Great Country Houses of England

AND
Present
Great Country Houses of England
An Exclusive Tour of Stately Homes & Gardens in Shropshire
Monday, October 6 – Sunday, October 12, 2014
7 Days – 6 Nights
$6,900 per person, based on double occupancy
Mawley Hall
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a brief biography of tour leader
Curt DiCamillo
Mr. DiCamillo is an American architectural historian and a recognized authority on the British country
house. He has written and lectured extensively in the U.S. and abroad on the subject and has taught classes
on British culture and art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts,
Boston. Curt regularly leads scholarly tours that focus on the architectural and artistic heritage of Britain and
its influence around the world. Since 1999 he has maintained an award-winning database on the web, The
DiCamillo Companion to British & Irish Country Houses (DiCamilloCompanion.com). The database seeks
to document every English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish country house ever built, standing or demolished,
together with a history of the families who lived in the houses, the architects who designed them, and the
history of the houses’ collections and gardens.
In recognition of his work, Curt has been presented to the late Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and The
Prince of Wales. He is a member of The Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain and is an
alumnus of both the Royal Collection Studies program and The Attingham Summer School for the Study of
Historic Houses and Collections. In addition, he is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, is listed in Who’s
Who in America, Who’s Who in the World, is a Fellow of the Massachusetts Historical Society, a trustee of
Boston’s Nichols House Museum, a member of the Collections Committee for the Great House at Castle Hill
on the Crane Estate in Ipswich, and a member of the Advisory Board of Samuel T. Freeman & Co. of
Philadelphia.
Before going into private practice, Curt served for eight years (2004-12) as Executive Director of The National
Trust for Scotland Foundation USA, based in Boston, where he was responsible for raising over $6 million for the
Trust (he currently holds the position of Executive Director Emeritus). Previously he worked for 13 years for the
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. A native of the Philadelphia area, Curt grew up in Central Florida with his sister,
the award-winning children’s book author Kate DiCamillo.
Curt at the iconic Attingham Park, Shropshire, May 2012
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ITINERARY
Great Country Houses of England
B = Breakfast; L = Lunch; T = Tea; R = Reception; D = Dinner
Sunday, October 5
DEPART U.S.
Depart the United States no later than today.
DAY 1
Monday, October 6
LONDON / WORCESTERSHIRE / SHROPSHIRE
L, R, D
Arrive in London no later than today. Meet Brenton Simons, Steve Solomon, Curt DiCamillo, and fellow
tour participants at 10:00 AM at The Rembrandt Hotel in Knightsbridge. We will leave London by private
coach on our way to Worcestershire and the divine Hagley Hall, where will have a tour and lunch.
Hagley Hall
Peter Reid, writing in Burke’s and Savills Guide to Country Houses, Volume II, calls Hagley “A major landmark
in the Palladio-Inigo Jones tradition.” The House was the creation of George, 1st Lord Lyttleton, secretary to
Frederick, Prince of Wales, Chancellor of the Exchequer, historian, and poet. Lord Lyttleton was admired by
the literary giants of his time; Fielding dedicated Tom Jones to him and Dr. Johnson wrote his biography.
Lord Lyttleton commissioned an Italian stuccadore called Francesco Vassalli to produce some of the finest
examples of Italian plasterwork in England. On Christmas Eve 1925 a disastrous fire swept through the
house, destroying much of the Library and many of the pictures. All those within the House managed to
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successfully escape, in spite of molten lead pouring down upon them. Much of the interior fittings were saved
and the House was completely restored by the 9th Viscount.
The Philadelphia Museum of Art has in its collection a pair of very large (62.5" tall) candlesticks from Hagley,
part of an original set of four designed to flank a pier table in the Long Gallery (another is in the collection of
Temple Newsam House, Leeds, and another pair are at the Victoria & Albert Museum). The candlesticks are
attributed to Thomas Johnson (based on Johnson's published designs of 1758) and are a fine example of the
rustic Rococo style of mid-18th century England. In addition, the Philadelphia Museum owns four wall
scones in the same rustic style, which also hung in the Long Gallery.
Hagley is set in a 350-acre landscaped Park, created between 1747 and 1758, and containing follies and
outbuildings designed by Thomas Pitt of Encombe, Henry Keene, Sanderson Miller, and James “Athenian”
Stuart. Stuart’s Doric Temple of Theseus, designed in 1758, has traditionally been considered the earliest
attempt in England to reproduce a monument of Greek antiquity.
After we leave Hagley we’ll head to Shropshire and Weston Park, the glorious 17th century former home of
the Earls of Bradford. We will be staying here for our entire visit, where we will be the only occupants of this
lovely, art-filled house, set in 1,000 acres of parkland.
After arrival at Weston Park there will be time to settle into the stunning bedrooms, after which we’ll have
drinks and a tour of the House with Gareth Williams, Curator and our cicerone for the week ahead. After the
tour we’ll have dinner at Weston, followed by a night-time tour of the sublime, domed Temple of Diana, and
finishing with our very own fireworks display!
All rooms have private bathrooms. Complimentary Wi-Fi is available throughout the house. All rooms are
equipped with a mini-safe, clothing brush, and hair dryer.
The Dining Room at Weston Park
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Weston Park
Set on the Shropshire/Staffordshire border, Weston Park was built in 1671 by Lady
Elizabeth Wilbraham and was the seat of the Earls of Bradford from 1762 until 1981.
Noted for its warm and welcoming atmosphere, the house boasts an internationally
important collection of paintings, including works by Gainsborough, Van Dyck, and
Stubbs. The park was landscaped in the 18th century by Capability Brown and is
particularly noted for its collection of follies.
Weston Park
Weston-under-Lizard
Near Shifnal, Shropshire TF11 8LE
Telephone – 01952-852-100
www.weston-park.com
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DAY 2
Tuesday, October 7
SHROPSHIRE / STAFFORDSHIRE
B, L, R, D
We start today with a tour of the gardens and grounds of Weston Park with Head Gardener Martin Gee,
whose family came to Weston in 1803! Afterward we head to Orleton Hall, where we’ll have lunch and a
tour of this lovely house, hosted by the owners, Peter and Sarah Holt.
Orleton has passed by continuous inherited descent since medieval times. The earliest owners, the Cludde
family, who settled here in the 14th century, would have lived in a moated timber framed house – vestiges of
which survive not only in the structure of the present house, but in the delightful moat and its picturesque
cupola-crowned gabled gatehouse, which bears the date of 1588. The main house is a smart Georgian
mansion with a grand Greek Doric colonnaded porch on the entrance front and a succession of comfortable
reception rooms furnished with period furniture and portraits which chart the owners of Orleton.
The Ironbridge
Orleton Hall
After Orelton we head to Buntingsdale Hall, an early 18th century three-story red brick building with red
sandstone ashlar dressings built for Bulkeley Mackworth. It features lovely rainwater heads with the
Mackworth arms, the letters BM, and the date 1721. Though the House was very likely designed by the
London architect John Prince, it was completed by the famous Francis Smith of Warwick.
Buntingsdale Hall
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Our last stop of the day will be at Chillington Hall, where we’ll be hosted by the divine Giffards – John and
Cres, the finest hosts in Staffordshire! They will give us drinks, a tour of their amazing 18th century house
(famous for its magnificent domed Saloon by Sir John Soane), and then dinner in the State Dining Room.
Chillington Hall
The Giffard family has called Chillington their home since medieval times – the family is one of the few
that have a direct link by descent from one of the knights who came over with William the Conqueror in
1066. The present owners, John and Cres Giffard, represent the 29th generation to live there. The family’s
distinctive panther crest was awarded to them following a gallant deed of Sir John Gifford in the reign of
Henry VIII, who shot a panther that had escaped from a menagerie with his bow and arrow as it was about
to pounce upon a woman and child on the Estate. At the center of a great park landscaped by Capability
Brown (with one of his largest lakes), the House is still approached via a great oak avenue which marches
across two public roads. Today’s house is an early 18th century rebuilding by Francis Smith, onto which the
entrance range, with its noble portico and the central top-lit saloon, was added by Sir John Soane. The
great saloon, which predates Soane’s famous top-lit banking halls for the Bank of England, together with
the Entrance Hall, has recently been superbly restored and redecorated by the Giffard family, forming, with
the other main rooms, a splendid gallery of family collections.
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DAY 3
Wednesday, October 8
SHROPSHIRE
B, T, L
We begin our Wednesday at the red brick jewel known as Acton Round Hall, where we’ll have morning tea,
a tour of the house, and, most exciting of all, a demonstration of how scagliola is made!
In the isolated Shropshire hill country the red brick Acton Round Hall stands proud, looking over a
magnificent landscape. The House was built between 1713 and 1714, very likely to the designs of local
famous architect Francis Smith. The Kennedy family, the current owners, have greatly embellished the
gardens with a Gothick summer house and a tall Chinese pagoda, while inside a new library has been created.
Thomas Kennedy, a noted maker of scagliola, has based his business in the barn, which we will have the
privilege of visiting.
Acton Round Hall
After we leave Acton Round we head to Aldenham Hall, where owner Hettie Fenwick will give us a tour,
followed by a lovely lunch.
After Aldenham, we’re off to Morville Hall, where we’ll have a tour of this Elizabethan house and it dower
house. Morville received worldwide attention when our hostess, Katherine Swift, published her 2009 book,
The Morville Hours: The Story of a Garden.
Dinner tonight is on your own. After we leave Morville we head to Shrewsbury, where the coach will drop
those who’d like to have dinner in this lovely market town, after which we’ll continue on to Weston Park,
where dinner will be available on your own in Granary Grill Restaurant on the grounds of Weston.
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DAY 4
Thursday,
October 9
Mawley Hall
SHROPSHIRE
B, T, R, D
This morning we head
to Mawley Hall, one
of the most spectacular
houses in Shropshire.
Owners Rupert and Ali
Galliers-Pratt, whose
family saved and
restored the house in
1962, will give us a
tour and serve
morning tea and
coffee.
The Catholic family of Blount had long lived quietly as recusants at nearby
Sodington. By the early 18th century, with the threat of persecution much
reduced, Sir Edward Blount, 4th Baronet, built Mawley between circa 1728
and 1733, probably to the designs of Francis Smith of Warwick. Mawley,
though, is no Tory Church-going squire’s sober manor house, but a house of
the highest quality – an exuberant celebration of design (listed as one
England’s Thousand Best Houses by Simon Jenkins in his 2003 book of the
same title). Each façade of the nine-by-seven bay House presents a different
design; on the Entrance Front giant Tuscan pilasters on the three-bay
pediment and classical urns and statues on the parapet greet visitors with
Roman gusto. Inside, the talents of the stuccadore Francesco Vassalli and the
joiners Edward Poynton and Thomas Eborall combine to create a riot of
decorative detail. In the Hall the plasterwork is richly used as garlands,
portrait roundels, and festoons, while the staircase climbs the three sides of its
well with a wooden handrail of undulating fish and serpent form. The Oak
Drawing Room is lined with finely carved and ornate oak paneling in the style
of Grinling Gibbons and features a 1978 fresco ceiling by Graham Rust in the
theme of Milton’s Paradise Regained. With some of the finest Baroque
interiors in England, all appears more Continental than English. The 1991
Masterpiece Theater production of Clarissa was famously filmed here.
After Mawley, we’ll
head to the upscale
market town of
Ludlow, where you’ll
be dropped off for
lunch on your own.
Ludlow is the food
capital of Shropshire
and sports Michelin
starred restaurants, as
well as good shopping!
Then it’s on to
Downton Hall (not
Downton Abbey, but
the real thing!) At
Downton we’ll be
given a tour by
Philippa Wiggin,
owner of this neveropen house, noted for
its lovely plasterwork.
Then home to Weston
Park for a relaxing
evening of drinks and
dinner.
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Downton Hall
The Square, Shrewsbury
St. Chad’s Church, Shrewsbury
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DAY 5
Friday, October 10
SHROPSHIRE
B, T, L, R, D
This morning we head to Shipton Hall, where we’ll have a tour of this exquisite 1587 house, followed by tea.
With its Saxon church, Georgian stables, and old walled garden, this extraordinary Elizabethan manor house
has rococo interiors added by Thomas Pritchard, the builder of the famous Iron Bridge.
Shipton Hall
After decamping from Shipton it’s off to the delightful Regency Gothick style Broadward Hall, where we will
have a tour given by our host, Carol Skyrme, followed by a fine lunch. Set in the Marches close to the
Herefordshire/Shropshire border, there has been a community on the site since the Bronze Age and evidence
of a mediaeval house still remains in the cellars. Set in its rolling parkland estate, the Hall has a romantic,
picturesque appearance with its battlements, crenellations, and gothic windows.
At Plowden Hall, our next stop, we will be served a sumptuous tea by our host, Roger Plowden, and, of
course, a tour of this astonishing medieval house. Plowden is a timber framed building dating in part from
circa 1300 and is described in the novel John Inglesant by Joseph Henry Shorthouse, who cast the house as the
fictional Lydiard. The Plowden family remained Roman Catholics after the Reformation, which is why the
beautiful Roman Catholic church of St. Walburga survives at Plowden.
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Plowden Hall
After Plowden it’s back to Weston Park, where we’ll settle in for a lovely evening of drinks and dinner.
DAY 6
Saturday, October 11
SHROPSHIRE
B, R, D
Today we start with visits to historic houses in the county town of Shrewsbury (the equivalent of the county
seat for Shropshire). We will take a relaxing walk to a number of historic buildings, after which you’ll be on
your own for lunch in the historic town, with time for shopping. An essential stop is St. Chad’s, a rare 18th
century church in the round that has a tombstone in its graveyard for Ebenezer Scrooge!
Butcher Row, Shrewsbury
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After lunch it’s off for a tour of Pradoe House. With
its gentle rolling parkland sloping off to two small
lakes and the distant backdrop of the Welsh hills, the
sublime red brick Pradoe is the home of Andrew and
Rachael Kenyon and their two young children. An
eminently comfortable Regency house, Pradoe
survives with most of its original family portraits and
furniture, plus some extraordinarily well preserved
service quarters.
After we leave Pradoe we head back to Weston Park,
where we’ll enjoy champagne as we visit the Weston
Horse Trials for some equestrian highlights.
Afterward we’ll walk back to the house for a grand
farewell dinner in the State Dining Room.
Silver in the Dining Room, Weston Park
DAY 7
Sunday, October 12
SHROPSHIRE / LONDON
B, L
Following check-out, we will depart Weston Park by coach to London, dropping off passengers at Heathrow
Airport by 1:00 PM for anyone with an afternoon flight. The coach will then continue from Heathrow into
central London and drop others who are extending their stay at or near their hotels. A boxed lunch will be
provided on the bus.
For tour participants departing from Heathrow, please do not book flights departing before 3:00 PM.
The Temple of Diana at Weston Park
This itinerary and its content is © Copyright 2014 by
The DiCamillo Companion, Ltd.
a corporation registered in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
76 Elm Street, No. 310, Boston, MA 02130-2999 USA
www.DiCamilloCompanion.com
Unless otherwise indicated, photos are Copyright The DiCamillo Companion, Ltd.
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