Good morning.
Im afraid my desire to keep my posts up to date has not been able to be reconciled with the wiles of life! But as ever, I will strive to do so.
Two Wednesdays ago I had the chance to visit the beautiful grounds and ruins of Witley Court, set in the idyllic countryside of Worcestershire. To add the finishing touch it was also a splendid English day – with bright sunshine and a gentle breeze. Just visiting the church is worth the journey alone, with its amazing adorned ceiling, covered in gold leaf and paintings and surrounded by stained glass windows. It has the kind of atmosphere you cannot create – a special kind of stillness that of hundreds of years of people praying in creates.
The story of Witley Court is rather tragic; it is a large country house set in the parish of Great Witley, a community which dates back to Saxon times. In 1655 the house passed into the hands of the industrialist Thomas Foley. By the 1750’s his successors had developed the original house to create a Georgian mansion with a church attached. The architect John Nash then added colonnades (pillars on the outside of the house) to the house in the early 1800’s. With the decline of the of the Foley fortune due to an obese gambler nicknamed ‘Lord Ballon’ Witley Court was sold to the Dudley family who had made their money from being at the forefront to the industrial revolution. From 1837 their vast wealth was used to transform Witley court into one of the most palatial private houses in Europe, becoming a byword for luxury and elegance and visited by many crowned heads. However, even the Dudley fortune was not inexhaustible and in 1920 the estate had to be sold and its era of greatness ended. Following a fire in 1937 Witley Court was ravaged by thieves, the crass indifference and exploitation by subsequent owners and wilful neglect. But, in 1967 a local group launched a successful campaign to save the baroque church, and in the 1972 the Department of the Environment undertook guardianship of Witley Court. The restored Church and preserved ruins are a monument to their unceasing labours. It is now under the custodianship of English heritage.
For me the visit was one of mixed emotions. While inspirational to see the great effort and creation of past generation, it also poignantly brought home the sense of one’s own humanity. It is quite humbling (and rather sad) to see former splendour reduced to a relic of history. It truly illustrates both the shortness of life and that all great things must come to an end sooner or later.
On the other side, it also shows the ‘cleaning’ and renewing cycle of life (which is, incidentally, a theme common to many cultures – the basis of ancient Kung Fu philosophies and prevalent in many of Shakespeare’s plays) with young children playing in the grounds and laughter ringing out across the estate. So to me it really showed both the importance of making the most of what we have and trying to provide something future generations, but at the same there is hope for a positive future. Having ended the day with a quiet cream tea in the garden, it provided a peaceful evening of thought and reflection. All in all it was a quite breathtaking day – and certainly not what you would expect from simply visiting an ‘old house.’
England in many ways remains an unexplored haven, with many visitors failing to get past London; Witley court and church is just one such example of this. Taking time out to visit places like always pays you back in ways you can never anticipate.
Sifu