Yesterday, Jeff and I roused ourselves sufficiently to make the 8 minute drive to Packwood House in Lapworth, Solihull. The house began as a small farmhouse built for the Fetherston family, who inhabited it for 300 years after its construction in 1560. It was purchased in 1904 by a Birmingham industrialist (the West Midlands was historically the most industrialized area of Britain, it is also know as the "Black Country" possibly because of the pollution caused by the coal, iron, and steel industries in the area, though the name may have existed before the Industrial Revolution because of the amount of coal). Supposedly, it was Alfred Ash's 11 year old son, Graham Baron Ash, who requested that he buy the house. After he inherited the house in 1925, he spent the next twenty years fashioning it into a Tudor-style house. It kind of makes me laugh that the literature describes it as a "Tudor manor house" when it is actually much closer to "Tudor Revival". I doubt that the original farm house, though built during the Tudor period, was that fancy. Either way, the house as it is now is very beautiful.
The main entrance. All the doorways were so low they hit Jeff right above his eyes.
A side door opening into the gardens. I think all those wires on the house are meant for climbing plants
The terrace overlooks the famous Yew gardens of Packwood House.
This picture gives you an idea of the Yew garden's placement in relation to the house. You can see the garden angle up and away from the house on the right side of the picture. I don't know anything about garden design, but to me this seems quite unusual - the highest part of the garden has the superior vantage point over the house rather than the other way around.
Most of the Yew garden was planted in the 17th century by the Fetherston family. Yes, that means some of these trees date back to the 1650s! The garden is said to represent the "Sermon on the Mount". At the highest point of the garden is a small hill known as 'the Mount'. At the peak of the hill is a single yew known as 'the Master'. Arranged throughout the garden are 12 large yews, 'the Apostles', and 4 very large yews, 'the Evangelists'. In the 19th century, the fruit trees that filled in the remaining space of the Yew garden were ripped out and replaced with small yew trees - said to be 'the multitude'.
The garden was closed due to mud, but I'll definitely be back to wander through there. Some of the yews are over 50 feet tall! I hope the weather is as beautiful the next time I'm here though.
The inside of the house was much more rustic than Hanbury Hall. Baron Ash (just his name, not a title) was very keen on acquiring authentically Tudor art, furniture, and fabrics so many of these items are original to the 16th and 17th centuries. He built a long gallery hall to connect the old part of a house to his Great Hall - a converted barn.
Jeff struttin' his stuff down the runway... I mean, the hallway.
The hall was fitted with sprung floors for dancing! Nice to know that Baron Ash knew how to have a good time.
I'm not really sure how this lady fits in to the rest of the house or from what time period she is from, but she is a lay figure that artists would pose for their paintings. Renting one of these figures was much cheaper than paying a live model. On the information placard next to her it said that while they were researching the origin and purpose of the figure they took an x ray of her hand - turns out there is a real skeleton inside! Yikes.
The tapestries on the walls and wood paneled ceilings gave the house a little warmth.
The original part of this bed dates from the 15th century, while the pillars at each corner were added in the 17th century. Do you see the groove running along the bottom of the bed with holes in it? Originally, rope was threaded through those holes (and holes on the other side of the bed) to support a straw mattress. This is where the phrase "sleep tight" comes from - tightening the rope before bed made it more comfortable!
Jeff: "People were REALLY a lot smaller back then!" Ha. Ha.
Baron Ash's bathroom with antique Delft tiles. Apparently, he didn't feel it was necessary to adhere to Tudor authenticity in all aspects of the house - this bathroom even had a heated towel rail. Jeff was really jealous of his bath. Baron Ash lived in this house until 1941 and since we saw nothing but uncomfortable hard Tudor furniture (no couches, what?!?) we assumed he spent most of his time relaxing in this tub.
What a great sink cupboard! I love the combination of blue and red. I think Baron Ash felt the same way. This was my favorite bedroom.
The wall covering was actually painted canvas tacked to the wall. All the rooms looked so beautiful with the sunlight streaming in.
This room looked over the yew garden. A lot of the rooms had pictures of Baron Ash from his travels all over the world.
So, as I said, Baron Ash lived here until 1941. He was ready for a change so he did what one does and bought a castle somewhere. Packwood House was really his life's work so instead of selling it or passing it to relatives he gave it to the National Trust - ensuring it would remain exactly the same as he had left it.
All this, 3 miles away from us!
