Arrived in Yorkshire....

....after a long day “on the road,” which began with a downhill hike in order to reach a small square, where (fingers crossed) a pre-arranged taxi would meet us. This was no easy task while dragging suitcases whose wheels weren’t made for rugged, uneven, centuries old cobblestones!
Access anywhere close to our rental apartment in Salerno is forbidden to all vehicles - it would be impossible anyway - not only because of the narrow alleyways, but also due to the multiple flights of steps all around the area. Even to get reasonably close is a challenge....taxis are strictly limited to what and who is even allowed into the small nearby streets. A reminder here that when we arrived in town the taxi driver had insisted on dropping us beside the elevator....smart guy!
Although we love to walk - and can never resist climbing a set of steps to see what’s at the top - in this town, the elevator had become a good friend! To be truthful, it was great at the end of the day - or when carrying groceries - to be able to just hop onto it and get quickly up to the top of the hill.....we’d actually learned to enjoy this quirky novelty ride! Entrance at the top was across a small bridge that spanned a drop between buildings - the view was fabulous, day and night. The bottom entrance however was tucked away in a tired looking courtyard of apartments that always had plenty of laundry hanging out to dry....although to be fair - there was an attractive panel of wall tiles in the elevator’s “lobby.” Taking only a minute to go up or down, we never had a long wait...and could hear its approach due to the “elevator music” that played when it was in motion. Always the same tune, we frequently had a brief little slow-dance when riding it alone...which happened quite often as it was only a 4-person elevator!
So.....back to the taxi - which appeared on time and quickly deposited us at the train-station...which would have been great if we were taking the train. On this day our Spanish, together with the driver’s English, seemed insufficient for us all to agree on the bus station - so we got out and walked! Fortunately the bus station was only a 10 minute walk, with only a couple of cobblestoned streets along the way.
The next 10 hours or so were taken up with a bus-ride to Naples airport, a plane to Manchester and then a train from that airport to our home-station, where we were thankfully picked up by Trevor’s brother Glyn. Unfortunately by this time - sadly - the “chippy” was closed!
Our week in Yorkshire was spent with family and good friends, including a lunch with Trevor’s favourite cousin Phil and wife Marie, plus a visit with my “oldest” friend Anne and her delightful grandson, Dylan. Together with Anne there was also another re-union with ladies we both worked with 50 years ago - Gloria and Sue.....sorry you couldn’t make it Kath - we missed you!
One night we satisfied our craving for fish and chips, having worked up an appetite while helping to clean out Glyn & Marjie’s attic. Marjie had asked for help to sort out some of her ”stuff”.....which leads into the story of the next day’s fabulous outing - and a big thank you to Marjie for arranging it!
Only a 10 minute drive away is Wentworth-Woodhouse, a huge house with an enormous country estate. The front of the house stretches a whopping 606 ft - the largest façade of any country home in Europe. We both grew up close by - and like everyone else in the area, took this huge property for granted....everyone that is except Marjie, who did her doctoral thesis on one of its owners, The Marquess of Rockingham. Having decided to donate her notes, drawings and everything else associated with her research to the Trust that manages the house, she’d arranged for us to take a private tour with the Chief Archivist, David.
Upon our arrival, David took very good care of us all, first serving us a welcome coffee in the former Butler’s Pantry, which is now a part of the on-site café. After going through a bit of business related to Marjie’s generous donation, this lovely gentleman began what was to be a 2-hour “back-stage” tour. So with apologies to Marjie for any historical blunders (which I know she’ll correct) ...here we go!
When privately owned, this home was the largest in the U.K. Although a much smaller house was already there in the mid-17th century, it was mainly re-built by Thomas Wentworth, Marquess of Rockingham, during the early to mid-18th century. This huge property has an unusual design of two back to back houses, with the West Front built of brick and the East Front built from sandstone. The 2nd Marquess was Prime Minister in 1765-66 and again in 1782. After his death the title passed to the Earls Fitzwilliam, who due to their wealth from the coal industry, became one of the richest families in England.
In 1948 the 8th Earl died in a flying accident along with “Kit” Kennedy, sister of the future President John F. Kennedy. With no direct heir the title passed to a more distant branch of the family. The 10th and last Earl died in 1979 - without children this time, with no direct heir, the title became extinct. The house was rented to a local council, who used it as a training college for teachers. It later became part of a technical college. After a couple of sales to private individuals the house was purchased in 2017 by The Wentworth Preservation Trust who have undertaken a program of repairs and restoration.
A slow and obviously expensive project, we saw a small part of the huge task that this current management has begun....and there is progress. Of the over 300 rooms, a few have been partially restored to their former glory - and even though, unlike other stately homes, there is little to no furniture - this 250,000 sq ft building is slowly coming back to life.
Our tour combined both formal rooms and the more private family areas, plus a few extras that David was kind enough to include. We started out in the massive Marble Saloon, which has a 40ft high ceiling and an upper gallery supported by pillars. This square 60ft X 60ft room has - as the name implies - a large marble floor. It also has matching fireplaces at opposite ends, niches full of statues and, although peeling in some places, a ceiling with gorgeous plasterwork. A smaller room we saw also has a marble floor and a detailed plaster ceiling....unfortunately this former “sculpture-room” has no statues left to sit atop its pillars! The white and green Van Dyke room is lovely, but is another room that suffers from missing artwork - the wall spaces intended for paintings are empty. Along the way we saw libraries, a bright and shiny chandelier from the chapel that’s currently under restoration, and the sumptuous white and gold state Dining Room. This impressively large Dining Room has a dazzling crystal chandelier and actually does have some paintings on its walls - one of which is of an almost life-size “Whistlejacket” - a favourite racehorse of the Marquess. Painted by the famous British artist George Stubbs in 1762, this one piece gives some idea of the wealth of the Fitzwilliams. Once again, there is no furniture here.
A family bedroom does have a canopied bed, while another salon has a large carpet that was hand stitched by Mary, the wife of one Marquess and mother of another. She “signed” it in stitches across one end. Also worth a mention is the Painted Drawing Room room, where commissioned by the 1st Marquess, the 5 senses were painted. When looked at more closely, the artist’s interpretation is somewhat “cheeky” for the times.....a fact that our tour-guide, David enjoyed pointing out to us!
With no furniture except some fine cabinets displaying locally made china, the Long Gallery is still stunning in its size and beauty. An oddity here are the rows of exposed electric lightbulbs which stretch all the way along the ceiling. David did mention that this was an intentional way to display the family’s wealth....Wentworth-Woodhouse was an early pioneer of this new and expensive invention! If you want to see how The Long Gallery and other rooms might have looked when furnished, take a peek at a couple of the more famous movies and TV series that used this house as their location....some fine examples are:- Wives & Daughters, Pride & Prejudice (2005) and Downton Abbey.
Once again, a big thank-you to Marjie and David for giving us this rare treat....and if I mis-named any of the rooms and/or mis-represented any of the facts concerning this one of a kind house, my apologies! Although it will be a long and expensive process, we hope that the current management of The Wentworth-Woodhouse Trust will manage to return this house to its former glory.....a place where in 1912 it received royal visitors - King George V and Queen Mary, who spent 4 days there. Even earlier, in 1835 it received another Royal when it was visited by a young Princess Victoria.
Time always flies by...and so, after this year’s great travel adventure, it was time to return home to Canada. Huge thanks to Adrian & Kate for being so thoughtful and generously funding the European flights along with our 8 days in Rome - a highlight of our trip, and a marvellous way to celebrate our 50 years of marriage. We miss you lots when we travel, and always look forward to seeing you both when we return. When leaving Yorkshire, it’s tough to say goodbye to Glyn & Marjie - once again thanks for putting up with us!
Also - a big thank you to those who read any part of my (often overly long) descriptions of our travelling experiences - and/or look at the photos. What started 4 years ago with a few close friends is now a group of almost 40 people - I really appreciate all of your support and comments!
Finally thanks to my keen-eyed proof-reader and editor, Trevor - his support and patience for my time-consuming and obsessive hobby is endless...he is my perfect travelling companion!
Until next time....Happy Trails!