The fame of Sudeley was partly a product of its proximity to Cheltenham, which had developed as a fashionable spa town during the Regency. Indeed, no less a figure than George III made a day trip to the castle on his first visit to the town in 1788. When exploring the ruins, the King was saved from injury by one Mrs Cox, a resident, who used her own body to break his fall down a spiral stair. The story goes that she was rewarded with a commission in the Guards for one of her relatives.
For antiquaries, the castle was of particular interest. It offered through its associated personalities a survey of English history from the Saxon period to the Civil War. This glittering narrative was recorded in several county histories during the 18th century and, as early as 1791, was summarised in a luxuriously produced monograph published in London by the remarkable naval clergyman and topographer Cooper Willyams. This publication was not simply a labour of love.
Denne historien er fra September 30, 2020-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra September 30, 2020-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Happiness in small things
Putting life into perspective and forces of nature in farming
Colour vision
In an eye-baffling arrangement of geometric shapes, a sinister-looking clown and a little girl, Test Card F is one of television’s most enduring images, says Rob Crossan
'Without fever there is no creation'
Three of the top 10 operas performed worldwide are by the emotionally volatile Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, who died a century ago. Henrietta Bredin explains how his colourful life influenced his melodramatic plot lines
The colour revolution
Toxic, dull or fast-fading pigments had long made it tricky for artists to paint verdant scenes, but the 19th century ushered in a viridescent explosion of waterlili
Bullace for you
The distinction between plums, damsons and bullaces is sweetly subtle, boiling down to flavour and aesthetics, but don’t eat the stones, warns John Wright
Lights, camera, action!
Three remarkable country houses, two of which have links to the film industry, the other the setting for a top-class croquet tournament, are anything but ordinary
I was on fire for you, where did you go?
In Iceland, a land with no monks or monkeys, our correspondent attempts to master the art of fishing light’ for Salmo salar, by stroking the creases and dimples of the Midfjardara river like the features of a loved one
Bravery bevond belief
A teenager on his gap year who saved a boy and his father from being savaged by a crocodile is one of a host of heroic acts celebrated in a book to mark the 250th anniversary of the Royal Humane Society, says its author Rupert Uloth
Let's get to the bottom of this
Discovering a well on your property can be viewed as a blessing or a curse, but all's well that ends well, says Deborah Nicholls-Lee, as she examines the benefits of a personal water supply
Sing on, sweet bird
An essential component of our emotional relationship with the landscape, the mellifluous song of a thrush shapes the very foundation of human happiness, notes Mark Cocker, as he takes a closer look at this diverse family of birds