Haddon Hall, Bakewell Derbyshire

One of the most fascinating "houses" I've seen this year is Haddon Hall in the Peaks District, Derbyshire. It is one of the finest examples of a medieval manor in England.  It dates back to the 12th  century and was used until the 17th century.    It was then left empty for over 200 years and so bypassed more modern renovations.  In the 1920s the 9th Duke and Duchess of Rutland restored the house and gardens and made it their home. 

Haddon Hall is located alongside the River Wye, just out side of Bakewell, and not far from the magnificent Chatsworth House.   From around 1087, the house was owned by William the Conqueror's illegitimate son, William Peverel, and his descendants.  It changed hands, through marriage, to the Vernon family on the 13th century.  

The property changed hands once more in the 16th century when, again through marriage, the Manners family took hold of Haddon. In 1703 the Manners became Duke and Duchess of Rutland. They chose to make their primary home in the spectacular Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire so left Haddon house unused. As a result, Haddon Hall stood abandoned and neglected for more than 200 years, between 1702 and 1920.

Because Haddon Hall is so well preserved as medieval manor house, it is often featured in historical films and television programs.  It was used for Humperdinck's castle in The Princess Bride and in the movie Pride and Prejudice starring Keira Knightley.

For a full list of movies and TV programs filmed at Haddon Hall:  http://www.haddonhall.co.uk/film-and-photo-shoots/films-and-television-programmes-featuring-haddon-hall/

The house is open to visitors from April to October, with a whole host of special events being staged throughout the season.  

We were there on a September day where a medieval musical troop performed a wonderful concert.

This room really impressed me.  It is called the Long Hall and it was designed to give the women of the Manor and place to walk and get their exercise no matter what the weather was outside. 

The dining room 

 A portrait of  King Henry VII and Queen Elizabeth of York are carved into the wood paneling

A medieval kitchen

Drawings on the wall of the Chapel

This tomb was carved by Lord Haddon's mother, Violet Haddon. She had little training as a sculptor but when her young son died, she found solace in learning the craft and creating this beautiful tomb. It reads: ‘Robert Charles John Manners, Lord Haddon. Born Aug. 8th 1885, Died Sept. 28th 1894. Eldest son of Henry 8th Duke of Rutland, K.G. and Violet his Wife. For ever wilt thou grieve and he be fair.’ And, at the foot of the base: ‘Hope of my eyes/ Something is broken that we cannot mend/ With Grief, Remembrance/ Pride and Love, I decorate/ his Memory/ Dear dear little Boy/ You give us all Perpetual Benediction. Entirely designed and modelled/ by his Mother.’

Haddon Hall seems to make the middles ages come back to life.  On Trip Advisor one reviewer said, "On a scale of 1-10, Haddon Hall is a 15!" I agree. It certainly is well worth a visit. 

Cycling through the Peaks District with the most wonderful women

 I had the great good fortune of recently spending a week here in the U.K. with several dear friends from my Boston days. The excuse was to celebrate a special birthday for Jenny Carter (who had the brilliant idea to plan this trip) and Margaret Lazenby.  The result was the most wonderful week exploring Oxford, Stratford, Warwick followed by a three day bike ride through the Peak District in Derbyshire and then 3 days recuperating in a lovely 17th century farmhouse in the Cotswolds.  The sweetest part: spending time on the company of such extraordinary women. 

We started the week by gathering in Oxford and exploring the city. Lisa Dame, Kritstiina Sorensen, Jenny Carter, Robin Baker, me, Melinda Beecroft, Lisa Palmer, Margaret Lazenby, Kimberly Carlisle, and Judianne Peterson in front of Christchurch. Mary-lu Nelson joined us later that day.

We attended a lovely Evensong at Christchurch cathedral.  

Once we had all gathered, we spent two nights in Kenilworth, a lovely town between Warwick and Stratford.  The first day we spent in Stratford Upon Avon visiting Shakespeare's birth home (above) and Stoneleigh Abby.

Stoneleigh Abbey is a gorgeous manor house that for 400 years was the country seat of Jane Austen’s relatives, the Leighs. In August 1806 Jane, with her mother and sister, travelled to Stoneleigh Abbey in the company of her mother’s cousin, Reverend Thomas Leigh, to secure his inheritance of the estate. During her stay she was so inspired by the house, by its parkland and by its family intrigues that she wove descriptions of the interiors, views of the grounds and cameos of the family into her novels. 

Stoneleigh Abbey has changed little since 1806, the rooms and much of the furniture are still as Jane Austen would have known them.

Of course we concluded our tour of Stoneleigh Abbey with a proper high tea.

We then returned to Stratford to visit Anne Hathaway's family home (wife of William Shakespeare)

Day 2: We spent the day at Warwick Castle, a stunning medieval castle developed over the centuries  from an original fort built by William the Conqueror in 1068.  That evening we drove north to Derbyshire. 

Day 3:  We started our bike ride in Matlock, Derbyshire in what is called the Peaks District--an area of great natural beauty with rugged, peat-covered moorlands and magnificent limestone dales, with picturesque towns and villages, historic churches and lovely grand houses. It is also the location of Britain's first National Park.

Our first day was a challenge. Not only did we have steep hills but we also have snow drifts to contend with. 

It took us about an hour per mile to walk through the snow drifts.  In the end  it took us all day to go 32 miles.  But we made it!

With the snow behind us, we made our way to Hardington and to our Bed and Breakfast.

Day 4:  From Hartington to Eyam. We stopped at a 3000-year-old stone circle to soak up the energy of the stones.

A photo stop at an iconic red telephone booth along the way.

This is a typical scene of the Derbyshire landscape. It is just beautiful.  During our three day ride we didn't had much sun but we also didn't have much rain -- just cool and grey.

It wasn't all hills and valleys -- we had some lovely stretches of flat and beautiful especially along the river Wye.

We stayed in Eyam on our last night in Derbyshire.  Eyam has a fascinating history. In1665 bubonic plague arrived at the house of the village tailor George Vicars, via a parcel of cloth from London. The cloth was damp and was hung out in front of the fire to dry, thus releasing plague infested fleas. Three days later the tailer died of a raging fever. As the plague took hold and decimated the villagers it was decided to hold the church services outdoors and, on the advice of rectors, the villagers chose to self quarantine for the next 18 months to minimize the spread of the disease.

The village is filled with 17th-century Plague cottages with plaques that tell of the villagers that once lived and died there.

The Plague in Eyam raged for 14 months and claimed the lives of at least 260 out of 350 villagers. To minimize cross infection, food and other supplies were left for the villagers from neighboring towns at the Boundary Stones -- boulders that you can still see in surrounding fields.   

It's hard to visit this unspoilt Derbyshire village and not be moved by the tragic events that took place there almost 350 years ago.   Geraldine Brooks wrote the historical novel Year of Wonders: The Novel of the Plague, a bestseller in 2001, which was based on what happened at Eyam. 

Day 5: Our final  riding day was culminated with a visit to Chatsworth House -- the home of the Cavendish family and the largest privately held country house in England.

Even in the fog and with scaffolding on one side, the ride up the drive across the surrounding park  and seeing Chatsworth House for the first time took my breath away. 

It is not hard to see why it was used as Mr. Darcy's Pemberley in the 2005 movie of Pride and Prejudice staring Keira Knightley. 

The grounds were landscaped by Capability Brown, the eminent 18th century landscape architect.

The last three days were spent in a magnificent 17th century farmhouse in Broadwell in the Cotswolds. It was the perfect place to rest, visit, stay up late talking, and just enjoy the beauty of this home and this picture perfect village.

We spent our days wandering through the Cotswolds and stumbled across Sudeley Castle where Katherine Parr, Henry VIII’s last queen, lived after Henry died and is buried in St Mary’s Church within the gardens. She is the only English Queen to be buried in a private residence.

What a week!  The best part of this extraordinary adventure was spending time with these great, great women!  I love and miss them all and am so grateful I was invited along for the ride. 

“There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of loving people by halves, it is not my nature.”

― Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey