After our scandalously sweet visit to Julien Plumart’s patisserie in Brighton, UK, we (my daughter Liz, son-in-law Peter, granddaughter Adeline and our host Hari) were off to visit Brighton’s famous Pavilion.   

The Royal Pavilion was built by the Prince of Wales before he became George IV.  The son of George III (yes, that George), he first came to Brighton in 1783 as a young man because his doctor told him that the sea air and water would be good for his gout. He liked Brighton so much that by 1786 he had purchased a home and began to enlarge and redesign it. His tastes were, to say the least, extravagant and varied. From the outside, the Pavilion looks like it belongs in India with its minarets.  But inside, the décor is influenced by chinoiserie. The dining room is a real knockout, with dragons descending from the ceiling. 

Of course, there is a great royal scandal to go along with the Pavilion. Prince George married Caroline of Brunswick, but their marriage was a disaster.  Actually, George had already married Maria Fitzherbert (a Roman Catholic) without the King’s permission, so it didn’t count. His later marriage to Caroline did count, but he wanted out, which she refused to consider. Caroline was quite popular with the public while George was considered a spendthrift with an overblown lifestyle. The Pavilion has a great display of contemporary cartoons mocking them both. She eventually left England, returning for his coronation which he refused to allow her to attend. She died a few days later and asked that the plaque on her coffin declare her “the Injured Queen of England.” You can see the plaque in the Pavilion, so she didn’t get her wish. Theirs was quite the scandal, proving once again that there is nothing new under the sun. 

Skipping ahead a few monarchs, when Queen Victoria inherited the Pavilion, it was not to her liking, so in 1850 she sold the Pavilion to the city of Brighton for £53,000, which would be over £9 million today. Those royals drive a hard bargain. 

It was a lovely day, so we decided we needed to have a good walk round The Lanes of Brighton. A warren of alleyways and squares filled with delightful shops, tea rooms, pubs and restaurants of all types, The Lanes were once the center of the fishing village in the 1500 and 1600’s.  Actually, the restaurant with the Samurai in the loo is called The Ivy in The Lanes, so we had been quickly through the area the night before. 

But that morning we had a proper and most charming tour. The narrow streets are filled with shops selling anything you could imagine.  Adeline found a toy shop and I got lost in a card shop.  Little did we know that our day had only begun. 

Next Week: Lewes, Cleves, and Twittens.