What do I mean by a personal view of the Royal Pavilion? Having been born in Brighton (East Sussex, England) I have grown up with the Royal Pavilion, also known as the Brighton Pavilion. I guess I have been guilty of, well, ignoring it.
A Personal View of the Royal Pavilion
Seriously, I travel all over England visiting various heritage sites and old buildings to take photographs but have seriously neglected some famous parts of the town of my birth. I would pass it every day going to school and it became ‘background noise’. If that makes sense? Recently I had the opportunity to make up for that when I visited Brighton.
Three Things You May Not Know about the Royal Pavilion
With thanks to Wikipedia three interesting facts about the Royal Pavilion just to give you a flavor.
A Seaside Retreat for Royalty
In 1787 the original building was built as a seaside retreat for George, Prince of Wales. He later became King George IV. Not only did he stay there regularly but so did his successor, King William IV. Of course for George there was a bit more to it than a seaside retreat. Away from the royal court he was able to entertain his lady friend Maria Fitzherbert out of the sight of prying eyes.
It Didn’t Always Look Like It Should be in India
The building went through three distinct phases. It was the architect/designer John Nash, who was involved in extending the building between 1815 and 1822 who introduced the exotic indo-islamic exterior for which the Royal Pavilion is famous. When people see it for the first time it is like being transported to India!
Queen Victoria Wanted to be Alone
Queen Victoria disliked visiting Brighton because of all the attention she received and she thought the pavilion an odd-looking place. She is quoted as saying “the people here are very indiscreet and troublesome“. This was made worse by the fact that railways came into the equation in 1841 so Londoners could easily access the seaside at Brighton. Victoria voted with her feet and built a large royal residence (Osborne House) on the Isle of Wight. The sale of the Royal Pavilion to the town of Brighton helped pay for Osborne House.
You can read more about the Royal Pavilion here.
Aiming for a Particular Look
The Pavilion is well-photographed and I wanted to try and capture something different, a bit of the mood of the building and perhaps a glimpse back at its past. So I tried not to be seduced by the normal perspective but to look at the building from lots of different angles and see what I could capture. I think I achieved my goal don’t you?
Where You Can Purchase My Images Of Brighton
Browse my collection of Brighton images at Pictorem (free shipping in North America) and RedBubble (worldwide shipping).
Before you go
My name is Dorothy Berry-Lound an artist and writer. You can find out more about my art and writing at https://dorothyberryloundart.com.
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Thank you for reading!
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