Great West Way® Travel Magazine | Issue 01

IFORD MANOR GARDENS, BRADFORD ON AVON
For garden-lovers, a perfect day out on your Great West
Way journey could be the wonderful Iford Manor Gardens,
close to Bath and the idyllic Frome River valley. Here you
can dreamily wander around 2.5 acres of historic gardens
that sit at the heart of the Grade I listed grounds designed
by Harold Peto during his tenure at Iford from 1899-1933.
Explore freely getting lost amongst the colonnades, pools
and steps, as you enjoy the magnificent rural views over the
valley. The garden contains many steep, narrow and uneven
paths, as well as long flights of steps without handrails -
very much part of the garden’s charm and design.
GREAT CHALFIELD MANOR, WILTSHIRE
As well as these aristocratic superstars, there are many
smaller historic houses dotted along the Great West Way.
Great Chalfield Manor is a late medieval manor house,
built by the self-made Thomas Tropenell to proclaim his
arrival into the landed gentry. He gave his new house all the
necessary mod cons of the day including a gate house, moat,
great hall and fashionable oriel windows, features which can
still be seen, as the house has hardly been touched since his
time. This relative neglect accounts for the house’s gentle
charm and explains why it’s a popular film location: the BBC
series Poldark and Wolf Hall were both filmed here.
MOMPESSON HOUSE, WILTSHIRE
Imagine you are living in the 18th century as you walk down
the graceful oak staircase, perch on a window seat and
admire the wonderful plasterwork of this quintessential
Queen Anne townhouse, situated inside Salisbury’s historic
Cathedral Close. All of the interiors are decorated as they
might have been in the 1700s, except the library which is
1950s - and you might recognise it too, as Mompesson
House was used as the set for Mrs Jennings’ London
townhouse in the 1995 film Sense and Sensibility. The
house, garden, shop and tea-room are open to visitors from
9 March until 3 November.
BLENHEIM PALACE, OXFORDSHIRE
A short detour off the route and you’ll find Blenheim Palace,
a World Heritage Site near Oxford. A vast confection of
pinnacles, pilasters and porticos built in golden stone,
owned by the 12th Duke of Marlborough. Sarah, the
notoriously difficult wife of John Churchill, the 1st Duke
of Marlborough, took charge of the building project, and
managed to fall out with the architect John Vanbrugh and
with the queen herself. However in spite of the rows, Sarah
oversaw the creation of one of England’s finest Baroque
palaces which includes the magnificent state rooms with
their painted ceilings glorifying John Churchill.
38 GreatWestWay.co.uk