Roberta Writes – Thursday Doors: Leeds Castle #castle #winter #Christmas

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Welcome to Thursday Doors, a weekly feature allowing door lovers to come together to admire and share their favorite door photos from around the world. Feel free to join in on the fun by creating your own Thursday Doors post each week and then sharing your link in the comments below, anytime between 12:01 am Thursday morning and Saturday noon (North American eastern time).

You can join in Thursday Doors here: https://nofacilities.com/2022/06/16/squires-tavern/

It is quite cold in June in South Africa. Colder than most people think it gets in this country because it has been labelled Sunny South Africa. It is true that it can be hot in the day time during our winters and the sun usually shines, but the nights are very cold and we get sub-zero temperatures and frost. Our houses are not designed for cold weather so it can be quite a miserable three months for many people. I am always thankful that we have a lovely fireplace and I know how to build excellent fires. This supplements our electric heaters.

Anyhow, the cold weather this week reminded me of my family’s trip to the UK in December 2009/Jan 2010. It snowed heavily that year and the Eurostar got stuck in the tunnel. We were on the train before the one that got stuck and I am so grateful we got through okay. My boys are three and six then and it wouldn’t have been fun at all stuck on a cold train in the dark.

During this trip, we went to Leeds Castle. That was the day it started to snow and we had a lot of fun as it was the first time my boys ever saw snow.

This is what Historic UK has to say about Leeds Castle:

Leeds Castle in Kent, England, has been called the “loveliest castle in the world”. Listed in the Domesday Book, this castle has been a Norman stronghold, a royal residence and a royal palace. It’s situation is stunning, set on two islands in a magnificent lake.

The Royal Manor was originally built in 857AD and owned by a Saxon royal family. After the Norman Conquest, work began on building the first stone castle on the site.

In 1278 the Castle became a royal palace for Edward I and his Queen, Eleanor of Castile. Major improvements were made to the castle during the reign of Edward I. The Barbican, constructed during this time, is unique in that it is made up of three parts, each having its own entrance, drawbridge, gateway and portcullis. The medieval Keep, incorporating the Great Hall, is called the Gloriette, in honour of Queen Eleanor.

Leeds Castle
Front door to Leeds Castle
Interior of one of the rooms – I thought there was a door at the back but I’m not sure if it is a door or not.
Interior of one of the bedrooms with a lovely blue door and blue paneling.
Greg standing in the passage with the archway in the background
No doors here – just two cute boys

Published by robertawrites235681907

I am a writer of young adult fiction and poetry

Published

65 thoughts on “Roberta Writes – Thursday Doors: Leeds Castle #castle #winter #Christmas”

  5. This looks like a wonderful place to visit. It’s fun to see your kids at that age. I’m guessing there’s a door on something in that interior photo. In any case, it’s beautiful

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  7. The boys are so cute in these pictures. Looks like you had a fabulous time. I haven’t been to Leeds Castle but have been to many others in the UK. It has a great history.

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  10. Lovely photos, Robbie, and it was kind of the British weather to make your stay even more memorable. I went there once as a kid, but all I can remember is that it wasn’t as big as the one I was used to: Dover, where I was born. Kids, eh!

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          1. The sad thing is that it is only since I moved away from the area that I’ve realised how lucky I was to have all that history around me as I was growing up. And there were everyday reminders of the more recent history in the many sites that were being regenerated after being bombed in WW2 – that part of the country wasn’t known as ‘Hellfire Corner’ for nothing.

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          2. You would have been a most unusual youngster to have appreciated history on a level greater than investigating the sites, if possible, and finding keepsakes. All of us grow to appreciate things like history as we get older. Except for my oldest son. He was born an old man – smile!

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  11. A very wonderful castle, even thought in my eyes without the towers it looks more like a manor. Sorry, i am not so familiar with the British classifications, Robbie! The boys have grown up so fast. One cannot believe, there only twelve years have passed. Thanks for sharing these impressions, Robbie! Have a beautiful weekend! xx Michael

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    1. HI Michael, I am glad you enjoyed this castle. Most English castles look like this one, they are stone buildings with turrets of different shapes depending on the time they were built. The only ‘Disney’ time castle I’ve visited in the UK was Heaver Castle and that one was renovated by the Astors who were American.

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    1. Hi Jacqui, I suppose people’s perceptions of weather depend on how it is the majority of the time. IN SA we have good weather for 9 months of the year. In the UK, the weather is cold for 9 months of the year. I’ve experienced snow in the UK in late April. Ugh!

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  13. It’s getting hot here in Southern California. I almost forget about the cold weather. How cold does it get in SA, Robbie! Leeds Castle is interesting. It rained for many days when we visited London. Your boys looked so cute in the photos. Nice pictures!

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    1. Thank you, Miriam. We have had visits to the UK when it has rained most of the time and visits where it has snowed heavily. We have also experienced heat waves. In Johannesburg, the winter day time temperature is usually between about 15 and 23 degrees Celsius and the nighttime between -2 and about 6 C. We do get very biting and cold winds.

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      1. It sounds cold, Robbie. For many years, my husband liked to go north, like Canada or northern part of the US, or somewhere with snow during the New Year week. I didn’t get many good pictures on those trips.

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    1. OH gosh, yes. We had some problems anyway because we were stuck in EuroDisney and there was no train to come back on. The day we eventually managed to leave, we waited at the train station from 8.30am until 4pm and then they took us by bus to the airport to fly back to the UK. We eventually arrived at Stansted Airport at 1.30am and Terence took an hour to come through customs on the foreign visitors side. It was a bit terrible.

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  17. Thanks for this pictorial visit to Leeds Castle, Robbie. It is on my list of must see if I ever get to England. I am one of those people that thought it was warmer in South Africa, but it makes sense that when the sun goes down, it gets cold.

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  18. Your trip to England and Leeds Castle seems to have been a very exciting, Roberta:) Many thanks for having made awaken my memories- thanks to your pictures- of, for example, Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. We also went to see Hever Castle where Anne had lived before. I hope that it isn’t too cold now in your country:)

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    1. Hi Martina, I love castles and museums and my boys have grown up visiting them so we always tour extensively when abroad. I am also fascinated by English royalty and all their exploits over the centuries. It is cold here now, but it’s not anything like the winters in parts of Europe or the USA. We don’t get snow and ice, just frost and some bitter winds.

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    1. HI Jacquie, I’m glad you enjoyed these pictures. We don’t have old buildings like this castle in SA. We do have a castle in Cape Town. This is what the internet says about it: The Castle of Good Hope is known locally as “The Castle”. Its Dutch name is “Kasteel de Goede Hoop” and is a bastion fort built in the 17th century in Cape Town, South Africa. The Castle was originally located on the coastline of Table Bay but, following reclamation, the fort is now located a short distance inland within the Central Business District. The Castle was declared a historical monument (now a provincial heritage site) in 1936. Following restoration work in the 1980s, it is considered the best preserved example of a 17th century architectural structure in the entire world.

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      1. I went to the website to check it out- quite beautiful. I’m glad it’s a protected heritage site. So many old buildings are reclaimed and updated, destroying the history we should be valuing.
        Thanks for looking into this, Robbie, it’s amazing!

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  23. I love stone walls, arched castle doorways, and learning about other parts of the world. Wow! Sub-zero temperatures! Thanks for the interesting glimpses of life on the other side of the planet with the familiarity of cute kids.

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  25. Thank you for sharing your lovely memories of Leeds Castle. And yes – I vividly recall that winter, because we don’t often get snow down here in the south of England. But that year was a notable exception! Most winters since, and you’d have been treated to rain, maybe sleet or frost and a biting wind – but no snow:)). Have a great week, Roberta.

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  26. You’re right that I didn’t realize S. Africa got so cold in the winter. But you are quite a ways south of the equator. Thanks for the glimpse of Leeds Castle. Perhaps I’ll get there one day. And cute kids! Lol. Great share, Robbie.

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    1. HI Teagan, this is a lovely castle. I am a big fan of castles and have four lined up for our UK trip in December. Now, it just mustn’t snow buckets as everyone knows the poms can’t deal with heat, rain, leaves, or snow – haha!

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