Category: England

Castle Howard – York

Posted on by Tom in England, My travel list, Photo, Photography, Travel, Travel stories

“Oh, Charles, do not be such a tourist. What does it matter when it ‘was built, if it’s pretty?”
(Sebastian Flyte to Charles Ryder in Brideshead revisited)

And beautiful it is, the castle built by the third Earl of Carlisle in 1699 to 1712. The castle has been home for the family Howard in more than 300 years, and the castle is now one of Britain’s largest private properties. With its 13 000 acres the property covered no less than 5 villages and had its own train station. The castle is thus only 24 miles north of York, and the drive to the castle is worth the trip in the beautiful English countryside.

Castle Howard

Despite that the Howard family still lives in the castle, much of it is open to the public. They have  placed guides in the different rooms, so you can go at your own pace.
Besides the many paintings and statues, one can also see some frescoes. Unfortunately, the castle  was virtually destroyed in a fire in 1940, the frescoes are not what they once were, but still they are  impressive. Several rooms are still not restored after the fire, which has made the castle quite  accessible to the film industry. Granada therefore used the castle in film adaptation of Evelyn  Waugh’s novel – Brideshead revisited. About the painter Charles Ryder, who falls in love, not only  the heirs to the castle, but also in the castle. The castle was also used in the remake of 2008. It  was  the Granada television series from 1981 that aroused my interest for the place, and it has been  one of my biggest dreams to visit this very beautiful castle.
The rain that pleased us all day didn’t give the parks surrounding the palace full credit, one can only imagine how great it must be on a sunny day. Next time! 🙂