The Sun.
London, England, 1853-09-23 00:00:00

THE LOWER WARD OF WINDSOR CASTLE.

A slow but steady and certain change is passing over
the lower ward of Windsor Castle, which consists of all
that portion of the Royal palace occupied by St.
George's Chapel, the houses of the Dean and Canons,
choristers, and officers on the one side of the court, and
the residences of the military knights on the other,
Five houses were formerly occupied by as many rani.
tary knights, abutting upon the western rampart wall,
were pulled down some years ago, and the grass
now grows on the site where the veterans of former
wars "fought their battles o'er again" by their own
comfortable firesides. These five houses were built by
Sir Peter le Maire and Sir Francis Crane in the year
1657. The 13 other houses, built by Queen Mary and
endowed by Queen Elizabeth, on the south side of the
court, still remain, forming the president residences of
the military knights of Windsor- It is in them that the
band of improvement may be more readily traced.
Architectural ignorance or a depraved taste had induced
those intrusted with the repair of the houses to substi-
tute the modern sash and unsightly lead casement in
the place of the handsome Gothic windows originally
adopted, in harmony with the massive grandeur of the
surrounding buildings. Square-headed doorways were
also introduced, and the fine row of dwellings, with
the tower (formerly Garter's Hall) in the centre, now
occupied by Major Moore, the Governor of the Mili-
tary Knights, presented an incongruous spectacle.
Of late, it has been the aim of the Commissioners of
Public Works to restore these buildings to their
pristine condition, and, we might add, their pristine
beauty. To that end, year by year, and especially
during the present summer, the sashes and casement
have given way to new and appropriate windows, the
squareheaded doorways have disappeared, and the com-
paratively slow progress of the work is merely the mea-
sure of extreme caution of parliament in voting the ne-
cessary funds. The back windows of the houses look
out upon Castle-green, and here the same work of 101 l
provement is going on. About midway between Henryenlll's tower and Henry VIII.'s gateway, and adjoining
the back of Garter's Tower, was a semi-circular pro-,
jection, which gave one or two additional rooms to
the Garter-house. at present and for many years past,
occupied by Mr. Batcheldor, the chapter
"clerk.
This projection or outwork shown in. tty
Langley's Plans of the Castle,' published in 1743,
and it is certain that it was coeval with the houses
themselves, inasmuch as it formed, for more than a cen-
tury, the mess-room of what were then termed the
" poor knights," it being the rule to appoint only
bachelors and widowers without families to the privi-
leges of the order. A short time ago, from sheer decay
a portion of this building fell outwards with a tremen-
dous crash, much to the alarm of the family and domes-
tics of Mr. Batcheldor. It is now levelled with the
ground, heaps of stone and other materials are piled on
the green, and workmen are employed re-erecting the
ancient mess-room of the knights, as near as possible in
its original shape and dimensions. The Norman gate,
which divides the lower from the upper ward, and forms
in itself a fine feature of the castle, has been completely
restored within the last three months, as has also the
parapet wall running front the Norman gate to Win-
cheater Tower.