The Palm Tree Lodge in Canterbury, Kent, England has was added to jmlvillas.com and engliscottagerental.com yesterday. A day - 11th February 2010 - when the south east of England - Kent was very much in the news with nine inches of snow in the Dover Folkestone area and delays for traffic using the Channel Tunnel.
Situated in the small hamlet of Wingmore, in the heart of the Elham Valley is The Palm Tree Lodge, a secluded 2 bedroom self contained holiday cottage which can accomodate for up to 6 people. The Elham Valley stretches from the Coast through to the historic Cathedral City of Canterbury and is within both an area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a Special Lanscape Area.
The Lodge was once part of The Palm Tree House, an eyecatching property of symetrical front elevations and fascinating interior features. The property is grade II listed and since the mid eighteenth century had been functioning as an Inn. The Inn was de-licensed in 2009 and whilst a number of facilities remain that clearly identify the property as an Inn, it is now enjoyed as a property of residence.
Like most Inns, the property is set on the road although the Lodge itself is set round the back of the Inn and enjoys views up and down the valley and adjorns onto surrounding farmland.
There are a wealth of footpaths and cycle routes leading away from the Lodge and it is approximately mid-way between the villages of Elham and Barham, which both offer a good local shop, pubs and restaurant facilities and they are both reachable within a couple of miles. About 1,000 yards down the road from the lodge is a vineyard and tearooms, where tours & wine tasting can be arranged. There is also a plant centre, a shop selling wine and crafts, and the tearoom serves home baking, light lunches and cream teas. Wider facilities are provided by the Cathedral City of Canterbury, with its excellent shopping centre, sporting and recreational opportunities and is about 11 miles away.
There are 2 Golf Courses nearby at Broome Park and Etchinghill. Within 12 miles there is also the Royal St Georges PGA Links golf course which is at Sandwich. The coast is approximately 13 miles away and the best beaches are at Margate and Dymchurch, which are both sandy beaches. There is a county cricket ground in Canterbury and horse racing down at the coast in Folkestone.
There are many places to visit in and around Canterbury. You could visit Canterburys Cathedral, take a historic river boat tour down the river stour. Visit the Canterbury Tales and step into medieval Canterbury and accompany Geoffrey Chaucer and his colourful Pilgrims as they make their magical pilgrimage from London to the shrine of Thomas Becket in the Cathedral. Walk and Explore Canterbury with costumed characters ready to tell you the myths and legends and how about taking a ghost tour.
Canterbury also has a theatre and many excellent restaurants. Coming out of the City visit the lions and tigers at Howletts Animal Park or take an offshore tour to see the Maunsell Forts and the seals in the seas off Herne Bay & Whitsable. See the Roman painted house in Dover and spend a day a Dover Castle. There also are many museums in Canterbury and out at Hawkinge there is the Spitfire museum.
A bus service, which stops alongside The Palm Tree House, runs along the Elham Valley between Canterbury and Folkestone and the Lodge is well placed for both the M2 and M20 motorways. There are also regular train services to London from Sandling and Canterbury. For connections to the Continent, the Lodge is within easy each of the Eurotunnel terminal at Folkestone, the Port of Dover and Ashford International for Eurostar.
The History of The Palm Tree.
The origins of this property go back nearly 300 years when it was built as a Georgian Farmhouse. In 1735 the owner was granted a license to sell ales from the premises, but was restricted to the sale of ales and cider only.
The house remained 'un-named' until the property was sold to Thomas Sancraft in 1753 who registered the house as the "Whyte Hause" or "White Horse". In 1758 the property was granted a full license where it thrived both as an Inn and as a saddlers and harness makers, before being sold in 1806 to Josiah Cressy.
Josiah Cressy was a seaman of Folkestone and had travelled extensively. Although not recorded as such, local account has it that Cressy had been aboard one of Captain James Cook's ships as they explored the globe, and in particular the Hawaiian Islands where sight of Palm Trees was first noted. Cressy renamed the house and registered it under the title of the "Palm Tree" in 1812, no doubt to remind him of some far distant shore that he had visited.
The property is set on the banks of the 'Nail Bourne' which winds along the Elham Valley. The valley has long been a corridor connecting the Ports of Dover and Folkestone through to the historic Cathedral City of Canterbury, and as such has been a busy trade and passage way over the Centuries. It was around here that King John camped with 50,000 men in preparation for war with France in 1214, and the Duke of Wellington camped 18,000 troops along the valley in 1799 awaiting embarkation during the Napoleonic Wars.
It is its many legends about smuggling however that have influenced the property and its owners the most. There are many stories and local tales associating the property with local gangs and smugglers using the property as a meeting place and hostelty, either hiding from customs or dividing their spoils.
One tale of events involving smuggling in 1748 was when a local gang brought a large cargo of brandy, tea and rum over from France. Customs were particularly displeased and managed to capture a number of the gang. One of the gang members however was able to give an alibi for his captured colleague.
Whilst relaying the alibi to the customs official in this very Inn however, a local informer saw the two talking and mistaking this as treachery, the remaining gang members hunted them down, allegedly lacing their drinks until they were sleepy. The two men were flogged and tied to a horse, before the customs officer was buried. The disloyal gang member was made an example of however and thrown head first down the well. It was perhaps this link with navel tales, legal or otherwise that attracted Cressy as a landlord and the appearance of the property today.
This sounds like a facinating place to take a self catering holiday vacation.
•Sleeps up to 6
•2 bedrooms
•2 bathrooms
•Washing machine
•Telephone
•Bars nearby
•TV
•Restaurants nearby
•Microwave
•Golf
More information at the jmlvillas.com website
http://www.jmlvillas.com/villa/776
No comments:
Post a Comment