A couple of months ago, we were having some lovely weather here in the South West, and my family and I decided to head down to Devon for the day. We started the morning at A la Ronde.
This is one of the most unique National Trust properties I have ever visited. Overlooking the River Exe, the 16 sided house was built in the 18th century for two spinster cousins on their return from the Grand Tour.
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| A la Ronde, Devon |
The house inside is really quite remarkable. Every corner of it is still filled with objects from the cousins' journeys around Europe, although it has been altered in layout since that time.
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| A clever use of space on the ground floor of A la Ronde |
The house on the inside has plenty of rooms to explore, including the drawing room, with its unusual artworks by the cousins, and the 'Octagon', the green hallway with eight doors.
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| Just a small selection of the shells housed in A la Ronde |
You may have heard of A la Ronde because of its famous Shell Gallery, with its 25,000 shells. Unfortunately, you can no longer see it up close, as it is has been closed off to visitors for the past twenty years. The only ways of viewing it now are using a mirror in the entrance hall, or on a screen at the end of the tour. You can actually view the 360 picture online at: http://www.rodedwards.co.uk/files/20634/alarondeshellgallery/A_La_Ronde_Shell_Gallery.html.
As is probably obvious from the image above, as picturesque as A la Ronde is (and as nice as the cake is!), it is not a full day's visit. As we were travelling back up to North Somerset, we decided to spend the afternoon at Killerton House, another National Trust property. If you want to stay in the area, there is plenty to do, and Exeter is only a short drive away.
Killerton House is an 18th century property, originally built as a temporary home for the Acland family. There are relatively few rooms open in the house, as the first floor is used as a temporary exhibition space, and currently houses 'The F-word: the changing language of fashion'.
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| Killerton House Library |
The rooms downstairs are well presented, and the library is very inviting, with a great selection of books on local social history that can be browsed. I personally think that it is important that the rooms are used as much as possible, and to me it just makes sense that libraries have books in that you can read! Making them relevant to the property that they are in is a very simple idea, but one that is not actually put into practice that often.
The garden at Killerton is full of colour, and I thought that having interpretation boards describing the plants and the plans for the rest of the year was brilliant.
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| Killerton Chapel |
Within the grounds is Killerton Chapel, a mid-Victorian building. Built of volcanic trap aslar (known as Killerton stone), the exterior doesn't really give much away, so the dramatic interior was quite a surprise. On reflection, there are a lot of clues to the nature of the interior, such as the rose window in the west end.
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| Interior of Killerton Chapel |
The whole day was really great, but if you visit, be aware that each properties on their own is a half-day, and you should plan around that. There is plenty to do in the area around Exeter however, so you won't struggle to fill up the day.
For more information about A la Ronde, visit: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/a-la-ronde/
For more information about Killerton, visit: http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/killerton/
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