Osborne House, situated at East Cowes on the Isle of Wight, is a former country retreat of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. The couple purchased the property in October 1845, when searching for a home removed from the pressure of life at court, \'a place of one\'s own - quiet and retired\', as the Queen herself put it, where “It is impossible to imagine a prettier spot\". Between 1845 and 1851 the Italian Renaissance style house was built and was one of Queen Victoria’s favourite homes throughout her long reign.Click here for explanation of the footprint symbols