Exceptional Travel Writing
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Upon
leaving Burgh House, stroll down Flask Walk and, if thirsty, drop
into The Flask and drink in the ambience of a genuine Victorian
pub. Once back on Hampstead High Street, cross over to Church
Row, an elegant 18th-century terrace of brown brick houses where
George Du Maurier and H.G. Wells once lived. At the end of the
row is the Church of St. John-at-Hampstead, where the artist John
Constable is buried. |
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Northwards is Holly Walk with its pretty 19th-century pink and yellow washed cottages. Continue up across Mount Vernon Junction along Hampstead Grove and note on your left the elegant wrought iron gates of Fenton House. Now a National Trust property, Fenton House is an attractive, redbrick, Queen Anne house, once the home of Philip Fenton, a wealthy merchant. The interior is authentic, early 18th century, with fine furniture and an extensive porcelain collection. The most important feature is the assembly of early keyboard instruments, kept in good playing condition by visiting music students who give concerts here. Outside is the walled garden with terraced walks, a sunken garden and orchard. |
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Just
beyond Fenton House is Admirals Walk where you'll find Grove Lodge, the
house in which John Galsworthy wrote The Forsyte Saga.
Continue uphill until you reach the Whitestone Pond, London's highest
point at 133 meters (437 feet), believed to be the site of one of the
Armada beacons. On the left, the large, white weatherboard building is
Jack Straw's Castle, now a pub and once the gathering point for supporters
of the Peasants' Revolt of 1381. Take the right fork down Spaniards Road
to the Spaniards Inn and Tollhouse. This weatherboard inn stands on the
site of a house that belonged to a 17th-century Spanish ambassador. It
was here that the Gordon Rioters stopped in 1780 to ask the way to Kenwood
House, but their revolutionary zeal withered under the influence of excess
ale.
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Follow the footpath off Spaniards Road across Hampstead Heath to find Kenwood House. Lord Iveagh bequeathed this beautiful Adam-style house to England in 1828. Kenwood contains paintings by Gainsborough, Stubbs, Rembrandt, Hals, Vermeer, Turner, Romney and Reynolds. There is also an extensive collection of 18th-century furniture, jewellery and shoebuckles. During the summer music recitals are given in the Orangery and evening concerts are held at the lakeside. Also in the grounds is Doctor Johnson's Summerhouse, brought to Kenwood in 1968. Lunches and afternoon teas are served in the Old Kitchen and Coach House. |
Make sure you leave time for a stroll on the heath itself. Comprising of 324 hectares (800 acres), it is just slightly smaller than New York's Central Park (843 acres). With heathland, hills, ponds and pathways, for walking, kite flying, swimming and picnicking, it has been the playground of North Londoners for over 150 years since it was rescued at the eleventh hour from the greedy hands of developers.
LONDON'S
HAMPSTEAD: PONDS, PUBS AND POETRY
was
first published in The Sunday News
