City Planning 101 - Landscapes and Layouts (#2)

Harlaxton Manor
Arriving at the Manor for the first time was a humbling experience. It is built on such a grand scale that all you can do is stare. Even from the road a few miles out, you can see the Manor rising above the hill. Coming down the mile long driveway (of which apparently it is NOT a ritual to run down naked like the security guards may tell you (who incidentally have the job to WATCH the driveway's camera system), you can see why the Manor has been featured in so many movies. The driveway is built to undulate so that the Manor comes into and out of your Gaze (like the capital usage, Ruth?) . Once you put into the drive, you go in through the side entrance using your fob (way to be high-tec, Harlaxton) and then enter the Reception area. From there, it is a maze to either go up the 5 flights of stairs to the corridors that host the college students or through the first floor to the places that once hosted the Gregory and then later Mrs. Van der Elst (and a series of other owners) and their guests.


The rooms are filled with marble, wood carvings, and golden adornments- clear up to the twenty foot ceilings. Our wonderful tour guide (mentioned in yesterday's post) did a great job pointing out many of the unique details- doors that come out of the walls (but VERY well hidden!), mismatched marble (apparently the owners went "shopping" for furniture and fireplaces around Europe and just bought whatever piqued their interest, not knowing/caring if it matched the rest of the decor), the EXTREME volume of cherubs, the modern chairs and in the conference room where grand wooden tables and silk chairs would have sat, along with so many more things. My favorite part of the tour was all of the stories. I love all of the history of the building- for instance, that Mrs. V had to host the British soldiers in 1943; or that someone proposed to his girlfriend in one of the upper rooms where you can sit and watch the sun set perfectly over the drive a few years ago and then had their wedding in the Manor. The building has so much character. My favorite room is the Conservatory- there are so many beautiful plants interspersed among the twisted marble columns.


I am not sure what I expected- I think I was actually very open to whatever it was going to be like. There are definitely parts that remind me of other places in Europe- the Gold Room felt very much like the Hall of Mirrors from Versailles, the inlaid floors reminded me of The Hermitage in Russia, and the Cedar Staircase had a Sistine Chapel meets Beauty and the Beast feel. But whatever it was that I expected, these expectations were met and exceeded.


It has been especially interesting to see how social obligation and expectations play a large role in the physical makeup of the landscape and in the literature of the period. The rules of the "civilized" make the vast differences between the front of the house and back of the house have even greater meaning. The front has the most MASSIVE door, marble fireplace, and staircase. The entire purpose in the design of the front of the house was to impress your neighbors and show off the fact that you had more money than they did. Dinner guests would cocktail in the room that had the most perfect view of the sunset (where the guy proposed), then dine in this AMAZING room that was purposefully constructed to be far from the kitchen noise (because goodness knows the master of the house should not have to listen to his meal be cooked!) with a set of doors carefully crafted into the wall one almost over top of the other with a space in between (to help block out any servants' noise, help heating, and try to keep the guests' conversation private from the servants- although if Nellie (Wuthering Heights) shows us anything, it is that the servants know everything). The women could retire to the Gold Room, a beautiful drawing room that would have been full of satin setees and chaise lounges and has mirrors on each wall at angles that make the room go on forever while the men chatted it up over their port and scotch.


Contrast that with the servants' quarters in the back of the house. Their hallways have no decorations or color their windows are jutting into the side of a hill (not the best view), and their rooms are exceedingly small and sparse. The hallways are also narrow and there are millions of tiny staircases that would have enabled them to appear and disappear seamlessly into the front of the house's space for entertaining. The social implications of the landscape discourage any fiestiness or hope for change from the lower class. Quite frankly, it is depressing to walk in the back of the house after walking around the other parts. I'm sure it would be even more so if after that walking around I had to be at someone's beck and call.


Looking forward to being able to compare Harlaxton to Haworth and Edinburgh after this weekend!