Today we drove down to Oxfordshire and Visited Blenheim Palace. The Building and grounds are spectacular and really are worth the drive and the exorbitant entrance fee. The palace itself is very grand and was built for the 1st Duke of Marlborough, a slightly effeminate looking man we saw in a few paintings. Eventually Big, Bad Winston was born and lived here (Winston Churchill of WWII fame). Inside the building is just like every other palace with lots of gilding, massive paintings, creaky floors, tapestries and marble busts. The gardens are even better and have some really beautiful, large old trees. Lots of good english trees like Oaks, Elms, Beaches, Elders, and also lebanese cedars, maples and onwards. The gardens are also very large and stretch on past the horizon in most directions. There are lakes and rivers, rose gardens, water gardens, a hedge maze, and a few temples and follies and of course some well built naked women statues.
We enjoyed our day and would recommend it to anyone in the area.
The Front yard of the palace
The Duke and duchess of Hunningham visiting friends.
Another view of the front entrance
The water Garden
Buxus hedging around the water garden
An angry naked man with sword and shield
A content and naked Lady doing her best to hold her hair and remain vaguely virtuous.
Winston got it on in this temple in 1908.
A fresh green field with some nice silver birch, purple beaches and oaks in the background.
A Grass snake, very uncommon to see any reptiles in the UK.
The Italian garden which is out of bounds for plebs.
A beech.
1 comment:
What a beautiful Palace. One for me and Dad to explore when we come over :) The Duke and Duchess of Hunningham are a very attractive couple. xxx
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