Excerpt from my Young Adult book, Princess Rose by Mary Aris ©2009 Lulu.com ISBN: 978-1-4452-0167-2
Princess Rose
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here was a time, long ago, when England was quite young, in the Kingdom of Carlisle, lived an old king and his queen. They were a very happy couple indeed and their subjects loved them. The queen was a lovely woman, but was getting on in years and the king worried if there was ever going to be an heir to the royal throne. The couple did their best to conceal their sadness. The palace was filled with music and there were weekly tournaments with prizes and monthly banquets with minstrels, musicians, and pantomimes. The castle was filled with music, laughter and merry-making.
On the Eve of the queen’s fortieth birthday a Royal Gala Ball was organized by the king. The Great Hall with its majestic dance floor and elegant fireplace was scrubbed clean and decorated with gold curtains and festive tapestry. The tables were set with fine gold and silver china and silver cutlery. Bouquets of roses and daisies served as centerpieces and the crystal chandelier in the midst of the hall was bedecked with garlands of greenery and golden bows. Servants hurried to and fro with platters of roast beef, roasted suckling pigs with red shiny apples in their mouths; Platters of pheasants accompanied by dishes of gravy and relishes, and all sorts of seafood platters imaginable. The Great Hall was set to honour the queen on this her fortieth birthday. On the morning of her birthday the queen’s ladies- in -waiting drew her bath with rose petals, champagne and white orchid- scented bubble bath.
The musicians arrived at half-past five O’clock and assembled their instruments on the far right side of the Great Hall. The guests arrived by half Six and the king and queen made their entrance as the danced their first dance of the Evening as the Trumpeters announced their arrival. The servants ,with their trays of oysters and caviar and champagne, went around the Great Hall serving the hungry guests who were congregating in groups around the reception hall, while the dance floor shimmered with the soft shadows of the chandelier as the king and queen danced and twirled accompanied by other couples of the gentry. The Palace was alive with music and dancing. After dinner the queen was presented with a large birthday cake adorned with roses and carnations. On top of the great cake was a fountain with champagne cascading down in rivulets collected by the base of the fountain. ‘Happy Birthday, Your Highness!’ all her subjects wished her. The queen looked down upon her cake, but a tear formed in her eye in spite of this happy moment, a
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