The last two weekends, I have taken day trips to see a few stately homes near Birmingham now owned by the National Trust. First is Wightwick Manor near Wolverhampton, a Tudor-style house built in the 1800s after the House Beautiful ideal and owned by a family who collected Pre-Raphaelite art. The current exhibition at the house is about the Rossetti family. I like how it emphasises the talents of all the siblings, comparing them to other genius families like the Brontës and Morrises, and that it puts their lives into context. It also features Elizabeth Siddal and Lucy Madox Brown, who were married to the Rossetti brothers.
The other two houses are not very far away from Lapworth in Warwickshire and I was able to walk to them both in a day. Packwood House has a famous yew garden with topiary trimmed apparently to represent the Sermon on the Mount. Baddesley Clinton, surrounded by a moat, was a Catholic stronghold in the 1590s. There is a historic priest hole and the house now contains a chapel and sacristy.
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| Wightwick Manor |
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| Drawing by D.G. Rossetti |
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| Love Among The Ruins by Edward Burne-Jones |
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| The Acanthus Room |
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| Christina in a Rage by D.G. Rossetti |
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| Tiles designed by William De Morgan |
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| Packwood House |
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| The Lookout Room |
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| The Yew Garden at Packwood House |
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| Baddesley Clinton |
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| Inner Courtyard at Baddesley |
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