Hatfield House and Gardens

Twenty-five members enjoyed a lovely sunny day at Hatfield House and gardens. After coffee on arrival in the Conservatory we walked through the grounds, passing a beautiful fountain and sat on the steps of the House.

Hatfield House, is a large and impressive Jacobean country house built on the site of what was Hatfield Palace, Hertfordshire, where Elizabeth I spent much of her life. The House was completed in 1611 and has been occupied ever since by members of the Cecil Family - successive generations of Robert Cecil’s descendants, the Earls and Marquesses of Salisbury. The family are still in residence in one area of the House.

We began our tour in the Marble Hall which has the famous Rainbow Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I facing the entrance and then moved into the King James Drawing Room which took its name from the life size statue of James I, presented by the King himself, and stands above the mantlepiece. The walls were covered with old tapestries, upon which hung a large collection of beautiful paintings. We then went into the Long Gallery which runs for 170 feet. The Gold Leaf ceiling was stunning and has been featured in many films as have many of the rooms in Hatfield House. The library came next, housing books going back to the 14th century and we had a wonderful view of the ornamental gardens below. This was followed by the pretty little Chapel, which is still used every day.

We then moved on to the Armoury which was fascinating. At the start of the second World War the family offered the whole house as a field hospital and moved into a very small flat. The Armoury was where the soldiers could smoke and to that end were given thousands of free cigarettes during their convalescence. At the end of the War, it took six months to get rid of all the cigarette butts from the room! As well as lots of armour it also had an organ housed in an old ornate case at one end. Last but not least, at the end of the morning was a visit to the old Tudor Kitchen before touring the impressive gardens.

Eloise Clark - Chairman