Tea at Trianon: London's Best Christmas Trees

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Thursday, December 17, 2020

London's Best Christmas Trees

From Tatler:

Claridge’s

Trust Claridge’s to pull out all the stops with their Christmas tree this year, reminding us just what we have been missing. Drawing on its Art Deco heritage - not to mention the fact that we are once again in the Twenties - the twinkling design provides a beacon of light after a truly trying year. The 4.5 metre-tall tree was dressed by McQueens Flowers founder Kally Ellis, who adorned each brand with 10,000 crystal and glass garlands, all of which reflect the dazzling light of the lobby for a truly magical effect, unlike any we have seen before.
[...]

The Ritz

At the beloved London institution, tradition is everything. Every year, the tree has a red and gold colour theme, with decoration done by Paul Thomas Flowers, and the tree always sourced from the Scottish highlands. On closer inspection, the famed Palm Court afternoon tea is clearly front of mind, with delicate teacup baubles and exotic birds amongst the more traditional baubles. (Read more.)