Rebuilt 1933-34
This Inn is probably one of the oldest licenses in Nottingham and derives its name from the period 1688 in the reign of James II when the kings daughter Princess Anne and her children were in residence at the castle.
Tradition states that the Royal Children were entertained by the Innkeeper and made playmates of his children, hence the peculiar name given to the Inn in commemoration.
Of considerable interest is the curious old sign displayed in the bar which previously hung outside above the main entrance, which is the shoulder blade of a whale, possibly the only sign of its kind in existence.
This originated in a period shortly after James II when whale oil was introduced to take the place of candles, and this Inn is stated to have been one of the first to use oil lamps. The Innkeeper retailed whale oil to the inhabitants of the district and the home of the Inn, Royal Children was painted on this whalebone coupling the business of oil vender and Innkeeper, and the sign has been a feature of the house ever since.
