The dream of a stock-broker who bet well on the advent of electricity and rail travel in the west of Canada, Casa Loma could have been a vulgar monument to one man’s “greatness”. However, Sir Henry Pallatt had a dear love of fine art and architecture and his ‘House on the Hill’ is a romantic juxtaposition from his business personality. Casa Loma took three years to build at a cost of $3.5 million. Sir Henry then filled it with art from Canada and farther a field, but with its secret passageways and soaring battlements it’s main function was as a homage to the knights of days gone by.

Sir Henry ran into financial difficulty around 1924 and was forced to leave his beloved castle, and Casa Loma lay vacant until 1933 when it was finally opened as a tourist attraction and today North Americans can sample a bit of European architecture in their own back yard. The castle has furnished suites, towers and stables to rumble around in – not to mention the 800ft underground tunnel and secret passageways to discover. The gardens of Casa Loma burst with colour and is a great place to wander away the afternoon.

Written by  John Johnston.

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