It was a perfect spring day on 25th April 2022 for travelling through Dorset to Dartmoor and Devon. Woodlands with fresh new leaves, and passing through small villages, farmland with lambs in the fields, then, finally arriving at the last castle to be built in England – Castle Drogo. It was built in 1910 for Julius Drewe on a remote Dartmoor hillside. The architect Edward Lutyens created an imaginative, romantic, and historic castle for the Drewe family. The Drewe descendants no longer found it feasible to maintain the remote castle and the National Trust now cares for the place and makes it accessible for visitors to enjoy.
Much of the furniture in the castle was acquired by Julius Drewe who used Brussels tapestries dedicated to pleasure and leisure. The furniture reflects the interests of the family travelling in this country and abroad. The interior of the castle shows all the rooms of the family life, the kitchens showing all the equipment used for dining, with the dining table set for full evening dinner, bathrooms and bedrooms with all modern conveniences, central heating, electricity, and telephone service.
You can walk away from the castle and follow a path through gardens below the ramparts planted with rhododendrons, camellias and cherries. There are formal terraces of both modern and old roses. Certainly an excellent and very good visit with all the National Trust amenities provided.
I am sure that all members who were on this trip would like to thank Sibyl and Tim for their planning and the organisation that goes into the organisation of a trip like this.
Jackie Martin
