A Little Curiosity
Bryn Celli Ddu on Anglesey is a Neolithic passage tomb built around 3000 BC. Once a year, at summer solstice, sunlight travels down the narrow stone passage and lights up the burial chamber from the inside. How long is that passage? Answer at the end.
THE ONE TO SEE
Photo: Grimsthorpe Castle by Tanya Dedyukhina, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Grimsthorpe Castle, Lincolnshire
Grimsthorpe has been home of the de Eresby family since 1516, on a site with medieval origins, and the north front was redesigned by Vanbrugh in the 1720s, making it one of his last major works.
The new self-guided audio tour covers more than 15 highlights across the house, pulling in stories that aren't on any of the wall labels.
It's open Sunday to Thursday through to the end of September, last entry at 3:15pm, so worth checking before you set off.
Four worth the drive
Photo: Coventry Charterhouse by Rob Mobberley, Land & Legacy
Coventry Charterhouse, West Midlands
Founded in 1381 as a Carthusian monastery, Coventry Charterhouse spent centuries as a private house before the National Trust took it on. In its first year under NT management it drew 50,000 visitors, nearly three times the projected figure. The walled garden and historic rooms are the draw, but it's the sheer age of the fabric here, medieval monastic walls still standing in the middle of a city, that makes it worth the trip.
Photo: Cragside by Rob Mobberley, Land & Legacy
Cragside, Northumberland
Cragside was the first house in the world to be lit by hydroelectric power, which Lord Armstrong installed in 1878. The house itself is a riot of Victorian invention, all timber framing and inglenooks, designed by Norman Shaw to look as though it had grown out of the Northumberland hillside. The gardens run to 1,000 acres and the rhododendrons are at their best through June, which makes this one of the better excuses to head north right now.
Photo: Down House by Glen, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Down House, Kent
Charles Darwin lived at Down House for 40 years, and this is where he wrote On the Origin of Species. The study is kept as it was when he worked there, and the Sandwalk, the gravel path in the garden where he took his daily thinking walks, is still there to pace out. It's managed by English Heritage and sits just outside Bromley, which makes it one of the more accessible significant houses in the country.
Photo: Kenilworth Castle by John Chadwick, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Kenilworth Castle, Warwickshire
Robert Dudley spent a small fortune creating the Elizabethan garden at Kenilworth in 1575, specifically to impress Elizabeth I during her visit. It was buried for centuries and only reconstructed by English Heritage in 2009, using contemporary accounts of the original. The aviary, carved marble fountain, and terrace beside the keep are all back. It's one of the more convincing garden restorations in the country, and the castle ruins around it are substantial.
Hidden Gem
Illustration: AI artistic impression of Plas Cadnant Hidden Gardens
Plas Cadnant Hidden Gardens, Anglesey
Plas Cadnant had been lost under decades of vegetation when the current owner started clearing it in the 1990s.
What emerged were three distinct garden areas, including a walled garden and a secret valley garden that runs down to a stream, all of which had been completely swallowed by the landscape.
It's on Anglesey, a few minutes from Menai Bridge, and genuinely few people outside North Wales know it's there.
As Seen On Screen
🎞️
(Large and Small)
Photo: Castle Howard by James Dolan, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Castle Howard, North Yorkshire
If that façade looks familiar, it should. Castle Howard played Clyvedon Castle, the Duke of Hastings's ancestral home, in Bridgerton.
It also played Brideshead in both adaptations of Evelyn Waugh's novel. One building, decades of television history.
It's not actually a castle, it's more a country house built on a former castle site, begun in 1699 and taking more than 100 years to complete.
Nearly 150 rooms, surrounded by extensive gardens and a lake.
Grounds and house open from 10am.
Coming Up…
Ancient Archaeology Alive at Bryn Celli Ddu · Anglesey, LL61 · Cadw
Bryn Celli Ddu is a Neolithic passage tomb dating back to around 3000 BC. At the summer solstice, sunlight travels down the narrow stone passage and illuminates the burial chamber within, one of those moments that makes you feel the full weight of 5,000 years of history. Cadw's Ancient Archaeology Alive event on 13 June offers live demonstrations and hands-on activities on site. Check the Cadw website for admission and booking details.
Plan your visit.
Stonehenge Kusuma Neolithic Hall - Wiltshire · SP4 · English Heritage
English Heritage has just unveiled the Kusuma Neolithic Hall at Stonehenge, a full-scale reconstruction of a 4,500-year-old timber structure standing seven metres high, built using authentic methods and materials at a cost of £1 million. It's now open as part of a standard visit to the site. Worth going in the next few weeks while the reconstruction is still the talking point rather than the backdrop.
Plan your visit.
Spring Plant Fair at Scampston Hall & Walled Garden - North Yorkshire, YO17 · Historic Houses
Scampston's Walled Garden was designed by Piet Oudolf, the Dutch garden designer behind the New York High Line. The annual Spring Plant Fair on 7 June runs 10am to 4pm, with rare plants, expert growers, live music, and guided tours of the Hall. Free for Historic Houses members and children, RHS discount available.
Plan your visit.
Worth Knowing
English Heritage
English Heritage membership costs £84 a year for a single adult -- and new annual memberships are currently 20% off with code EPIC76 at checkout, bringing it to around £67. Renewals and monthly memberships aren't eligible.
With Kenilworth, Down House, and Stonehenge all in this issue alone, you'd cover the cost in three visits.
You can join online at any point, and it activates immediately.
A Little Curiosity: The Answer
The passage at Bryn Celli Ddu is approximately eight metres long. It was built so that on the summer solstice, around 20-21 June, the rising sun aligns directly with the entrance and sends light all the way to the back of the chamber.
That's it for this week. If you're heading to Anglesey for Plas Cadnant, Bryn Celli Ddu is about 20 minutes down the road, and the solstice event there is on 13 June. Worth combining the two.
About Us
Rob & Ali
We're Rob and Ali, two heritage enthusiasts who got tired of spending more time researching days out than actually enjoying them. Land & Legacy is our answer: a curated guide to the heritage experiences worth your time.
We're building something bigger behind the scenes, but for now this newsletter is our way of sharing what we find.
Hit reply if you've got a place we should know about.
Until next time,
Remembering the places that matter.