Midhurst

A random choice of a central place to stay close to the Living Museum turns out to be a stroke of good fortune. The market town of Midhurst is very much still a Tudor town; it lies on the River Rother and is an extremely interesting place to visit.

Within a short walk of the town centre is Cowdray House; albeit in ruins, it was one of England's great Tudor houses but destroyed by an unfortunate accident in 1793. Henry VIII and his daughter Elizabeth both stayed there as monarchs.

Carrying on with our town walk, we climb up St Anne's Hill to see the foundations of St Anne's Castle, all that remain now; the castle was originally a Norman earth and timber ringwork fortress that was converted to a stone and mortar manor house in 1160. South Pond, as it is known locally now, was originally the castle fishpond.

Walking north into the town from the pond, we see the Anglican Church of St Mary Magdalene and St Denys.Leggi altro