Insights and behind the scenes from our palaces
Protecting wildlife and their habitat at Home Park
22 November 2024
Park Ranger Eleanor Evetts explores the importance of nature conservation efforts at Home Park at Hampton Court Palace.
Royal Style in the Making: Meet the toile designers
09 November 2021
Textile Treatment Supervisor Libby Thompson introduces a collection of toiles inspired by royal designers, which opened the Royal Style in the Making exhibition.
Restoring Genius: Grinling Gibbons's Carvings in the Orangery of Kensington Palace
30 July 2021
03 August marks the 300th anniversary of the death of Grinling Gibbons, the greatest woodcarver in British history. Buildings Curator Lee Prosser introduces us to some of his lesser-known but incredibly important works in the Orangery at Kensington Palace.
Queen Anne and Sarah Churchill's last stand off at Kensington Palace
25 February 2021
Holly Marsden, PhD researcher on late-Stuart history, takes us inside Kensington Palace to paint a picture of Queen Anne and Sarah Churchill's final goodbye.
HRP Handover: Zeinab Badawi on Sarah Forbes Bonetta and "contested history"
22 October 2020
This week, we’ve invited journalist and Historic Royal Palaces Trustee Zeinab Badawi to share her thoughts on the importance of welcoming diverse perspectives on our past, and the problem with the term ‘contested history’.
Creating your own wildflower garden
27 April 2020
You don't need large expanses of land to make your own wildflower meadow providing cover and food for wildlife. Following the success of our wildflowers at Kensington Palace, this year we planted a new wildflower meadow at Hampton Court. You too can do the same with any old patch of lawn in an open, sunny position.
Conservation of an 18th century headboard: Secrets of a State Bed
13 March 2020
As part of our Secrets of a State Bed series, Conservator Viola Nicastro explains the process of conserving the headboard of Queen Caroline's State Bed, and reveals more of its secrets.
Six mattresses for a Queen: Secrets of a State Bed
30 January 2020
As conservation work continues on Queen Caroline's State bed, Conservator Beatrice Farmer shares discoveries on the lavish silk-covered mattresses, including one that appears to be an impostor. The bed is part of the Royal Collection, and can usually be found on display at Hampton Court Palace.
Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha: Monarchy's moderniser
26 August 2019
On the 200th birthday of Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Professor John R Davis argues that Albert's influence helped Queen Victoria rescue the British Monarchy.
Plant hunters: Victorian plants are brought to Kensington Palace
08 August 2019
At Kensington Palace we have selected just a few of our favourite discoveries from the Victorian period to go on display in 2019. Each plant has a story and can be accredited to a plant hunter who explored the world during this fascinating period of horticultural research and discovery.