The Crawleys & the Churchills

The fictional Crawleys of Downton Abbey lived in Yorkshire. But the settings used for the series weren’t quite so far north. Highclere Castle (Downton Abbey), which is open at limited times to the public, is in Hampshire. Byfleet Manor (the Dower House) is in Surrey. Many of the other locations — Cogges Farm (Yew Tree Farm), Bampton (the village), and several other locations – are in Oxfordshire. I wasn’t able to book a tour to Highclere Castle for the time I would be in London, but I could get a tour to the Oxfordshire series locations plus Blenheim Palace (home of the Churchills).

This was another small group tour through a group called International Friends. There were three of us on the tour. We started with Cogges Farm, at one time a real farm, which stood in for Yew Tree Farm. Yew Tree Farm was where Edith arranged for her daughter, Marigold, to live. Later she admitted to her family who Marigold was and took her to Downton. We could see the interior of the house that was used as well as the exterior.

The farm is now a farm museum. The house was begun in the 13^th century and was enlarged in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. There are still chickens, pig, and goats. The baby goats were leaping and dancing until I pulled out my video camera. Then they stood still and posed. That made me laugh.

Bampton was used as the village for the Grantham Estate. The village has been settled since the Iron Age and Roman times. It is in the Doomesday Book, which William the Conqueror commissioned in 1086.

St Mary’s Church was used for St Michael and All Angels. All of the weddings, near weddings, and funerals were shot at that church. We could go inside there too. Parts of the church date back to the 10^th century. It has been added to and refurbished over the centuries, ending in the mid-19^th century.

The Old Rectory was Isobel Crawley’s house. It was just across the road from the church. Various other Bampton buildings were used for the Grantham Arms pub and the Dog & Duck pub. Another house in the village was Mr Mosley’s house (number 2 in the photo).

The Downton Fair was held in the village square and the Downton Cottage Hospital was located in the Public Library, which was originally a schoolhouse in the 1650s. A small gift shop was in the building when I visited. I bought a couple of Downton Abbey items for a couple of my friends who were big fans of the show.

When we left Bampton, we went to Shilton to see the 18^th century hump-backed bridge and the ford across the Shill Brook. The building there was the Old Forge, which was turned into the Red Lion Pub, where Mr Bates worked when he left the Abbey.

At Swinbrook, a real inn was used as the Swan Inn where Lady Sybil and Branson stayed when they tried to elope. They were persuaded to return to Downton while at the Inn.

We ended the Downton Abbey portion of the tour and made our way to Bladen. In the churchyard of St Martin’s Parish church are several members of the Churchill family. Although most of the actual Dukes and Duchesses were buried in the chapel at Blenheim Palace, other members of the family, including Winston Churchill and his wife, are at Bladen. We paid our respects and took a few photos before heading to nearby Woodstock for lunch.

After lunch we spent several hours at Blenheim Palace. Queen Anne granted the land and provided some of the funding for the palace as a reward to John Churchill, 1^st Duke of Marlborough, after his victory at the 1704 Battle of Blenheim.

Once again I had quite a bit of time to explore what I wanted to explore at Blenheim. I started with the exhibit on Winston Churchill, which included the room in which he was born. Winston’s father was a younger son of the 7^th Duke and so would not become a Duke himself. Lord Randolph Churchill was elected as the Conservative MP from Woodstock and made his mark as a statesman.

I then turned my focus to the State Rooms, of which there are many open to the public. Photography was allowed in them all. One of the most opulent, in my opinion, was the dining room (which they called the Saloon). I had seen photos of that room many years ago as a child, so I loved being able to see the actual room in person.

Among my many photos, is one of the room that contains the tapestry showing the 1^st Duke at the Battle of Blenheim. The library is another enormous room with vast portraits and paintings, a gigantic pipe organ, and a statue of Queen Anne with an inscription on its base from the 1^st Duchess, Sarah, about her friendship with the Queen.

When I left the State Rooms, I visited the chapel, where most of the Dukes and Duchesses were buried. The 1^st Duke naturally had a very fancy tomb. In conversation with one of the staff, I discovered that the private rooms of the current Duke and his family were going to be open to tour later that afternoon. I had the time, so I bought a ticket and then went to take a good look at the gardens until it was time to view the private rooms. It is only on very rare occasions that those rooms are open to the public.

The gardens were as amazing and opulent as the State Rooms had been. The design of the Water Terrace was an attempt to rival Versailles. I think they did it.

The private family quarters were fascinating to see. Most places, the only time you get to see the private quarters is when the family no longer lives there and the castle/ palace/ grand house is under the care of some sort of Trust. The Spencer-Churchill family is definitely in residence with the 12^th Duke in charge. Yes, the Spencer part is Princess Diana’s family.

We were only allowed in as a small group and not allowed to take photos at all. That was fine. It was just fun to see where the family actually lived. They had a wing. The rooms were much more normal in size and not as lavish as the State Rooms. It was still obviously the home of someone with great wealth. In some of the bedrooms, it struck me as odd to see an antique, grand four-posted bed with a canopy next to a large flat-screen television. Computers sat on ornate, antique desks. I was glad I had time to see it all.

Next time – Banqueting House, Westminster Abbey & Temple Church back in London

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