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Published: October 4th 2018
I have an observation from a comment from yesterday that I thought some more of you might be interested in: “I suspect we will see several Cathedrals in London and I am looking forward to it. So far, they have all been spectacular in their own ways. York Minster is different from any of the others we have seen because of the stone it is built in. I think our bus guide said it was Yorkshire stone but wouldn’t swear to that. At any rate, the color of the stones is a light, creamy color—not stained at all which, to me, makes it look like that huge edifice could almost float up into the air. It really is an amazing building.”
Goathland train station, where Harry Potter was filmed, was our first stop today. We rode on it to the Yorkshire town of Whitby which lies on the North Sea, and is a very popular British holiday spot. We did a short walking tour there before wandering around the area and doing some window shopping before lunch. Our meal was terrific...one of the best fish and chip mearls we have ever had. We met up with our bus at 1:15
and headed to Howard Castle. Named for you, our Austin?? Charles Dickens visited there and wrote part of A Christmas Carol there.
From Whitby we drove to Castle Howard for a fantastic stop there. I will put some copied info below because it would take me too long to write all of our observations and feelungs about this place. It isn’t really a Castle but is considered an English country home instead. This was an an amazing place, and probably one of the most beautiful we have ever seen. It is privately owned still by the original family. They live in the East wing, which is not open to visitors.
Wikipedia notes on Castle Howard:
”Castle Howard is a
stately home in
North Yorkshire, England, 15 miles (24 km) north of
York. It is a private residence, and has been the home of the
Carlisle branch of the
Howard family for more than 300 years.
Castle Howard is not a true
castle, but this term is also used for
English country houses erected on the site of a former military castle.
It is familiar to television and film audiences as the fictional "Brideshead", both in
Granada Television's 1981
adaptation of Evelyn
Waugh's
Brideshead Revisited and a two-hour 2008
remake for cinema. Today, it is part of the
Treasure Houses of England group of heritage houses.
Building of Castle Howard began in 1699 and took over 100 years to complete to a design by Sir
John Vanbrugh for the
3rd Earl of Carlisle. The site was that of the ruined Henderskelfe Castle, which had come into the Howard family in 1566 through the marriage of
Thomas, 4th Duke of Norfolk to
Elizabeth Leyburne, widow of
Thomas, 4th Baron Dacre.“
A large part of the house was destroyed by a fire which broke out on 9 November 1940. The dome, the central hall, the dining room and the state rooms on the east side were entirely destroyed. Antonio Pellegrini's ceiling decoration the Fall of Phaeton was lost when the dome collapsed. In total, twenty pictures (including two
Tintorettos and several valuable mirrors) were lost. The fire took the Malton and York Fire Brigades eight hours to bring under control.
Some of the devastated rooms have been restored over the following decades. In 1960–61 the dome was rebuilt and in the following couple of years, Pellegrini's Fall of Phaeton was recreated on the underside of the dome.
Some first floor rooms were superficially restored for the
2008 filming, and now house an exhibition. The South East Wing remains a shell, although it has been restored externally. Castle Howard is one of the largest country houses in England, with a total of 145 rooms.
We had a very good day today. Heading to London tomorrow with a stop at Stratford upon Avon. Stay tuned!
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Betty Shanks
non-member comment
Yorkshire Country
I love All these beautiful old castles and Chapels.