After Sissinghurst, we drove for 45 minutes to Hever Castle and Gardens, which our friend Val told me is considered “The Garden of England”. Both the castle and gardens are open to the public – and you definitely want to see both. For those who are interested, you can even stay there.
Anne Boleyn’s bedroom
A little bit about the history according to their website: The original medieval defensive castle, with a double moat, was built in 1270. In the 15th and 16th centuries it was the home of one of the most powerful families in the country, the Boleyns, who added a Tudor dwelling within its walls.
Anne Boleyn
The Castle was to become the childhood home of Anne Boleyn, King Henry VIII’s second wife, who became Queen of England for just 1,000 days. It was Henry’s love for Anne and her insistence that she became his wife rather than his mistress that led the King to renounce Catholicism and create the Church of England.
William Waldorf Aster
Hever later passed into the ownership by a number of families, gradually falling into decline before it was purchased by Willam Waldorf Astor in 1903. He invested incredible time, money and imagination into restoring the castle and its gardens – and they are magnificent. It was clearly a labor of love for him, and all who follow are the lucky recipients of his generosity.
As we toured the garden, we noticed that it was a little “behind” Sissinghurst’s garden. The wisteria was in full bloom, as were the amazing rhododendrons and azaleas but the roses were not yet open..
Incredible wisteria (with Alex to show the sheer scale of it all)!
The azaleas and rhododenrons were very colorful
There are several sculpted hedges throughout the garden which add real visual interest to their spaces, like those below that you find when you approach the castle.
The moats are now these beautiful waterways filled with lily pads
The one idea I took away was the climbing rose on the column located in one of the walled garden rooms. I have one of these columns in my Napa garden – a remnant of the prior owner. I have “threatened” to remove it as I am not so interested in having it in our garden, but Alex likes it…:) So, one thought is to cover it up with a climbing rose!
I feel so fortunate to have happened upon this extraordinary property. I think seeing it anytime between mid-May and the end of June is probably magnificent. I would have loved to have seen the roses in bloom, but that’s the nature of a garden, isn’t it? It is always emerging and evolving; you never know when the peak time is going to be, from year to year.
Be sure to add Hever Castle and Gardens to your list of places to see while in Kent – it will not disappoint!
