Sandringham
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| Sandringham lies in north-west Norfolk approximately
8 miles north of King's Lynn.
Sandringham House belongs to the Royal Family and is
their favourite country retreat. The hall was purchased
in 1862 by Queen Victoria and was then redesigned for
the Prince of Wales (Edward VII). The red-brick house was
completed in 1870.
Sandringham House
George V died at Sandringham in 1936 and the event is
commemorated by John Betjeman in his poem Death of
George V. Here is the first verse:
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Spirits of
well-shot woodcock, partridge, snipe
Flutter and bear up the Norfolk sky:
In that red house in a red mahogany book-case
The stamp collection waits with mounts long dry. |
George was renowned for his love of shooting and also
for his stamp collecting. On his deathbed, the King's
doctor, Lord Dawson, injected him with morphine and
cocaine which prompted the following popular rhyme:
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Lord Dawson of Penn
Has killed many men
That is why we sing
"God save the King." |
On the instructions of King Edward VII all of the
clocks at Sandringham were set half an hour ahead of
Greenwich Mean Time in order to allow more
daylight for hunting. This custom ended with the death
of George V. George V famously said: 'Dear old
Sandringham, the place I love better than anywhere else
in the world'.Sir John Betjeman visited the
Sandingham area when he was making his BBC TV programme
'Betjeman Goes by Train' - in which he travelled on the line
from King's Lynn to Hunstanton. He stopped at Wolferton
Station and was impressed by the quality of the
buildings. The station was in operation from 1862 to 1966 and was used by many members of the Royal Family
and their guests. Betjeman's programme was broadcast in
1961 - just five years before the line was closed. Here
is part of his commentary:
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'Now we're coming out of the flat land into the royal
country of Sandringham and guarding it is Wolferton
Church, the usual Norfolk church with a tall tower and a
tall nave and chancel.......and then we come to
Wolferton Station, different from all other stations in
England.' |
One of the strangest visitors to Wolferton Station was
the Russian monk Rasputin who once travelled here to
demand an audience with the king. Apparently, he was
politely rebutted and put back on the train to the
capital.Each year the Sandringham Estate hold a
'Country Show' and the following is my humorous take on
proceedings:
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Schedule of
Events
10.00 Mounted Lurching
10.30 Ferret Stretching
11.00 Thatch Scratching
12.00 Fly Dyeing
1.00 Coarse Scurrying
2.00 Pony Hurling
3.00 Gundog Dipping
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Supported
by Norfolk Tourism