And so we head south! It was only a 30 minute drive to the city of Durham where I was keen to see the cathedral. I’ve read it described as the finest and largest example of Norman architecture in England and anyone I know who has seen it has said it’s wonderful. So it was real anticipation that we left the car park and headed up the cobbled streets of the town towards the cathedral.
As we approached the Cathedral green we started noticing lots of elegantly dressed people…then we noticed the flags and queues of elegantly dressed people in front of the cathedral… and then we noticed all the students in academic gowns (Durham is a university city). My heart sunk..and a quick check of the Cathedral website confirmed the situation. The cathedral was closed to visitors today as it was hosting a series of University graduation events!!
After taking a photo of the cathedral we wandered a little disconsolately down a lane and were looking at Google maps to decide what to do instead. A businesslike lady walking past must have thought we looked lost as she asked if we needed help. We explained we’d come to see the cathedral and it turned out she worked in the nearby Durham information centre and suggested that we might like to do their walking tour or to visit the museum. We thanked her and went to take a look at the museum, where a helpful chap suggested a walk around the river for some iconic views of the cathedral. So we didn’t get to see the interior of the cathedral but the visit wasn’t totally wasted.
From Durham we had an hour and a half drive on to the big sight for the day, Castle Howard.This virtual palace was the first great work of the architect Sir John Vanburgh in 1699 for Charles Howard, 3rd Earl of Carlisle, and is still the family home of the Howard family. It’s been described as arguably the finest Baroque stately home in Britain, with a spectacular Great Hall under the painted and gilded dome 80 feet high. It was used in the filming of the 70s tv series “Brideshead Revisited” which was the first time I’d seen it and it appeared more recently in the first series of Bridgerton.
when we arrived we first grabbed a light lunch in one of the three cafes and then walked around to view the front of the palace. After that we walked through the open rooms , including the spectacular main entry hall under the dome. Some of the upper rooms , and the dome itself had been destroyed in a fire in 1940. The dome was replaced I the 1960s but some of the rooms are waiting refurbishment and have been reduced back to the bare stone walls. They have magnificent windows though, overlooking the gardens and fountain.
outside the palace we walked around to the back formal garden area, which has been simplified to lawns and hedges and one grand fountain. From there we walked up to see the Temple of the Four Winds and managed to get slightly lost on the wood on the grounds before find8ng our way back to the walled garden and the exit.
On the long walk back to the car park we talked about our feelings about the place . It is utterly huge, and still owned by one family and is a massive money making machine. The charges to enter are very steep and there are several cafes, shops ,and even a garden centre all owned by that family. One of the stories we were told inside was how an early Earl decided to move an entire village , including all its residents, to another location because the old one got I the way of his designs for the house and gardens. Although we were glad to have seen it we both had a feeling of ..distaste … that so much wealth can belong to people who have simply just been born into the right family. Then of course there is the realization that it is a magnificent architectural gem that should be valued and maintained. It left us both with mixed feelings…which we had not felt about some of the other grand houses we have seen that are in the hands of the National Trust and are open to the public for a far more reasonable cost. I remember feeling something similar when I saw Chatsworth many years ago (owned by the Duke of Devonshire) and I suspect I’ll have a similar feeling when we see Blenheim Palace in a few days ( owned by the Duke of Marlborough) …but I still want to see it! 😂