Blenheim Palace was built to reward and celebrate the achievements of John Churchill, the first Duke of Marlborough, who won a hugely significant victory against the armies of France and Bavaria on 13 August, 1704. The battle took place near Blindheim, or Blenheim, a little village on the north bank of the Danube, in Bavaria.
As one approaches Blenheim Palace from its Woodstock entrance in Oxfordshire, England, the towers of the Palace appear some way off to the left while, far away to the right, the Column of Victory, topped with its statue of the first Duke of Marlborough, rises nobly above the trees.
What especially takes the eye is the great lake and its poplared island, with Sir John Vanbrugh's Grand Bridge and Capability Brown's hanging beech woods beyond. It is the view that Turner painted and the same that caused King George III to exclaim, We have nothing to equal this! With an introduction and epilogue by His Grace, the 11th Duke of Marlborough, this is a fascinating and informative account of the history of Blenheim Palace and the Churchill family.
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