hugs,
Poppy & Penny

Luna "The Scruffy Yacht Dog" said...

Hi Eric,
I love the tour!! Thanks for sharing it with us!
Spooky things!! How kwel!
Love the garden...did you get to dig??

With wagging tail,
Luna

Kyanite said...

What a wonderful Historian Guide you are...
If your that close to Hampton Court & surrounds, tell me when you're going on your next 'tour' I might just come & say Hi!!!
We can go & hide in the maze together...

Pats & pets
Blue

Anonymous said...

Hey Eric,

Great tour. My mom has been there but long before I was born. (she's about 100 years old!)

Your pal,
Smitty

Urban Smoothie Read said...

you got such a great venue for walkie...

i path is all boring with houses, houses and more house... plus a highly contaminated lake..

Noah the Airedale said...

G'day Eric,
What an interesting tour, thanks for showing us around Hampton Court. That's amazing about the deer being descendants from the deer of Henry VIII.
We've learned something new today!

Hugs and tail wags
Noah Willow Tess & Lucy

Lenny said...

Hi Eric! Nice to meet you and thanks for visiting my blog. Are you really enormously tall? I have long legs too. Your blog is really fun!

Your new friend, Lenny

H.A. Turbofire, Sibertarian said...

Thanks for the history. Especially the part about the size of the kitchen and the potential bounty of bones!

Scruffy, Lacie and Stanley's Place said...

Eric...wow...that's the first pic I've seen of you in color...your are such a handsome wire foxy...flirt/flirt!!!

We loved the tour and the history you told us....we don't live near to ANYTHING like that!

You're one lucky pup!

Had soooo much fun dancin' with ya at Asta's...

Lacie

Lizzy said...

I bet you had lots of fun on that walk, eh? That's pretty cool that that dude had the same name as you!

Thanks for the history of the place!

Sparky

Girl Girl Hamster said...

What a fun walkie, you get to see lots of things and meet new friends. :)

~ Girl girl

Stanley said...

ERic!

Very cool history lesson... and you get to live it everyday if you want to. I'd like to try my aim on those lovely flowers.

So, does that American Eric hang out at the palace just waiting for you everyday? I wouldn't be surprised. He's obviously quite taken with you.

When's the next lesson then?

Goober love & spooky smooches,
Stanley

Koobuss said...

What an interesting post!! Excellent job, Eric!!

I would LOVE to see pictures of the inside of the palace!


Koobuss Kisses,
Koobie

nn said...

I think I will ask you to guide me if I visit your city someday.