England'S Noblest Royal Residence

Among the Royal Palaces of Europe, Windsor Castle, England, justly lays claim to the first place. In its strength, its grandeur and its antiquity it is regarded as a symbol of the British Constitution. Like other palaces which have attained celebrity, the Castle of Windsor has its fable. Tradition assigns its foundation to King Arthur, who here assembled the Knights of the Round Table. Perhaps this myth led to the establishment of the Royal Order of Knighthood, so inseparably associated with Windsor. But, tradition aside, it has a history of more than eight hundred years. Edward the Confessor granted the hill, which is now crowned by the majestic Castle, to the Monks of St. Peter's, Westminster, "for a perpetual inheritance." William the Conqueror (1066), coveting the spot for a hunting-park, exchanged with the Abbey for some lands in Essex, and built there a fortress lodge, which is recorded in the Domesday Book, but of which no fragment remains. The present Castle, though greatly enlarged during subsequent reigns, dates from Henry I., son of the Conqueror, and third of the Norman Kings (1100-1135). The chief features of the palace, however, are due to Edward III. (1327-1377), who was born and baptized here, and who honored the site above all other sovereigns by founding here the College of St. George and the Royal Order of the Garter upon St. George's Day in 1349. St. George is generally understood to have been a young and handsome prince of Cappadocia, who suffered martyrdom under Diocletian. Among a thousand prodigies reported of him is the slaying of a powerful dragon, and thereby saving the life of a king's daughter just as the monster was about to devour her. England has chosen St. George and the Dragon as one of her emblems.

Of all the Castles of England, not one is so closely associated with English history as Windsor. Even the Tower of London ceased to be a royal residence after Mary, but Windsor has received within her walls every sovereign since the site was so royally chosen by the Norman conqueror.

The Palace stands one hundred feet above the Thames; its immediate grounds cover an area of five hundred acres. "The Long Walk" connects it with Windsor Park, which contains eighteen hundred acres. The great Parks at Windsor, like the Castle, are unrivalled. Each is worthy of the other, and both together make up a truly royal abode for the Sovereign of Great Britain.

The buildings cover twelve acres of ground. The State Apartments are along the north side of the Quadrangle, the Private Apartments along the east terrace, while the south side is devoted to apartments for visitors. The west end is closed by the Entrance Gates and the Round Tower, where the Curfew still "tolls the knell of parting day." The Round Tower is the ancient Norman Keep, or Fortress, of Edward III. This was the residence of the Governor of the Castle, and foreign State prisoners were sometimes confided to his keeping here. The main body of the tower is reached by one hundred steps, and a view of great extent is obtained from the battlements. Whenever Her Majesty is residing in Windsor Castle, the Royal Standard, twelve yards in length, is displayed from the tower.