June 2: Sun, Wool, Villas and the Platinum Jubilee

 What a day! First was the weather— it was sunny and warm, even maybe too warm, all day!! There had been great predictions that the four day weekend for the Jubilee would bring a lot of rain, but today instead we had bunting and flags and decorations in every village, and tonight our hotel was one of the designated bonfire spots. At 9:43 pm exactly, our bonfire was lit, filling a spot in the country wide chain between Prince Charles’ home at Highgrove and Princess Anne’s home at Gatcombe Park. We waved flags, drank champagne and watched fireworks. It was a rare day to be in England!

Earlier in the day we learned some history, and visited the ruins of a 4th century Roman style villa in Chedworth as well as a cathedral size church in a market town.  Wool was the backbone of the English economy for centuries (the original sheep were brought to England by the Romans to provide both meat and clothing appropriate to the climate), and Cotswolds wool was the best; that wealth built public works including churches that seem far too large and ornate for their towns. After lunch we visited a fanciful and ornate garden first created in the 1740’s and then abandoned in the 19th century.  Forty years ago, the property was inherited and the new owner embarked on an amazing task— to take out the woodland and timber lot that had been planted in the valley and restore the 1740 garden based on a detailed watercolor painting. 

Not a lot of wildlife today but a lot of new insights into the landscape and culture of the Cotswolds.