Kent – My London+

Chartwell: Home of Sir Winston Churchill

Now, I must admit, I have never been a big fan of Churchill. I’ve never forgiven him for ruining a whole day due to his state funeral. I was coming up to ten years old, and all I remember of that day is sombre music on the radio, and there was nothing, I mean nothing else to do. So depressing! The world stopped, and I thought, who is this man that can do this?

Okay, I’ve got that out of my system, but as a nearly ten year old, I didn’t really understand (or want to know) who this man was, but that day haunted me, and I’ve obviously never got over it! Second thing – I only associated Churchill with war, which seemed to obsess my parents’ generation. I realise now, of course, how much it affected them. There was still rationing when my brother was born. When the air-raid siren on top of the local police station was tested (which I remember as a child), how my mum hated it. Thirdly, I have been to Chartwell before with my mum and dad, many years ago, but I barely remember it, and I wonder if that too has been blotted out of my mind due to my prejudice against him! I remember standing in the garden, and that’s all. So, why, you might ask, did I recently visit? Well, a friend was keen, and I never refuse a day out!

There is actually a well – the Chart Well!

Has my opinion changed? I have become more sympathetic, and I love the fact that he was such a family man. I’m never going to be his biggest fan, but I can live with it! Maybe I have laid the ghost to rest.

The front of the house isn’t as impressive as the side or back.

Chartwell had been owned by the Churchill family since 1922. It was only in 1964, a year before he died, that he moved to his flat in London, due to ill health. You can read more about Churchill here. Of course, there is more to Churchill than just war. He was Prime Minister. I learned that he switched political parties, he suffered from depression and the only thing to help with that was painting. And he was a family man. In the gardens is a cute brick built playhouse he had built for his children.

The brick built playhouse in the gardens

Planting is still not complete. During lockdown, The National Trust lost money and could not afford plants, so there are still bare beds in some places.

The house has beautiful rooms, and the views are spectacular. Who ever said Kent is flat? There are some very hilly parts to Kent. I expected very masculine rooms where Churchill worked and plotted the way war was going, but I was surprised by how homely it all felt. It wasn’t all leather and wood! I also marvelled at how industrious Churchill was – how many books he wrote and how many pictures he painted. How did he have time?

There is a museum with a lot about Churchill’s life, especially his the military life and all the organisations he was a member of. There is a whole case of uniforms and, of course, his cigars.

Outside the gardens is Churchill’s studio. At first he had only a small studio, part of the workmen’s cottages. He put windows on the roof to add more light. Now this is the exhibition space for his many paintings. Churchill did not start to paint until he was 41. Encouraged by his sister-in-law, it became a lifelong hobby, and he took his box of paints and canvasses with him when abroad. Some of the paintings are unfinished, like professional artist’s sketches, and sometimes he went back and started again. Here you can compare the unfinished with the finished. They are remarkable paintings. Churchill never painted for profit or to display. This was something he did for himself. Around the garden and grounds there are seats placed where Churchill would sit to paint. And what views there are to paint at Chartwell.

The studio – everything here is Churchill’s

The National Trust acquired Chartwell eighteen years after Churchill’s death. These days there is a super cafe, National Trust Shop, secondhand bookshop and the all important toilets. There are lovely walks you can take into the woodlands. My friend and I took one of these paths and came across swathes of bluebells. Looking back at the house from there, you can see why Churchill loved this place so much.

A view of the house from across the lake

I loved the house and studio, and the surrounding gardens and countryside are beautiful. The house has a lovely feel about it, a good atmosphere, homely. This must have been a place to relax in away from London and all politics and war for Churchill. A place of family, and his beloved painting. We heard a talk in the studio about Churchill’s art, and he was friends with Sir William Nicholson (father of Ben Nicholson who worked with and married Barbara Hepworth). In fact, Sir William was Churchill’s mentor, but when Nicholson suggested using a more muted palette, Churchill decided to stick with what he liked. I admire him for that. You can see both artists’ pictures of the view of the swimming pool – I much prefer Churchill’s! It made me smile because Sir William’s son, Ben did the same with ‘primitive’ artist Alfred Wallis, but Wallis also went his own way!

Sevenoaks & Knole Park & House

Sevenoaks is around 23 miles from London, and takes thirty minutes by train (unless you catch the slow train which takes double the time as it stops more times). The service is frequent and runs from Charing Cross.

This is a pretty Kent town with a mix of independent and chain stores set around a High Street with little alleyways leading to squares with coffee shops, restaurants and outdoor seating area. Some of the buildings are historic, and I liked the feel of the place. It also boasts a rather fine independent bookshop, which of course I spent time in!

First things first, I found one of the alleyways to indulge in a drink and snack before exploring the rest of the town.

The Shambles reminds me of York, but this is much smaller. Just a courtyard with a cafe and outdoor seating.

One of the courtyards surrounded by cafes, restraurant and shops

Plenty of places to sit and watch the world go by

The Banstand is from the 1800’s – The Vine Cricket Club

Off the High Street there is a footpath leading to Knole Park and House. I was at the house back in October as part of a special interest trip visiting places associated with The Bloomsbury Group, but we didn’t have time to visit the park or the orangery. Now there was more time and it was quieter. The estate is owned by the Sackville-West’s, now overseen by the National Trust. The park is beautiful and there are many deer roaming.

I posted a lot of photos of Knole House back in October, so here I will concentrate on places I was unable to visit before (please look at previous post if you want to see house photos)

Sevenoaks is certainly a lovely town to spend time in. I hadn’t planned to go to the park and house, but I had more time than I realised, so when I saw the footpath, I thought why not? It was a long day, however, the walk back to the station was all downhill (it’s quite a drudge into town!). The more I explore Kent the more I fall in love with the county.

Quebec House

A friend and I had planned on visiting Chartwell, the home of Winston Churchill, but our best laid plans came undone. We had chosen the best day of the half-term holiday. Everyone was out! When we arrived, they had just shut the car park! ‘Try again in half an hour or an hour,’ we were advised.

Chartwell is close to the village of Westerham (there is a statue of Churchill on the green and a tea shop bearing his name). We headed into Westerham to have lunch. We had walked by Quebec House. My friend had been before, but I’d never heard of it. We shelved the information for later and set out again for Chartwell, only to find the car park still closed.

Back in Westerham we parked and walked to Quebec House, which we were told (on entering) was the first house ever bequeathed by Will to the National Trust. The house was saved by General James Wolfe, who grew up here.

Aged only 14, Wolfe received his first military commission and later went on to command the army sent to recapture Quebec from the French. Sadly, he died there, but he achieved the goal he was sent to carry out. He is buried in Greenwich, but there is a memorial and sculpture of him in Westminster Abbey.

On display are lots of military history – documents, paintings of ships, a model of the long boat they used to get from ship to shore, uniforms, pistols and other paraphernalia. I loved the kitchen with its bottles of stomach churning remedies for various ailments.

Outside there is good sized garden, and an outbuilding with a display about the battle. Of course, there is the usual NT shop and also a secondhand bookshop (rummage essential!).

Have an ailment? Find a cure here! The kitchen

Although I don’t have any real interest in military things, this was a pleasant house to wander around. It is only small (only the downstairs is open to the public), but our guide was very knowledgeable about both the house and James Wolfe’s military history. The house is now closed for winter and reopens in March 2022. Entrance is free.

The Bloomsbury Group and all that (Part 1)

A special interest holiday on The Bloomsbury Group was a dream come true. I have long been fascinated by them, and had visited Charleston House and Monk’s House some years ago. This time there was a whole three full days touring their homes, with a few surprises thrown in.

A quick run through of main Bloomsbury Group people – Virginia Woolf, Vanessa Bell (her sister), Thoby Stephen (brother), Roger Fry, Duncan Grant, Clive Bell, Leonard Woolf, Lytton Strachey, E M Forster and John Maynard Keynes.

The holiday was taken with HF Holidays, a company I have used quite a few times now. They run walking holidays to suit everyone (three grades to choose from each day), trail walking, special interest/activity (railways to yoga and photography to the Bronte’s) and discovery (touring). They own their own houses in the UK, but not abroad (where they also run tours).

For this holiday I was based in West Sussex, a house called Abingworth. The first holiday I ever took with them was here, and strangely, I was given the same bedroom! On waking I’d hear the geese by the pond, which I could see from the bedroom window. This is the kind of holiday that a single person would be very welcome. Here I mean a single traveller, not single as in not married! They run special ‘solo’ weeks, but I have gone alone twice in the past on special interest holidays and soon made friends. This time I was with a friend.

What I love about HF, apart from the great houses and rooms, is that everything is included – breakfast, a packed lunch and three course dinner. There is also the famous HF quiz on a Wednesday night. Every house does the same one on the same night. Normally, there would be other evening entertainment, but due to Covid this has been suspended. Of course, if that is not your thing, you can always opt out and sit and chat, or go to your room to read.

After arriving and unpacking there was afternoon tea. Refreshments with cake and scones and a chance to meet the leaders and other holiday makers. There was a little time to kill before the evening meeting to discuss our schedule, and then dinner. So a walk around the grounds was in order. There were rabbits and mushrooms behind the hotel, and the path led up to a vantage point with the South Downs all around. The sun was going down, casting golden shadows across fields. Then it was back to the hotel.

Sissinghurst was the first stop on the first day. This was the home of Vita Sackville-West and husband, Harold. Vita and Harold had an open marriage and each had lovers. Vita boasted that she’d had fifty! One of those lovers was Virginia Woolf, the writer, who lived at Monk’s House with her husband Leonard. The lives of the Bloomsbury Group (the name comes from the London Squares where they lived) is complicated, so unless you know the group, be prepared for some confusion!

Sissinghurst was a ninety minute drive, and the beautiful house and gardens sit in Kent, near Sevenoaks. The couple bought the place when it was very run down. There had been a manor house here once, but it was badly used. Prisoners of war were held here and to stay alive they ripped up anything they could burn to keep warm. Gradually, what was left was restored. There are several buildings dotted around in the grounds, though not all were open. The tower where Vita wrote was closed due to a ceiling collapse, but I bet the view would have been spectacular.

Part of the house was accessible (no photography allowed), and the library (where I could take photos). There was also a house where the cook lived and also the teenage sons. The gardens are set out in ‘rooms’, the most famous being the white garden. I was surprised by much colour there still was at this time of year.

Like any tour, there wasn’t enough time. But there is the potential to return at a later date to spend more time in the gardens. Certainly, I’d like to come back and to visit the tower.

The second, and last visit of the day, was to Knole House, the home Vita was unable to inherit because she was a woman! This was a very different sort of house. Castle-like, it was dark inside; lots of wood, a gatehouse tower, and endless dark portraits of family going back generations.

The gatehouse tower was where one member of the family escaped to, known as the bachelor pad, and from the top there are views of the house. I should say there is also a deer park here, but again there was not enough time to walk much of the grounds.

Drop back here again for Part 2, when I shall talk about Charleston House, the main highlight of the holiday, and the main Bloomsbury home. I would urge you to use the links to the various houses where there are more photos and lots of information.

A London Escape – Tonbridge, Kent

There aren’t a great many advantages to becoming older, but the one I love is having a Freedom Pass (which takes me around London on bus, train and tube – as well as the tram – for free). And then there’s my Senior Citizen’s Railcard, which gives me a nice discount on all my train journeys outside London. So with my combined discounts, I travelled by bus and train out to Tonbridge and back for £5!

The journey time is around 40 minutes from Charing Cross, and normally the train is pretty empty. However, the day I went, I got onto the platform to hear that there were major disruptions due to an electrical fault and only two lines were in operation. Luckily, I was okay. My line was running, though there were less trains than usual.

Tonbridge is a lovely town. I was impressed that the high street seemed to be thriving, which rather (happily) goes against the grain of most towns in England right now with their boarded up shops. There was a nice mix of chain stores and others

The main attraction of Tonbridge is the castle, so that was where I headed. This is an experience, taking you back to medieval times with life sized models and information in rooms in the castle. Tickets are bought from the Tourist Information Centre which is on site (they also sell refreshments!). You get an audio to guide you around the rooms. A couple of the rooms are dimly lit, and when I asked, I was told I would be the only person in there! The lady reassured me that they had cameras and could see me. ‘You can always wave to us,’ she said!

The audio begins describing the towers and the murder holes under the arch where guards could shoot at people! You use a key fob to let yourself into the castle and enter a light room with information before descending to a lower room that was the food store with a clerk who has turned to see you enter. Barrels of salt line one shelf and other food items line other shelves. There are the obligatory rats enjoying themselves. Through the door is a man making arrows; swords are buried to the hilt in sawdust, and along the wall helmets wait.

The murder holes in the roof of the arch

From here you go up the stairs into the guard room where the guards are enjoying a meal (a suitable audio switches on here). This is a good place to sit and enjoy a video of life in the castle before entering through another door into the Great Hall. This is quite magnificent. Just off the hall is the privy (in use!) and a time capsule. On the floor of the Great Hall you can see the murder holes which you can see through, along with a slit where the portcullis was raised. Originally, the room had other floors and you can see the old fireplaces.

From the Great Hall there are steep steps to climb to go to the top of the castle. There are lovely views of Kent from the top.

Then it’s back down to the Great Hall and out through another door to the exit. I had survived my lonely look round. When I returned the audio there was a woman on her own just about to make the same trip and I confirmed it was okay (yeah, a bit creepy if you thought about the history, but I switched off my panic mode about ghosts and all that, just!). She was a little confused about how to enter, so I took her round to the door and explained to listen to the audio before entering (my mistake, which meant I had to listen to lots of audio on entering the castle before it got to the bit where I was standing).

A better look at those murder holes from under the arch

I had asked the lady in the Tourist Information Centre about other things to see while I was in Tonbridge. She asked if I liked walking. Music to my ears! She suggested a map and a walk to Barden Lake. Firstly, I headed back into town for lunch and then I set off with the map to enjoy a nice walk. Yes, I did get a bit lost, but luckily found people to ask, including two guys from the Environmental Agency who were in a van.

The lake was fabulous, and then it was a short walk back into Tonbridge for a quick look at the shops (Oxfam Bookshop was a must!) and afternoon tea before catching the train back home.

Something I have recently noticed is that there seem to be a lot of people like me – ladies my age and older out on their own enjoying seeing things (I’m sure there are men too, but it’s the ladies I notice). The lady I spoke to at the castle was there for the day. She’d gone to Tunbridge Wells one day and has passed through Tonbridge on the train and thought, ‘That looks nice. I’d like to see that.’ And here she was. Very much the sort of thing I do! The week before, I’d given another lady instructions on how to get back to Battersea Power Station, and she admitted that like me she’d just come to see what the new development was like. It’s great to know there is a little army of us taking in the sights, being tourists in our own country and enjoying ourselves.

Until next time.