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Derbyshire; The Peak District
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Derbyshire; The Peak District

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    Andrew's TravelsDerbyshire; The Peak DistrictTraveler
    The Town End Well Dressing
    DetailThe Small Dale Well DressingDetailThe Church End Well DressingDetailThe Hills Well DressingDetail

    Bradwell; Well Dressing

    August 5 in England ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    We drive to the village of Bradwell to see the well dressings that are there.

    Well Dressing is an ancient custom that is peculiar to Derbyshire and the Peak District; they are highly decorative items created to place near wells or springs as a thanksgiving for the water It happens in this area because of the limestone here; the porous rock has eroded over the years and rainfall is quickly lost underground - thus access to this water via spings and wells became essential to the agricultural villages economies of the past. About 80 towns and villages in the area have Well Dressings from May to September each year. Colour is added to a design from natural sources, such as bark, flowers, and petals.

    We see the Bradwell Well Dressings at Town End, Small Dale, Church End, and The Hills. They are all very beautiful.    Read more

  • Andrew's TravelsDerbyshire; The Peak DistrictTraveler
    Bakewell Old House Museum
    The tithe collector at his deskFarming implementsCooking areaWashing areaLoomView of All Saints Church from the Old House MuseumAll Saints Church; lychgate entranceView of the churchOld Saxon crosses in the church groundsChurch porch: medieval and saxon cross fragments / ancient stone coffinsInside the churchInside the churchThe two funeral chapels in the Bakewell cemetery area (away from All Saints Church)Bakewell Town; War Memorial and the Rutland Arms HotelStreet sceneBakewell pudding shopsBakewell's ancient road bridge

    Bakewell; Town

    August 4 in England ⋅ 🌧 19 °C

    Bad weather and rain all morning due to Storm Floris in Scotland and the North, so it's a late start; after lunch, we walk into Bakewell.

    Bakewell is a market town and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of the county and the only proper town within the boundaries of the Peak District (it's capital!)

    We visit the market briefly and then go to the Old House Museum; this is a "folk" museum within a Grade II listed Tudor building that was originally built as a tithe house (a tax collector's dwelling) - it was later extended for other dwellings. The museum and exhibits cover the lives of former inhabitants; artefacts within date from the Tudor period onwards, and include ceramics, costumes, and toys. It is quirky and interesting.

    We then visit the All Saints Church; this is noted for its two Saxon Crosses in its grounds (the Beeley Cross and the Bakewell Cross), as well as a selection of medieval / Anglo Saxon cross fragments and ancient stone coffins in the porch.

    From there, we wander around the town before heading back to our accommodation (check photo captions for details).    Read more

  • Andrew's TravelsDerbyshire; The Peak DistrictTraveler
    Old Hardwick Hall (viewed from "new" Hardwick Hall)
    Old Hardwick Hall; Old Elizabethan plaster friezeOld Hardwick HallClose up of some of the friezesHardwick Hall, viewed from Old Hardwick HallHardwick Hall is one of the finest Elizabethan buildings in the UKAnother view of Hardwick HallInside Hardwick Hall; applique embroidery of noble women and their virtuesApplique embroidery; Penelope flanked by Perseverance and PatienceWall tapestryElizabeth I and Mary, Queen of Scots, surrounded by tapestriesPenelope and UlyssesOne of the 13 Gideon Tapestries in the Long RoomClose up of the Coat of Arms and the Hardwick StagThe Sea Dog Table; the only one of its kind in the UK, and a very important piece of furnitureOne of the bedroomsWall friezeHardwick Hall GardenView back to Hardwick HallThe Old Stables

    Hardwick Hall

    August 2 in England ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    We're off to Bakewell in the Peak District National Park area of Derbyshire for a week; this is an area we have been to many times in the past.

    En route, we stop off at Hardwick Hall, near Chesterfield in Derbyshire. This is closely associated with the lady that built it; Elizabeth Hardwick, later the Countess of Shrewsbury, and popularly known as Bess of Hardwick. Bess was born in 1527 on the site of "old" Hardwick Hall and rose to a position of great power in Elizabethan society (partly due to four marriages to increasingly rich suitors - Barley, Cavendish, St Loe, Talbot!); she died in 1608.

    We visit Hardwick Old Hall first; it is now a towering roofless shell; built between 1587 and 1596 on a high rocky ridge,, it fell into disrepair after after the death of Bess"s husband, and she started preferring places like Chatsworth House and built the newer and grander Hardwick Hall. The old hall still has some lovely Elizabethan plaster friezes.

    Next to the old hall is the newer Hardwick Hall, one of the finest Elizabethan buildings in the UK, and built by Bess between 1590 and 1597. It is well known own for its rich furnishings, tapestries, and large windows, all of which have been preserved by Bess"s descendants, the Dukes of Cavendish, and now the National Trust.

    It has been an excellent diversion en route to our rented house in Bakewell.    Read more

    Trip start
    August 2, 2025
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