What Do I Know?

Sulgrave Manor: George Washington Was (Not) Here

Sulgrave Manor, with the flags of Great Britain and the United States of America flying on opposite ends.

It seemed appropriate that our last outing to the English countryside, before we repatriate to America, would be to the ancestral home of the first president of the United States. 

George Washington's forefathers were, of course, from England, but he was born in the colonies, in what is now the state of Virginia. His great-grandfather John Washington emigrated on a ship from England, bringing goods to the colonies since they weren't allowed to manufacture anything (really?). When the ship's manifest of tobacco, bound for England on the return journey, was lost, he was blamed. He sought refuge from a local landowner, Nathanial Pope, and ended up marrying his daughter and inheriting land near the Potomac River. 

Thus was George Washington born in the United States, rather than at the family's ancestral home near Banbury on the edge of Oxfordshire.

Sulgrave Manor was built in Tudor times, and the original owner was Lawrence Washington, who married well twice and found himself in need of property fitting his social situation. The current house was modified over the years. Half of the original Tudor home burned sometime in the 17th century, leaving a house that's a bit of a hodgepodge, as English country estates typically are.

In 1914 the British Peace Centenary Committee purchased the manor to celebrate 100 years of peace between Britain and America, using funds raised on both sides of the Atlantic. It's now a historical property available for tours and weddings, with a special appeal for curious American tourists like us.

When we arrived, we were greeted by one of the Sulgrave tour guides. After paying our dues, I struck up a conversation with the woman, who mentioned that she was a Tudor historian. After learning I was from America, she told me that Americans must not learn as much history as the British do. I started to explain that we Americans focus on different histories, including the history of our individual states and the Americas, but then I let her go on thinking we were a bunch of ignorant savages. It's more fun that way, I've found: Never let yourself be overestimated by the natives.

Later on, as the tour started, I learned from another tour guide that George Washington actually was a general in the War of 1812! Not, as I'd always assumed, in the War of Independence, or rather, The War In Which The Colonies Broke Away From Their Cruel Overlords. I guess we are a bunch of ignorant savages, because I had no idea George Washington served in the American Army after he was president; indeed, after his death in 1799. We colonials learn something new every day here in the Motherland. 

The hour-long tour turned out to be two hours and counting, because the Tudor enthusiast I'd first met couldn't resist joining the tour and sharing every facet of Tudor life experienced in the manor house. I guess she felt it was her duty to educate us ignorant Americans, and I was grateful for that. My previous visits to Hampton Court Palace, Hardwick Hall, Basing House, and numerous other Tudor sites, as well as several history courses at Oxford, didn't include all those details about Tudor food. After all these ten year living here, I finally learned about all the uses for dead mice in Tudor times.

Seriously, I would have quite enjoyed the lengthy tour if we hadn't been in a hurry to leave, as we had to take care of pre-moving business later in the day. These last few weeks have been filled with moments like that: I realize I should be enjoying my last outings in this beautiful and historically rich country, but my mind has been filled with all the logistics of a trans-Atlantic move. I wish there were a shipping company like John Washington's who would just take me and my household goods and most importantly, my dog, straight across the Atlantic, with the impressed sailors from the colonies along to provide protection. 

Oops. I was wrong about the origins of the War of 1812, which was started, as we were surprised to learn, because the "Americans wanted to go to war" after the White House was burned. Yep. We were a war-like bunch of colonials even then. The impressment of American sailors had nothing to do with it. Apparently.

Oddly, I noted that this was the only time I've ever heard the War of 1812 mentioned here, and when it was, they had the facts all wrong. (Notice the date for the burning of the White House, 200 years ago today, after the war of 1812 began in—wait for it—1812.) I suspect they don't study American history here.

And thus my last visit to a historical property here brought me full circle to my roots in my homeland, established by those who fled these shores either by duress or by the force of hope offered by a new land. (Or perhaps by a desire to never have to learn history.) I, too, am leaving under duress, yet I have budding hope that my life in what is my "old country" will be prosperous.

Or that, at the very least, I'll be able to manufacture my own textiles. 

Some photos of Sulgrave Manor: 

This emblem on the front wall of Sulgrave was, perhaps, the inspiration for the Stars and Stripes. Or perhaps not. 

The Great Hall, a Tudor room that was uncovered when Sulgrave was restored.

Gilbert Stuart's portrait of George Washington, one of many that the artist reproduced. 

"George Washington as a Younger Man" by Archibald Robertson

Some examples of Tudor and Georgian food on display in the Tudor kitchen

George Washinton's liquor cabinet

The garden at Sulgrave Manor

A last glimpse of the Union Jack flying at Sulgrave Manor 

Friday Cow Blogging

This is what it looked like when the cows came back

The other day I heard Sparky barking outside. As I went out to see what it was, I saw a wonderful sight: the herd of cows, missing for the past two months, were running across the field, having just been released into the near pasture. 

Of course Sparky was disappointed, realizing the Greatest Threat to Peace had returned, but I was ecstatic. 

I was beginning to wonder if the cows would ever come back. I miss them when they're not there—the pasture just isn't the same without my bovine friends.

Later, I got to take more photos of the cows. They came to the fence to see if we still had apples (we did). The cows don't know it, but we toss them apples simply to entice them closer to the fence so I can take photos of them. 

I think they're going to miss us when we're gone. 

What's the Matter With Stonehenge?

I was looking forward to visiting the new exhibition centre at Stonehenge, which opened in December. After approximately 20 visits to Stonehenge over the last ten years, I was well aware of the need for some sort of interpretive museum, a way to explain what happened at Stonehenge other than the audio guide you're given prior to viewing the stones. 

Plus, I'm always in favor of progress, and a new scheme for viewing Stonehenge, located next to the very busy A303 and almost sideswiped by the entrance road, seemed a no-brainer, despite its £27 million price tag.

Yet, when I finally visited the new Stonehenge yesterday, I left disappointed. It's definitely a different experience than the old Stonehenge, which could be seen in less than an hour, start to finish. But I'm not sure it's a better one, especially for those of us who want to see other sites in the area, crucial to understanding the importance of the location in ancient times. 

Visiting Stonehenge is no longer the intimate experience it once was. Previously you could park near the stones, walk up to the entrance, hand your cards to the attendant and grab an audio guide before joining the throngs viewing the stones. Walking to the stones is still possible, but the shortest route involves walking a mile and a half along a paved road busy with trolley traffic and buses whizzing past, in a hurry to get the overflow crowds to the stones. The journey to the stones via the "land train", i.e. a LandRover pulling a trolley, takes ten minutes. After the chaos of the opening weeks, when visitors queued for an hour for a trolley ride, buses were added, but there's hardly enough room for two vehicles to pass on the narrow lane.

Stay to the right to avoid getting hit by the whizzing buses and the "land train". 

There's another path that goes through the fields and near the burial mounds (which are very much worth seeing) and though it's longer, it seems much shorter since the walk is more pleasant. 

Why English Heritage couldn't separate the footpath portion from the rest of the paved road is beyond comprehension, and downright dangerous. Likewise, I'm not sure why the visitor facilities couldn't be placed closer to the stones. There are several empty (and presumably archaeologically unimportant) fields between the centre and the line of trees that splits the view so that there's no way to see the stones from the visitor centre (or more importantly, to see the visitor centre from the stones). I can see why they wouldn't want to clutter the site, but this is a battle that was lost decades ago. The A303 is still located very near the stones, and in fact, the traffic on the A303 is worse than ever, since the new entrance road for Stonehenge is located past the pinch point where the 4-lane A303 chokes down to two lanes.  

The traffic crawls past Stonehenge

Due to the traffic on an August Saturday, a journey that's normally less than an hour and a half became an over two hour trip, and that was with a sat nav detour through Durrington Walls to avoid the heavy A303 traffic. For anyone with timed tickets, getting to Stonehenge would be fraught with anxiety, but fortunately, there seemed to be no reason to have a timed ticket, since we were told to just go to the stones anytime. (We were able to avoid the long queue to get in when we heard someone asking for anyone with English Heritage or National Trust membership to head toward the members-only queue.)

After seeing the queues for the "land train", we opted for the walk (which we probably would have done anyway). 

But all this queueing and walking means you're no longer going to be able to stop at Stonehenge to view the ancient stone circle before heading to another destination, like the far more enjoyable Avebury stone circle. By the time we left it was already late in the afternoon. 

The visitor centre, with the Disney-esque trolley just leaving

And the exhibition centre itself was less than I'd imagined. It came off a bit slick, like the large cafe and gift shop located across the ticket entrance. A handful of display cases held objects on loan from the nearby Devizes Museum (another place you won't be able to visit if you spend all your time queueing at Stonehenge). There were also large "totems" with quotes on them, a habit of modern museum design that adds very little to one's understanding, frankly. Maybe they should move those outside where people can read them while queueing to get in.

Inside the gift shop I saw some postcards with scenes from the early days of Stonehenge tourism, one depicting a family picnicking amongst the stones. That's when it struck me that this new era of Stonehenge has become even less user friendly than when access to the inside circle was no longer routine, sometime in the 70s. Now I understand why people sound so nostalgic when they refer to the good old days, when the inner circle of Stonehenge was open to all. I have a feeling I'll sound equally nostalgic one day when I remember the time when you could park next to the stones and view them without a half hour walk or an hour long queue.

Neolithic digger?

There's a construction crew digging up the old carpark now, and once it's gone the area surrounding the stones will be even more pristine—if you can ignore the constant coming and going of trolleys and buses and the traffic crawling on the A303, not to mention the hoards of tourists queueing for the best viewpoint of the stones.

I'm more surprised than anyone that my experience turned out to be so disappointing, when I was so looking forward to seeing what they'd done with the place. Obviously something needed to be done, but I'm not sure English Heritage have arrived at the best solution, even after decades of pondering the problem of Stonehenge. 

While I used to look forward to taking our houseguests to Stonehenge, I would no longer do so. It's not the easy day trip it used to be, nor is it an easy stop on the way to Avebury or Salisbury.

My advice: Skip Stonehenge and go to Avebury instead. You can still easily see the stones from your viewpoint on the A303 while you're stuck in traffic—and it's a better view than the pig farm that's on the other side of the highway. 

If you do go to Stonehenge, plan to make a day of it and opt for the scenic walking path instead of the crowded and dangerous road. Don't bother to reserve a time slot, but do join English Heritage beforehand. (Since they've increased the entrance fee to almost £15, it's really worth it if you plan to see other English Heritage properties.)

But I'm not quite sure that English Heritage has got their money's worth with the £27 million they spent. Perhaps in another three decades or so we'll have yet another solution.

More photos below:

Friday Cow Blogging

One of the amusements at Black Park

One of our favorite places to walk here is Black Park. It's right next to the Pinewood Studios lot, and is often used as an outdoor set for films made at Pinewood. We've come upon sets while wandering around the park before, which adds a bit of drama to our walk. 

And also cows. We don't always see cows in the park, but when we do, they're in an enclosed area, so they're safe from dogs like Sparky who hasn't yet figured out that cows are our friends. 

A couple of weeks ago, while prowling around the park hoping to come across a set from Star Wars, we came upon instead a herd of brown cows. Sparky looked a little too interested, so we called him back from the fence and leashed him--normally he can run off lead throughout the park with no worries, which is why it's one of our favorite places to go. 

I'm not sure who owns the cows that graze in Black Park. Maybe they're there as public amusement, sort of like the zip line that attracts kids on weekends. 

Meanwhile, closer to home, my cows have been kept in the far pasture the last couple of months, so I haven't seen them. Which suits Sparky just fine; he has a hard enough time keeping the garden free from squirrels. 

Brown cows add drama to Black Park

WDIK Location Quiz

It's time for another Location Quiz! Where in the world was I when I took these photos? 

Hint: She's not as old as she looks. 

And remember: Looks can be deceiving. 

Still stumped? Here's another hint: It's not a bank. But a banker's funds built it.