A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF HEVER CASTLE
Thanks to William Waldorf Astor, a wealthy American-born attorney, politician, businessman and newspaper publisher, the castle was restored in the early 20th century. It boasts beautifully adorned rooms with panelled walls and is filled with antiques, tapestries and fine art, including a magnificent collection of Tudor portraits.
Astor spent a great deal of money creating a giant 15 hectare lake surrounded by lavish gardens divided into “rooms”, including The Loggia, the Italian Garden (complete with Pompeiian Wall and classical statues), a Tudor Garden and Rhododendron Walk. There is also a giant topiary chess set, two mazes (one made of yew, the other on water) and a quintessential English Rose Garden featuring more than 4,000 rose bushes, including its own own Hever Rose, which erupts into masses of velvety deep-red blooms fading to cerise, offset by golden-yellow stamens.
There are lots of walks to undertake, including one that follows the course of a stream, and another, known as Anne Boleyn’s Walk, which winds its way through an impressive collection of trees planted more than a century ago.