Page:The reign of George VI - 1763.djvu/89

 This charming situation must have struck any person of less taste than the King; he was charmed with it at the first sight, and soon after thought of building a palace on so advantageous a situation. The famous Gilbert, whose name is immortalized by so many works of genius, was, at that time, architect to the King. He drew the plans of several palaces, out of which his Majesty chose one; and immediately set him about the work. Many difficulties were to be over-come before even the first stone could be laid; the fabric was to be built with Portland stone, which could not be brought to the spot without an infinite expence over-land; to remedy this inconvenience, the parliament passed an act to make the river Welland navigable to the very plain, at the bottom of the hill on which the intended palace was to be raised. The same sessions also granted his Majesty a mil-