The past week has been Heritage Week in the UK, with many historic sites giving free entry, and many others not normally open to the public throwing open their doors to visitors.
One place that has long been on my list of places to visit is Wentworth Castle Gardens, near Barnsley, and last week gave me the chance to get there while staying with my mum for a few days.
Wentworth Castle is a grade-I listed country house, the former seat of the Earls of Strafford, at Stainborough, near Barnsley. It is now home to the Northern College for Residential and Community Education, though there are excellent views of the house from the neighbouring gardens.
The construction of this house in it's current form had it's origin in the competition between two branches of the Wentworth family, with the other branch building Wentworth Woodhouse, a property with the longest frontage of any country house in the country, with Wentworth Castle being the loser in the competition - but it's a very impressive loser!
An impressive building. I had never heard of Wentworth Castle and some of my family originate from Barnsley. Maybe they just didn't mix in this kind of circle.
Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are all very much appreciated.
Ian
Ian