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Arlington Court

Arlington Court was built around 1820 by Colonel John Chichester, a member of the Devon aristocracy. He built his house in what is known as the neoclassical style. This is a plain and simple style, designed to evoke memories of ancient Greece and Rome. Sometimes Arlington Court, and other neoclassical buildings, are described as "severe." Looking at the house with its straight lines and block shapes, I see why this might be said. In 1820 Britain was going through an industrial and scientific revolution. Rationalism was becoming ever more important, and life was increasingly seen in harsh, competitive terms. In looking at a building like Arlington Court you get a sense of that kind of society. But that's not the whole story. As an inevitable reaction to the unprecedented changes that took place in life during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries there was a romantic, nostalgic reaction. Tennyson wrote about Arthurian legends. Villages became icons of lost innocence. And the neoclassical style, for all its plain lines and possible severity, was also harking back to a distant and ancient world. For this reason, some people, such as Siegfried Giedion, who wrote Late Baroque and Romantic Classicism in 1922, claimed that the neoclassical style should be thought of as romantic. It seems that neoclassical buildings can be described as both severe and romantic. For someone like myself not all that familiar with the world of architectural jargon, this seemed a bit confusing. I was trying to decide which side of the romantic/severe divide I should come down on. Naturally romanticism seemed more attractive, but then I looked again at Arlington Court's dark stone and straight lines. In the end I decided to have it all and come down on both sides. Neoclassical architecture perhaps sums up the contradictions of the nineteenth century. This was an age of rationalism and science, and also an age of romanticism. Both of these things can be seen held together in the neoclassical architecture of a building like Arlington Court.

The interior of the house illustrates the romantic imagination of Rosalie Chichester, the last private owner of the house before it was given to the National Trust in 1949. Her collection of sea shells is on display! The grounds show how the Victorians reacted against an increasingly industrial society by creating fancifully "natural" pleasure grounds.

There is a large collection of horse drawn carriages housed at Arlington Court. Rides are offered most days. The property has a tea shop and a gift shop.

Opening Times: the house is open from the 16th of March until the 2nd of November, everyday except Saturday, 11am - 5pm. During July and August the garden has additional opening on Saturdays.

Directions: Arlington Court is near Barnstable in Devon off the A39. Click here for an interactive map centred on Arlington Court

Access: there is level access to the ground floor at the rear of the house, but other floors can only be reached by stairs. There are adapted toilet facilities in the tea room. The grounds are partly accessible. Two powered wheelchairs are provided. Braille and large prints guides are available.

Contact:

phone: 01271 850296

web site: http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-arlingtoncourt.htm