Glimpse of the property
The home of the Royal Family, Balmoral Castle was built in 19 Century out of local granite in Scotland. This Baronial Style castle was built for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Prince Albert purchased the property after leasing it for the span of 4 years in the year 1848.
In the current Scenario Balmoral castle is bigger than it was bought. Prince Albert personally took care of minute things and was supervising the site quite often as per the needs of the royal household. The new castle structure was built by architect William Smith of Aberdeen. The castle was constructed using stones from a nearby quarry at Glen Gelder, which has a beautiful white Stone. Before the new building was constructed in 1856, the old castle was demolished in order to have a similar look with the new structure.
History of Balmoral Castle
The largest chamber at Balmoral is the Castle Ballroom that hosts an exhibition of fine art and furnishings in the collection of the Royal family. The ballroom is used each year for two dances called the Ghillies Ball, a tradition that has carried over since the days of Queen Victoria.The exhibition has some of the famous paintings by Landseer, silver sculptures by Sir Joseph Boehm, and fine china.
Present Day
Since the Balmoral Castle is now open to visitors as it is part of the British Monarch, the visitors can see the exhibition carriage apart from the main building. Also a display of historical photographs of the royal family awaits for one. A 3 acre formal garden stands in front of the main castle block which was designed by Queen Mary in 1925 The premises of the garden were extended by the Duke of Edinburgh to create a kitchen garden that could provide fresh veggies to the royal family during their summer stay. Beyond the formal gardens are beautiful lawns and grounds. One can explore the River Dee and walk along the tree-lined riverside walk. If they seem to be lucky enough to visit in autumn then they will find this area ablaze with colour.
At the time when the Balmoral Castle was brought by Prince Albert, it is said that there was no direct connection with the river from the northern Deeside Road through Cathrie. Through the main road one could lead to Balmoral but in order to maintain adequate privacy to the royal couple. To avoid privacy breaching of the royal family a bridge was needed across the Dee in order to have free access across the estate.
Fact About Balmoral Castle
They hired Isambard Kingdom Brunel, one the premier engineers of the 19th-century in Britain. Brunel was always an innovator and built a single span wrought-iron bridge, the first bridge in Scotland of this type with the twin riveted girders spanning the Dee are 39.8 metres long and the bridge is 4.1 metres wide. The bridge was an engineering marvel itself, Brunel built in a simple style and therefore Queen Victoria. This is the main reason why it is an unnoticed part of the Balmoral Castle Estate. Brunel called this a style of ‘functional elegance’.
