Home of the great early 20th-century socialite Margaret Grenville, the old Regency house was extensively remodelled in 1906 as a base for her country house parties and filled with her collection of fine paintings, furniture, porcelain and silver. The future George VI and Queen Elizabeth spent part of their honeymoon here in 1923. While the […]
Like many castles in Britain, Sissinghurst has had a rocky history until, in derelict condition, the castle and farm was put on the market in 1928 for the grand sum of £12,000, with alas no offers of interest for two years. Fortunately, by one of those pieces of serendipity, Vita Sackville West and Harold Nicolson […]
The 20th century was not particularly kind to Morden in South London, with a sprawl of housing following the opening of the Underground station interspersed with industrial sheds, a town centre that is focused on the roads cutting through its heart – albeit supporting it as a major bus interchange – and the electrical pylons […]
Today’s exercise in this current pandemic was in Morden Hall Park, which has the River Wandle wandering through it, on its way to Wandsworth, the river being enjoyed today by children, splashing dogs, and the occasional father having a paddle. The estate was owned by Westminster Abbey until the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Henry […]
Shock, horror! You’ve walked through the pleasant gardens to the entrance of the house and entered the 16th century doorway and what do you find? Someone is sitting eating sandwiches in the Parlour, while a glass of wine and unfinished meal has been left at one end of the fine table in the Dining Room […]
I have to admit that I hadn’t visited the Vyne for many years, indeed decades. This is a fascinating house to visit, once you negotiate the road system of Basingstoke with its mania for roundabouts which reminds you of Milton Keynes. The Vyne is a house in which you should look at the details, as […]
Calke Abbey is one of the National Trust’s more unusual properties. From the outside, it looks a classic stately home, built between 1701 and 1704 with further expansion after 1789, home to art and natural history collections that each generation had expanded. Inside, however, is different and in some ways ensured that the house survived […]
Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal Water Gardens are full of curves from the Gothic arches of the Abbey to the swirling shapes of the water gardens, the temples and pagodas. So, it seems highly appropriate that the Visitor Centre, designed by Edward Cullinan Architects in the late 1980′s should itself include curving steel beams in […]
Did he marry for love or for money? In 1377, Sir Edward Dalyngrigge returned from fighting in France. Having himself accumulated power and wealth, he strengthened his position by marrying Elizabeth, the heiress of the Wardedieu or Wardeux family, the inheritance including the manor of Bodiam in which Sie Edward and his wife built […]
If the streets and buildings of Lacock in Wiltshire seem familiar, it will be because you have seen them in Harry Potter movies, but the town has scientific importance as the birthplace of photography in Britain. It has also been used as a setting in other films including Downton Abbey, The White Princess and Cranford. […]
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