Steve1962 Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Blazing sun meant only one thing this morning .......... a ride to work on the bike again , but this time with a slight detour ................. into the grounds of Blenheim Palace , birthplace of Winston Churchill ......... here are a few photos taken along the way .......... The Panzer waits ....... The countryside can never bore me .I love it .......... Parking the bike up on the outskirts of Woodstock , I walk into the grounds ................ I feel like I almost stole in ............. The views are great ........... Looking across the water ............... The Palace in the distance .......... A closer view ........... Closer still ....... the soft glow of the early morning sun sits well on the magnificent buildings ........ The bridge .......... With time pressing on , I make my way back to the bike , taking a few more shots on the way ........... Jaws ................ this fella looks somewhat displeased Back on the bike , a short ride through Woodstock takes me to the by pass , for a 10 mile blast " to let some air run over the fins of the boxer engine " ..and I arrive at work , ready for the day ahead . Steve Link to comment
RT_Pilot Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Next time your taking pictures of my house, ring the door bell... oh and thanks for not waking me, thats pretty early. Link to comment
Steve1962 Posted May 31, 2006 Author Share Posted May 31, 2006 Hey, Your security is crap ..............you left the gate unlocked !! Steve Link to comment
Francois_Dumas Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 You KNOW where all the clouds went, don't you !!!?? Link to comment
Mike O Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Steve, Nice photos (as always). Could you provide some additional information on Blenheim Palace? Regards, Mike O Link to comment
rocks Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Awesome pictures... Found it interesting that on the Blienheim Sign they post the speed in MPH??? Stephen Link to comment
Whip Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Nice camera work with the sun....Winnie's my hero....Why did you vote him out before his job was done????... Thanks Whip Link to comment
Boffin Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Steve, Nice photos (as always). Could you provide some additional information on Blenheim Palace? Regards, Mike O Blenheim Palace is the home of the 11th Duke of Malborough and as Steve says wsa the birthplace of Churchill. The palace is named Blenheim because the first Duke won a decisive battle that took place on the 13th August 1704 on the banks of the river Danube, near a small village called Blindheim or Blenheim, and by doing so prevented the French from dominating Europe. As a reward for his services, Queen Anne granted to the Duke the Royal Manor of Woodstock and promised that she would build for him there a house, which would be called Blenheim in recognition of his defence of Holland and Austria against the French. Building began in 1705, and there is an inscription on the East Gate that reads:- "Under the auspices of a munificent sovereign this house was built for John Duke of Marlborough, and his Duchess Sarah, by Sir J Vanbrugh between the years 1705 and 1722. And this Royal manor of Woodstock, together with a grant of £240,000, towards the building of Blenheim was given by Her Majesty Queen Anne and confirmed by Act of Parliament..." While the Duke continued to lead his armies overseas, winning many victories, his absence gave his rivals at home the chance to remove him from the Queen's favour. As a result, the money which had been promised for building Blenheim Palace wasn't paid, leaving the Duke owing £45,000 to the Architect, masons and sundry other craftsmen In the summer of 1712, with bills unpaid, all work on Blenheim Palace stopped. Fortunes changed in 1714, following the death of Queen Anne. The Duke with the support of his wife's family negotiated a settlement with the unpaid masons and suppliers allowing the Palace to be completed at the Duke and Dutches' expense. The gardens were laid out in 1760 by the renowned landscape artist Capability Brown, and are open to the public over the summer months. Despite being one of the few great houses still occupied by their heredetary owners, the house is also open to visitors. The palace was declared a world heritage site in 1987. Cya, Andy Link to comment
Steve1962 Posted May 31, 2006 Author Share Posted May 31, 2006 In addition to Andy's excellent summary about Blenheim Palace , I can tell you that Winston Churchill is buried in a local churchyard , at Bladon ........... he had a full state funeral in 1965 . I did post a ride report [ back in the depths of time ] , which included photos from the church and graveyard . Steve Link to comment
Mike O Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Andy, Steve.... Thanks for the background information. You folks are fortunate to have such deep history to photograph. Regards, Mike O Link to comment
Boffin Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Awesome pictures... Found it interesting that on the Blienheim Sign they post the speed in MPH??? Stephen We use miles in the UK, it is only mainland Europe that uses kilometers. Andy Link to comment
Steve1962 Posted May 31, 2006 Author Share Posted May 31, 2006 Mike, Andy was around when most of the history actually happened ............. ........... Steve Link to comment
Mike O Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 I was wondering how he so quickly recited that history. Regards, Mike O Link to comment
Firefight911 Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Beautiful as always! Here's a little tale to add to the Churchill story: His Name Was Fleming His name was Fleming, and he was a poor Scottish farmer. One day, while trying to make a living for his family, he heard a cry for help coming from a nearby bog. He dropped his tools and ran to the bog. There, mired to his waist in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the lad from what could have been a slow and terrifying death. The next day, a fancy carriage pulled up to the Scotsman's sparse surroundings. An elegantly dressed nobleman stepped out and introduced himself as the father of the boy Farmer Fleming had saved. "I want to repay you," said the nobleman. "You saved my son's life." "No, I can't accept payment for what I did," the Scottish farmer replied, waving off the offer. At that moment, the farmer's own son came to the door of the family hovel. "Is that your son?" the nobleman asked. "Yes," the farmer replied proudly. "I'll make you a deal. Let me provide him with the level of education my son will enjoy. If the lad is anything like his father, he'll no doubt grow to be a man we both will be proud of." And that he did. Farmer Fleming's son attended the very best schools and in time, he graduated from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School in London, and went on to become known throughout the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of Penicillin. Years afterward, the same nobleman's son who was saved from the bog was stricken with pneumonia. What saved his life this time? Penicillin. The name of the nobleman? Lord Randolph Churchill. His son's name? Sir Winston Churchill. Someone once said: What goes around comes around. Work like you don't need the money. Love like you've never been hurt. Dance like nobody's watching. Sing like nobody's listening. Live like it’s Heaven on Earth. Link to comment
rocks Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Very cool story Amazing what I learn on this board... Stephen Link to comment
DouglasR Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Andy, Steve.... Thanks for the background information. You folks are fortunate to have such deep history to photograph. Regards, Mike O Ditto, excellent photos and I love the historical comments! Out here in the Wild, Wild West of the USA we have history, but it's much shorter and usually violent and lots of times involves ripping the ground apart to get at minerals. I'm a geologist, so I am mostly OK with that, but I admit to conflicting interests! My last few ride reports have involved photos and descriptions of big mining operations and the geological story behind them. I suppose that's more palatable in some ways than wars of conquest and defense.... Anyway, gorgeous photos and wonderful story. I've read a lot of history, and Mr. Churchill was an outstanding figure. From what I understand it was really his ego that got him voted out, stepped on too many toes?? That's obviously an oversimplification... I believe he was referring to motorcycle touring when he said this: "Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb." -- Sir Winston Churchill (or maybe not!) Doug Link to comment
Carnadero Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 We use miles in the UK, it is only mainland Europe that uses kilometers. Good on ya. Those blasted metric measurements, I hate them..... Link to comment
Mark P Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Found it interesting that on the Blienheim Sign they post the speed in MPH??? That's 'cos we use Miles here in the UK - we have spectacularly failed to go metric fully - so we buy fuel in Litres and measure distance by road in miles. Sensible huh? Link to comment
Sellis Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 I love this kind of stuff!!!! Thanks soooo Much! Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.