Pomp and circumstance
04 Feb 2017
From the regal Hampton Court Palace to the changing of the guard at Windsor Castle and the stately architecture of Oxford, you’ll love discovering the history and culture as you cruise along the Thames.
Who could imagine a more regal starting point for a barge cruise in Richmond upon Thames, than the ornamental gates of Hampton Court Palace?
It is late afternoon and the setting sun has burnished the gates a fiery gold, as our small group boards the barge Magna Carta, our floating home for the next six nights. Our Classic England Cruise is going to take us to Runnymede, past Magna Carta Island, to Windsor, Cookham, Hurley, Henley-on-Thames and Oxford. Although we will cover only 96 kilometres, our journey promises to deliver a thrilling immersion into the history, culture and gastronomy of this corner of England.
Ready to greet us are Magna Carta’s crew: first mate, chef and two hostesses. We already have captain in tow. He had invited us for cream tea at London’s pedigreed Stafford Hotel in the heart of St James before chauffeuring us to Hampton Court.
On deck, ‘welcome aboard’ bubbles circulated as we sat, drinking in the serenity of the setting while musing on its stormy history and trying to count the 241 Tudor chimneys. We were so close we could smell the roses of the legendary gardens.
We adjourn to our suites to freshen up for dinner. Each is named after eminent Britons: Winston Churchill, Christopher Wren, William Shakespeare and Henry V111. All have ensuite bathrooms which are surprisingly spacious.
Dining is an important ritual. Guests gather around the communal table, wine pairings are explained and chef describes the menu, highlighting locally-sourced produce showcased in the contemporary British cuisine.
Smell the roses
Next morning, our visit to Hampton Court includes a guided tour of the gardens: Great Fountain, Privy and Pond gardens, Lower Orangery and The Great Vine planted by Capability Brown in 1768. We pass through the vast Tudor kitchens, on to Henry’s chapel and corridor– said to be haunted by Henry’s fifth wife Catherine Howard – before we enter the Baroque Palace of William and Mary.
At Windsor, we walk from barge to castle arriving in time to see the changing of the guard before a tour of the State Apartments, Queen Mary’s Dolls House, St George’s Chapel where 10 monarchs lie. Back on the barge we have a leisurely lunch on deck beneath the spreading boughs of chestnut trees in full bloom.
Boarding the barge’s minivan, we head to Dorney Court. The Tudor manor house, still in the same family for 450 years, is often used as a film location, for example Elizabeth: The Golden Years; and The Invisible Woman.
Progress on the barge isn’t always ‘plain sailing’. There are locks, weirs and low bridges to negotiate. But passers-by strolling or cycling along the towpath wave cheerily.
A house party
Along the riverbank, homes range from modest to palatial. Gliding through Bray, famed for its celebrity restaurants, including Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck and the Roux brothers’ Waterside Inn, we progress toward Cliveden Reach, and the magnificently positioned Cliveden House. It is still remembered as the scenario of the Profumo Affair sex scandal of the ‘60s, which toppled Harold Macmillan’s government. Dinner party conversation that evening was particularly lively. No matter the subject, life onboard resembles a congenial house party.
Often we putter past water meadows and woodlands carpeted with drifts of bluebells and primrose. England could never look lovelier. At Cookham, home of revered artist Stanley Spencer, we visit his gallery, which is also in bloom with his many canvases of magnolias.
An important pilgrimage for many is Henley-on-Thames – site of the famous Royal Regatta. A visit to the Museum of River and Rowing is a delight as much for its historic memorabilia, as the permanent exhibition of Kenneth Grahame’s endearing characters from Wind in the Willows – Ratty, Mole, Badger and Toad, modelled from illustrations by EH Shepherd.
Our last port is Oxford, where we stroll among its lovely stone buildings – in particular, Christ Church founded initially by Cardinal Wolsey, and later Henry V111. The Great Hall features as a setting in Harry Potter films.
But the portrait of another literary legend resides also here, Charles Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll of Alice in Wonderland fame).
Returning to Magna Carta for the last time, a grand farewell dinner awaits. While many may have visited these attractions before, little equals viewing them from England’s river of liquid history.
Maggy Oehlbeck was a guest of European Waterways, Stafford Hotel and Rail Europe.
Magna Carta was built in Holland in the '30s as a cargo barge. She was converted into luxury boutique accommodation in 2002. She is the largest hotel barge on the Thames and carries eight guests and a crew of five. The interior offers English country house comfort. There are leather sofas, books, fresh flowers and an open bar. It is available for private charter and a chauffeur-driven minivan is available for excursions. Admission tickets to major attractions are bought in advance, so you can avoid the queues.
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