Well, almost everything great. It's not a charming village. And it doesn't have a Cotswold pub. But it is beautiful, and my own personal favorite thing we did in Cotswold. I almost skipped it, but I'm so glad we went.
It's stately ruins, a castle, and beautiful flowers. It's gorgeous views and quite the setting. It's a chapel with a dead queen (perhaps I should have phrased that better). Heck, there even a huge number of tiny frogs jumping about as you try not to squish them underfoot like you are a log in a stream of a video game I pumped too many quarters into during the early 1980s in the arcade room at American University.
(Editor: That's an oddly specific reference. Writer: Oh, I spent more money on Pac-Man and Galaga, but Frogger was up there. Editor: " ". Writer: " ". Writer ((finally snaps out of his reverie)) where were we? Oh, right, Sudeley Castle.)
Sudeley Castle is in Winchcombe, on the western side of Cotswold. Judging from maps before going, I would have thought it too far from Bourton On Water, but the castle was not very far from it at all.
From the Sudeley Castle website:
"Henry himself, Anne Boleyn, Lady Jane Grey, Queen Elizabeth I and Richard III have all played a part in Sudeley’s story. King Charles I found refuge here during the Civil War, when his nephew Prince Rupert established headquarters at the Castle. Following its ‘slighting’ on Cromwell’s orders at the end of the Civil War, Sudeley lay neglected and derelict for nearly 200 years.
Then in 1837, Sudeley was rescued by the wealthy Worcester glove-makers, brothers John and William Dent, who began an ambitious restoration programme, which was continued by their nephew, John Coucher Dent, when he inherited the castle in 1855."
The first part we came to is the Tithe House, where crops for the clergy were stored until needed. It's very dramatic, as the roof is long gone, and some of the walls are destroyed. Inside there are the prettiest flowers growing in a garden. That building/garden alone made the price of admission worth it (I don't remember the price of admission, but I do mean it!).
Inside the destroyed Tithe House.
There are even more flowers, but you
get the point on just how beautiful
the gardens are.
From there, we walked out into a large grassy area featuring more flowers and a beautiful water feature that included rather large fish. The fish came over to us, expecting to be fed. They were disappointed.
Close-up of the water flowers and lily pads.
The water feature.
Then, we walked over to the castle. We lingered outside at first, enjoying the view of the semi-distant hills. The castle was surprisingly interesting. The rooms had very informative signs, with enough detail, but not too much. We went from room to room, learning the history of the castle. The signs seemed relatively new, so they were of significant interest to us. The furniture, displays, etc. are interesting. I didn't take many photos inside, because, frankly, there wasn't much that is picture-esque. The outside sure made up for it though.
This Roman mosaic is just
outside the castle building.
The pikes piqued my interest.
Once we moved into a few rooms that are still the private quarters of the family, no photos are allowed, but that wasn't a big deal. At the suggestion of a docent, Carol did take a great photo of the Chapel from one of the private bedrooms,
Very cool iPhone photo of
the Chapel from a bedroom.
From the house we went into the back gardens, which are spectacular. There's a series of gardens. Perhaps the most impressive part is the old dining hall, which was destroyed during the British Civil War. It was not restored, and looks glorious (photos below).
Further back are multiple gardens and the chapel. The body of Catherine Parr, 6th and final wife of Henry VIII, is buried in the chapel after her was coffin found in the 1800s by curious tourists. She was married to "Eight" (as his wives affectionately called him, at least until he had them beheaded) for three years, six months, and sixteen days, but who's counting?). Like many marriages, theirs ended when he died. She was known as "Six of Six," which isn't quite as impressive as being "Seven of Nine" in Star Trek Voyager.
(Editor: Henry only had two of six wives beheaded. Writer: So you are saying beheading wasn't Parr for the course?)
Parr didn't even live two years after Henry VIII died. She did remarry Thomas Seymour, brother of 3 of 6 wife, Jane Seymour. Marrying your dead husband's ex-brother-in-law may SOUND weird, but it actually IS weird. When her coffin was found and opened, she had been wrapped in cloth that kept her skin pristine (still dead, but she looked good doing whilst being dead). Over the years her coffin was opened enough that she turned to ash, in an ashes to ashes, dust to dust kind of way.
Catherine Parr's tomb. She's the only royalty
in England buried at a private residence.
Anyhow, the chapel was nice, but again, the gardens were amazing.
Taking this selfie, I was hedging my
bets that the Castle would be visible.
I didn't even come close to
including all the beautiful
garden/flower photos
that I took.
The remnants of dining hall.
So glad the dining hall wasn't rebuilt.
You get an idea of the grandeur, but
it is mixed with nature.
Shrubbery.Garden: It's not
just for Monty Python.
Side view of the chapel.
A view back to part of the castle.
The chapel is on the right, the castle
is to the left. Shrubbery is in the
foreground.
The duck was there to
say goodbye as we left.
On the way out, we saw two things I didn't expect. First, there were all these tiny, tiny frogs hopping around. You had to look carefully to make sure you didn't step on one (or ten). Everything about Sudeley Castle was great (including the frogs, of course), except for the last display. which is this path through oversized wooden animals. I assume it's meant for kids to enjoy, but I didn't much see the point of it. Oh well, the rest of Sudeley Castle makes up for that weirdness.
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