Blenheim Palace staged its Spring Jousting Tournament over the May Day Bank Holiday weekend.  I visited on the Monday, when conditions were best described as ‘changeable’.

Blenheim Palace

Located in Oxfordshire on the banks of the River Glyme, in the town of Woodstock, Blenheim Palace is the principal residence of the Dukes of Marlborough.  The palace was constructed in the 18th century between the years of 1705 and 1722.  It is of an unusual English Baroque style that was adopted by the architect Sir John Vanbrugh. 

This was my first visit to Blenheim Palace, and the inspiration came primarily from a desire to photograph some jousting (and an impatience that meant I couldn’t possibly wait until Rockingham Castle, just up the road from me, hosts its own tournament in June!).  After spending some time on the website, I concluded that it made sense to purchase a family pass including Palace access.  This was above and beyond the minimum necessary for entry to the jousting event, but it could then be converted, at no additional charge, to an annual family pass.  It seemed like a no-brain decision. 

The weather was very patchy with sunshine, rain and hail – all appearing alongside a steady, stiff breeze – across the course of the day. 

The jousting arena was a good walk from the car park but the views along the way most pleasant.  I should perhaps point out at this point that the arena was not massive and we very much took the view of setting up camp in two locations during the day.  This did mean that we barely scratched the surface of what Blenheim Palace has to offer (which was part of the reason it seemed to make sense to purchase the ticket I did! – We WILL be back). 

Only two ‘acts’ made use of the arena during the day, with both Michael Davie Falconry and The Knights of Royal England each performing twice.

Michael Davie Falconry

It’s probably fair to say that the conditions were tough for falconry.  The morning show *just* had the wind to endure while the afternoon performance came during one of the wetter parts of the day.  Bo, the 29-year old Eagle Owl, might not have been impressed, but some of Michael’s other birds weren’t quite so bothered by it. 

From a photographic perspective, as if photographing these types of birds isn’t difficult enough already (some of these are so fast and agile), the rain made it really tough.  That said, I do love the effect in some of the pictures. 

Michael Davie Falconry

The Knights of Royal England

As some of you know, I do really enjoy equine photography, and The Knights of Royal England were the main draw for me at Blenheim Palace. 

With more than 20 years of experience of producing jousting and medieval performances, the two Knights of Royal England performances were each built around the idea of a tournament between two, two-man teams (plus knight marshalls) – the Reds and the Blues.  The arena was similarly divided into two and the crowd was proactively encouraged to cheer on ‘their’ end, which they duly did!

The contest comprised a range of jousting challenges (tilts) that saw knights going head-to-head with lances, spiking severed heads off the ground, and hooking rings out of the air.  The ‘tilts’ were separated by a range of hand-to-hand battles, with swords, flails, axes and add-chains all used. 

It was all done with great humour, acting that would not have looked out of place on Casualty, and all brought together superbly by an entertaining commentary.  I look forward to seeing The Knights of Royal England again!

If anybody is feeling inspired, Blenheim Palace will also host a Summer Jousting Tournament from 18th-20th August.

Get in Contact

If you’d like to enquire about my availability, to discuss other options or if you have any queries, please use one of the methods on the Contact Us page to get in touch.

I am based in Northamptonshire but I am willing to travel out of area, though please be aware this may bring with it an additional cost.

Karl Drage is a professional Northamptonshire event and wedding photographer who also covers surrounding counties such as Leicestershire, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Rutland, Oxfordshire & Warwickshire.  If you are looking for an affordable wedding photographer in the towns of Northampton, Kettering, Wellingborough, Oundle, Corby, Peterborough, Leicester, Huntingdon, Towcester, Rugby, Daventry, Oakham or nearby, please use one of the methods on the Contact Us page to get in touch.  He will be only too happy to go through your needs with you and will endeavour to put together a competitive solution that meets them.