A-Z Challenge 2017 - Houses, some real, some not - 'Y'

Y - York House

Having 'cheated' slightly on 'X' I was thinking of doing the same for 'Y' by posting on the royal members of the House of York.

But as you might expect there are many houses in England call 'York House'. The one I have chosen is one at the home of rugby in Twickenham.

York House, Twickenham
(!7 January 2015, by Jim Linwood - CC BY-SA 2.0)

This historic stately home currently serves as the Town Hall for the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.

It occupies part of the site belonging from at least Tudor times to Yorke Farm; its name derives from that family.

Over the centuries the house passed through several owners after Queen Elizabeth I and King Edward VI granted Yorke farm to members of their household.

In 1897 the house was sold to the Duc of Orleans who had been a Pretender to be King of France, but by 1906 it was acquired by an Indian merchant Prince, Sir Rata J Tata. He was to be the last private owner.

Subsequently in 1924 the property was purchased by Twickenham Urban District Council. In August 1926, Twickenham received its Charter of Incorporation and in November the new borough held its first council meeting in York House. Appropriately the building was officially opened by the Duke of York (later George VI) on 16th November 1926. 

Fotheringhay Castle and Mary Queen of Scots

 A-Z Challenge - F

Fotheringhay Castle and Mary Queen of Scots

The village of Fotheringhay is situated six kilometres north east of Oundle in the county of Northamptonshire. There is nothing left of its castle today other than the motte on which it was built which provides excellent views of the River Nene.

Site of Fotheringhay Castle - 2009

Site of Fotheringhay Castle The motte and bailey is all that remains of Fotheringhay Castle, where Mary, Queen of Scots was executed. Behind is the modern Castle Barn and beyond, Fotheringhay Church. 

The Norman castle was built around 1100. The motte topped by a stone keep was surrounded by a moat. King Edward III (1312-77) rebuilt the Norman castle and granted it to his son, Edward, Duke of York. In 1452 the wife of a later Duke of York gave birth to the future Richard III. The reign of Richard III was short (1483 – 85) as he was killed at the Bosworth during the War of the Roses.

Henry VIII gave it to Catherine of Aragon as part of her dowry but she refused to go there. The castle became infamous as the site for the imprisonment and execution of the tragic Mary, Queen of Scots. She was tried and convicted for treason and beheaded in the Great Hall on 8^th February 1587.

(If you are squeamish you may want to give the video a miss)

 The castle fell into disrepair and in 1627 it was razed to the ground, its fixtures and fittings sold. The great horned windows and the staircase down which Mary walked to her execution ended up in the Talbot Hotel in Oundle. Reputedly Mary’s face is seen occasionally gazing out at passers-by.

 Hilary Melton-Butcher's Castle E - Eastnor Castle, Herefordshire

Attributions

• Site of Fotheringhay Castle:  By Ian Simpson 2009 – Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license. (Geograph Project Collection)
• Video: Execution scene taken from the BBC series 'Elizabeth R' (1971). Starring Glenda Jackson as Elizabeth and Vivian Pickles as Mary, Queen of Scots. No copyright infringement intended