Walmer Castle & Gardens, Kent Pt. 2

Enjoyed the castle and our tea and now it is time for the garden
The present layout of the gardens is largely the result of the personal enthusiasm of two Lords Warden - William Pitt the Younger (Lord Warden from 1792 - 1806) and Earl Granville (Lord Warden from 1865 - 1890)  

This garden that we are in now is the garden of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother

I'm sure the thistle's represented her Scottish ancestry

Walking across the various lawns, this one being the croquet lawn

The Broadwalk

The armillary sundial on the upper terrace

Entering the woodland walk

The statue of Mercury in the paddock

Approaching the kitchen garden

where flowers abound amongst the produce

We will be making our way back soon so hope you enjoyed the walk

Walmer Castle and Gardens, Kent. Pt. 1

I'll show you the castle in this post and the gardens in the next as there are 50 photographs

I have heard so much about this castle over the years but have never visited. So in August we rectified that mistake.

Walmer Castle was built in 1539 as one of a chain of coastal forts constructed by King Henry VIII against the threat of invasion by Spain.

From 1708, it became the official residence of the Lords Warden of the Cinque Ports, an office held by many famous people, including the Duke of Wellington, Sir Winston Churchill and the late 

Queen Mother.

The castle was adapted over the years by successive Lords Warden, to make it into a more comfortable home, and the grounds were developed into an attractive garden, which are still changing today.

The Moat has also been incorporated into the gardens

The entrance

Stairs down to the basement

The castle faces out onto the North Sea

note the row of canons outside the castle outer wall

Canons and canon balls

The Corridor runs the full length of the castle

Part of The Duke of Wellington's room

Queen Victoria's Room

The Dining Room is shown here as it was used by the late Lord Warden, HM the Queen Mother when she was here

The Drawing Room

Alan and I taking a break in the tearoom

Alan has scone with jam and cream while I have my favourite 

Lemon Drizzle cake

Walls within walls

Alan acting as the pack horse

Hope you enjoyed the visit and I am sure you will enjoy the gardens in the next post

Goodenstone Park Gardens & Village

Here we are back in August during our short adjourn in Kent

We spent the morning strolling around the gardens of Goodenstone Park and it was only when sitting having lunch in the tearooms that I realised I had lost my watch

Certainly not possible to retrace our steps

No big deal except it came right on top of our house break in and stealing of our car

Jane Austen was a frequent visitor here, her brother marrying a daughter of the house

Had an interesting entrance to this place

We did as we were told and diligently followed the sat nav.

We were initially aware of being stared at by some horse riders but thought nothing of it

Next we thought it strange that we had to stop at various gates and open them to get through and yes we did carefully close them behind us

It wasn't until we landed at this front door that we realised our navigation system had sent us in via. the family's private entrance!

The walled garden dates back to the 17th century

Some pretty gardens in the village as we left (by the right exit)

It's early afternoon so we are now off to Walmer Castle on the coast so will bring you pictures to enjoy in my next post