Polesden Lacey

The house, viewed from the front lawn

Last weekend saw us return to Polesden Lacey, a National Trust property we had visited during summer when we lived at Frensham.

This truly is one of the jewels in the National Trust crown in Surrey. The house is not very large (as great houses go), and from memory its interior is beautiful but not gobsmackingly grand. However the exterior and the grounds... they are gorgeous.

Entrance to the house

There's something very appealing and welcoming about the lovely ochre shade of Polesden Lacey's exterior. Adding to its warmth is the strong memory Kevin and I have from our previous visit that the former owners of the property were animal lovers. There is a pet cemetery in the grounds where generations of beloved dogs have been laid to rest, complete with tombstones.

I do love a well shaped hedge or two....

During Winter most of the NT houses are closed for conservation and repair, though in recent years this has been relaxed a bit and you can now visit many of them on guided tours on particular days of the week. 

Although the house was open for guided tours last weekend we really went just to walk the grounds. It was a fabulous winter day, cold but sunny - about 4ºC.  We never tire of traversing Surrey's beautiful countryside, and it's lovely to see people walking their dogs, kitted out in wellies, hats and scarves.

This magnificent yew hedge runs the entire length of the front lawn and along The Long Walk

Griffin

Part of the formal gardens

Kevin admiring the glorious view of the Surrey Hills

Not quite a tunnel of green, but a tunnel all the same

The house was famously admired by the Duke and Duchess of York (Later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth - the Queen Mother) in 1923, when they spent part of their honeymoon at Polesden Lacey.  Well-known Edwardian hostess Mrs Greville was a great friend of the couple and she was responsible for the remodelling of the house in 1906, and for the famed collections of paintings, furniture, porcelain and silver. 

The Long Walk

The day was marred by the discovery in the café over a pot of tea that my wedding ring was missing. Since our mutual weight loss our wedding rings are very loose on our fingers, and with it being a cold day, I had to assume that my ring had come off on one of the occasions when I removed my gloves. We retraced our steps but we had been strolling the grounds for about 45 minute previously, and I didn't have much hope of finding the ring. I imagined it having been trodden into the mud by myself or somebody else, lost forever. I fervently hoped that perhaps I'd forgotten to put the ring on before leaving the house, but knew this was unlikely.

There was nothing else to do but report it to the office, and hope that somebody would find it and turn it in. I gave the staff a pretty good drawing and my contact details, and it was with a sinking heart that we drove away from Polesden Lacey, towards home.

I'm happy to report that we'd only gone about 5 minutes along the route home when my phone rang - a small girl had found my ring and turned it in... bless her low altitude and youthful sharp vision!

Time for a ring resizing I think...

With the issue of my wedding ring resolved, we stopped briefly in Leatherhead to admire the Parish Church of St Mary and St Nicholas, a fine example of Norman architecture. It's the oldest building in Leatherhead and is mentioned in the Domesday Book.

The Parish Church of St Mary and St Nicholas, dating from the 11th century

Almost directly opposite the church is this lovely building, now apartments. Its views over the Surrey countryside from the back of the building are breathtaking. One can only guess at the cost to purchase.

We'll be returning to Polesden Lacey in Spring. Even the drive there is a delight, particularly as our sat-nav sent us on one of those circuitous deviations that are usually the curse of the driver - and we ended up meandering through what must be the nicest part of Leatherhead.

This last week has seen some proper wintry weather arrive at long last. We even had a brief flurry of snow on Monday, just as we were leaving for work. I'm hoping it continues.

Until next time,

- Maree  xo