Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1936-02-06
WINDSOR CASTLE
(By Rev. II. Fl. Scott)

Windsor is one Of the oldest Of
all the palaces Of Europe. William
the Conqueror purchased the chalk
hill OH which it stands, about the
time Of the conquest, 1045 1T is
reached by the Great Western rail-
way from Paddington Station, and
is % miles west Of London.
Nearby is Runnymede, the broad
meadow where King John signed
Magma Charta, the foundation Of
the rights of all English speaking
peoples, and of parliamentary gov
ernment. John resided at the time
in Windsor, and came back in a
rage. from which he never recover
ed until the time Of his death The
plain of Runnymede is now entered
by two noble gateways. the gift OF
Lord Fairhayen, and the stone on
which the charter was signed in
1915 is kept there in newly built
house Of granite.
Eton college lies just north OF
Windsor, and here were educated
18 of the prime ministers of Eng
land. Pitt, Fox, Gladstone, Can
ming, Peel and Wellington We're
students here. Wellington said
that at Eton, Waterloo was won.
This is the most aristocratic of all
the colleges of England, and the
scions of royalty are sent here
Boys are matriculated at birth, and
a long line of honorable ancestors
must belong to the scholar who en-
ters Eton. The 100 students in
short jackets, broad white collars
and tall hats are almost as interest
ing to some tourists as windsor
or Runnymede.
Stoke Pogis, where Gray wrote
the immortal elegy, and where the
poet is buried, is north Of Windsor,
and can be seen from its parapets,
as can also IL counties when the
air is clear.
The castle is the most elaborate
and costly of all the stately royal
homes of Britain. 1t gets it's name
from the winding Thames, and was
once called Wyndleshora, or wind
ing-shore. The Round Tower or
keep stands out prominently as you
make your approach to this palace
which has taken nearly thousand
years to build, in an evolution in
which so many kings and queens
took part. Queen Victoria spent
five million dollars in making it the
most costly of all her dwellings.
Charles 1 also spent a fortune here.
The art of Van Dyke and Rubens
adds much to the palatial rooms.
Tapestries, furniture, ceramics.
marbles and bronzes in bewildering
! confusion adorn the interiors. Here
were secretly hidden the crown
/ jewels from London Tower, at the
time of the great war. The stool on
which Charles | was beheaded, and
the window where Henry VIII fell
in love with Anne Boleyn are point
ed out, as is the tomb of that mon
arch, and Of Jane Seymour, and sc
love and death dwell close togeth-
er here. Victoria is buried at Frog
more, just east of the castle, and
the tomb of George V is with the
other Georges in ST. Georges chap
ell, at the west of the castle.
The Royal park of 1900 acres
can be seen from the battlements
with it's Royal walk penetrating it
for some miles, lined with noble
elms planted by Charles II. Two
| immense farms belong to the estate,
where the agrarian interests Of the
royal family find practical express
sion.
Thousands of people climb the
steps and the hill to see this mag
nificent home of their sovereigns
every day, for it is open always to
the public. Royalty and democracy
approach very closely to each other
and the two keep an even balance