Kensington Palace2018
by Olivia Fryman
Kensington Palace is renowned for its architecture, splendid interiors, internationally important collections, and, of course, its royal residents. This lavish book thoroughly explores Kensington's physical beauty and its history, presenting new material drawn from archives, newspapers, personal letters, images, and careful analysis of the building itself. Originally a fashionable Jacobean villa, Kensington was dramatically rebuilt in 1689 by Christopher Wren for the newly crowned monarchs, William III and Mary II. The palace became the favored London home of five sovereigns, surviving fires, partial collapse, bombings, and periods of neglect. Queen Victoria recognized its national significance and set about restyling the massive structure with some of England's greatest architects and...