It’s another ‘I’m Visiting’ post! So, as many of you may know from previous posts, I went on a trip to Cornwall at the beginning of the month, and while I was there I visited a few places that I want to talk about. Namely, because I thought they were great places to visit, and filled with historical and cultural significance.
This post I’m talking about The National Trust’s Lanhydrock, located on the outskirts of Bodmin.
Now, I love the National Trust. I think it’s a great cause, and I’ve been a member with them for several years. As a kid, I was part of a family membership, and we enjoyed many trips out to the various houses, castles, woodlands, and seaside spots thanks to that membership.
If you are in the UK, I thoroughly recommend checking the National Trust out. I have visited many places over the years, and love the historic nature of the places. I’ve been to Coleridge’s cottage in Devon, Beatrix Potter’s house in the Lake District, and many more places besides.
This post talks about Lanhydrock though, so without further ado, let’s get into it.
Lanhydrock
Lanhydrock is a late Victorian country house nestled in the south Cornwall countryside. What was devastating to learn about it was that parts of the building were destroyed in a fire in the 1880s, which also led to the death of its inhabitants. The original house and estate was in the same family for 400 years, so this was likely a big shock to both the residents and nearby villages. It had to be completely redecorated, and while there are parts of the original building still standing, a lot has changed since that time.
Lanhydrock was a happy family home for a while, taken on by the Agar-Robartes family, and they had many important visitors including the Prince and Princess of Wales in 1903, and Winston Churchill. But, tragically, the family fell into decline after World War I, when the eldest son and heir was shot, and later died of his wounds.
As you can see from the pictures, it is quite the stately home, and much work will have gone into both repairing the damage from the fire in the late 1800s, as well as the work maintaining it by the staff at the time.
When I visited, you wait in line to be taken through an entranceway, and then are shown a 2-minute video of the history of the house – including the fire destruction, before moving on to explore the rooms on show.
The first room after the video is the dining room, and it’s set-up beautifully with deep red chairs and white linen, flowers decked out across the long table, and I really loved the wood panelling.
Then you follow the hallway to the stairs and up to the next floor, passing portraits of the family along the walls, making your way to the master bedroom.
Ok, I love all the wallpapers throughout the rooms, and the bedroom was no exception. I liked the little book holder over the bed, and noted the shallow bath in front of the fireplace – a bit shallow for me, but it probably does the job. Next door to the bedroom was a bathroom, with a surprise in the bath (no spoilers, sorry guys), and then you walked on into the lady of the house’s bedroom. Here you’ll find flowered wallpaper, a vanity table in the corner, and a large canopied bed, which I personally wanted to flop onto. I thought the fireplace was the best bit though, with a lovely ornate, ceramic clock on the mantelpiece. Next door is a sitting room for the ladies, all decked out ready for tea, with the walls displaying paintings of all the grandchildren of lady Agar-Robertes.
You head back downstairs after that, and walk through a great hall, almost split up into smaller rooms, filled with plants (I wondered if they were real), and even a small area set-up for tea, dishes on display in a cabinet, all the long length of the room with that same golden-brown wood panelling. I loved the arched ceiling here, but the next room was a cracker.
This long room is one of the rooms untouched by the fire in the late 1800s, and the ceiling is stunning. There are scenes from the bible all along its length, and though it was a little dark, it didn’t affect the glory of it.
Here’s a closer look at the ceiling. As you can see, there’s mythical beasts as well as scenes sculpted into it.
Next up, you exit the house but go round the side (next to the cafe) to visit the kitchens, and I have to say this was the best part of the tour.
You start off in a large scullery, filled with pots and pans, dishes, a humongous sink, and (fake) fruit and veg waiting to be taken and used in the food for the house. You then wander through into the main kitchen.
Again, there’s food (fake here of course), but the long table is set-up ready for the cooks and I had an immediate Downton Abbey flashback. There is a long range cooker as you walk in, to the right of you, topped with copper pots and what I think is a storage for hot water – I could be wrong.
On and on you walk, and there are lots of little rooms off the main kitchen. The dairy, the meat locker, the ice box. It really is amazing seeing all the rooms decked out like they would have been back in the day.
Outside are the lovely manicured gardens, and a caveat here as dogs are not allowed in the garden area or, of course, the house. My mum and I had two dogs with us, so we split up to view the house and gardens, one of us waiting by the cafe while the other looked round.
It was a really interesting day out, and there are walks around the main grounds – which you can take your dogs through, so I thoroughly recommend it if you are in the area.
I’ll leave you with a picture of the manicured gardens…
Kate @ Kandid Chronicles x
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