Queen Victoria's Bathing Machine

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That version was probably intended to conceal the user until they were mostly submerged in the water because, at the time, bathing costumes were not yet common and most people bathed nude. In 1853–4 a timber Swiss Cottage was built for the royal children in their own garden nearly a mile to the east of the house. Similarly, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert used bathing machines to swim and sketch from at Osborne Beach next to their beloved Osborne House on the Isle of Wight.

The use of the bathing machine and segregated swimming is depicted in the 2019 ITV series Sanditon, based on the 1817 unfinished novel of the same name by Jane Austen. We have started this term with looking at how we can encourage more wildlife into our outside area in particular birds. Our topic for this term is 'Animals including humans' where we will be looking at the basic needs of animals for survival.We will be using the skills we have developed over the year to sketch a modern-day beach scene and making comparisons with that of a Victorian beach. You can tour the house, attend events like Punch and Judy shows, swim, stroll and boat where the royal family spent their summers.

We focused particularly on Queen Victoria's era, where we learnt that bathing machines were used to protect ladies modesty when getting changed and entering the sea because it was very rude for a lady to show anything apart from her hands, feet or face in front of men. We spoke about how we measure the temperature in Degrees Celsius (°C) and capacity in Millilitres (ml). Our focus for this term will be 'Lila and the Secret of Rain' a story about a little girl living in a Kenyan village, followed by 'The Tear Thief'.

The Durbar Room: This state room deserves special mention because of its elaborate, Indian-style decoration. We have also really enjoyed learning about the organisation Greenpeace and finding out how we can help look after our planet.

Cubitt recommended that rather than alter the old house it would be best to build a new one, and proceeded to design it in collaboration with Prince Albert.

On Fridays, Mrs Burrows will be teaching Green Class Art where they will be developing their drawing and painting skills. Some resorts had wooden rails into the water for the wheels to roll on, and a few had bathing machines pulled in and out of the sea using cables propelled by a steam engine.