On our whirlwind tour of the countryside in the Peaks District and Derbyshire Dales, we came across a rather splendid Manor. The house was very impressive and reminded us of the ones you see in the period movies. In fact, Chatsworth House has indeed been used recently for the filming on location of period movies. Do you remember Brideshead Revisted? Well that movie was shot at Chatsworth House. So if you take a look at the movie again to refresh your memory then you will know what I am talking about. One of my all time favourite trips to Chatsworth House was to visit their farmshop that stocks the most tempting delights, one of my favourites was their lemon and lime cheescake that was almost as good as my Mother’s homemade cheesecake, which in my opinion is a huge compliment.
Chatsworth House is one of a handful of stately homes that has remained in the family. Today it is owned by the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire and has been with the Cavendish family since 1549. There are 297 rooms inside Chatsworth House. At the time we visited they were doing reconstruction works and so we did not take any photos of the front side of the house. As you can imagine, Chatsworth House has a very long family history.
It was my Aunt who first took me to visit Chatsworth House, and my first recollection of it was in 2003, then again many times between 2006 – 2008. She doesn’t live in Derbyshire but she does own a static van up here in one of the many splendid caravan parks, so I used to go and stay with her there for my holidays. She has the cutest little dog so we would go out everyday to take the dog for a long walk, the exercise did me good too!
The sun was out and the car park was very nearly full by the time we arrived, so it took some time to find a car park. The Chatsworth Park is extensive and is open all year long to visitors at no charge, except for the cost of parking your car which is a flat fee of £2.00 The farmyard, house, and garden are open roughly between 11am and 5pm, and you can purchase tickets to go into one or all of these areas. If you book on the internet 24 hours in advance you will get a discount of 10 percent.
The website for Chatsworth House also lists details of events which are held there throughout the year. Last time I was there they had the musical on ice there that was very popular. At Christmas they also hold celebrations there and the place is decorated beautifully. If you are short on time, then you can just wander up to the stables that are free to enter. The stables have been converted into a series of function rooms for weddings, restaurants and cafes for the public, and gorgeous little shops selling local crafts and produce.
If you are keen to learn about the history of Chatsworth House and the families who live/d there then visit their website on the page that says find out more.
Alice Letts 