Blenheim Palace
Blenheim Palace is a private country palace near Woodstock in Oxfordshire, England. It is already inhabited by the 12th generation of the Dukes of Marlborough. The imposing country house with 12,000 m² of living space is one of the largest castles in England and is on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The outdoor facilities, some of the living areas and various exhibitions are open to visitors. Blenheim Palace is a well-known event location that attracts numerous guests from home and abroad with sporting events, concerts, festivals and horse shows. Visiting the castle as part of a round trip or study trip is a special highlight for tourists interested in history
Blenheim Palace: birthplace of Winston Churchill
The impressive castle was a gift from the British Crown to the first Duke of Marlborough, Sir John Churchill, who won the Battle of Blindheim in 1704. Since then, the family has resided in the castle with a magnificent park and a large adjoining room.
Visitors can see the residence rooms on a guided tour. The butterfly house and various greenhouses are also open. A multimedia show tells the story of the castle. Another permanent exhibition is dedicated to Winston Churchill, who was born at Blenheim Palace in 1874.
The well-kept park with a small lake and water terraces, in which there is also the hedge labyrinth and an adventure playground, is worth a stroll. Resting places are distributed over the entire area and on the large terrace of the castle restaurant.
Stratford upon Avon
With its old English cityscape full of romance, combined with a historical ambience, Stratford-upon-Avon in the county of Warwickshire is one of the most popular travel destinations in Great Britain. The rural surroundings of the city with a population of 23,000 on the banks of the River Avon are considered to be the absolute heart of England. Above all, Stratford-upon-Avon is known as the birthplace of William Shakespeare. Everywhere in Stratford-upon-Avon you can walk in the footsteps of the famous British playwright and poet of the 16th century.
A midsummer night’s dream
In search of the life and work of Shakespeare, it is worth visiting the Anglican Holy Trinity Church first. It is considered to be the baptismal and burial church of the poet. Located a little outside the city center, it has a small cemetery that is worth visiting.
Shakespeare’s presumed birthplace is on Henley Street. His alleged father John owned a workshop here. The beautiful half-timbered house is also a prime example of a middle-class house from the 16th century. It is also believed that Shakespeare attended Grammar School on Church Lane. Theater enthusiasts can finally see the remains of his house in New Place on Chapel Street, which is surrounded by a garden.
Study trips to Stratford-upon-Avon should still include a visit to Tudor World. In this museum you can immerse yourself in the customs of the Elizabethan times.
Stratford-upon-Avon and its festivals
Trips to Stratford-upon-Avon are worthwhile all year round. You can almost always attend one of the festivals that are popular beyond the city limits.
Both Shakespeare’s birthday parade and a marathon take place in April. The literature festival is popular from the end of April to the beginning of May. The River rules in June and July and the Food Festival in September. In October the city center comes to a standstill for a few days and turns into a medieval fair.
Glyndebourne Festival
The administrative seat of the county of East Sussex in the south of England is the city of Lewes. It is located about 20 kilometers southeast of the most famous seaside resort in England, Brighton on the English Channel.
The Glyndebourne Opera House is located a few kilometers from Lewes city center on a former country estate. It was built in the first half of the 1930s and shortly after its opening in 1934 it had the reputation of having one of the most important, but also the smallest opera stages in the world.
Three German emigrants as founding members of an opera festival
With the conductor Fritz Busch and the artistic directors of the Städtische Oper Berlin Carl Ebert and Rudolf Bing, it was three German emigrants who, together with the music-obsessed landowner John Christie, founded the Glyndebourne Festival Opera and opened it with the performance of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro. In the course of the following years it took place regularly, with the capacity of the seats increased from an initial 300 to 433 and after a break in play during the Second World War to 850. These extensions were mostly associated with more or less provisional modifications.
With a fundamental architectural redesign of the opera house and some adjacent buildings, it was given its present form in 1993, and in the summer of 1994, 1,200 spectators were able to experience the reopening of the festival.
Opera performances at the highest level
Today the traditional Glyndebourne Opera Festival, which takes place every year from May to August, has achieved world fame and is often the focus of thematic trips and study trips. In addition to the extraordinary level of opera performances, the legendary picnics closely associated with the festival have made a not inconsiderable contribution to its popularity. The picnics are held in the park of the former country estate in festive evening attire and take place both before the performances and during their breaks of up to one and a half hours. While the guests in evening dresses and tuxedos were seated at camping tables or on blankets.
