Wimpole Hall Estate

After an eventful journey we finally arrive at the largest country estate in Cambridgeshire. A journey of road closures and diversions, mainly on the A428 kept us guessing if we would even make it to Arrington, near Royston to find Wimpole Hall. Judging by the car park it looks to be a popular place to visit too. A living working 3000 acre estate, guided by the seasons with an impressive mansion, parkland, gardens and rare breed farm all await. The site has been lived on and farmed for over 2000 years. Over the centuries, Wimpole has been owned by several families, and each has left its mark. Today though it is owned and managed by the National Trust. 

Our first port of call though is 'The Stable Block' Where a Tea Room and Gift Shop are located. Mrs A was in much need of Coffee after the fractious drive. There is also a well stocked second hand bookshop too. Looking at the map of the estate it was time to plane our next stop off after a successful re-fuel. The 'must see' is really the working farm and rare breed centre.

Built in 1794, Home Farm is the only in-hand farm of its kind in the National Trust. Unique to Wimpole Estate, it is a model for sustainable farming practices.There are 3 different breeds of Pig, Berkshire, Gloucester Old Spot and Oxford Sandy and Black. None of which seem particularly interested in their visitors. Far too busy constantly sniffing out nuggets of food within their straw bedding.This method discourages food hogging (Pun intended)and ensures every pig gets their fair share as well as encouraging their natural eating behaviours. It is a hot day and the aromas coming from the Pig Pens are pretty strong... The newly born Piglets are very cute though. The Great Barn is one of the few barns surviving from any period, designed by a known architect.The barn forms one side of the farmyard a cart shed and granary, stables and cow byres forming the other sides.

 

From Piggies to Heavy Horses, another of Britain's rare breeds. There are less than 1,500 breeding pairs in the UK.There are currently 5 Shire Horses at Wimpole; Queenie, Murphy, Jasper, Stanley and Lady. Many Foals have been raised at Wimpole Home Farm. They really are a beautiful breed, majestic gentle giants. The hope is that they will be introduced back to the field, ploughing and harrowing. 

There are plenty of animals too in the traditional farmyard, or out grazing in the parkland. There are also small black and white Bagot goats, and rare breeds of sheep out in the park or paddocks. Our next stopping off point is another 'must see' four-and-a-half-acre walled garden. constructed of red handmade bricks in the 1790s by Philip Yorke, 3rd Earl of Hardwicke, with no expense spared. Even the walls were heated to keep peaches warm during the spring frosts. It was in 1976 when the National Trust took over that the garden was restored to it's former glory after falling into disrepair. Restoration began in the early 1990s. With the rich herbaceous borders the garden is superb. The central area is split into four sections, a  good mix of soft fruit and flowers amongst the vegetables. 

The Pleasure Grounds connect the Walled Garden to Wimpole Hall. First planted by Robert Greening in the 1750s it was described in 1850 as having ‘picturesque, winding walks, leading a long way, admirably planted with groups and masses of the finest evergreens and deciduous trees'. On 22 October 1924, Elsie Kipling (2nd daughter of Rudyard Kipling) married George Bambridge (British Diplomat). In 1938 they bought Wimpole Hall. Over the centuries many notable architects have worked on the building. The building itself is Grade I listed., as is the estate itself.   

Close to the Hall is St Andrews Church, which replaced an earlier fourteenth century building that was largely demolished in 1748 as part of the landscaping of Wimpole park. It is owned by the Diocese of Ely and not the National Trust. It operates as a regular church, and is part of a group of five churches that make up the Benefice of Orwell in South Cambridgeshire.

It's a beautiful walk from the Hall across the meadows to the Serpentine Lakes. The bench next to the Chinese Bridge provides a wonderful place to relax and enjoy the wildlife. In a short space of time we saw a Kingfisher, Hobby, Heron, Dragonflies and the occasional jumping fish. We are on our way to the folly! As regular readers may know I have a real appreciation of a folly. In 2014 a major restoration project involving a cost of £430,000 was undertaken to restore, clean  and maintain the Grade II listed folly. The project went on to receive a prize at the Europa Nostra Awards 2016. 

The Tower is designed to resemble the ruins f a medieval castle. It has stood on the same spot for nearly 250 years.  The walls are made from a local chalky limestone called 'clunch' unfortunately it is very soft and vulnerable to damage.The ruins though are substantially built and stretch for two hundred feet in length, and include a four-storey Gothic Tower. Wimpole's Folly was featured in the TV series 'Slow Horses' which we were big fans of. season one, episode six, titled "Follies."  The folly was commissioned by Philip Yorke, 2nd Earl of Hardwicke. Sanderson Miller (the noted follies architect of the day)was responsible for the design in 1751and later built by Capability Brown in 1769. It is Grade II listed.

A fantastic walk covering around 7 miles in total, and we nearly didn't make it !Definitely a place that we will come back to in the future..