Look at these wonderful vintage examples of vehicles you will see on your visit.
The London Routemaster bus brought back childhood memories for my husband, and when I sat inside it I realised I remembered so much of it - even down to the wooden floor!
This 1933 Morris Commercial was a mobile shop. It was fascinating to see how well it was stocked and just how much it could supply to its customers on its rounds.
This is a good example of the beauty of Beaulieu. Each area you visit is presented in a user friendly and really interesting way.
You wont be able avoid peering into so many of the wonderful vehicles on offer and recapture the feel of the decade they were on the road!
The Palace House and Gardens at Beaulieu.
We were met in the Entrance Hall by Sarah Herbert, a Housemaid from 1899.
Sarah welcomed us into the beautiful Palace House and started to describe just some of the wonderful rooms we would be able to enjoy and experience on our visit to this magnificent, but friendly home.
The Palace House has a wonderful, warm atmosphere which is often missing in many large houses you visit. It felt very much a living home which the Montagu family were sharing with their guests.
"Sarah" told us what her life was like and asked us to look out for the menu on the wall of the kitchen which described what was on offer both above and below stairs on this date in 1899.
Apparently on this day in 1899 the servants had neck of mutton, roast beef, curry and apple pudding! What a feast - but then they had probably been up since 5a.m. or 6a.m. with still a quite hard day ahead of them.
We moved through the house visiting various rooms and then saw the stunning Dining Hall.
The dining table is made from a single elm tree and is 16 feet long and 3 inches thick. It seats 16 with chairs made from elm and yew wood.
Beside the massive fireplace in this room the heights of many of the Montagu children have been pencilled on the walls.
The Gothic stone vaulting, with ribs radiating from a series of half columns in this splendid hall, is probably based on the original monastic design, but may be part of the Victorian restoration work.
It is a stunning ceiling by anyones standards.
An atrium leads off the hall and looks an ideal spot for a quiet read on a hot summers day.
Like many houses with centuries of family history, Beaulieu has a secret staircase. Lord Montagu remembers it from his childhood as a great place to hide, although it was always a bit spooky!
The Palace House Kitchens
I love visiting the kitchens in historic houses and the Beaulieu kitchen offers a great insight into the inner runnings of the house from past times. New Forest game would have been on offer, with the Gamekeeper providing lots of local food for the table each day.
Everything is on a large scale to cater for the guests above stairs, but also to feed the huge number of staff working below.
There was a definite hierarchy of status and responsibilities. Everything had to run smoothly both inside the house and also on many events which were held outside on the Estate. Hot food and welcoming drinks, in full set up, would have had to be transported around the grounds. A nightmare for the cook to keep food hot I'd think?
Half of the kitchen area is now a well stocked shop. The gifts I saw here were good quality and reasonably priced and quite individual. I hadn't seen most items in other houses I have visited which is refreshing.
The Secret Army Exhibition
This is the story of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) which trained secret agents during WW2 on the Beaulieu Estate, ready to be returned to occupied Europe, to work along with Resistance groups.
I found this totally fascinating and it added lots of invaluable information to my
WW2 Spies
page.
The photo above is of poor quality because of glare - sorry - but it shows just a few ingenious tools the newly trained agents would have had on offer.
The pack of pencils actually held fuses for explosives!
They were colour coded which meant differing time delays for going off.
Messages were written on different types of paper:
- Rice paper - could be eaten once read.
- Flash paper - ignited easily and left no ash.
- Jute fibre - looked like string but could unroll and the message would be read, then rolled up again or something tied up with it
This really is a wonderful exhibit where you discover just how clever the Allied effort in the New Forest was, to win WW2.
When I say a visit to Beaulieu is for all the family this sort of exhibition really shows why. It will be fascinating to younger visitors, especially after they have seeen the James Bond Experience - here were real WW2 Special Agents - who sometimes didn't return home, but who had tried their best with totally unique tools. I wonder if Ian Fleming knew of any of these ingenious gadgets?
Beaulieu Abbey and the Gardens of Palace House
We took the Monorail, passing through the roof of the National Motor Museum and on towards the 13th century Beaulieu Abbey.
This photo was taken as we came into the station.
You can see the remains of what was a huge Abbey built for Cistercian monks. A film presentation and an exhibition of the daily lives of these monks is fascinating.
You can also learn how this idyll ended when King Henry V111 caused total destruction to this way of life, following his Dissolution of the Monasteries.
The Abbey's Domus is a stunning building and has a wonderful display of Wall Hangings which depict the history of the Abbey.
Within the walls of the Abbey buildings you will see this plaque. It was erected in 1969 to respect and remember, all those agents who did, or did not, come back from WW2.
It remembers their valiant effort to win World War Two, on behalf of the Allied Forces.
I do hope you visit Beaulieu in the beautiful New Forest, and enjoy all it has to offer over the coming months.
I realised after my visit that it is a very special place within the New Forest. No wonder it is a top UK tourist attraction! It welcomes you with warmth and ensures you explore and enjoy so many different experiences on your very special family day out. Beaulieu really does offer excellent value for money too.
Here are some details for you;
I hope you have as good a day out at Beaulieu in the beautiful New Forest as we did! It really is a top UK tourist attraction and great value for money!
The New Forest really can offer a top UK Tourist attraction at Beaulieu.
I expected to find this exhibition a bit tiring. Each night, in our cottage,
I hear my husband watching Jeremy Clarkson and his team as they take on another
daft challenge!
