London, England.

Kensington Palace is a royal residence in London, England. It is located in Kensington Gardens, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The palace has been a residence of the British royal family since the 17th century and is currently the official London residence of the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children. The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, The Duke and Duchess of Kent, and Prince and Princess Michael of Kent are also based in the palace’s royal apartments.

Shortly after William and Mary assumed the throne as joint monarchs in 1689, they began searching for a residence better suited for the comfort of the asthmatic William, as Whitehall Palace was too near the River Thames, with its fog and floods, for William’s fragile health. In the summer of 1689, William and Mary bought the property, then known as Nottingham House, from the Secretary of State Daniel Finch, 2nd Earl of Nottingham, for £20,000.

William and Mary commissioned Christopher Wren to remodel the house, and the work was completed in 1696. The palace was renamed Kensington Palace in their honor. You can find out more about the history of Kensington Palace here.

Kensington Palace is a popular tourist destination, and it is open to the public for tours. The palace is also home to a number of museums and galleries, including the Orangery, where you can relax for an afternoon cup of tea. Don’t expect to see any of the royal family and their apartments are obviously excluded from the tours.

The statue at the main gate of Kensington Palace is a statue of Queen Victoria. It was sculpted by Victoria’s fourth daughter Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, and erected in 1893. The statue is made from white marble on a Portland stone base.

The statue of Queen Victoria at the main gate of Kensington Palace depicts her at the age of 18, wearing a long gown and a crown. She is seated on a pedestal, with her right hand resting on a globe. The statue is located next to the Princess Diana Memorial Park near the main gate of Kensington Palace. Commissioned by a committee to be a gift to the people of London, the Queen’s daughter submitted the work anonymously. The presentation was unveiled on the occasion of Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee in 1887.

About the photo: One might say it was a typical London day when we visited the park. It didn’t rain, but the clouds looked like they might decide to let loose with a shower. Though I captured several images of the palace, I decided to feature the statue of Queen Victoria at the main gate with the palace in the background. I made it a panorama so as to include the entire moat around the statue.

Captured with my Samsung S20U, I put together two images from within Lightroom Classic using the Panorama tool and then after basic edits, sent it off to Luminar Neo for final adjustments, all minor tweaks. Click on the image to view it in 2K HD on my Flickr site.

I encourage fellow bloggers to create their own Cellpic Sunday posts. I never have a specific topic for this feature, and the only rules are that the photo must be captured with a cell phone, iPad, or another mobile device… If you have an image from a drone or even a dashcam, that’s acceptable as well. The second rule is to link your challenge response to this post or leave a comment here with a link to your post in the comment. Oh, and, you don’t have to post it on a Sunday.

John Steiner