Welcome to March's edition of The Castle Times



In this months issue:

1.    Castle of the month - A Short History - Windsor Castle Pt1 by MaryAnne Heinz

2. Recipe Corner - Posset sent in by Pam Seres

3.    Life in Medieval times - Wedding Traditions and Marriage Laws Pt6

4.    Travel Tips - How can I get a better deal on my Airline tickets?

5. Readers Story - A Day in the Life of Being Henry - 16th December By Ray Irving

The origins of Windsor were in the 7th century Saxon settlement of Windlesora, where the present day village of Old Windsor is located.

Windsor Castle has been a royal residence for a thousand years. It is the largest inhabited castle and the oldest with continuous occupation. The origins of Windsor were in the 7th century Saxon settlement of Windlesora, where the present day village of Old Windsor is located.

William the Conqueror originally built the castle, sometime in the 1070’s. It was a part of the defensive ring of castles that he built around London. The original structure was built from timber with earth fortifications. Since, then it has been continuously improvement and restored by successive monarchs according to their taste and style.

The castle's layout dates back to the medieval fortifications. The lower ward is home to St. George's Chapel, while the upper ward contains the royal apartments and grand state rooms. The two wards are separated by the Round Tower, a descendant of the original motte of William the Conqueror's castle.

In the 1170s Henry II rebuilt the Round Tower, the outer walls of the Upper and most of the Lower Ward, and the Royal apartments in the Upper Ward using stone instead of wood.

In the 1360s Edward III extended the Castle. He created the immense St. George's Hall for the use of the Knights of his newly founded Order of the Garter.

St George's Chapel was begun by Edward IV and completed by Henry VIII. It is dedicated to the patron saint of the Order of the Garter, which is Britain's highest order of chivalry. Ten British monarchs lie buried in the chapel: Edward IV, Henry VI, Henry VIII, Charles I, George III, George IV, William IV, Edward VII, George V and George VI.

Oliver Cromwell captured Windsor Castle in 1642 and for the rest of the Civil War it became a prison and the headquarters of the parliamentary forces. In 1648 Charles I was held at the headquarters before his trial and execution in London. His body was then returned for burial in St. George’s Chapel.

Following the Restoration, Charles II was determined to make the Castle as splendid as possible. He created a new set of State Apartments in the 1670s.

George IV was a great lover of fine art and decoration. Much of Windsor Castle's present appearance is due to the alterations he had done in the 1820s.

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were devoted to Windsor, where they spent much of their time. It was during the reign of Queen Victoria in 1845, that the State Apartments were first opened to the public. Prince Albert died of typhoid at Windsor in 1861 and was buried in a spectacular mausoleum that Queen Victoria constructed.

In Pt2 we learn about the history of the castle from WWII to the present day.

3 eggs

575 ml (1 pt) milk

275 ml (1/2 pt) strong brown ale

Cinnamon and ground ginger

Method

1. Beat eggs into the milk, and heat gently, stirring continuously, until the mixture has thickened and is about to rise to the boil.

2. Meanwhile, heat the ale almost to boiling point and pour into a large warmed bowl.

3. Quickly pour the hot egg and milk mixture into the ale from good height, cover the bowl and leave in a warm place for 5 minutes to allow curd to set.

4. Sprinkle a little cinnamon and ginger over the posset, which is now ready to be served.

Eat, Drink and be Merry

Wedding Traditions and Marriage Laws Pt6

It became tradition to pile up several small loafs, one on top of the other, as high as they could, and the bride and groom would kiss over the tower and try not to knock it down. If they were successful, it meant a lifetime of prosperity. Guests scrambled for the crumbs and partook of them eagerly as they were assumed to be tokens of good luck. No word on how much wine the bride had to consume in order to get rid of the headache and the fear of future abuse.

In the 1660s, breads turned into biscuits, and during the reign of King Charles II, a French chef was visiting London and observed the cake piling ceremony.

Appalled at the haphazard manner in which the British stacked baked goods, often to have them tumble, he conceived the idea of transforming the mountain of bland biscuits into an iced, multi-tiered cake sensation. British papers (yes, even then they had them) of the day are supposed to have deplored the French excess, but before the close of the century, British bakers were offering the very same magnificent creations.

The Groom’s Cake

This cake has been around from the middle ages, usually dark and solid and much smaller than the Wedding Cake. It is traditional served at the reception besides the white tiered Wedding Cake, making a beautiful contrast of colour, taste, texture and design.

A Grooms Cake is also packed into slices ahead of time for guests to take home for others who could not attend, so they may celebrate the couple’s good fortune.

It is also said that if a single guest puts a piece of Grooms Cake under their pillow, they will dream of their future marriage partner.

In our final part of this series we look at Romance, Love and Chivalry in Medieval Times

• Shopping on the Internet can be the quickest and easiest way to compare many different Airlines’ rates to find the best deals.

• If you can be flexible about when you travel, do so. It can bring big savings. Even changing a flight’s time during the same day can effect the rate. Often the less popular early morning or late evening flights have lower rates.

• The best deals tend to be found during the off season and at other times when the Airlines are flying at less than capacity.

• Check into splitting your trip into two roundtrip sections. A stopover at a midpoint could save you over flying a direct route. Although, make sure the savings are large enough to warrant the extra hassles of the stopover.

• Check into booking your travel plans as a package. You might be able to save by booking your Airline tickets along with your hotel room or rental car.

• Ask if this is the best deal that they have available when you are booking your reservation.

• Apply any special discount programs for which you are eligible.

• When you reach check-in, ask to see if any special upgrade deals are available.

• Take some time to look for the best deal, a little research can bring big savings. Airline ticket prices vary wildly and you want to be the one that paid £200.00 roundtrip, not the guy in the next seat that paid £600.00.

Simple?

Not on your nelly. Because women have to look around at all shops and antique dealers before they make their mind up, then the negotiations begin to save some money and organise delivery. Remember I said “…for Christmas…” I am working solid from tomorrow, my wife is working everyday except Sunday, then it’s Christmas.

So the Henry in me sorted it out. Having been refused an offer on an antique set I wasn’t going to barter any more, they had the offer withdrawn. I went to the best dealer in Town, Dickinsons of Chorley, and well known furniture of quality supplier. I know who’s got the upper hand, me of course. I am a customer, it is near to Christmas and a poor selling time for such goods and I will pay cash up front.

They had a fabulous Solid Oak dining table suitable for 8 chairs but only 4 chairs in stock, another bargaining lever methinks. After negotiating with a one off offer, they came up with a great deal; I took the table and the 4 chairs and ordered 4 more chairs for the New Year. The discount was really good but the price was still high, well good furniture is expensive but will last for a lifetime.

With the set to be delivered tomorrow. The deal done and paid for, I now needed to tell my wife, oh yes I forgot to tell you, all this was done on my own without the guiding hand of the woman in my life.

So to make sure I covered my back from possible attack I went to where she worked to tell her about my magnificent deal which had solved the problem of Christmas day lunch for ever. Mrs Tudor works in a Photographic company and she saw me enter the doorway so I had no real time to conjure up a good story, I just said outright “….eh, well eh,…..I’ve bought a dining room suite dear” what a wimp Ray is, you would never suspect that he had a Henry in him. But I thought we were going to look for one together? When? Where? How? All these instant repartee’s came rushing into my brain but failed to enter my mouth, thank God!

This has been a useful exercise, it has not only satisfied the need for a new dining suite, it has issued in a strong manner that I am capable of making decisions on my own without this cumbersome “let’s do it together approach” which is ok for romantic, holidays, house buying, etc but totally unnecessary for buying needed items when we both know what we want.

I hope the dining set is perfect tomorrow when it appears in my house, because the slightest fault will fall like a ton of bricks on my head.

Thanks Henry, I notice you never had to pacify a wife, you had other ways of dealing with that problem.

I did some acting today, Santa. A lovely nursery in Preston run by a dedicated staff of caring ladies. After giving out 35 presents to the children and having a picture taken with each one, a lady member of staff rushed over and sat on my knee for the last picture in the roll. It has been a long time since I had a lady sit on my knee so I was in shock when she asked me if I was smiling under my beard, “…..of course I am madam, I’ll have two copies of that one thanks!”

Henry again eh!

I hope you have enjoyed reading issue 13.

If you have any suggestions or comments about any part of the newsletter then please feel free to contact me.

As always, if you have a story,photos or questions you wish to ask or share with our readers then please email me and I will be happy to include them in our next edition.

All submissions should reach me by no later than the 20th of March