Hughenden Manor

I spent yesterday afternoon at Hughenden Manor in High Wycombe (pronounced Wick-um), Buckinghamshire. Hughenden was the former home of Benjamin Disraeli, the British prime minister under Queen Victoria.

Disraeli was the first (and only) person of Jewish descent to hold the office of British prime minister. Although Jews were excluded from Parliament until 1858, Disraeli's baptism into the Anglican Church at the age of 12 enabled him to pursue a political career.

As a young man, he was an admirer of Lord Byron and fancied himself a Romantic writer. He later became a Conservative politician best known for bringing India and the Suez Canal under British control.

  

Here's his Georgian house, which was later gothicized as was popular in Victorian England. 

Queen Victoria adored Disraeli (unlike her other prime minister, William Gladstone) and actually came to visit his home a few times. On one occasion, he ordered his staff to shorten the legs of one of his chairs to accommodate the Queen's small size. If you ever visit Hughenden Manor, you will notice that Disraeli thought so highly of Victoria that he actually hung portraits of the Queen and her family in his bedroom.

Disraeli married a widow 12 years older than himself and they had no children. I got a kick out of this quote from his wife, Mary Anne, who said, "Dizzy married me for my money, but if he had the chance again, he would marry me for love."

Here are the gardens of Hughenden Manor. The property also includes a pasture for cows and sheep, woods, and a church where Disraeli and his wife are buried.

After Disraeli's death, the property was passed to his nephew and then to the National Trust. During World War II, Hughenden Manor was used as a secret intelligence base and a German bomb shattered one of the windows of the church. They had a new exhibit about this in the basement of the home.

Herky and Judith enjoying the gardens of Hughenden Manor.

Canterbury

 

Yesterday, my Crusades class made the three-hour drive southeast to Canterbury. I didn't know much about Canterbury beforehand, except for what I'd heard of Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. The 14th century story collection tells of a group of pilgrims who make the journey to Canterbury. 

The pilgrims were off to pay tribute to Thomas Becket, an Archbishop of Canterbury who was murdered in the cathedral in the 12th century by supporters of King Henry II.

 

Herky at Canterbury Cathedral in Kent

Today, the Roman Catholic and Anglican Churches recognize Becket as a saint and a martyr. Here's the Altar of the Sword's Point that marks where Becket was assassinated.

 

Although they have this memorial, nobody knows where Becket is buried today. In 1538, Henry VIII destroyed the original shrine.

A cathedral has stood on this spot since 602, but a Norman archbishop leveled the previous Saxon structure to build the current one in 1070. Seems like it's constantly under renovation--even on the day we visited, it was partly covered with scaffolding. Canterbury Cathedral is recognized as a World Heritage Site and also contains the tombs of Henry IV and Joan of Navarre and a memorial to the son of Edward III, known as the Black Prince.

After touring the cathedral, we walked on top of the old city walls and saw Dane John mound. A Roman burial mound, it was later used as the motte (hill) for a Norman castle.

The city wall walk eventually reaches Canterbury Castle, which was built soon after the Battle of Hastings in 1066 AD.

 

The castle was built of flint and sandstone rubble, as were the city walls. France is only about 30 miles away, so many of the materials were shipped from there. 

I was surprised by how modern Canterbury was. You come to a medieval town like this one and expect it to be untouched by time--straight out of the history books--but that's not how it was. When you looked out from the top of the city walls, all you saw were modern shops, a bus station, and massive groups of Italian schoolchildren. I noticed one of the businesses in town was called the Chaucer Hotel--at least someone seems to be in touch with the town's history!

Christ Church College

You might recall this scene from my first entry in the blog. Yesterday, I saw it with my own eyes when I visited Christ Church, one of the largest of the 38 colleges at Oxford. Alumni include 13 British prime ministers, philosopher John Locke, Methodist leader John Wesley, Pennsylvania founder William Penn, and scientist Albert Einstein.

 

The college famously inspired Lewis Carroll to write Alice in Wonderland. The White Rabbit from the stories is based on the dean of the college. The father of the real-life Alice, he was always running late for dinner and disappeared afterwards down a spiral staircase that Carroll imagined as a rabbit hole. Right across from the college is the Alice Shop, where you can find all sorts of Alice in Wonderland-inspired mementos.

Here's the dining hall, where students of Christ Church eat under the watchful eyes of their predecessors. The Harry Potter movie makers had this particular dining hall in mind when they created Hogwarts. Some scenes from the first two films were actually shot at the college.

 

Here's a photo of me in front of the Tom Quad. It's named after the seven-ton bell, the Great Tom, which hangs in the tower and strikes 101 times at five-past-nine--once for each of the college's original 101 students, so they wouldn't miss their curfew. 

 

I'm amazed at how short and neat the gardeners keep the lawns here. They even create a checkered pattern on the grass--but they don't allow anyone to walk on the lawn as they do on Iowa's Pentacrest. 

 

 

Inside Christ Church Cathedral

  

One of Christ Church Cathedral's stunning stained glass windows

 

 

 

On the way back to our residence hall, we stopped by The Bear, one of Oxford's oldest pubs. It's so small that you walk in and practically run into the bar. Lots of men in business suits hang around here, but they better beware. The back of the pub features display cases with ties that have been cut from unsuspecting visitors.

 

Here's the group that joined me at the pub. All but one of them are Hawkeyes!

Walking Tour Highlights

Here are some more photos from yesterday's walking tour:

 

The Oxford University Museum of Natural History

 
 

  

  

  

Bridge of Sighs, built in 1914

  

Grotesque (not to be confused with a gargoyle that spouts water) outside the Bodleian Library

  Radcliffe Camera (camera means chamber in Latin)

 

One of the oldest buildings in Oxford houses a cell phone business

Getting to Know You, Oxford

This morning, I felt like I was living in a fairy tale. For breakfast, I ate porridge--and it wasn't too hot or too cold--it was just right! It's fitting to start my day off like that, too, since the Odyssey to Oxford program is run through Kellogg College (yes, that Kellogg).

After breakfast, we met our tutors in the courtyard and I began my study of the Crusades. Today's lesson focused on the history of Jerusalem up to the Crusades. Though Jerusalem means "God of peace," the city has been completely destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, and attacked 52 times. The idea of a Christian pilgrimage to Jerusalem began with Constantine's mother, Helena, who claimed to have found the site of the crucifixion.

The weather is temperate here in Oxford. When the clouds rolled in while we were taking our group photograph, nobody worried about pulling out their umbrellas. It just dripped on us like a leaky faucet for a few minutes, and then the sun shone again.

After a guided walking tour of the city, a group of us checked out the gardens of St. John's College. Founded in 1555, alumni include Jane Austen's father and brothers and former British prime minister Tony Blair. I took my favorite photo of the day here:

Afterward, we headed to the Eagle and the Child, where the Chronicles of Narnia and the Lord of the Rings were born. The Eagle and the Child is actually owned by St. John's College, something I can't imagine happening in the United States. They have a few displays honoring C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, including a letter of praise to the pub owners.

One of my favorite things about Oxford is its rich literary history. I love knowing that as I walk down the street, hundreds of books are stored below me underground. I look forward to seeing Christchurch next, where Lewis Carroll was inspired to write Alice in Wonderland for the dean's daughter.

First Day

 37 Wellington Square, minus the current scaffolding

I rounded up about 20 of my fellow Odyssey to Oxford travelers at Chicago O'Hare on Saturday afternoon. We shared stories of where we were from, what courses we planned on taking, and of our previous travel experiences. Many of the travelers come back year after year to take part in the popular program, but this year's trip has also attracted quite a few first-timers (18). Including program director Louise Cooley and I, we have 44 total participants.

Our flight to London left around 6:30 p.m. (Central) on Saturday and arrived at Heathrow Airport at 8:05 a.m. London time. Though it was a smooth flight, nobody got much sleep on the plane. We all made it through immigration, customs, and baggage claim with little trouble, and proceeded to board the bus for Oxford.

We noticed a few subtle differences between American and British roads on our one-hour drive to Oxford. For one thing, we were all required to buckle up on the bus. There are very few SUVs and trucks on the road, and billboard advertising isn't allowed in an effort to preserve the beauty of the lush English countryside.

Upon arrival at Oxford, we ate brunch in the dining hall and then checked into our dormitory rooms. I am staying at 37 Wellington Square, diagonal from the Rewley House, where all of our dining and seminars take place.

We had most of the afternoon free, which I spent trying to make up for lost sleep. Then at 5 p.m., I had the privilege to meet with this year's tutors. That was followed by an orientation meeting, an opening reception in the courtyard, and a salmon dinner.

I've truly enjoyed meeting everyone today, and I look forward to the Oxford walking tour and the start of classes tomorrow. Good night!