Oldbury Hill – Kent

Our next site was a Camping and Caravanning Club site at Oldbury Hill. It takes its name from the Anglo Saxon fort which is next to the campsite. On the summit of Oldbury Hill is one of the finest Iron Age hill forts in the Medway, with substantial earth ramparts 2 miles in length. Ancient woodland and scrub disguise its complete outline.

Close to the campsite is Ightham Mote, a National Trust property.   This is probably the most complete small medieval manor house in the country and it remains an example that shows how such houses would have looked in the Middle Ages.

This is the only Grade 1 listed dog kennel in the country.

The Great Hall

    

The gardens although not extensive were very well kept and a pleasure to walk in.

All Saints’ Church, Tudeley

The windows in this church were all painted by famous Russian artist Marc Chagall. This has given the church the unique status of being the only church that has all its windows designed by the artist.  The first of these windows was added as a memorial to Sarah d’Avigdor-Goldsmid, who died just off Rye coast in a sailing accident.  Her parents Sir Henry and Lady d’Avigdor-Goldsmid commissioned Marc Chagall to design a memorial window to be placed in the east of the church.                     

East Window

 

Sue at All Saints’ Church

We were only at Oldbury Hill for four days, but we managed to visit four properties in that time. Today's visit is to Knole House, Sevenoaks. Wikipedia describes it as ‘an English country house in the town of Sevenoaks, surrounded by a 1,000-acre deer park’. One of England's largest houses, it is reputed to be a calendar house, having
365 rooms, 52 staircases, 12 entrances and 7 courtyards.

      

Lead guttering

Weather vane

View across the deer park.

On our last day we visited Chartwell. When it became clear to the Churchills in 1946 that they could not afford to run the property, a consortium of wealthy businessmen purchased the estate. The arrangement was that for payment of nominal rent both Sir Winston and Lady Churchill would have the right to live there until they both died, at which point the property would be presented to the National Trust. When Sir Winston died in 1965, Clementine decided to present Chartwell to the National Trust immediately.

Waiting for our tour to begin.

Chartwell

Reception at Oldbury Hill

    

This concludes our September trip.