Tides are difficult at Aberdeen, so Silver Wind had to arrive at 02.00 in the middle of the night, to catch the high tide to enter the port. And we had to leave by 13.00 to go out on the next high tide. The net result was after an hour and 45 minutes drive to get to Balmoral Castle and the same time to return, we only had an hour and a quarter to see Balmoral. It was just about enough, but we really should have had an hour more, which could have been achieved by leaving the ship earlier.
We had a pleasant walk round the grounds, complete with headset commentary, but we had not realised that only one room in the castle itself, the ballroom, is open to the public
Balmoral Castle is a large estate house in Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, near the village of Crathie, and close to Ballater and Braemar. The castle is an example of Scottish baronial architecture, and is classified by Historic Scotland as a category A listed building.The new castle was completed in 1856 and the old castle demolished shortly thereafter.
Balmoral has been one of the residences for members of the British Royal Family since 1852, when the estate and its original castle were purchased privately by Prince Albert. They remain as the private property of the royal family and are not the property of the Crown. Soon after the estate was purchased by the royal family, the existing house was found to be too small and the current Balmoral Castle was commissioned. The architect was William Smith of Aberdeen, although his designs were amended by Prince Albert.
The Balmoral Estate has been added to by successive members of the royal family, and now covers an area of approximately 50,000 acres. It is a working estate, including grouse moors, forestry, and farmland, as well as managed herds of deer, Highland cattle, and ponies.
It originally was purchased personally by Prince Albert, rather than the queen, meaning that no revenues from the estate go to Parliament or to the public purse. Along with Sandringham House in Norfolk, ownership of Balmoral was inherited by Edward VIII on his accession in 1936. When he abdicated later the same year, however, he retained ownership of them. A financial settlement was devised, under which Balmoral and Sandringham were purchased by Edward's brother and successor to the Crown, George VI.
The royal family employs approximately 50 full-time and 50–100 part-time staff to maintain the working estate. A malt whisky distillery located on the Balmoral Estate produces the Royal Lochnagar Single Malt whisky. There are approximately 150 buildings on the estate, including Birkhall, formerly home to Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, and used now by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall for their summer holidays.
In 1931, the castle gardens were opened to the public for the first time and they now are open daily between April and the end of July, after which Queen Elizabeth arrives for her annual stay. The ballroom is the only room in the castle that may be viewed by the public.
Interestingly the place has not changed much during the Queen's tenure. A journalist's examination of old photos shows that the books inside have not been opened in years
Click on any of the thumbnails to get a bigger version of the picture
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