Nicola here. It’s that time when my diary is full of wonderful Christmassy events, from the Victorian evening in the bookshop where I work to the light show in the Town Gardens. Every year in the weeks before Christmas I try to visit a historic house that has been decorated for the season. It’s a bit of a tradition for me; usually I go with a friend and we experience the delights of the café and the gift shop as part of the day out. I’ve seen the most wonderful houses all done up in their Christmas lights and decorations, I’ve joined in the carol singing and always had a fantastic time.
This year I wanted to visit somewhere new, which is a bit of a challenge when I’ve lived in the same area for over 25 years and have something of a history habit. I’ve been to just about every historic house within a radius of 50 miles or more! One place I’d never been to at Christmas, though, was the Merchant’s House in Marlborough. It’s not your average stately home. The Merchant’s House is also the Marlborough Museum and it’s a building on the high street of the Wiltshire market town so it’s part of a terrace and not a huge estate standing in its own grounds.
In 1653 there was a great fire in Marlborough similar in devastation to that in London just over a decade later. Fuelled by a strong westerly wind, the fire ripped through the town’s
medieval streets, destroying almost all of the main buildings. Thomas Bayly, a silk merchant, lost his home and all of his belongings in the blaze. However, between 1653 and 1700, his house was rebuilt.
Bayly was a rich man who had made a fortune in trade. His house reflected his wealth, with wall paintings, fine wooden panelling and an impressive oak staircase. It had eighteen rooms, ten of which have been restored and furnished in 17th century style. You enter via the giftshop and go up the grand stair, which was originally painted to look as though it was made of stone. On the wall side, another balustrade was painted to match and mirror it. There’s a sense of stepping back in time as the steps creak beneath your feet and you ascend to the first floor under the gorgeous snowflake decorations that make it feel even more magical!
The grandest rooms on the first floor. The panelled chamber at the front of the house overlooks the high street and its easy to imagine sitting in the big bay windows, looking out over the 17th century hustle and bustle of the market place. The way that the wooden floors slope dramatically in some of the rooms is testament to their age and the number of people who have walked across them over the years. It makes the atmosphere of the place come alive. The dining room, or painted chamber, has the most amazing painted walls, possibly designed to mimic silk wall hangings. Something new that I learned was that the room known as the Kitchen Chamber in 17th century language meant the bedroom over the kitchen which was the most sought-after as it was the warmest in the house!
Much of the rest of the house was devoted to an exhibition on the American troops in Wiltshire during the Second World War, which contained memorabilia and information from the 1940s. It was a fascinating counterpoint to the earlier history of the house.
What I particularly loved about visiting the Merchant’s House at Christmas was the scale of it. There were fewer visitors than at a big stately home which
made it much easier to shake off the modern day and soak up the old atmosphere. Grand houses can be awe-inspiring and even a bit overwhelming but this was a place that felt small and cosy enough to live in, as well as buzzing with the activities of the town going on around it. How much easier it would have been to pop out to the market than if you were living in the middle of a park in the countryside! What interesting things you would see when you peeked out of the window on the high street! And the rooms would have been warmer than the great big chambers in mansion houses, a big bonus in winter! It was a lovely visit.
Is there a particular place that you like to visit at this time of year, a traditional trip you make or place you like to see? From light shows, to decorated houses, to events there is so much to get us into the spirit of the season!
Thanks for sharing your visit to the Merchant’s House with us, Nicola. It sounds like a fascinating place.
I enjoy seeing light displays in the neighborhood, but I don’t tend to go far to see them. I have to admit to enjoying being cozy at home when it gets dark out!
Staying warm and cozy inside is one of the best things about the season, isn’t it, Kareni!
Nicola, the Merchant’s House sounds not only beautiful, but lovable–a place where one can settle in and be happy, which isn’t true of all the grand aristocratic mansions. Loved the tidbit about the popular Kitchen Chamber!
Also lovely that they had the exhibit about American soldiers stationed in Wiltshire in WWII. It’s currently the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge, the harrowing winter battleground that was key to the Allies defeating the Nazis.
Thank you, Mary Jo. Yes, it is a very liveable-in place and you could imagine the previous occupants being happy there. The WWII history was so interesting as well. I learned a lot. A good mix!
There was a meetup I went to a few years ago, and we walked to the beautiful Christmas tree displays in front of luxurious hotels in Manhattan.
Some were so spectacular in the size and ornaments used. Most of us had already seen the big tree at Rockefeller Center at some time in our lives in the city.
It’s not a tradition, but it was a lovely evening memory that happened before the pandemic. The meetup has not been repeated.
What a lovely memory, Pat. It sounds an amazing display and a wonderful social occasion.
This house sounds wonderful Nicola! I love old houses and estates and visit as much as I can.
My daughter and I went into our city today. We have a festival called Winterval. It’s very popular but I felt a bit let down this year. More commercial than anything and I didn’t get any atmosphere. It used to be wonderful! However, it was the annual Christmas outing for my daughter and myself and we had a good time finishing with a pub lunch. Shopping all done! Thankfully!!
Congratulations on getting all the shopping done, Teresa! I like the sound of Winterval. It has a magical ring to it! What a shame that so many of these events are now mostly commercial opportunities. The sense of atmosphere and Christmassy joyfulness is special and we don’t want to lose it.
I had already mentioned in a previous post what i used to like tk do at the Holiday season
What I still like to do is drive around my area and look at all the decorated houses. Some are very elaborate with Santa Clases big and small, some even with sleighs and reindeer(and some on the rooftops!). Some houses have life sized reindeer on the lawns among the lighted bushes and trees and some have huge aritificial snowmen. All have lots if twinkling lights on trees, bushes and the house. Evergreen garlands and wreaths and potted poinsettias. Some decorsrions are very creative, some simple, some overwhelming, but all fun tl see. Many of the historic houses are decorated inside and out for their time periods, whether, Victorian, Colonial or early 19th c. I love visiting them at thjs time of the year and they all have music lf the time period , too.
The stores in my village are all decked out ,too ,with garlands , red bows ans the victorian street lights have green garlands and a big red bow. The Public Library is decorated inside and out, too. We have two(non working) fireplaces in the library which are decorated with garlands and ribbons and on the mantle shelf there is a menorah surrounded by dreidels and pine garlands. It all makes one feel very festive.
That sounds very pretty and festive, Jane. We have a huge variety of decorations around here too, from light up “icicles” to snowmen, multi-coloured flashing lights and floral wreaths. It’s fun to see all the things people have come up with to celebrate the season!
Thank you for the lovely post. I like to hear about warm and welcoming places and the Merchant’s House sounds exactly like that.
Oh, it is, Annette! It has such a lovely atmosphere. As Teresa said, sometimes places can get a bit swallowed up in commercialism this time of year, so it’s great to find somewhere that feels so authentic and friendly.
What a lovely post and a nice change. Living in Australia we don’t have much in the way of huge historic houses but on a trip to Europe some years back I got to stay in quite a few 15th and 16th century houses in Spain. Awesome! And amazing to think that people were still enjoying living in them hundreds of years later. I also visited some huge places which clearly had not been lived in for about a century – I found it quite sad and definitely more like visiting a museum. Homes are so much more interesting! And a teaser to the imagination. You can so easily wonder who it was who was sitting in the front window and what caught their eye? Who won the battle to get the Kitchen Chamber and did everyone else give in with grace (or resignation) or did the resentment simmer? And so on. Thanks Nicola.
Oh my goodness, Marryd, that trip to Spain must have been amazing! Homes are definitely awe-inspiring when you think about all the people who have lived there. You can almost imagine them popping up to say hello because the past can feel so close. I think the argument over the Kitchen Chamber must be like who gets the camp bed and/or ensuite bathroom these days when the family comes to stay!
Thank you for this interesting post. I, too, love to visit historic homes, especially at Christmas. In the USA there are many such, even if they aren’t as old as the historic homes in Europe. The Biltmore Mansion in North Carolina is a fine example. It is the largest privately owned home in the States, but it is open for tours all year long. Closer to home in Buffalo, New York is the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural Site, also known as the Ansley Wilcox Mansion, a house built in the Victorian era. It is the home where Roosevelt was sworn in as President of the United States, following President Woodrow Wilson’s assassination at the Pan-American Exposition in 1901, held in Buffalo. Every Christmas, the mansion’s rooms and exterior are decorated by the various garden clubs of the greater Buffalo area. The clubs are assigned a room to decorate by lottery. One year that I visited, the theme was “the colors of the peacock.” Every room was gorgeously decorated, but there was very little presence of the traditional red and green!
Historical note: the city of Buffalo is not named for the animal so typical of the North American plains, but rather, it is the corruption of its original name “Beau Fleuve,” French for “beautiful river.” Buffalo is situated on Lake Erie, where the mighty Niagara River flows into the lake.
Mom, not Woodrow Wilson, but President William McKinley was the victim of the assassination. Poor Woodrow Wilson died from complications of a stroke towards the end of his presidency…and served after Theodore Roosevelt during WWI.
Anyhow, the Wilcox Mansion is very lovely at Christmas and the garden clubs do great work. They have hosted Christmas tea and holiday dinner concerts that we have greatly enjoyed.
In Rochester, NY the George Eastman House is beautifully done up for Christmas. The house features a lovely Aeolian pipe organ that still works and an amazing museum of photography.
Daughter, thank you for correcting my memory lapse!
You are welcome!😉 Our mother-daughter outings are special treats.
That sounds beautiful, Faye. I love the idea of the afternoon tea and dinner concerts too. Several more places to put on my visit list!
Those houses sound absolutely stunning, Patricia. I would love to see the historic houses in the US. Thank you for the information about the name “Buffalo” as well. I did not know that!