25 January 2018
Sulgrave Manor is a Tudor house set in the beautiful green countryside of Northamptonshire. It was the home of Lawrence Washington, a distant ancestor of George Washington.
After an eventful journey, the boys were dressed in the traditional garments of a Tudor girl or boy: caps, breaches or kirtle (skirt!), and tunics. They certainly looked the part as they took the roles of children in a Tudor school. With feathered quills and pots of ink, they found that even writing their own names was quite a task! This was followed by a very entertaining role-play in which the boys took on the roles of Henry VIII, the members of his court and his rather unfortunate wives. Amid cheering and booing, they played out numerous marriages, divorces, beheadings and a visit to the Pope in Rome.
After a scrumptious Tudor lunch of chicken legs, pork pies, hunks of bread and cheese, we set off on a tour of the house. We spent time in the kitchen, the bedroom and the dining hall and learnt about all the amazing Tudor artefacts in each room. The boys were eager to share their thoughts and ask questions and thoroughly enjoyed their conversations with our guide. We learnt lots of fascinating facts about the lives of Tudor servants, and how the Tudors cooked, ate and slept.
Thanks to our wonderful guides, our visit to Sulgrave was a rich and rewarding experience that was enjoyed by all.
