I took a little research trip to London last month and it was so worth it! I’m working on my 2027 Countess of Harliegh book and I don’t think it gives too much away to tell you that a great deal of it takes place at Kensington Palace.
I have never been to Kensington Palace and that’s a problem. I was able to get floor plans of the building in 1901 or close to it, so I had a pretty good sense of the logistics, but visiting the palace made a huge difference.
The curators there were super helpful. The visitor entrance that is used today, didn’t exist in 1901 and while I knew where doors were located, I didn’t know what entrance they would have had the tourists use. With the help of the curators, we were able to figure it out and I could tour the palace as someone in 1901 would have. (The entrance they have now works much better!)
The visit also gave me a better sense of scale. In my mind the state rooms were huge, and they were generous rooms, but nothing like I had expected. They also let me take a peek at what would have been the service areas—also much smaller than I’d expected, but the hallways were exactly where I thought they’d be. I will have to do some revision, but I’m delighted to make the setting more real.
It was just a matter of luck that we were in London at the same time as the Chelsea Flower Show. We didn’t attend the show itself, but a few of the neighborhoods joined in the fun and set up flower installations up and down the streets. I’ve included some of them in this post. The Chelsea show has been running since 1913, but there was a Royal Horticultural Society Flower Show prior to that and during Frances’ time, it was held at Inner Temple Garden, so of course, I had to add that to my list of places to visit. I have a feeling there will be a flower show in Frances’ future.
If that wasn’t enough, we visited Blenheim Palace, the home of the Dukes of Marlborough since the early 18th century. Contrary to Kensington Palace, I would have had a hard time imagining something that big. But having seen it, I could well imagine that by the time the 9th Duke of Marlborough came along, it was necessary to marry the richest heiress he could find. Consuelo Vanderbilt fit the bill.
As it turns out Winston Churchill, who was a cousin to the duke, spent quite a bit of time at Blenheim. Between the opulence of this massive palace, Consuelo Vanderbilt, and a young Winston Churchill, I’d love to set a book here too!
It was the perfect research trip. I went to London to get some information for my current book and I also gained inspiration for two more!