In The Bleak Midwinter

Despite the bitterly cold temperatures and the dense layer of fog which hadn't shifted since Boxing Day, we felt the need for a winter walk. Our destination was the Shugborough Estate in Staffordshire, twenty-two miles from home.

Although we visit regularly, here's a brief history to any readers unfamiliar with one of our nearest National Trust properties. Built on the site of a moated medieval bishop's castle, Shugborough was bought by the wealthy Anson family in 1624 for £4,000 (a fortune at the time) but it was torn down in 1693 to create a more fashionable country house. The building was enlarged in 1745 creating the Georgian mansion which stands today. 

Thomas Anson (1695 - 1773), great-grandson of the original owner, inherited the Shugborough Estate from his brother, George, who was formerly the First Lord of the Admiralty. Originally trained in law, Thomas abandoned this and decided, like much of the wealthy young men of the time, to take The Grand Tour. After his travels around Europe, Thomas came home and wanted to make Shugborough his own perfect paradise. His landscape creation was ground-breaking as it included some of the first neo-Greek structures in the country by architect Thomas Wright.

The fog and bitter cold worked to our advantage. Normally at this time of year, Shugborough would be heaving with visitors but as you can see from the photos, we had the estate almost to ourselves, no dodging kamikaze kids on their Xmas bikes or being licked to death by over-excited dogs.

 

Although I love the clean lines and the perfect proportions of Georgian architecture, the mansion's slate frontage, sanded down to resemble stone, looks very bleak and foreboding beneath that blanket of freezing fog.

This sign always makes us laugh.

Inspired by the Horologion of Andronikos Kyrrhestes in Athens, The Tower of the Winds was built in 1765 and once sat in the centre of the village pond until modified in 1805 to house a dairy for Lady Anson. We've visited the Horologion in Athens and its a near-perfect replica. 

The Ruin, built in 1750, once stood next to a colonnade which was swept away by a great flood in 1795.

The Chinese House, built in 1747, was designed to celebrate George Anson’s visit to China and triumphal return to Britain. It was based on original sketches taken from garden architecture Anson and his crew saw in Guangzhou (formerly Canton) in 1742. The scheme, which also incorporated two Chinese style bridges and a boat house was one of the first garden buildings in Britain to reflect the fashion of Chinoiserie. 

Built some time between 1748 and 1756, the Shepherd's Monument bears what has become known as The Shugborough Inscription, a mysterious sequence of letters carved on a lower plane and said to be one of the world's top uncracked cyphertexts. Based on the brief reference made to the monument in the pseudohistorical The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail, some believe that there could be a connection between the monument and the Holy Grail. 

The Essex Bridge, straddling the River Trent, is a Grade I listed packhorse bridge, built in the late 16th Century by Elizabeth I's favourite, the Duke of Essex, who lived nearby. 

Built in 1760, the Doric Temple is a copy of the Temple of Hemphaistos in Athens. I usually pose inside for a photo but it was roped off as it currently forms part of the festive light installations. 

Instead I had to make do with this cast iron bench and the marvellously knobbly trees.

 

The Cat’s Monument, is thought to be created in around 1750 and believed to either commemorate George Anson’s cat or Thomas’ Persian Cat, Kouli Khan. 

The disco balls form part of the Luminate installation, which run every evening throughout December and January. 

Bloody hell, look at that bleak Winter vista...roll on Spring, that's all I can say! 

Erected in 1814 and cast in the nearby town of Rugeley, the not very imaginatively named Blue Bridge created a welcome splash of colour on such a grey day.

The somewhat dilapidated Boat House.

Normally we'd climb the hill to Hadrian's Arch but we could no longer feel our faces so retreated to the car for sandwiches and mugs of tea. 

Shugborough

Milford, near Stafford, Staffordshire, ST17 0UP

Gardens open every day from 9am until 4pm. The house is closed until Spring.

Thanks for reading, see you soon!