Situated in seculded rolling hills near High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire is Hughenden Manor, home of the former Prime Minister during Queen Victoria's later years, Benjamin Disraeli. Disraeli, Britain's first Jewish Prime Minister, lived in Hughenden Manor with his wife Mary Anne from 1848 to 1881. The Manor itself dates to the mid-1000s, and it was also an important secret intelligene base (dubbed "Hillside") during World War II. After its use in World War II, it became under control of the National Trust who managed and maintains it.
The entrance for visitors is at the front of the house, which had its Gothic facade replaced with an Edwardian style using red bricks.
A few of the rooms on the ground floor are dedicated to the house during its time as an intelligence base. This is where maps were drawn, printed, and distributed. There is information about all of these stages with a couple of the original maps on display with their target areas highlighted in magenta ink for the pilots to see in dim light. An example below is of Munich in Germany, which was a high profile target for destroying the Nazi party and hitting morale.
The Garden Room is where the guests would have waited for Disraeli and his wife. Many of Disraeli's items are located in this room, including a miniature portrait of his wife.
Next to this is the Drawing Room. Originally, this was Disraeli's library with stunning views over the garden. After his nephew inherited the property, he changed this room to the Drawing Room and the back room to the library so that the books would be protected. The portrait above the fireplace is of Mary Anne, based on a smaller portrait in the adjacent Garden Room.
Below is a photograph of the library across from the Drawing Room.
On the first floor is the main bedroom and views over the back gardens.
The bedroom contains one of the first toilets, located beside the bed. It is a wooden box with a pot underneath it. Above the fireplace is a portrait of a young Queen Victoria and Albert, which was the first gift from Queen Victoria. The Queen disliked Disraeli at first, but he gained her respect after he gave a public speech about Prince Albert after his death, and this flattered the queen. She sent the portraits to him.
One of the other rooms on this floor contained information about Victorian funerals, such as sending invitations to funerals with black borders. The thicker the border, the closer of a connection you were to the deceased. Memorial cards were often sent. Disraeli is buried in the church located down the small road from the manor.
The above photograph is of the study. In the rooms upstairs, visitors can learn about Queen Victoria and Disraeli and see some of the gifts from Victoria to Disraeli.
The final room to see is on the ground floor, and it is the dining room.
After exploring the house, I walked to the garden behind. The gardens are beautiful, and they were in their prime when I visited at the beginning of September.
After exploring the gardens, I went to the Ice House. The Ice House was transformed in the 1940s to act as a film development studio or dark room for developing the film to use for the maps.
After this, I went to the walled garden to have a look around. Here there is a mixture of wildflowers, fruit trees, and vegetables.
The rolling hills here reminded me of home, and some of the trees are slightly starting to turn colour. I enjoyed this visit to National Trust's Hughenden Manor, and I loved the garden at the back.
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