Viking Cruises

34 | Viking Explorer Society News At Home at HIGHCLERE Join Lady Carnarvon and venture behind the scenes of her historic home, known to many as Downton Abbey. THE HISTORY OF HIGHCLERE Although Highclere is famous for its Victorian and Edwardian exterior features, it dates back much further, and there has been a home at Highclere since at least 749 AD. We know this from our earliest written records. We have five Anglo-Saxon charters which relate to the fact that King Cuthred of Wessex—who was on the throne at the time—gave the Highclere estate to the bishops of Winchester. This was also the period when the Vikings were beginning to invade and settle in Britain. In fact, from 749 AD, the bishops of Winchester held Highclere for 800 years, and my husband's family has only been here since 1679 AD. THE TIME OF THE BISHOPS My favorite character during the time of the bishops of Winchester was a man called William of Wykeham. He lived here in the 13th and 14th centuries, and at that time, he created the most amazing palace here at Highclere. In the time of Henry VIII, the lands of the bishops were effectively nationalised, and a century later, they came into private hands—those of a direct ancestor of my husband. There were a series of houses built on the site. The most beautiful parkland was created by Lancelot "Capability" Brown in 1771 and now extends to 1,000 acres around the castle. Beyond the park, there are another few thousand acres of woodland and farmland—a real haven for a wide range of wildlife. REBUILDING THE HOUSE In 1842, Sir Charles Barry—the architect responsible for designing the Palace of Westminster, which is also known as the Houses of Parliament—was commissioned by the 3rd Earl of Carnarvon to rebuild the current house at Highclere. Construction started on the Gothic exteriors and the extra tower that you can still see dominating the castle today. In 1855, the house was completed and featured nearly 300 rooms. It is often a little bigger than

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