One of our Friends offered to book a very special trip to Corsham Court about three years ago, we waited until it could have a date; not only did involve a tour of the house, but also a talk by Lord Methuen in his private rooms. The trip didn’t appear on our talks and trips flyer or on the website because it was so popular, it sold out before we could advertise it.
I used the trip as a chance to try and get a group photos of Friends enjoying themselves, it’s not easy because some people had not arrived when I took the photo and also despite the fact it was sporadically sunny, I seemed choose times when the sun wasn’t out. However I have used the brightness tool on the camera and it looks fantastically bright now!
So here are a couple of photos taken at the beginning of the trip before we divided into groups and then dispersed in the gardens.
The one above is taken outside the church, and the one below as we walked up the magnificent drive.
Here’s an obligatory photo of a peacock, they seem charming at first, but when they start calling, you realsie they are making a racket and maybe aren’t so delightful to have around after all.
We were not permitted to take photos in the house of the fantastic paintings, furnishings and carpets with the coat of arms on. The rooms have remained unaltered for the last 200 years, it’s hard to believe that the crimson silk damask, considered at the time the optimum material for displaying gilt wood framed paintings, is still on the walls and used to cover the chairs. Apparently in 1765 Morris & Young of Spitalfieds supplied 700 yards of the material at 13s.6d. a yard and 4 years later a further 478 yards for the furnishings. My favourite painting was of two sisters and a brother of the artist Sofonisba Anguissola in the state rooms and an Augustus John painting of Windton Churchill and his wife at breakfast in the private rooms.
I couldn’t resist these two photos of the downstairs toilet, above a thunderbox type of construction and the original washbasin.
Outside after the climate controlled house, the sun had come out, and we walked round the splendid gardens where we could take photos. This copper beech was the first thing I saw.
There are some beautiful urns around the garden
I don’t know what this plant is, the leaves are reminiscent of Agapanthus, anyone know what it is?
Below you acn see the Bath House built by ‘Capability’ Brown, but further Gothiicised by Nash between 1797 and 1802. It wa sintended to give an invigorating cold dip, the last member of the Methuen family to use it was Field-Marshal Lord Methuen.
I’m not sure about this lovely window in the Bath House, it says Thomas Rogers 1478, below the Methuen coat of arms, and also Paul Methuen 1625
Here is the bathing area
And onto the plants again, here’s a fantastic tree peony flower
and the plant
There were some great Alliums
and this fabulous urn to end on!
A brilliant trip, thank you to everyone who came, and made it such a memorable visit.
