Hello everyone. It has been a beautiful sunny week here, and I hope you enjoyed the sun wherever you live.
It's not quite an armchair visit this week, as we have visited this place several times over the years, and it used to be somewhere we went on school trips when I was a child.
Aston Hall is a listed building in Aston Birmingham. The Holte family built it in 1618, and they were supporters of King Charles I during the English Civil War. Aston Hall is also known as a 'Prodigy' property. These were places of great extravagance for the wealthy and those whose ambitions were to rise higher in the royal court. The aim was to entice the monarch to visit, giving the hall owner great prestige.
Well, it worked because Charles did indeed stay for one night before the Battle of Edgehill.
The house was severely damaged when it came under attack from over 1000 parliamentary forces. However, the story goes that the siege took three days against only a few musketeers inside the building before the enemy took the house. It must have been a little embarrassing for the Parliamentarians, even though they ultimately won the day! How true the story is - I don't know.
Perhaps the most famous damage inflicted was to an oak staircase, which now bears a cannon ball-sized hole. Oak was used extensively in this house as it was another symbol of wealth. A lot of glass was also used for the same purpose, although the individual panes were small.
When we visited, we were treated to a musket gun demonstration of how the weapon would have been prepared for use and fired.
If you want to armchair visit Aston Hall, here is a 360-degree tour.
Back at home, we have made more progress at the bottom of the garden. I have moved some hosta from pots into a new position, edging the pond in the hopes that the slugs will not want to encounter the army of frogs nearby. Foxgloves have also been added along with more ferns, an astilbe, ligularia and heuchera, all from other parts of the garden - slowly, the space is filling up with plants.
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| Hosta shoots just breaking through |
As well as the frogs returning to the pond, I noticed some solitary mining bees that have taken up residence around the pond. These bees excavate small tunnels into the ground leaving a volcano shaped mound at the entrance.
And finally, my onions are ready for planting out.
Happy days to you all, and have a lovely week.
B x