Blenheim Palace, birth place of Sir William Churchill and a palace in every sense of the word.

The day I visited was one of those baking hot days and I think that that made the gardens the highlight of the day.  As such this page has a number of photos of the gardens and perhaps not as many as usual of the property itself.  Even so because of the partly the heat, and partly the long distance I had to travel to visit there was still a lot of the grounds I did not get to see.  In particular I did not see The Grand Cascade, the Lake and Bridge, Rosamond's Well, The Triumphal Arch and only saw The Column of Victory from a distance.
 

There was still a lot I did see though including a glimpse into private Italian Garden, the picture being directly below this text.

You can also take advantage of the Blenheim Park Railway as I did which takes you to the Pleasure Gardens.  Here you will find the Marlborough Maze, the Butterfly House (which I did not go in having a great aversion to any type of insect life) and the kitchen garden.

I believe that the most impressive of the gardens has to be the Water Terraces of which there are a number of pictures on this page.  The fountains are numerous and beautiful, they really make an unusual garden and are a delight to walk through.

And of course there is the palace itself.  You enter the building through the entrance in the Great Court.  You enter into the Great Hall.  Large and impressive, and that is just the lock to the main door!

As mentioned above Sir Winston Churchill had strong connections with this place and today you can view not only the room he was born in but curls of his hair taken when he was five years old.

You can also view some of the paintings that he did and there is a lot to see in an exhibition on his life and the role he played in history.

The rooms of the palace are all impressive and you find centuries old portraits mingled with recent photographs.

The ancient tapesties line some of the walls and for the eagle-eyed amongst you you can try to spot the dog with the horse's hooves.  Very amusing and if you don't spot it the tour guide will be sure to point it out.

Another of the impressive rooms is The Saloon.  This room has painted walls and is said to be still used by the family on Christmas Day.  You can also see where the artist of the walls (Louis Laguerre (1663-1721) has immortalised himself into the mural.

Another of the very impressive rooms is The Long Library, always a favourite with me.  Containing a statue of Queen Anne and thousands of books it is a light and airey room and from the furniture, comfortable armchairs, it would also appear to be a room that is well lived in.

However, at the north end of the Long Library you will find the huge Willis organ, which may disturb the peace and quiet of any reader choosing to while away the hours in this room.

You can then visit the chapel with a remarkable monument to the two sons, who both died young, of the 1st Duk and Duchess of Marlborough.