Boscobel House is famous for being the hiding place of King Charles II during civil war in the mid-1600s. In 1651, England had been in a civil war for nine years, and a young king fled after being defeated in the Battle of Worcester by Oliver Cromwell. Charles II made his way to Boscabel House and hid in an oak tree, which is known today as the Royal Oak. A descendant of the original tree can be seen today.
Boscabel House was no more than an isolated lodge surrounded by woodland in the 1600s; most of it was built in 1630, extending a much smaller cottage. The name "Boscabel" means "beautiful wood". Boscabel House is near White Ladies Priory, which is located about a mile away and which I visited prior to my visit to Boscabel House (read more about my visit to White Ladies Priory). Boscabel became a large farm in the 1800s, and visitors can see the farm buildings.
Charles II arrived at White Ladies Priory and hid there before hiding at Boscabel House. He was disguised as a countryman at Boscabel so that he could make an escape.
The Evans family owned the property from the late 1700s, and they made fortunes from mining and established a bank in Derby and then ventured into the cotton-spinning business. The two sisters were the final owners of Boscabel House and lived until the late 1800s; neither married. They allowed visitors to see the famous oak tree and house.
I visited the interior of the house first, and there were a few rooms to see. Visitors could take a "candle" around with them, which would add an interactive element to the experience. The candle could be placed in certain places, and this would sometimes bring a soundscape, projection, or other interactive element to the experience. In the first room, the lounge, we saw some wet stockings and boots warming by the fire.
We could see a couple of the bedrooms on the first floor. One of the rooms had a projection of a growing oak tree, and the other one had the king chopping his hair off to change his appearance.
The attic or second floor is where Charles II hid in a trapped door under the staircase.
Here are a couple of photographs of the attic.
After the visit to the house, I explored some of the working buildings. Some of these at Boscabel included the salting room, the dairy, the smithy, cider room, and cheese room. The salting room is where pig products were prepared. This room is being used to display how cheese was made; milk was left to age in shallow pans. The dairy was also used for churning butter. One of the rooms contained a cider press.
There were stables and a cow shed and other farm buildings. There was a sculpture of a cow that did not look like a cow unless you were facing it straight on.
Next up are the farm animals. Today, the site contains a mixture of hens, pigs, and sheep. Two pigs were asleep in the barn, and we were told that they were going to make their pen larger on the following day. The breed of pig is Tamworth, and they are a red-coloured pig. This breed is considered to be the most similar to Europe's wild pigs.
All of the hens and birds were double-fenced so that other birds could not get into their pen due to bird flu. There were also meant to be sheep, but I think they were all sleeping in a building somewhere behind the pasture. The breeds in the pen were Shropshires and Coloured Ryelands. The Ryelands are known for their wool and meat, and apparently Elizabeth I liked stockings made from their wool. Both breeds are not as common.
After visiting the animals, I made my way through the farmyard to the pasture to check out the oak.
The Royal Oak in the field seen today is a descendant of the original oak tree that Charles II hid in, and it was planted in the late 18th century and before the original tree had disappeared. Another descendant of the original tree was planted in the garden next to the house during the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria. The current Royal Oak tree in the field was damaged by storms. In 2001, a successor was planted by Prince Charles to mark 350 years since Charles II visited. In 2020, several other new oaks were planted in the field so that it could be woodland again.
After visiting the famous tree, I headed back to the house, approaching from the formal garden. The garden dates from the 1600s, and tulips are painted here, but they were not out during my visit; I was a week or two too early to see them. Tulips were extremely expensive in this period. Another feature of the garden is a small arbour located on top of a mound in the garden, and Charles II spent some time in here when he was at Boscabel House.
Another fact about the garden is the stonework paving. Using white rocks, a message was written out by the Evans sisters to commemorate the stay of Charles II. The message is still visible, although some of the rocks are missing or have been moved.
That covers my visit to Boscabel House, which I found really interesting. The guides were really knowledgeable and friendly, and I always get more out of a place when the guides are interested in parting with their knowledge. It's not like this at every property that I've been to.
Those interested about Charles II may wish to look at the National Trust property, Moseley Old Hall near Worcester where Charles II stopped off and hid afterwards. You can read about my visit to Moseley Old Hall here. You can also read about my visit to White Ladies Priory near Boscabel House here.
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