This past Saturday, in honor of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, I made scones for breakfast. I’ve always been a big fan of the British Royal Family and watched the Prince’s funeral, from start to finish. I think the American TV networks did a good job with their coverage of the funeral, but was wishing I could have watched BBC to see how it was covered in Great Britain. I got up extra early to ensure my scones were done before the funeral started. I will share the recipe, for lavender-honey scones, with you later in this post. But first, I’d like to share some photos from past visits I've made to royal sites associated with Prince Philip.
First up, Buckingham Palace. In 2013, after touring Ireland with my daughter, Laura, we flew across the Irish Sea for a long week-end in London. We saw all we could in that short time, including visiting the two biggest palaces in London, Buckingham and Kensington. We were in luck because our trip was in August, one of the summer months that Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip traditionally spend at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. While The Queen is away, Buckingham Castle is opened up to the public.
We had ordered our tickets online, months before our vacation, and made sure we queued up on time as late-comers are not allowed in. The tour includes seeing 19 state rooms, the Throne Room and the Grand Staircase. Sadly, you are not allowed to take pictures inside the palace, and so I have none to share. It was grand, it was all beautiful, but eight years later I can’t really recall many details or have highlights to dazzle you with. 😊
But, the one thing I do remember is the special exhibit in one of the staterooms honoring The Queen’s 60 years on the throne, her Diamond Jubilee. The dress that Queen Elizabeth II wore at her coronation is so beautiful that I found a picture online to show you. The detail and embroidery on this dress is amazing and of course, it all symbolizes something: floral emblems of Great Britain and Commonwealth countries cover the gown. Lovely. Also on display were the itty-bitty finery that Prince Charles, 4 years old, and Princess Ann, 2 years old, wore on their mom’s big day.
Upon exiting the palace, you go out the back way where they have a cute outdoor garden café set up on the back porch. I ordered tea, Laura got a cappuccino and we each got a strawberry scone with clotted cream. (These details I found in my travel journal. Crazy what I think is important and write in the journal. 😊)
It was all delicious, and I soaked up every minute of the moment: sitting on the back porch of Buckingham Palace having tea!! It really felt special even if we were eating off of paper plates, and our beverages were in paper cups. Did you notice the crown of cinnamon floating on top of Laura’s cappuccino? A very royal touch, indeed.
The Garden Café on the back of Buckingham Palace
When we could not really stretch our tea time any longer, as we had other sites to visit that day, we headed to the palace gift shop where we made several purchases each. I’m going to say, if it’s possible, this was a very classy gift shop. And one of us went home with a really cute stuffed Corgi, The Queen’s favorite breed of dog.
We left the palace grounds by walking out the back way through a public part of the palace gardens. It was a lovely walk, and we passed by the lake below, but we were not allowed to go through the private section of garden as it's not normally open to the public. Doing a little reading online as I write this post, I learned the private gardens will be open this summer, while the palace will not be, because of the pandemic. Visitors will be able to freely roam the 39-acre gardens for the first time in the palace’s history. They’ll even be allowed to picnic on its sweeping lawns. What a fun thing that would be to do! I sure wish I could visit London this summer. (I'm excited to go to Windsor Castle as well, where Prince Philp's funeral took place.)
The second royal home we visited was Kensington Palace. Today, this is where Prince William and Kate live when in London, as do numerous other minor royals. Over the years Diana, Princess of Wales lived there as did Princess Margaret, Princess Anne, and Prince Harry and Meghan for a short time. It was also the childhood home of Queen Victoria.
Fun fact, when we looked through the gates while we were there that day, that was not really Kensington Palace that we were looking at. What?!?! The front of the palace was undergoing a refurbishment that year, and giant screens looking like the palace were placed in front of it to hide scaffolding and the work being done. Look closely and you can see the corners of the blue screens at the top as well as fencing at the bottom.
When we visited in 2013, most of the exhibits and state rooms inside Kensington were dedicated to Queen Victoria and her family. William and Kate moved in after our visit when the renovations were done.
Pictures of Queen Victoria and her family, one of her dresses and her throne.
There was also a fabulous fashion exhibit at Kensington called “Fashion Rules” that featured dresses of Queen Elizabeth II (from the 1950s), Queen Margaret (1960s and 70s) and Princess Diana (1980s.) Trend-setters all, each of these women managed to look very stylish while still meeting the exacting demands of dressing royal and diplomatic requirements.
I really liked Queen Elizabeth’s haute couture outfits from the 1950s. I feel many are classic designs that really hold up well over the years. While it was not featured in this exhibit, I think the fact that Princess Beatrice wore one of her grandmother’s gowns at her own wedding last summer, and looked absolutely fantastic doing it, speaks to the timelessness of The Queen’s early wardrobe.
I was also very amazed by how tiny The Queen’s waist was back in the day after looking at all these dresses with their small waistlines.
Princess Margaret’s clothes were all just fun and funky! I’m guessing that as The Queen’s sister less restrictions were placed on her wardrobe.
I hate to say this, but the clothes I liked the least, based on this exhibit alone, were those of Princess Diana. There were some lovely gowns that I remember, but others looked dated and over the top. Sorry Di.
But check out this wallpaper featuring Diana. Granted, it was on the lower level by the restrooms, but I still think it’s pretty amazing. It’s both crazy and beautiful at the same time and I loved it!
My favorite part of Kensington Palace was the Sunken Garden out back. Full of color and fountains and surrounded by a tunnel of love woven of greenery, it’s said this garden was a favorite of Diana’s as well. In 2017, it was replanted in all white flowers to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Diana’s death. It was in this very white garden that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle officially announced their engagement that same year.
This is the Sunken Garden when we visited.
And this is what it looked like in 2017 when it was transformed to honor
the 20th anniversary of Diana, the Princess of Wales. (Photos found online.)
Now lets move on to Scotland, where we traveled in 2018. I wish we could have visited Balmoral Castle, said to be Queen Elizabeth’s favorite home, but we didn’t get the chance. By the way, in 1947, Prince Philip was bestowed the title of Duke of Edinburgh by his father-in-law, King George VI, after marrying Princess Elizabeth.
We were able to visit two royal spots, both in Edinburgh. Holyrood Palace is the official residence of The Queen in Scotland. Each year, in late June, The Queen spends at least one week at Holyrood. During Holyrood Week, The Queen has several engagements that celebrate the culture and history of Scotland. She also hosts a garden party during this week to which about 8,000 guests are invited. Wow!
Sad to report, no photos were allowed to be taken inside Holyrood either. All I can show you are the front of the palace and its courtyard. And silly me never passing on a photo op. 😊
Abutting right up to the palace are the ruins of the Holyrood Abbey Church that date back to the 12th century when it was built by King David I of Scotland. Reoccurring wars and invasions took a toll on the church over the centuries, and after its roof was removed by a looting mob in 1688, it was allowed to fall into disrepair. And some 300 years later it still looks pretty much the same.
These ruins were fascinating as well as being very photogenic, and we spent a lot a time exploring them and taking many, many pictures. I think we enjoyed them more than the palace to be honest with you. 😊
Looking at the picture below, that peak in the distance is called Arthur’s Seat. It is an extinct volcano and the highest point in Holyrood Park. From the top, it offers one of the best views of Edinburgh. Alas, we did not make the hike to the top.
While in Edinburgh, we made sure to visit the Royal Yacht Britannia, the former yacht of the monarch now permanently docked at the historic Port of Leith. It was decommissioned in 1997 after 43 years of service and more than 1,000,000 miles traveled around the world. The yacht is now open to the public and one of the top tourist destinations in Scotland.
The tower in the middle is how you get on the yacht and allows access to all the decks onboard.
The day we visited was a rainy one, and we dodged the rain drops as we checked out the five main decks. The State Apartments and Royal Family’s living quarters are as elegant as you’d expect. The royal family’s rooms are large and lovely. What I noticed though, was the lower you went on the yacht, the smaller the rooms got. Down below, the officer’s quarters are smaller, but still a decent size. But get down to the deck where the crew’s quarters are and they are in tiny rooms with six bunks to a room.
The Queen's Bedroom
Prince Philip's Bedroom
Prince Charles and Diana's honeymoon suite
And this is where the crew slept, six bunks to what can't even really be called a room.
The State Drawing Room
The Officer's Drawing Room
The State Dining Room
The Officer's Dining Room
This is the sun lounge, The Queen’s favorite room on the yacht. She would eat breakfast
and have her afternoon tea in this room with a view.
There are family photos all over the ship.
Interestingly, the Royals would sign their names below each.
At one point it was so rainy and cool, we decided to take advantage of the amenities of the Royal Deck Tea Room. We ducked in to warm up with a hot beverage and, but of course, a tasty scone.
And just in case anyone gets sick, or needs surgery, they were ready!
We enjoyed our time on the yacht, even if the weather did not cooperate. It really is an amazing vessel. I kept thinking to myself, “They call it a yacht, but it’s a big boat! A ship, for goodness’ sake.” If you’d like to read more about the Royal Yacht Britannia, I highly recommend checking out its official website. It’s very interesting and has a lot of great pictures and fun facts. Here’s a link to the website:
LAVENDER-HONEY SCONES
I’ve been making lavender scones for a few years now, always saving them for special occasions. It had been a while, but I made them just a few weeks ago for Easter. And again this past Saturday, as it seemed appropriate to be eating scones for breakfast as the funeral coverage for Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, began at 9 a.m.
I found this recipe in the April 2015 issue of Better Homes and Gardens and would like to share it with you now.
WHAT YOU NEED
¾ cup whipping cream
2 TBSP. honey
1 TBSP. dried lavender buds
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 TBSP. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
6 TBSP. butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
WHAT YOU’LL DO
1.) In a small saucepan combine whipping cream, honey, and lavender. Warm over medium heat until mixture begins to steam, about 10 minutes. Chill about 30 minutes or until cooled completely.
2.) Preheat over to 400° F.
3.) Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center of flour mixture; set aside.
4.) Whisk egg into cooled cream mixture. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Using a fork, stir just until moistened.
5.) Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough by folding and gently pressing it for 10 to 12 strokes or until dough is nearly smooth. Pat dough into a 10x4-inch rectangle. Cut in half lengthwise and in sixths crosswise to make 12 rectangles.
6.) Place rectangles 2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Brush rectangles with additional whipping cream. Bake 13 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove scones from baking sheet. Drizzle with additional honey, if desired. Serve warm. Makes 12 scones.
Along with the recipe, Better Homes and Gardens offered these three tips for successful scone baking:
I purchased the lavender buds online from Amazon. Yes, if you look closely, you’ll see that mine are expired. They still smelled fragrant when I checked them before using, and so I took my chances and used them. Still delicious!
Good luck baking and I hope you enjoyed a little royal travel inspiration. 😊
Let me leave you with this bit of Royal Yacht trivia with a Michigan twist!
No, your eyes aren't deceiving you; that is indeed the Royal Yacht about to go under the Mackinac Bridge. The date was July 5, 1959, and Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip were on a six-week tour of the United States and Canada. After celebrating the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway with President Dwight D. Eisenhower, they traveled down the seaway, through the Great Lakes, all the way to Chicago. For security reasons, traffic was stopped from traveling over the bridge while the Britannia traveled under. What a sight it must have been!
As always, take care and stay safe.