BELTON HOUSE, Lincolnshire. UK

Part of the water feature at the rear of the house opposite the fountain and orangery.

My latest trip out with my sketchbook was at the weekend when I travelled for just under two hours to reach Belton House, one of the finest 17th century country houses in Britain.

Built between 1685 and 1688 for Sir John Brownlow, the 3rd Baron of Great Humby, Belton stands in thousands of acres of parkland. The 3rd Earl Brownlow restored the house in the 1870s. Through marriage the property passed into the hands of the Cust family. John Cust was created Earl Brownlow and Viscount Alford in 1815.
The 7th Baron Brownlow gave Belton to The National Trust in 1984.

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(1)One of the many stone garden decorations situated at the rear of the house in formal setting close to the fountain and orangery (2)

Queen Adelaide stayed here and has a room named after her, King George III was entertained here and Edward VIII often stayed here before his abdication.
The author Edith Wharton was so taken by Belton House that she had a miniature version of it built in Massachusetts.

Belton has been used as a setting for many television series and dramas including 'Pride and Prejudice', 'Tom Jones', 'The Buccaneers' and 'Bleak House'.

The Chapel - Sketched from the balcony area where a cosy arrangement of upholstered chairs are situated.

The Chinese Room - Bed canopy.

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The Chinese Room is the room in which Edward VIII liked to stay when he visited Belton, sleeping in the mid 19th century bed with its glazed chintz hangings.

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This was the first time using my handbag sketch kit in a National Trust property. I have previously used my A4 Venezia sketchbook but could rarely sketch inside the properties because there is no seating for visitors and the book is too large to balance, hence missing out on sketching all those gorgeous, ornate interiors!

I decided something needed to change on my return from Wimpole Hall last week, so I took two brush pens, a pigment liner and an A6 spiral bound W&N sketchbook into Belton House with me and created the two monochrome sketches above.

My kit worked beautifully, the A6 was easy to hold, even with my sketch bag on my shoulder and the brush pens filled with ink added a little tone instantly, just what I was hoping for.

I created the colour sketches in the gardens directly into my A4 Venezia as usual and on my return home I tore out the interior sketches from the W&N, mounted them on black paper and stuck them into my A4 Venezia. They look great and everything is all together, just as I like it!

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More information on this property:
Heritage Trail

Stately Homes

Photographs of Belton by Lincolnian

ICKWORTH HOUSE, Suffolk. UK

"I have now got to my centre of rest...Sweet Ickworth"
- John, 1st Earl of Bristol.

Even as you approach Ickworth house it is easy to understand the Earl's comment and obvious passion for the land laid out by Capability Brown. The 1st Earl of Ickworth adapted a modest farmhouse at Ickworth which was known as Ickworth Lodge and remained the family home until 1829.

The 4th Earl-Bishop had very different ideas and, inspired by the monuments of Rome, he began to build what is now known as Ickworth House. The unique central rotunda and curvy wings reveal Frederick's eccentric personality and would provide, not only a family home within the rotunda, but the wings would become a showcase for his treasures collected on his Continental trips of 30 years. The foundations for today's Ickworth were laid in 1795 and the rotunda was virtually finished when the Earl -Bishop passed away in 1803, sadly he would never see his dream complete.

"The house...The house...The house..."
- Frederick, 4th Earl of Bristol, written on his sick bed in Naples in 1796.


It was the Earl-Bishop's Son, 1st Marquess of Bristol who completed the house with the help of architect John Field, adapting his Father's plans to suit his family requirements. The last major alterations were made to the house in 1909-1911 when the 4th Marquess commissioned A.C. Bloomfield to remodel the entrance hall and staircase. The property passed to the National Trust in 1956.



Ickworth had a wonderful feel about it, children played, families laughed and had spread their picnics across the lawn in front of the house. Unrestricting, inviting and decadent. Rich yet homely and bulging with character and interest. I found myself repeating the words 'stunning' and 'beautiful' over and over again, room to room, treasure to treasure.

The Pompeian room was completed in 1879 when the 3rd Marquess employed Penrose & Grace to decorate it. The scheme is based on Roman wall-paintings uncovered in 1777 at the Villa Negroni on the Esquiline Hill in Rome. These had a special connection with the family because the Earl-Bishop had purchased some of the original frescoes while in Italy at the time of their discovery. It's a remarkable room within a remarkable house.

Joan and I stayed at the house, managing to leave just enough time for a coffee in the orangery before closing. The grounds remained open so we ventured towards the church we had seen on the brochure map.

St Mary's church sits just behind Ickworth house, well hidden by one of the large trees that decorate the land. Unfortunately it is now redeemed 'unsafe', the one feature of Ickworth now inaccessible to the public. We took the opportunity to rest a while and sat upon the grass opposite to create what would be our final sketch at Ickworth House.



We made our way back to the car through the tree-lined pathway, squirrels busying around us as Ickworth disappeared behind the foliage. Our drive back was full of conversation and the roads were surprisingly clear for a bank holiday Sunday.

How lucky we are to have seen such wonderful places in the company of such treasured friendship.