Killerton........... — Steve Chivers Photography

Regular readers will already know that Mrs.C and I are great supporters of the National Trust and we have been slowly working our way around the properties that are situated within an hour or so’s drive from Plymouth.

Well, whilst Devon was experiencing a bout of glorious weather, we needed no excuse for a visit to Killerton, an 18th century house and estate located about an hour away, just outside of Exeter. So we packed a picnic, fired up Bucephalus, dialed Killerton in to the sat-nav and headed up the A38.

From a photography standpoint I packed my standard National Trust kit; the Leica SL2 and manually adapted Leica 50mm Noctilux F0.95. I use this kit when I visit National Trust properties because they are often very dark inside, flash photography is never allowed in the properties, the Noctilux gives me plenty of versability throughout the apertures (although F0.95 is where the magic happens) and with 47 megapixels the SL2 has stunning image quality with plenty of opportunity for cropping.

Killerton was the home of one family, the Aclands, from the late 17th century until 1944. During their tenure the family transformed the original Tudor home into a rather grand Georgian and latterly Victorian Estate.

I found the house to be grand yet very livable. It has been through three key modifications:

In 1778 when the 7th Baron, Sir Thomas Acland expanded the Tudor house.
The early 19th Century when the 10th Baronet and his wife Lady Lydia expanded the house to suit their growing family.
The final modifications, carried out by the 12th Baronet and his wife Lady Gertrude at the turn of the 20th Century.

The current layout of the house reflects the 1920’s and the time of Sir Francis, the 14th Baronet.

The Killerton Estate was transferred to the National Trust in 1944 by Sir Richard Acland and his wife Lady Anne, primarily due to their political beliefs. This gift made Killerton one of the largest bequests that the National Trust had received.

The Family motto “Inebranlable” which means “Unshakeable”.

As you wander around the home you realize that this is a real home, that was lived-in and used. It takes you back to the glorious 1920’s and I would be very happy to move in tomorrow (not sure I could afford the council tax though!).

Anyone for a glass of fizz, Moet of course!

When visiting these properties I always like to grab a few images of the dining table as it shows how they used to live. I would say the Aclands were refined yet practical.

Now that’s how I like my eggs, served with a sprinkling of noctilux bokeh.

The house also contains the largest fashion collection within the National Trust. There is always a curated exhibition on display and during our visit, the first floor of the house took us back to the swinging 1920’s.

The complete guide for fancy dress in the 1920’s.

Having enjoyed the main house immensely it was time to head out in to the garden and surrounding estate.

The house is situated within 6,400 acres and was originally designed by John Veitch and was very much influenced by the famous Capability Brown. The grounds have a rich acidic soil and a microclimate that promotes the growth of camellias, magnolia, rhododendrons and a host of other exotic plants and trees.

The garden is a very good walk and so stout shoes, a sun hat and some form of hydration is advised.

There are plenty of benches throughout the estate and we managed to find a rather secluded bench, in the heart of the woods, where we were able to enjoy our picnic amongst the glorious surroundings.

Oh dear, problems with the analogue sat-nav!

The Killerton estate has its own Chapel. It’s a grade 1 listed building in a beautiful setting. It was designed by the architect C.R. Cockerel, under the commission of the 10th Baronet, Sir Thomas Acland, in 1841.