Inside Charlecote Park
I recently wrote about our Valentine’s Day tree planting at Charlecote Park, a beautiful Tudor country house in Warwickshire.
We’ve since been back to visit the house now that it’s reopened for the 2014 season, so I thought I’d share a few of the photos we took of the house, both inside and out.
Charlecote Park is a very fine 16th century manor house, built for the Lucy family in 1558. You approach the house down this stunning drive:
You enter into the Great Hall first.
The billiards room was rather splendid; we wished we could have had a go!
My favourite thing in this room was the chair you see in the foreground, designed so that two people can sit next to each other and face each other at the same time.
I would love to have this view when I’m getting up in the mornings!
I don’t think that little bath would have been very comfortable though.
It was difficult to get a shot of the staircase that did it justice (I’m afraid I failed on that front).
The library was my favourite room; those antique globes and that piano were every bit as fabulous as the surrounding books.
The dining room table looked inviting; it must have been a great place for a party.
Outside we found this little hut, which had its own fireplace and stained glass featuring the Lucy family’s symbol, the pike. We weren’t sure what the structure was used for, but we speculated that it may have been a bird house.
Crocuses and snowdrops were popping up all over the place, an eagerly-awaited sign that spring may finally be on its way.
The kitchens are accessed via a separate entrance to the side of the house.
There was a roaring fire with some Welsh cakes being cooked, which made it feel very homely!
The outbuildings were interesting too, including this laundry room. I can’t imagine how much hard work it must have been in those days though.
There was even a brewhouse, with the enormous vat seen here with Lee for scale!
I loved these old bottles on the windowsill.
Finally, here’s another view of the impressive gatehouse.
If you’d like to visit Charlecote yourself, see these details below:
Website: http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/charlecote-park/
Opening hours: see here
Admission: free for National Trust members. Otherwise, see here.