Anglesey Abbey

Anglesey Abbey is not a religious house (though it was an Augustinian Priory back in the 1100s), rather it is the 20th century recreation of an 18th century luxury country house. Bought at auction by Huttleston Broughton (the first Lord Fairhaven) in 1926, he and his brother restored the house and made extensive improvements to the gardens. He died in 1966 and left the property to the National Trust to preserve it as an example of an earlier lifestyle.

The house is quite impressive, with a large collection of antiques, fine art, and modern conveniences. Let's take a look.

Anglesey Abbey

Entrance

The art collection is quite extensive, even including two large rooms strictly devoted to works of art. But items are found all over the house, in bedrooms and studies, bathrooms and libraries.

Neptune near the front door

Painting with antiques

Helmet and swords in the front hall

Fireplace with fancy ceiling above

Even the wall lights are works of art!

Gallery of paintings

Other objects d'art

The house is not just a museum. Clearly many people lived there and many more could be accomodated.

One of several bedrooms

The small library

Another bedroom

Gothic arch vanity!

A discreet toilet

Master bath (with tub book holder!)

Jacob loved all the windy stairs in the house.

Jacob can't be bothered to turn around

A smaller winding staircase

I loved the massive library, which includes a small wheel-barrow used for carting books to your bedroom if you want to check an atlas or an encyclopedia at night. That's my kind of luxury.

The trick to having infinite bookshelves

The book-barrow

Many clocks adorn the house (apparently Lord Fairhaven loved punctuality). Another neat gizmo was this ceiling light with its clever use of mirrors.

Fancy clock

Light reflected out of the lamp

The dining room is the last stop of the house tour. It is the oldest room in the house and definitely reminds the visitor of the monastic origin of Anglesey Abbey.

Medieval dining area

After visiting the house, we went on to explore the gardens and the Lode Mill, but those are items for another post.