Not far from the town of Fowey in South Cornwall is one of the most beautiful National Trust homes I've yet seen. Lanhydrock is the large former estate of the Agar-Robartes family that dates back to the 1600s. It's is now a magnificent late Victorian preserved country house with extensive servants quarters, beautiful gardens and a wooded estate. The rooms are set up as it was when it was the home of Thomas, the 2nd Lord Robartes, his wife Mary, their ten children, and a staff of 80 at the beginning of the 1900s.
One of the reasons it is such an impressive Victorian home is that In 1881 there was a large fire which damaged much of the house. It was quickly rebuilt as it was before the fire so it preserves the original strict Victorian code which segregated public from private areas, master form servant, young and old, male and female. It is as if Downton Abby or Upstairs/Downstairs has sprung to life again. It is both glorious in its beauty, decor, and excess, and fascinating in it's history and recreation of a lost world, of life both upstairs and down. The house and the gardens are well worth a visit.
The original estate was acquired in 1621 by Richard Robartes, the wealthiest man in West Cornwall at that time. Richard's father had amassed a fortune supplying fuel for the tin industry. He and his son, John, continued to build on that wealth through money lending and speculation. Sir John, the grandson, substantially altered Lanhydrock to be an impressive mansion and home for his family.
Sir John married twice. First in 1630 to Lucy Rich who was a staunch puritan. She bore him 5 children. His second marriage was to Letitia, in 1647. She was 17 and he was 42. They had 14 children together.
Several generations later it eventually was inherited by Thomas Charles, the 2nd Lord Robartes, who married Mary Dickinson. The home we see today is furnished as it was when Thomas, Mary, and their 10 children and staff of 80 lived here at the beginning of the 20th century. This was the golden epoch of Lanhydrock house, fortunes were strong and the house was packed with activity, children, and entertainment.
Their good fortune did not last long, though. Of the 10 children born to Thomas Charles and his wife Mary, the oldest son and heir died fighting in France at the beginning of WW and another son never recovered from "shell shock" fighting in the war and eventually killed himself. Of the surviving eight children, only two married and from those marriages only one child was born, a daughter Rachael.
In 1953, the estate was given to the National trust however, the last surviving 8th Viscount continued to live there with his two spinster sisters until his death in 1974. Rachael, the 8th Viscount's only surviving daughter still lives locally and continues to farm in the area.
The house is huge, with 50 rooms open to the public. What follows is just a sampling of all the rooms that are open to view.
The Dining Hall
The Kitchen Quarters - a dozen rooms make up the kitchen quarters
The Bakehouse
The Kitchen Scullery
The Dairy Scullery
The Meat Larder
The Smoking Room (early Arts and Craft)
The Steward's Room
A bedroom
The Playroom
The Nursery
The Nanny's Room
The Nursery's Bathroom
The Luggage Room
Her Ladyship's Bedroom
The Chamberpot Room
The Boudoir
The Drawing Room
Ghosts in the hallway!
Immediately behind the house is the 15th-century church of St Hydroc.
There are 900 acres of woods and parkland that run down to the Fowey river with walking and bike trails throughout.
The grounds and gardens are spectacular, especially in late May and in June.
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