Lacock Abbey

Although Lacock is one of the most beautiful villages in all of England, it doesn't take long to visit almost every inch of it. If you plan an entire day out in Lacock you might be straining yourself for things to do. However, any trip to Lacock is not complete until you've visited the vast grounds of Lacock Abbey. 

Lacock is home to one of the most interesting abbeys I have visited in England. Looking more like an estate rather than a religious institution, Lacock Abbey has a very unique history. Founded in 1229 by the Countess of Salisbury as a tribute to her deceased husband, Lacock Abbey was built to be a nunnery. During Henry VIII's dissolution of religious institutions, he found Lacock to be too small to pose any sort of threat. He left the abbey alone, asking Sir William Sharington, the owner of the property at the time, to destroy only the chapel. Since then, the abbey has been used as an estate for many noble families, the Talbots being the most prominent in its recent history. In 1835, William Henry Fox Talbot used the abbey as the setting of the very first photographic negative. Today, the abbey is a National Trust property, the grounds stretching for as far as you can see. It has been used as the set for most Harry Potter movies as well as the Other Boleyn Girl (which I find to be terribly amusing and ironic). 

Happy Wednesday!
xoxo