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| A friendly duck in daffodils |
Hever is a small and very pretty village in west Kent and of
course is made famous by Hever Castle, the childhood home of Anne Boleyn, Henry
VIII’s second wife who was beheaded for treason. After the downfall of Anne Boleyn, her family
were effectively ruined and the castle came into the hands of Henry VIII, who
in turn gave it to Anne of Cleves, his fourth wife, until her death in 1557. Henry had rejected Anne of Cleves as a wife and
divorced her but she was one of the lucky ones as she at least kept her head! The castle fell into disrepair over the
following centuries, particularly in the 1700’s when the Groombridge gang of
smugglers used it to store their contraband (a different gang of smugglers from
those featured in
Ancient Woodlands and the Hawkhurst Gang). Hever Castle was purchased by William Wardorf Astor in 1903, an American
millionaire who became Viscount Astor of Hever.
He restored the castle and created the wonderful Italian gardens and
maze.
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| Tilly the Black Labrador |
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| St Peter's Church 14th Century, Hever |
This walk had a difference as for the first time since I was
a child I had a dog for company! Tilly
the black Labrador. She is five years
old with glossy black fur and deep brown soulful eyes that melt your heart
every time you look at them. We set off
from the car-park near St Peter’s church in the centre of Hever and spring was definitely
in the air! The sun was shining and felt
lovely and warm and the snowdrops and daffodils were out and looking beautiful.
The church is very pretty and the walk
started through the churchyard to join the Eden Valley path (not to be confused
with the Eden Valley in Cumbria!) The
sign near the church gates say it has been there for over 750 years, which
would mean it was constructed in the 14th century (although I am not
sure how many years the sign has been there!) It is also where Sir Thomas Bullen (a
different spelling but Anne Boleyn’s Father and Elizabeth I’s grandfather) is
buried.
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| Beautiful Kent Countryside |
The walk starts in woodlands and on the edge of the grounds
to Hever Castle but very quickly opens out into lovely green fields with views
across the Kent countryside that on such a day were superb. You can at various points catch glimpses of
the large lake in the grounds of Hever Castle.
Tilly was in her element and loving the sights and smells, although
unsure about the large horse neighing and cantering in the field next to us! As we took a footpath near some cottages, we
had a pleasant surprise. We came across
a menagerie of animals! Some seriously
cute pink and black pigs with crinkly faces, ducks, hens, sheep and what looked
like llamas to me but I believe are alpacas.
This was very unexpected but lovely.
We walked passed ponds and streams sparkling in the sunshine,
crocuses, snowdrops and daffodils waking in the spring warmth, crossed bridges and lanes and loved every minute of it. The views were beautiful and the sky was an
azure blue that made the soft greens and yellows of the trees and fields
striking. It reminded me why Kent is
called “The Garden of England”. I know I
love the rugged mountains of the Lake District but Kent is a really lovely
county with plenty of its own charms and attractions where you can walk for miles
and never tire of the rolling fields, woods and orchards.
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| Ancient Woodlands |
Then I discovered that Tilly is an Olympian in training. As we approached one of several stiles on the
route, I went to lift the dog-friendly fence post so Tilly could walk through
the hole but rather than wait for me to do that, she flung herself with two
leaps over the stile! One leap onto the highest
step on the side we were on and another within a millisecond right over the
fence and into the next field! She then
turned around and sat down wondering why I was taking so long and did not just
leap over like her. That dog has no
fear! It may not have been elegant but
it was fast and effective. She did this
several times over the walk unless I managed to get to the stile first!
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| Stock Wood |
The last part of the walk takes you through two woods called
Stock Wood and Newtye Hurst. As Tilly
and I went through Stock Wood, I could hear what sounded like a chain saw and
assumed there was tree-felling happening somewhere in the woods. It got louder and louder and I decided that
actually it must be a light aircraft. However
as we emerged from the woods into a field, above was an extraordinarily large
remote-controlled aeroplane that was doing loops and swoops and spirals really
high up in the sky. It looked like great
fun and the adults and children flying it were clearly enjoying themselves (although
I imagine it was a little annoying if you lived nearby!)
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| Henry VIII Pub |
We were soon back in Hever village and Tilly (who had walked about seven miles to my
five as she had been running back and forward so much) looked tired and seemed
glad to be back. We decided a trip to
the picturesque Henry VIII pub would be a fabulous way to end the walk and it
was!
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| A Mini Trevi Fountain at Hever! |
The Tudor history in Hever is fascinating. I visited the castle on a separate day from
the walk (raining sadly) and I would absolutely recommend it. You can see history unfolding as you walk
around the castle and gardens. The Boleyn family bought Hever Castle in the 15th century but it was constructed in the 13th century by permission of Edward I. The
Italian gardens are full of architecture and ornaments brought direct from
Italy between 1904 and 1908. The lake sweeping
away from the gardens into the distance is beautiful. The castle itself is surrounded by a moat and still has a drawbridge. The rooms are filled with ornate
wooden features and panels, some from the 15th century and others
from the 19th century. You can
see the room where Henry VIII stayed several times and also Anne Boleyn’s room. There are portraits and winding spiral
staircases, letters and a range of memorabilia. When the Drawing Room was redesigned in 1905, inspiration was taken from the pannelling at Sizergh Castle in Cumbria so there is even a Lake District connection!
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| Hever Castle |
Anne Boleyn herself was an ambitious woman who played a
dangerous political game and whilst she ultimately lost that game, her daughter
Elizabeth I went on to become (in my view) one of the most successful monarchs
in England so perhaps Anne won her game indirectly after all? I am so glad that the American Astor family
restored Hever Castle as for England to have lost such a beautiful castle, so
rich in history would have been a tragedy. Since 1983 it has been owned by Broadland Properties Ltd, who continue to maintain its beauty and elegance.
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| Pretty Crocus in the Hever Grounds |
