-
Naworth Castle
 ,
Cumbria, has been the home of the Dacre and Howard families for over 700 years, now home of Philip and Elizabeth Howard. A romantic medieval castle with pre-Raphaelite interiors, this former fortress is set in a glorious 2,000 acre estate, which boasts stunning woodland walks, rolling parkland, waterfalls, ornamental lakes and a magnificent seventeenth century walled garden. Naworth is situated ten miles from the Scottish border and 12 miles from the city of Carlisle. Presently the castle is, regrettably, no longer open to the public, nor is it available for private functions and weddings.
-
Newby Hall and Gardens
,
Ripon, Yorkshire, the family home of Mr & Mrs Richard Compton, is one of England's renowned Robert Adam houses, an exceptional example of 18th century interior decoration, recently restored to its original beauty. The superb contents of the house, collected by Weddell, ancestor of the Compton family, include the Gobelins Tapestry Room, a renowned gallery of classical Roman statuary and some of Chippendale's finest furniture. 25 acres of award-winning Gardens are full of rare and beautiful plants. Children's Adventure Garden has been thoughtfully and safely designed for children of all ages - from the paddling pool, sandpit and swings to climbing frames, bridges, an aerial slide and the famous Miniature Railway.
-
Norwich Castle Museum
,
Norfolk, the Keep was built in 1090; once a prison, now
museum
of
Norwich School
paintings; large collection of ceramic teapots
-
Nostell Priory
,
Wakefield, West Yorkshire, owned by the National Trust, one of Yorkshire's finest Palladian houses, built in the mid 18th century;
fine collection of Chippendale furniture designed especially for the house;
fine paintings
-
Nottingham Castle
Nottingham, Nottinghamshire;
one of the first castles
built by William the Conqueror just after the battle of Hastings. The Castle was destroyed during the Civil War,
but rebuilt soon after that as a Palace by the Duke of Newcastle.
The Ducal Palace was gutted during
the Reform Riots in 1831 by a large crowd who
mashed or looted everything and finally set the Palace ablaze. The Castle remained as a blackened shell for almost 50
years until it was bought by the Nottingham City and restored as the first Provincial Museum of fine Art which was
opened by the Prince of Wales in 1878. The Castle is today
still a museum of art and history.
See Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem!
-
Number One, Royal Crescent
;
Bath, Avon, fine example of Palladian architecture 1767-74;
a grand town-house
with authentic furniture
-
Nunnington Hall
,
Yorkshire, from Elizabethan and Stuart periods; fine panelled hall and
staircase;
Carlisle Collection
of Miniature Rooms
-
Oakham Castle
,
Oakham, Rutland; The Great Hall of Oakham Castle is all that survives today of a fortified manor
house built by Walkelin de Ferrers after 1180.
The Castle was the resident of the lord of the manor of Oakham, but became ruinous by early 16th century, and only the Great Hall survived being used as a courtroom. It is still serving as a courtroom for the Magistrates court. Over 200 horseshoes hang on the walls of the castle. These represent the unique 500 years old custom that every peer of the realm, on his first visit to Oakham, must forfeit a horseshoe to the lord of the manor.
-
Old Royal Observatory
,
Greenwich, London; Flamsteed House designed by
Christopher Wren; the Meridian Building; Greenwich Planetarium
-
Osterley Park,
London, was built in 1575 as a Tudor country house for Sir Thomas Gresham, founder of the Royal Exchange. Between 1760 and 1780 it was transformed into a neo-classical villa by Robert Adam for the wealthy banker Robert Child. The house has classical interior, designed for entertaining on a grand scale; specially made tapestries, furniture and plasterwork. The house and nearly 60 ha of Parkland were given to the National Trust, but the contents belong to the Victoria and Albert Museum, while the stables, which are Elizabethan, came later to the National Trust.
-
Palace of Holyroodhouse
,
Edinburgh, stands on the site of a monastry that was founded in 1128. In 1501 James IV cleared the ground close to the Abbey and built a Palace for himself and his bride, Margaret Tudor (sister of Henry VIII). Mary, Queen of Scots spent most of her turbulent life in the Palace - a dramatic and often tragic chapter in the history of the building. She married two of her husbands in the Abbey. Her private secretary David Rizzio was murdered in her personal rooms by a group led by her husband Lord Darnley, who believed she was having an affair with Rizzio.
The Palace of Holyroodhouse is now the official residence of Queen Elizabeth II when she is in Scotland, and she is usually in residence for a few weeks in May and July each year. The rest of the year parts of the palace is usually open to visitors with guided tours available and several rooms in the State Apartments can be visited.
-
Parham House
,
West Sussex, was originally owned by the Monastery, but granted by King Henry VIII in 1540 to Robert Palmer. His son built the house in 1577 and sold it to Thomas Bysshopp in 1601. After having been in the ownership of the Byshopp family for more than 300 years the Pearson family bought it in 1922. Mr. and Mrs. Pearson spent 40 years carefully restoring the house and acquiring items originally in the house. The House is built of grey stone, the principal front, facing south, was built to an Elizabethan E-shape with the large Great Hall windows to the left of centre. The speciality of the House are arrangements of flowers to harmonise with the colours in the rooms, freshly cut twice a week from the own garden. Parham House and gardens are surrounded by some 875 acres of working agricultural and forestry land.
-
Paxton House
,
Berwick-upon-Tweed, Borders, Scotland, was built by the Adam brothers in 1758 for the young Patrick Home it is perhaps the finest example of 18th century Palladian Country houses in Britain. Within it's walls you will find one of the most magnificent collections of original Chippendale furniture in Britain alongside the largest picture gallery in a Scottish Country House, as Paxton now houses over 70 paintings from the National Galleries of Scotland.The House lies in the heart of 80 acres of landscaped gardens, parkland and woodland. There are riverside walks along the banks of the Tweed.
-
Pembroke Castle
,
South Wales, was founded in 1093 by Roger of Montgomery and built into a powerful stone fortress in 1189 under the ownership of William Marshall. It is now one of the largest and finest examples of its kind in the country. The walls are some 19ft thick, it has five floors (rising to over 70ft high) and under the castle is a huge limestone cavern. Henry VII was born in the Castle in 1457.
During the Civil War Cromwell's army blew up the barbican and the fronts of all the towers to prevent the castle ever again being used militarily. Over 200 years later, a famous antiquarian Mr. J. R. Cobb decided to buy the castle, and he spent three years partially restoring Pembroke to its former glory. However, once again it fell into a state of disrepair and neglect until 1928, when an extensive restoration programme was undertaken.
-
Pendragon Castle
,
near Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria; romantic ruins of a castle that was started in
11th century as a wooden tower and destroyed by the Scots in 1342, after which
it was restored in stone by
Roger Clifford. In an attack in 1541 it was ruined again and restored by Lady Anne Clifford
in 1660; she used it as a stopping point on her route from Skipton to her
castles in the Eden valley.
-
Penshurst Place
,
Kent
a family-owned stately home; tapestry room; toy museum;
exquisite gardens
-
Petworth House
,
Sussex, a magnificent late 17th-century mansion set in a beautiful park, landscaped by 'Capability' Brown and immortalised in Turner's paintings.
carvings by Grinling Gibbons.
-
Peveril Castle
,
Castleton, Derbyshire. The ruins of the castle, with only the Keep surviving to any height, the site provides an intriguing insight into the difficulties of building a fortification on ground of such uneven levels. It stands in an impregnable position on a clifftop above Castleton, and you enter the castle up a very steep climb from Castleton. It is an evocative place, with an impressive view in all directions and sufficient ruined remains to construct a good idea of how the castle looked in its heyday. The castle bears the name of William Peveril, who was granted the title of bailiff of the Royal Manors of the Peak after the Norman conquest of 1066. The castle fell into disuse after Tudor times, and by the 17th century only the keep was in use - as a courthouse. When this was abandoned the castle gradually became ruined until what remained was restored this century.
-
Picton Castle
,
Pembrokeshire, South Wales, was built in the 13th century by Sir John Wogan and his descendants still occupy the Castle today, carrying the name of Philipps since the 15th century. Picton has 40 acres of extensive gardens, including woodlands and a walled garden. Situated in the Castle Courtyard is the Gallery originally built to house the paintings of Graham Sutherland but now used for various art exhibitions throughout the season.
-
Plas Mawr
,
Conwy, Gwynedd, a splendid town house with fine decorative plasterwork and dark
oak panelling, built by Robert Wynne for his family in 1577, has been the
headquarters of the
Royal Cambrian Academy of Art.
-
Polesden Lacey ,
Surrey, Edwardian country house with fine paintings and
objets d'art; honeymooners George VI and Elizabeth stayed here in 1923.
-
Pollok House
,
Glasgow, Scotland, is the ancestral home of the Maxwells of Pollok, who have lived on this site for 700 years. The present house, which replaced three earlier structures, was begun in 1747 and was extended from 1890. The house, the historic jewel at the heart of Pollok Park, contains much original furniture as well as some of the finest Spanish paintings in Britain. A rare survival is the magnificent suite of servants’ quarters, which shows the scale of country house life around 1900. The famous Burrell Collection is only a short walk from the Pollok House.
-
Portchester Castle
,
Hampshire, originaly
a Roman fortress, later a
Norman Castle, among the finest Romain remains in northern Europe, the walls laid out as an
almost perfect square of 590ft (180m) from north to south and slightly more
from east to west, the height being 18ft (5.5m).
-
Powis Castle ,
Powys, Mid Wales, was originally built c.1200 by Welsh princes and was subsequently adapted and embellished since 1587 by generations of Herberts and Clives, who furnished the red sandstone castle with a wealth of fine paintings and furniture. It has been lived in almost continuously for over 700 years.
The famous hanging terraces are the greatest surviving example of the Baroque garden in Britain, overhung with enormous clipped yews, shelters original lead statues
as well as rare and tender plants. The castle and garden has been in the care of the National Trust since 1952, but the present Earl of Powis still lives in part of the building
.
-
Quebec House,
Kent, a
red-brick 17th century house
where
General Wolfe
spent his early years; exhibition of the
Battle of Quebec.
-
Queen Mary's House
,
Jedburgh, Borders, was visited by Mary Queen of Scots (Mary Stuart, 1542-1587)
for four weeks in October 1566. The House is a popular museum with many
relics, tapestries, oil paintings, furniture, arms and armour of the Queen.
-
The Queen's House,
Greenwich, London; a Royal Palace by
Inigo Jones
built in Palladian style in 1635, elegant staircase; now part of
Greenwich Maritime Museum.
-
Raby Castle
,
Darlington, Durham, was first mentioned in the 11th century, but the
present castle
was built by John, 3rd Baron Nevill in about 1360; Sir Henry Vane the Elder,
MP, purchased Raby in 1626 and his family still own Raby, now the home of Lord
Barnard's family. Raby is one of the finest medieval castles, the grandest
medieval kitchen in England which was used 1360-1954, and the magnificent
Baron's Hall where 700 knights gathered in 1569; Coach House museum
-
Ragley Hall
,
Alcester, Warwickshire, the home of Marquess and Marchioness of Hertford, was designed
in 1680 by the versatile scientist
Robert Hooke
as one of the first Palladian country houses. The magnificent baroque plasterwork of the
Great Hall was designed by James Gibbs. Ragley has 6000 acres of land, the gardens were
designed by 'Capability' Brown.
-
Reculver Castle
,
Kent,
12th century
twin towers, built on a site where a
Roman fort was built 2000 years ago.
-
Ripley Castle
,
Ripley, North Yorkshire, the
home of the Ingilby family
for over 660 years, started as a fortified gatehouse circa 1450, the building
of the three-storey addition started in 1548, and the great rebuilding took
place in 1780's. Sir William Amcotts Ingilby rebuilt in early 1800's the whole
village of Ripley to look like a village in Alsace Lorraine, and it still looks
like it!
-
Rochester Castle
,
Kent, built in 11th century as
a Norman Bishop's castle
and stronghold
-
Rockingham Castle
,
Corby, Northamptonshire, started in 11th century by William the Conqueror as
a Norman castle and remained as a Royal Castle for 450 years. Edward Walker obtained a lease on the Castle in 1544 and built the house inside the grounds. The members of the Saunders Watson family have been living in the Castle ever since. Being high on the hill the views from the Castle are magnificent, and there are furnished rooms of various periods of time. Norman walls encircle the main Castle area. Many fine paintings, furniture and old books.
-
Royal Pavillion
,
Brighton, Sussex; the famous seaside residence of
King George IV; the Indian style by John Nash; breathtaking interiors, superb craftsmanship,
Great Kitchen.
-
Royal Pump Room
,
Harrogate, Yorkshire; a display illustrating the town as the
Queen of the Inland Spas
and life in Victorian Harrogate; a taste of sulphur water is an experience to
anyone.
-
Sandringham House
,
Norfolk, a private
Country House of the Queen, built in 1870 Prince of Wales, later
King Edward VII; grand and imposing neo-Jacobean house; museum full of Royal memorabilia
including vintage Daimlers.
-
Scone Palace
,
Pertshire; the home of the
Mansfield family
for 400 years was built in 1580 on the old crowning site of Scottish Kings and
extensively rebuilt in 1804; the Palace houses unique collections of
Vernis Martin, French furniture, clocks, porcelain.
-
Scotney Castle
,
Kent, was built c.1378-80 by Roger Ashburnham in response to the threat of
French invasion, and one of the original circular towers still stands there.
For 350 years the Darell family lived there and in 1778 Edward Hussey bought
the castle creating the picturesque garden. The estate was finally left to the
National Trust on the death of Christopher Hussey in 1970. See the picture of
the castle on the front page of
IN BRITAIN January 1998 issue.
-
Shugborough
,
Staffordshire; the ancestral home of the 5th Earl of Lichfield, Patrick Lichfield, one of the leading photographers in the world. The Anson family has lived there over 300 years, and Thomas Anson with the extensive financial help from his brother, the famous Admiral, later Lord George Anson, planned and had in 18th century the new Mansion House built with a collection of fine neo-classical monuments distributed throughout the magnificent grounds. The Estate was transferred to the National Trust in 1960, and the Stafford County Museum have their interesting exhibition in the servants' quarters giving an insight into the life below stairs during the Victorian and Edwardian eras. The House contains a fine collection of ceramics, silver, paintings and furniture and has a splendid Garden.
-
Sinclair & Girnigoe Castles
,
Wick, Caithness, Scotland, the ruins of two castles next to each other: Girnigoe Castle, the ancient seat of the Earls of Caithness was finished in 1495 on the site of an earlier Viking keep by William Sinclair, the 2nd Earl. In 1609, the 4th Earl extended the site by building a more luxurious castle, Sinclair, adjoining Girnigoe. These two castles were separated by a rock cut ravine spanned by a collapsible wooden bridge. During the war between the Campbells of Glenorchy and the Sinclairs starting 1680 the castle were attacked with cannon becoming uninhabitable as a result of the shelling. The Sinclairs moved their main seat to the Castle of Mey. In paintings from the 18th century, it is clear the the majority of the collapse of the Castles was due to a lack maintenance and the powerful winter storms. They are noted as being abandoned by 1700. The Wick Society has started planning of repairs to the Castles.
-
Sissinghurst Garden
,
Kent,
famous gardens
created by Harold Nicolson and
Vita Sackville-West.
-
Sizergh Castle
,
Kendal, Cumbria, a romantic fortified mansion and the home of the Strickland
family for more than 750 years; started in 14th century as a pele tower,
extended in Tudor times; fine Elizabethan carved overmantels; surrounded by
large garden.
(National Trust)
-
Skipton Castle
,
Yorkshire; built 900 years ago,
well-preserved
with beautiful
Tudor courtyard; an excellent
comprehensive Tour Sheet
with 40 drawings and descriptions of interesting features is given to each
visitor! The best I have seen so far!!
See
"A Virtual Tour of Skipton Castle"!
-
Smailholm Tower
,
Kelso, Borders, Scotland, was built by
the Pringles
in 15th century on
a high rocky hill, was sold 1645 to the Scotts, the ancestors of Sir Walter Scott; in well
preserved tower there are exhibitions of tapestry and costume depicting
characters from Sir Walter Scott's 'Minstrelsy of the Scottish Borders'.
-
Snowshill Manor
,
nr. Broadway, Gloucestershire, an ancient
Manor House owned by
Winchcombe Abbey
until the dissolution of the monasteries was bought in 1919 by the eccentric poet,
architect, artist and collector Charles Paget
Wade, who during his lifetime collected anything and everything filling the 21 rooms of
Snowshill with musical instruments, toys, bicycles,
Japanese armour,
spinners' tools etc.
-
Soane's Museum
,
London, designed by John Soane: paintings by Hogarth, Turner; sarcophagus of
Seti I.
-
Somerleyton Hall
,
Suffolk, in a
splendid early Victorian mansion
built between 1844-1851 by Sir Morton Peto and no expense was spared; the
house was sold in 1863 to carpet manufacturer Sir Francis Crossley whose
great-grandson Lord Somerleyton is the present owner. He is also the Master of
the Horse, one of the three Great Offices of State in the
Royal Household; Lord and Lady Somerleyton live at the Hall. There are paintings by Landseer,
Wright of Derby and Stanfield; the garden and the yew hedge maze are amongst
the finest in the country.
-
Speke Hall
,
Liverpool, Merseyside, the half-timbered house was built in early 16th century
by the Norris family, and was sold in 1795 to the Watt family, who gave the
estate to the National Trust in 1943. The interior of the house spans many
periods from Tudor to Victorian, some rooms with William Morris wallpapers and
Jacobean plasterwork and carved furniture
-
Spencer House
,
London, built 1756-66 for
Earl Spencer, an ancestor of Princess Diana; a
fine London town house
and a magnificent private palace overlooking Green Park, neo-classical interiors.
-
Squerryes Court
,
Kent, Westerham,
a manor house
built in 1681; collection of Italian, 18th century English and 17th century
Dutch paintings.
-
St Michael's Mount,
Cornwall;
75 metres high
granite crag island
surmounted by
14th century castle; access at low tide over causeway.
-
St Osyth Priory
,
Essex, Great gatehouse built in 1475, a group of buildings surrounding a wide
quadrangle; Topiary garden; art collection including
George Stubbs. At the present time
the Priory is not open to the public.
-
Stirling Castle
,
Fife, Scotland; former
Scottish Royal Residence, maybe the grandest of all Scotland's castles with outstanding architecture;
strong links to Mary Queen of Scots who was crowned here in 1543.
-
Stourhead
,
Warminster, Wiltshire, over 200 years the home of the Hoare family, was designed in 1721
by Colen Campbell as a
Palladian
Mansion; part of the house was
destroyed by fire in 1902 but the wing with fine library and picture gallery remained unscathed,
and the house was rebuilt in replica after a couple of years. The very large and famous
Garden, one
of the most beautiful
classical landscapes,
was completed in 1780.
-
Sudbury Hall
,
Derbyshire, the original old manor house was replanned and rebuilt in 1660s by George Vernon who needed no help of any architect. Thus, the structure was a particularly individualistic one. In decorating the house Vernon had help from famous craftsmen like woodcarvers Edward Pierce and Grinling Gibbons, and the plasterers Bradbury and Pettifer. The Hall is an unexpected mixture of architectural styles, with remarkable carvings, plasterwork and paintings. Richly decorated, it has a collection of family portraits and a magnificent carved staircase.The Great Staircase is one of the finest of its kind in an English house.
In 1839, the family moved to their beloved Italy for the next three years, letting the house to tenants. Among these was Queen Adelaide, William IV's widow, and The Queens
Room was appropriately named after her.
Sudbury remained as the home of the Vernon family until gifted to the National Trust in 1967.
The National Trust Museum of Childhood has an exhibition in the service wing of the Hall.
-
Sudeley Castle
,
Winchcombe, Gloucestershire, the home of
Lord and Lady Ashcombe,
a great house with royal connections dating back about 1000 years.
This historic house
was once the palace of
Queen Katherine Parr,
Henry VIII's sixth wife, who is buried in the Castle church. Charles I
stayed at Sudeley during the Civil War. The paintings of the Castle include works by
Turner, Van Dyck and Rubens.
Sudeley Garden
was chosen the "Garden of the Year" in 1996.
-
Sudley House
,
Liverpool, Merseyside, the former home of Victorian shipowner George Holt; full
of great British paintings including works by Gainsborough, Landseer, Corot,
Turner and the Pre-Raphaelites: Lord Leighton, Strudwick, Hunt,
-
Sulgrave Manor
,
Northamptonshire, a 16th century manor house,
the ancestral home of George Washington's family.
George Washington's great-grandfather John Washington emigrated from this house to Virginia
in 1656.
The house is a typical example of a wealthy countryhouse during the Elizabethan times and
has lots of memories of the whole Washington family
including the first President of the United States.
The house and the site is owned together by the British and American people.
-
Syon House and Park
,
Brentford, London; the magnificent home to the family of the Duke of Northumberland ever since 1597; the grand Great Hall was designed by Robert Adam in 1760s as 'a palace of Graeco-Roman splendour'; the Ante Room has 12 Ionic columns and the floor is wonderful highly polished scagliola of marble. Syon Park was transformed in 1770s by 'Capability' Brown into a landscape garden. The beautiful
Great Conservatory
was designed by Charles Fowler in 1820.
Butterfly House
at
Syon Park
has hundreds of free-flying tropical butterflies.
-
Tabley House
,
Knutsford, Cheshire, fine
Palladian mansion
of 1761, state rooms with fine paintings and furniture; collection of musical
instruments.
-
Tantallon Castle
,
Lothian, Scotland, ruins of the famous
14th century stronghold
of the
Douglases, magnificent view
across the Firth of Forth to the
Bass Rock.
-
Tattershall Castle
,
Lincolnshire; a
fortified brick tower
built in 1440; state apartments, restored by Lord Curzon 1911-14.
-
Tatton Park
,
Knutsford, Cheshire, home of the Egerton family 1598-1958, now owned by the
National Trust; Tatton Old Hall was built around 1520 and the building was
enlarged to its present size in 1580's and then the appearance was changed in
early 19th century by architect Wyatt in the fashionable neo-classical style;
the magnificent rooms have fine collections of pictures, books, china, glass
and furniture; extensive park.
-
Temple Newsam
,
Leeds, Yorkshire; Tudor and Jacobean
mansion; collections of decorative arts in a park, where popular summer concerts are held.
-
Thirlestane Castle
,
Lauder, Borders; the home of
the Maitland family
throughout its long history;
the present castle
was built in 1590 and remodelled in 1670s and 1840s; fine 17th century
ceilings, large collection of historic toys, country life exhibitions; the venue of Scottish Horse Trials.
-
Tissington Hall
,
Ashbourne, Derbyshire, the home of Sir Richard and Caroline FitzHerbert, was built by Francis FitzHerbert in 1609 to replace the moated manor house to the north of the church. Sir Richard inherited his Baronetcy and the Tissington Estate on the death of his Uncle, John FitzHerbert in 1989 at the age of 24. The Estate comprises of 13 let dairy-farms, 40 cottages and several miscellaneous lets as well as the magnificent 61-room family home Tissington Hall which is open to the public. The Hall underwent major renovation in 1991 with a full-rewiring and re-roofing and Sir Richard has never taken a penny in grant towards the upkeep of the 17th Century Hall. Tissington contains many treasures accumulated by the families over the centuries and includes fine furniture and paintings by Reynolds, Velazquez, Rubens and Angelica Kauffmann.
-
Tolquhon Castle
,
Aberdeenshire, Grampian, was built for the Forbes family in 1420, the tower was
enlarged in 1580s and was amongst the finest of its day; due to difficulties
the estate had to be sold in 1716, and became simply a farmhouse, which was
abandoned in 1850s;
the ruins
were transferred into State care in 1929.
-
Tonbridge Castle
,
Tonbridge, Kent; after the Norman Conquest, William granted land at Tonbridge to Richard Fitzgilbert (de Clare), a castle was soon built on the site and became the de Clare family home for the next 250 years. The Castle was reinforced during the 13th century and the gatehouse was built.
After the Civil War the castle was to be dismantled, and most of it disappeared through use as a local quarry. Today the castle is owned by the Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council, who have the Tourist Information Centre and the council chamber in the adjoining mansion house.
-
Torre Abbey
,
Devon; founded as monastery in 1196, later adapted as a country house, now an art
gallery with Victorian paintings and
Agatha Christie
mementoes
.
-
Tower of London
,
London,
Crown Jewels, Beefeaters, ravens, colourful history of England.
-
Townend
,
Windermere, Cumbria, a 17th century solid stone and slate house which belonged
to a wealthy yeoman farming family, now the property of the National Trust.
-
Traquair
,
Innerleithen, Peeblesshire, Scotland, claims to be the oldest continuously
inhabited house in Scotland, where 27 Scottish and English monarchs have
visited, now home of Catherine Maxwell Stuart family. Traquair is one of the
Great Houses of Scotland, has its
own house brewery, and provides
accommodation for visitors.
-
Uppark
,
West Sussex, was first mentioned in the county maps of 1595.
The house was in 1747 sold to Matthew Fetherstonaugh. Sir Matthew travelled several times in Europe and during his Grand Tour he bought from Rome, Florence, Venice and many places in central Europe paintings, furniture and ceramics that now form the elegant Georgian interior of this romantic house. The family owned it until 1954, when it was passed to the National Trust.
Uppark's fine collections were rescued from a disasterous fire in 1989 and have been returned to the now fully restored 18th century interior.
-
Upton House
,
Banbury, Warwickshire, was built at the end of the 17th century and remodelled 1927 - 29 for the
2nd Viscount Bearsted.
The House has a great collection
of paintings including works by El Greco, Bruegel, Bosch, Memling, Guardi, Hogarth and
Stubbs in the Picture Gallery that was originally a squash court.
-
Urquhart Castle
,
Loch Ness, Invernesshire, Scotland, now only a ruin, was built around 1230, invaded by Edward I of England in 1296, seized by the MacDonalds, Lords of the Isles, in 1395, and garrisoned in 1689 it was blown up in 1692 to prevent it becoming a military stronghold. Most of the existing buildings date from the 14th century and include the Grant Tower the best-preserved part of the complex.
The excellent visitor centre was opened in 2002. This is built into the hillside beside and below the main road and offers ample parking, a shop, cafe, educational audio-visual displays and a model showing the castle in earlier, less ruinous days.
-
Waddesdon Manor
,
Buckinghamshire; this
French Renaissance-style château
was built at the end of the 19th century for
Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild to
entertain his guests and display one of the finest collections of 18th Century art treasures in the
world including works of Gainsborough and Reynolds. It won the 'Museum of the Year' and
'Best National Trust Property' Awards in 1997; Waddesdon also has one of the finest Victorian
gardens in Britain, famous for its landscape.
The Wine Cellars opened
to the public in 1993 are famous for their Château Mouton-Rothschild wines.
-
Walmer Castle
,
Kent, was built in 1539 as one of a chain of coastal artillery forts constructed by Henry VIII against the threat of invasion by Spain. From 1708 it became the official residence of the Lords Warden of the Cinque Ports, an office held by many famous people, including the Duke of Wellington, Sir Winston Churchill and the late Queen Mother. The castle is today more like an elegant stately home than the medieval fort. There are beautiful gardens attached to the castle.
-
Warkworth Castle
,
Northumberland;
a Norman origin castle
with great
towering keep;
-
Warwick Castle
,
Warwickshire; 900 years
old castle, Madame Tussaud's waxworks settings. Read more about Warwick from
IN BRITAIN December 1998 issue.
-
Wilton House
,
Wiltshire,
the home
of the
Earl of Pembroke
for over 450 years, rebuilt after the 1647 fire on designs of
Inigo Jones, WW2 Operations Room for Southern Command and D-Day Landings in 1944; has
provided film locations for
"Barry Lyndon",
"Sense and Sensibility"
with Emma Thompson, "Mutiny" with Anthony Hopkins and Mel Gibson; one of the
best private art collection in Britain including Van Dyck, Rubens, Joshua
Reynolds, Pieter and Jan Brueghel.
-
Wimpole Hall
,
Cambridgeshire; the greatest country house in Cambridgeshire was first built in 1643 and much altered since then by famous architects like James Gibbs, Sir John Soane and Henry Kendall. The wonderful interior's most notable rooms are the Book Room and the Yellow Drawing Room. Mrs. Elsie Bambridge, the last owner of Wimpole and daughter of Rudyard Kipling, bequeathed her estate to the National Trust in 1976.
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Windsor Castle
,
Berkshire; a
royal palace and fortress since Henry II in 1110.
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Witley Court
,
Worcestershire; the spectacular ruins once one of the great houses of Britain, ravaged by fire in 1937. Witley had only 100 years prior to the accidental destruction been remodelled into an opulent neo-Palladian mansion
for the Earl of Dudley. The sight that met visitors approaching the house from the long drive must have been breathtaking because even today, it stands as a majestic roofless shell of splendid dimensions. An elegant conservatory of massive proportions, with a series of continual arched windows and low-level stone balustrades, once contained a mass of indoor foliage, and looked down to the spectacular Perseus and Andromeda fountain in the south parterre garden. Once a status symbol of industrial wealth, political influence, and Victorian entrepreneurs, Witley Court had known opulence, entertained Royalty, and hosted many great sporting events. After the fire Witley Court changed hands several times, and since 1984 it has been in the care of English Heritage.
Next to Witley Court is the survived late baroque style Parish Church for Great Witley and Little Witley.
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Woburn Abbey
,
Bedfordshire, famous
stately home of
the Russell Family, fine art:
Canaletto, Reynolds.
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Wordsworth House
,
Cockermouth, Cumbria; country
Georgian House
built in 1745, birthplace of the poet
William Wordsworth; some of his belongings.
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Workington Hall
,
Workington, Cumbria, now ruined, was built around 1404 to become a fortified tower house
around a pele tower dating from the 14th century. The Hall was once one of the finest Manor houses in the region and the hereditary seat of the Curwen family, the lords of the manor in Workington, right up until 1929. It was at Workington Hall that Mary, Queen of Scots, sought refuge after the defeat of her forces in May 1568, not knowing it would be her last day as a free woman. While staying here, she wrote to Queen Elizabeth—the letter is now in the British Museum.
During the Second World War the Hall was billeted and suffered a fire. Since then it has become a classified ruin and is now run as a visitor attraction.
The Hall is also the stage for operas, pageants, plays, and is associated with the towns annual Medieval 'Curwen Fair'.
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Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem - reputedly the oldest pub in England
,
Nottingham, Nottinghamshire; this pub
founded in 1189 is situated on Brewhouse
Yard just outside the Outer Bailey Walls of Nottingham Castle. In the middle ages
it could be reached from the Castle's Upper Bailey by a 100 yard
passage - "Mortimer's Hole" - through
the rock.
In the Middle English of the times, a "Trip" was not a journey, but a resting place where such a journey
may be broken for a time.
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Ypres Tower
,
Rye, East Sussex; built in 1250 by King Henry III as a
defence castle
, over three centuries a prison, houses today the Rye Museum.
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