May 14: Lacock Abbey and a Parting of Ways

Today we finished our last bits of packing, and said a very fond and somewhat reluctant goodbye to our hosts in Tetbury, Roz and Colin, with thanks both for their lovely cottage and for their warm and helpful hospitality.  We piled into the car with the luggage and drove to Lacock Abbey, which not only had a medieval abbey converted to a Tudor home (and the location of two Harry Potter movies), but also the Fox Talbot Museum (an amazing man who made amazing contributions to the science of photography) and an exhibit of pictures by Michael Palin. 

 Next, we drove Ian, Dorothy and Beverley to their hotel in Heathrow, from whence they will depart for Canada, and Alanna and I drove up to our B&B in Stratford.

One of the most striking things that I will remember about the Abbey isthe beautfiul grounds that surround the abbey.  the village is equally beautiful, and has been used in several television and movie productions.  We were there for another rainy day!

A building in Lacock

a sphinx in the gardens of the abbey

the park

Lacock Abbey was founded in 1362 by Ela, Countess of Salisbury, in commemoration of her husband, William Longespée, who was one of the signers of the Magna Carta.  everything about the place reeks of important history.

The original nuns who lived there were all well-born ladies who had chosen to live a retired religious lives – or had the choice made for them by their families.

A view down the cloisters

After the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII, the estate (including the entire village!) was purchase by William Sharington, who tore down the Lady’s Church, used the stones to build a tower and more rooms, and converted the remainder of the medieval building into a residence.  His granddaughter inherited the home, and her married surname was Talbot.  The Talbots lived in the house and owned the village until Matilda Talbot gave the house and the village to the National Trust in 1944, so that they might remain together as one piece.  The house as displayed has rooms from many of the eras of the house's history.

 

The Chapter House, used as a classroom in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.	An army chest taken by a Talbot to Canada.  The sides lock around the drawers to keep them from moving in transit.
This is the stove from Matilda Talbot's model kitchen.  She gave cooking demonstrations.	The main hall.  The statues are all terracotta

In the1750’s John Ivory Talbot rebuilt the Great Hall in the Gothic style, and the National Trust shows it as though an Eighteenth Century Party had just been interrupted, with a long white wig over a chair, wine stained glasses, and even a white tablecloth stained with wine.  Beverley thought it was a bit messy, but Dorothy was really happy to find a seat by the roaring fire.

Queen Victoria gave this desk to the family to acquit a debt incurred by her father.

A mortar and pestle from the Fifteenth Century.  The pestle weighs a TON!

Although it is out of the order that we saw it, we were impressed by the Fox Talbot Museum.  Fox Talbot was one of the bright lights of Victorian Society, good at everything from a very young age, and a great contributor to both the arts and sciences.  He did important work in science, including some early work in analyzing the components of substances by analyzing their colour as they burned, helped to establish archaeology as a science, and could read cuneiform.  All this, and he pioneered the modern photograph as well.  I was really thrilled to take a picture inside Lacock Abbey that was taken from the same position as one of the first photographs every taken.

It was a lovely morning, but all too soon it was time to head off to Heathrow to drop Dorothy, Beverley, and Ian at their hotel.   I just hated to let Ian go, especially as it means I have to drive “the tank” around Britain for another week!  (We tried to swap the huge Ford for a smaller vehicle, but at first couldn’t get through, and then didn’t hear back before we had to leave at 4:00 to beat rush hour.)

Our trip was relatively uneventful, and we settled into the Bed and Breakfast with a chance to check our email for the first time in days.  We couldn’t get tickets to the play this evening, so we are going to watch a bit of telly and turn in, so that we can get ready for a truly full day tomorrow.