Burghley House

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Burghley Pk, Stamford, England PE9 3JY01780 752451

Category:
Sightseeing
Hours:
Apr.-Oct., Sat.-Thurs. 11-5 Close
Price:
£8.20
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Burghley House Photo - Burghley House, Lincolnshire, England

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Burghley House

by moatway

Riverview, New Brunswick

October 3, 2005

Best of IgoUgo Burghley is well marked from Stamford and is easily the most magnificent great house in the area, definitely a must-see. One of the Hidden England houses, it is open every day except Friday, and on most days, tours are guided and last 80 minutes. On ...Read more Burghley is well marked from Stamford and is easily the most magnificent great house in the area, definitely a must-see. One of the Hidden England houses, it is open every day except Friday, and on most days, tours are guided and last 80 minutes. On Sundays, the tours are free-flow, but we found the staff in the rooms very knowledgeable and helpful.

Built for William Cecil, Lord High Treasurer to Elizabeth I, in the 16th century, it is one of England’s finest Elizabethan houses. From the great kitchen and the servants’ room, one passes through smoke-darkened stairs to the chapel and the state rooms.

I commented to one of the guides, “There’s more, and more, and more!” There certainly is… there are 800 paintings in the house and one is struck by the sheer numbers of Italian Renaissance works, some 300 of them, particularly as the visit starts in the chapel.

In the wonderful billiard room, one is introduced to the portraits of, among others, the members of the Little Bedlam Club (c. 1690), each of whom was given an alias, the name of an animal to cover their various misdeeds. Among them is Antonio Verrio, an Italian painter whose works can be seen in other great houses and who did many of the ceilings in the house.

A number of things will strike you about Burghley. There are the extraordinary ceiling heights, the numbers of state bedrooms all filled with decorative objects and the extensive collection of Japanese objects and ceramics. In the George rooms, one will see the suite used by a young Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. The rooms have not been changed since that time and the state bed has not been used since.

The Heaven room is one of the highlights of the house. Verrio covered the ceiling and walls with a wonderful depiction of the classical gods and exacted his revenge on a few people he didn’t like by painting them into it. Hell, on the other hand, is around the staircase down and the paintings depict dire times in a dire place.

The visit ends in the great hall that features a wonderful 60-foot-tall double hammer beam ceiling. Following your visit inside, you may be attracted to the sculpture garden or the huge park. Burghley is a wonderful experience. To see more, go to <a href=http://www.burghley.co.uk>Burghley.</a>

From journal Lincolnshire Travels

Burghley

by zabelle

Portland, Connecticut

October 6, 2001

Best of IgoUgo Burghley has been home to the Cecil family for four centuries. It is the largest and grandest of the Elizabethan homes. William Cecil, Lord High Treasurer (1565-1587) was the designer and builder of Burghley. Building began in 1555 and took 32 ...Read more Burghley has been home to the Cecil family for four centuries. It is the largest and grandest of the Elizabethan homes. William Cecil, Lord High Treasurer (1565-1587) was the designer and builder of Burghley. Building began in 1555 and took 32 years to complete. Your tour of Burghley, and you must go on a tour, begins in the kitchens, our guide was Kathleen King. No interior photography was allowed and really I had no opportunity to even sneak a picture. There is a lot of original detail in the kitchen and the vaulted ceiling had a hole in the center to let out the smoke. One interesting item in the kitchen was the copper boots that were filled with hot water to warm or dry his lordships boots. There was no electricity until after 1956 since the Marquess was a large shareholder in the local gas company.

The current Marquess lives in Canada and has no intention of occupying Burghley. Lady Victoria Leatham, his niece, and her husband Simon are the current custodians. She had agreed to be here for 15 years and has already gone past that, so the future is a little uncertain.

The tour includes a visit to the chapel, we got to stand in the ante-chapel where the servants would have stood for services. There is a Veronese altarpiece and carving by a student of Grinling Gibbons.

One very nice thing about Burghley is that if you are in a wheelchair they bring you up in an elevator and then bring the occupant to join their tour. There are some steps between rooms but they moved the wheelchairs up or down them quite easily.

The Brown Drawing room has an English cut glass chandelier, it also has 2 Gainsborough portraits and a Bruegel (rent day).

There is a Joos van Cleeve portrait of Henry VIII in the Elizabeth I bedroom (she never actually slept here).

The Heaven Room is in the process of restoration and the restorer stopped and talked to us about the work he is doing. The difference in the colors is amazing. This is followed by the Hell staircase.

The last stop on the tour is the Great Hall and it dates from 1555. It has a gorgeous double hammered ceiling made from oak and sweet chestnut. It also has 10 chairs from the Doge's Palace in Venice. The most impressive piece in the room is the solid silver wine cooler. It weights 140 kilos and was made in 1710. It takes 4 people to lift it.

Burghley is open April 1-October 28, 11am to 4:30pm. Entrance is 11.8 pounds.

Burghley would be worth a visit if only for the gift shop. It's a great one with lots of unusual items. I did some serious Christmas shopping. If you are interested in painting purchase the Guide to the Picture Collection before your tour. It helps identify the artwork since the guide has limited knowledge.

From journal Visits to the Treasure Houses of England

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