英国女王的城堡：温莎城堡

Windsor Castle is the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world and the Official Residence of the Queen of Britain. Over a period of nearly 1,000 years it has been inhabited continuously, and altered and refurbished[1] by successive monarchs. Some were great builders, strengthening the Castle against uprising and rebellion; others, living in more peaceful times, created a palatial[2] Royal residence.

William the Conqueror chose the site, high above the river Thames and on the edge of a Saxon hunting ground.[3] It was a day’s march from the Tower of London[4] and intended to guard the western approaches to the capital. The outer walls of today’s structure are in the same position as those of the original castle built by William the Conqueror in the 1070s.

The Queen uses the Castle both as a private home, where she usually spends the weekend, and as a Royal residence at which she undertakes certain formal duties. Windsor Castle is often used by The Queen to host State Visits from overseas monarchs and presidents. Every year The Queen takes up official residence in Windsor Castle for a month over Easter (March-April).

The Castle is huge, so people tend to head for the most spectacular bits—the State Apartments, St. George’s Chapel, the Gallery and the delightful Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House. Works of art, antique furniture, curiosities and impressive architecture reflect the tastes of many different royal generations.

The State Apartments are lavishly decorated formal rooms still used for state and official functions. The treasures in the Apartments include works of art by Canaletto, Holbein, Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt, Rubens and Van Dyck, as well as the ceilings and woodwork of the rooms themselves.[5] Also on display is a large collection of armor, including an etched gold suit of armor made for prince Hal.

The magnificent and beautiful St. George’s Chapel was started in 1475 by Edward IV and was completed fifty years later by Henry VIII. It ranks among the finest examples of late medieval architecture in the UK. Ten monarchs are buried in the Chapel, including Henry VIII with his wife. Many Royal weddings have been celebrated in St. George’s Chapel, including that of Prince Edward and Miss Sophie Rhys-Jones in June 1999. In 2005 a service of dedication and prayer was held in the Chapel following the marriage of The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall.

The Drawings Gallery features the exhibition “The Queen: Sixty Photographs for Sixty Years” from 4 February to 28 October this year. Sixty photographs of The Queen, including the work of leading press photographers of the past six decades, will go on display to celebrate Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee[6]. The exhibition presents a portrait of The Queen as captured in fleeting moments on both official occasions and at relaxed family gatherings.

Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House is an amazing dolls’ house built on a scale of 1 to 12. It contains working lifts, running water and electricity, and took 1,500 craftsmen three years to complete. Queen Mary was known as a collector of miniature objects including Fabergé[7] animals, children’s silver furniture and other examples of “tiny craft”. Princess Marie Louise was the King’s cousin. After returning home from a visit to the King and Queen at Windsor Castle, during which they had shown her much kindness, she announced to her family that she would commission a dolls’ house as a present for the Queen.

The Changing of the Guard is one of the highlights of a visit to Windsor. A band usually accompanies the Guards, although this is subject to weather conditions. Windsor Castle gives you the good chance to snoop around[8] a royal residence and track the history of the English monarchy.

温莎城堡是世界上最古老、面积最大的尚在使用的城堡，也是英国女王的官邸。在近一千年的历史中，世袭的君主们一直都居住于此，并对温莎城堡不断进行改造和翻新。有些君主进行了大刀阔斧的改造，加固城堡以抵御暴动和叛乱;而另一些生活在较为和平时期的君主则创造出了一座宏伟壮丽的皇室宫殿。

威廉一世(征服者)选择了一处撒克逊人狩猎场的边缘(来建造温莎城堡)，高高地位于泰晤士河之上。温莎城堡距离伦敦塔只有一天的行程，目的是为了守护伦敦的西大门。现在温莎城堡的外墙与11世纪70年代威廉一世(征服者)建造的原始城堡的外墙位置是一样的。

女王既将城堡当做私人行宫，周末时来此度假，也将此处作为自己的皇室官邸，在此履行一些(作为国家元首的)职责。温莎城堡还经常被女王用来接待前来进行国事访问的外国君主和总统。女王每年在复活节期间(即三四月份)都要来温莎城堡住上一个月，此时的温莎城堡成了女王的官方居所。

城堡很大，所以人们都倾向于去参观最壮观的地方：国家外交大厅、圣乔治教堂、画廊和令人开心的玛丽皇后的玩偶屋。艺术品、古家具、奇珍异宝和引人注目的建筑反映了不同皇室家族的品味。

国家外交大厅由非常庄严的房间组成，装饰极尽奢华，至今仍是举行国家和官方活动的场所。大厅里的珍宝包括卡纳莱托、霍尔拜因，列奥纳多•达•芬奇、伦勃朗，鲁本斯和凡•戴克等人的艺术作品，房间的天花板和木结构本身也都是艺术品。大厅里还展示着很多盔甲，这其中还包括为哈尔王子定作的一套蚀刻的金制盔甲。

宏伟而美丽的圣乔治教堂于1475年在爱德华四世时开工建设，50年后在亨利八世时竣工。这个教堂是英国中世纪晚期建筑的典范之一。有十位君主被葬在这座教堂里，包括亨利八世和他的妻子。还有很多皇室婚礼都是在圣乔治教堂举行的，其中包括1999年6月爱德华王子和苏菲•里斯-琼斯小姐的婚礼庆典。2005年，在威尔士王子(查尔斯)和康沃尔郡公爵夫人(卡米拉)结婚后，圣乔治教堂为他们进行了祝福和祈祷的宗教仪式。

画廊今年的亮点是展览“女王：60年来的60张照片”，这个展览将从2月4日持续到10月28日。60张女王的照片将在此展出以庆祝女王陛下的钻石庆典，这些照片包括顶级的摄影师们在过去的60年来为女王拍摄的照片。该展览通过相机捕捉到女王在正式场合和轻松的家庭聚会中的短暂瞬间，展示了女王的形象。

玛丽皇后的玩偶屋是一个按照1:12的比例建成的令人称奇的玩偶屋。这里有上下运行的电梯，水电俱全，当时有1,500名工匠历时三年时间才完工。玛丽皇后素以收集彼得•法贝热(制作的)动物造型，孩子们的银质家具和其他小手工艺品等微型物件而闻名。玛丽•路易斯公主是国王(乔治五世)的表妹。从温莎城堡拜谒国王和王后回来之后，为感激他们在温莎城堡对自己的热情招待，她向家人宣布要请人建造一座玩偶屋作为礼物献给王后。

卫兵换岗仪式也是温莎城堡之旅的亮点之一。卫兵换岗通常有乐队伴奏，但是这也要取决于天气状况。温莎城堡为你提供了一个窥探皇室官邸和追踪英国君主制历史的绝佳机会。