0:00:04 > 0:00:09For Victorian Britons, George Bradshaw was a household name.
0:00:09 > 0:00:11At a time when railways were new,
0:00:11 > 0:00:15Bradshaw's guidebook inspired them to take to the tracks.
0:00:15 > 0:00:20I'm using a Bradshaw's Guide to understand how trains
0:00:20 > 0:00:23transformed Britain, its landscape, its industries,
0:00:23 > 0:00:26society and leisure time.
0:00:26 > 0:00:30As I crisscross the country 150 years later,
0:00:30 > 0:00:33it helps me to discover the Britain of today.
0:00:54 > 0:00:56I'm embarking on a new rail journey which will take me
0:00:56 > 0:01:01in a semi-circular sweep through the Home Counties, skirting London,
0:01:01 > 0:01:03which, at the time of my Bradshaw's Guide,
0:01:03 > 0:01:08was the world's greatest city at a time of extraordinary innovation.
0:01:08 > 0:01:12As we know from our own times, technological progress goes
0:01:12 > 0:01:16hand in hand with changes in social behaviour.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20And I'm looking forward to seeing how customs and manners
0:01:20 > 0:01:23were altered in a newly mechanised age.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35Following my Bradshaw's Guide, I'll be travelling from
0:01:35 > 0:01:38the county of Kent, winding my way through Surrey,
0:01:38 > 0:01:41discovering Victorians of great talent,
0:01:41 > 0:01:45daredevil pioneers and a royal residence or two.
0:01:45 > 0:01:50Journey's end will be riverside in Oxfordshire at Henley-on-Thames.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55Today, my journey begins in the railway town of Ashford,
0:01:55 > 0:02:01before moving on through the Kentish Weald to call in at Marden.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05I'll finish this leg in the leafy town of Sevenoaks.
0:02:06 > 0:02:10I discover the secrets of the Victorian beauty business...
0:02:10 > 0:02:11Eurgh!
0:02:11 > 0:02:16That is a Princess Alexandra-style false fringe.
0:02:16 > 0:02:20Real human hair from the 1880s.
0:02:20 > 0:02:22..fine-tune my piano skills...
0:02:22 > 0:02:26- Sounding better?- That's pretty impressive,
0:02:26 > 0:02:28- considering it's your first attempt! - Got it in one!
0:02:28 > 0:02:29THEY LAUGH
0:02:29 > 0:02:33..and hear of a violent mob in Sevenoaks.
0:02:33 > 0:02:351,500, townspeople threatened that if Mortimer
0:02:35 > 0:02:38was brought out to them, they would hang him.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42- I imagine you Sackvilles have been fairly cautious about public opinion ever since?- Extremely!
0:02:52 > 0:02:55My first stop will be Ashford, which Bradshaw's tells me was
0:02:55 > 0:02:59"a quiet, agricultural town in East Kent until
0:02:59 > 0:03:02"the Southeastern Railway Company made it
0:03:02 > 0:03:04"the chief station for their works,
0:03:04 > 0:03:08"since which time the population has greatly increased.
0:03:08 > 0:03:10"There's a carriage house, repairing shop,
0:03:10 > 0:03:14"an engine room, factories for wheels and boilers etc".
0:03:14 > 0:03:16And I might say that today,
0:03:16 > 0:03:19Ashford has the unique claim amongst British towns of being
0:03:19 > 0:03:24connected by high-speed rail to London in 34 minutes
0:03:24 > 0:03:27and Paris in well under two hours.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35Ashford is one of just five stations in the United Kingdom
0:03:35 > 0:03:38to offer both domestic and international services.
0:03:40 > 0:03:44In 1996, it became Ashford International,
0:03:44 > 0:03:48with Eurostar trains stopping here en route to and from the Continent.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53The railway works, described in my Bradshaw's Guide,
0:03:53 > 0:03:56stood here for around 150 years.
0:03:56 > 0:04:00Now, a new engineering operation is based here.
0:04:00 > 0:04:04In 2007, the vast Hitachi maintenance plant was built
0:04:04 > 0:04:07to support a fleet of high-speed trains which
0:04:07 > 0:04:10run on the Southeastern network.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13It has both old and new railway lines,
0:04:13 > 0:04:15so these trains have to run on both.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20I'm meeting Nigel King, the fleet manager.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25Nigel, a most impressive, spanking-new facility.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27What is it that you have to do here?
0:04:27 > 0:04:29What we do is we maintain 29 high-speed trains
0:04:29 > 0:04:31for our customer, Southeastern.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34It's different levels of maintenance we do. The smallest is an overnight check,
0:04:34 > 0:04:37which we do every evening to ensure the trains are
0:04:37 > 0:04:40fit and available for service, all the way through to the heavy overhaul,
0:04:40 > 0:04:44which you see here today, which is done at a frequency of 600,000 miles.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48That, for us, in terms of time, is around three and a half years to accumulate that mileage.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52What are the vital statistics to these trains, what speed can they do?
0:04:52 > 0:04:57The maximum speed is 225kph, which is 140mph.
0:04:57 > 0:05:01One of the complications is that you have to have two sources
0:05:01 > 0:05:03of electric power for these trains.
0:05:03 > 0:05:07Yep, so when they're on the high-speed line, which is between Ashford and London,
0:05:07 > 0:05:11they're on the AC 25,000 volts and they pick that up from the overhead line.
0:05:11 > 0:05:13Then when we get Ashford and we go on to the classic network,
0:05:13 > 0:05:17the older network, we change over to 750-volt DC and the driver
0:05:17 > 0:05:20changes to collecter shoes that go down and pick up the power.
0:05:20 > 0:05:23And does that make the train much more complicated to deal with?
0:05:23 > 0:05:25It does make it more complicated. However,
0:05:25 > 0:05:29we knew that from the outset and built that into the design.
0:05:29 > 0:05:32So, train over there...
0:05:32 > 0:05:34- bogey, wheels, over here...- Yeah.
0:05:34 > 0:05:36How'd you get the two to meet?
0:05:36 > 0:05:38Human power.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41- No!- All of this technology and we still have to use human power for this.
0:05:41 > 0:05:45Nigel, if I may say so, you're lucky that I'm here today.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48Once serviced, each of the 12 bogeys per train
0:05:48 > 0:05:51is reattached to the carriages.
0:05:53 > 0:05:55Nigel, how many tonnes are we pushing here?
0:05:55 > 0:05:58These are around 8.5 tonnes, each bogey.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00OK, well, let's go to it then.
0:06:01 > 0:06:03Eurrrgh!
0:06:03 > 0:06:05That's amazing. It's under way!
0:06:19 > 0:06:23There's a total of 29 trains in the system,
0:06:23 > 0:06:25and during weekday peak periods
0:06:25 > 0:06:2726 must be available for use,
0:06:27 > 0:06:30making the maintenance schedule a challenge.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34It's crucial to get the trains back into service without delay.
0:06:35 > 0:06:40- James, hello.- Hello, Michael. - Good to see you.- And you.
0:06:40 > 0:06:43I understand this train has been serviced,
0:06:43 > 0:06:44and is now going back into the network.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48Yes, it's had a 29-day exam, it's fit to run
0:06:48 > 0:06:51and we'll be taking it out on to the stabling area.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53The complication of these trains is that they have to pick up power
0:06:53 > 0:06:57- from two places, both from a third rail and from an overhead wire.- Yes.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00So presumably, both those systems have to be tested before you go out?
0:07:00 > 0:07:04Yes, we have to make sure that both the pantographs are working
0:07:04 > 0:07:08correctly, and also the shoe gear we test before it leaves the shed.
0:07:08 > 0:07:11The pantograph goes up, and then the shoes go down.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13Can I help with that?
0:07:13 > 0:07:15Basically, if you push the CTRL button...
0:07:17 > 0:07:19And then you push the "Pan Up Shoes Down" button
0:07:19 > 0:07:21and that will raise the pantograph.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25That's it.
0:07:32 > 0:07:36Having checked the pantograph, the train is then positioned so that the
0:07:36 > 0:07:40shoes below it can be deployed to take power from the third rail.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45Yeah, I can confirm we've got lined volts and all ready to move
0:07:45 > 0:07:47when you are, over.
0:07:47 > 0:07:51RADIO: All received, James, yes, you are clear to exit the shed when ready.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55I imagine we will not be travelling at 140mph?
0:07:55 > 0:07:58Er, no, no. Only 3mph out of the shed.
0:07:58 > 0:08:013mph. What's the fastest you've ever driven one of these?
0:08:01 > 0:08:04Up to 10mph on certain parts of the yard, which we're allowed to.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06MICHAEL CHUCKLES
0:08:08 > 0:08:12I feel rather sad about this. It's a bit like taxiing in a 747, isn't it?
0:08:12 > 0:08:15All that pent-up power that we're not using.
0:08:15 > 0:08:16Well, thank you, James.
0:08:16 > 0:08:21I believe that was one of the slowest train rides I've ever taken, but also one of the most interesting.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23- Lovely, thank you. - Thank you very much.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27As I leave the hi-tech, high-speed train to make its way
0:08:27 > 0:08:30back into the network,
0:08:30 > 0:08:32I'm struck by how advances in railways
0:08:32 > 0:08:34have changed the face of Ashford.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38Their arrival in the Victorian era started a population boom
0:08:38 > 0:08:43and today, the fast journey times have made it into a commuter town.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49Its transport links to the Continent have attracted major businesses
0:08:49 > 0:08:51and I'm off to see one of them.
0:08:52 > 0:08:57While in Ashford, I thought I'd brush up on the history of cosmetics.
0:08:57 > 0:09:00I BLUSH to say that I know very little about it,
0:09:00 > 0:09:03but I think it has a Victorian FOUNDATION.
0:09:05 > 0:09:07I'm visiting British make-up brand Rimmel,
0:09:07 > 0:09:10which was founded in the 19th century.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14It moved to the current site when its previous factory was demolished
0:09:14 > 0:09:17to make way for the international railway station.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20Before taking a tour of the production line,
0:09:20 > 0:09:23I'm meeting make-up historian Madeleine Marsh to find out
0:09:23 > 0:09:28more about the potions and powders of Bradshaw's day.
0:09:28 > 0:09:32Madeline, who was wearing make-up in the middle of the 19th century?
0:09:32 > 0:09:35People wearing cosmetics are maybe actresses,
0:09:35 > 0:09:37prostitutes and the French.
0:09:37 > 0:09:43If you were an English lady, you wanted a pale, refined
0:09:43 > 0:09:45and unblemished complexion.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48Soaps, cold creams and powders
0:09:48 > 0:09:52were permissible as long as you used a tiny bit.
0:09:52 > 0:09:54So you had to look as though you did nothing to your face,
0:09:54 > 0:09:58but in fact you're putting all these things on it.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02The language on these is particularly fascinating.
0:10:02 > 0:10:08This one "used by refined ladies and perfectly harmless".
0:10:08 > 0:10:10Now what did they mean by that?
0:10:10 > 0:10:12That implies that something had been harmFUL.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16Yeah, and what had been harmful was face paints.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18Enamelling, as they called it.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22As used in the 18th century, ladies died from lead poisoning.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25There was arsenic, there was mercury included.
0:10:25 > 0:10:30So all these manufacturers are desperate to say this was safe.
0:10:30 > 0:10:32Now, what we've left out is hair.
0:10:32 > 0:10:34Hair was very important.
0:10:34 > 0:10:36And the less you did to your face,
0:10:36 > 0:10:38the more you wanted to do to your hair.
0:10:38 > 0:10:44Big hair, huge pompadour hairstyles, everything had to be frizzed.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48Now think, what would that crimper have done to your hair?
0:10:48 > 0:10:53Terrible stories of ladies burning themselves and losing their hair.
0:10:53 > 0:10:57And because of that, we needed this,
0:10:57 > 0:11:00and you would have worn this as well, Michael, this is bear's grease.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03- You're not serious? - Oh, you would. Everybody wore this.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06It was made from the fat of bears.
0:11:06 > 0:11:09Brown bears were particularly preferred.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13Later on in the 19th century, they turned to vegetable oils
0:11:13 > 0:11:19like Rowlands' Macassar Oil, which might be palm,
0:11:19 > 0:11:24it might be olive oil, and that's why on chairs and in trains today,
0:11:24 > 0:11:30even so, you get the anti-macassar on the back of the seat to stop
0:11:30 > 0:11:34a gentlemen's greasy head from leaving a nasty trail.
0:11:34 > 0:11:35What's in the box?
0:11:35 > 0:11:36Be my guest.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41- Eurgh!- Mmm!
0:11:41 > 0:11:42What is that?
0:11:42 > 0:11:48Well, what with curling your hair, dyeing your hair,
0:11:48 > 0:11:50female baldness was quite a problem
0:11:50 > 0:11:55and that is a Princess Alexandra-style false fringe.
0:11:55 > 0:12:00- A fringe?- Yes. Real human hair from the 1880s.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06In this period, an important new name in the cosmetic industry emerged.
0:12:06 > 0:12:11In 1880, Eugene Rimmel, a perfumer to the court of Queen Victoria
0:12:11 > 0:12:17invented what's believed to be the world's first non-toxic mascara.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21So popular was this product that it made him a household name
0:12:21 > 0:12:25and today the word for "mascara" in several languages is "Rimmel".
0:12:25 > 0:12:27I'm meeting Mary Brady,
0:12:27 > 0:12:32the Ashford plant manager, to take a look at today's operations.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35Mary, you have really a vast facility here.
0:12:35 > 0:12:39How many products are coming out of this factory?
0:12:39 > 0:12:43We end up manufacturing about 160 million units a year.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46I get the impression that Eugene was the great innovator.
0:12:46 > 0:12:50What was it about the man that made him a success, do you think?
0:12:50 > 0:12:54He was brilliant. He was a brilliant marketeer, he was a pioneer.
0:12:54 > 0:12:56He took advantage of some of the things that were
0:12:56 > 0:12:59going on in the Victorian era. For example,
0:12:59 > 0:13:03Valentine's Day cards were really popular, so he started sending
0:13:03 > 0:13:07the first Valentine's Day cards that were scented!
0:13:07 > 0:13:09MICHAEL LAUGHS
0:13:09 > 0:13:12It wasn't until the early 20th century that make-up
0:13:12 > 0:13:15became widely accepted in society.
0:13:15 > 0:13:18Here on the high-speed production line,
0:13:18 > 0:13:20two mascaras are made every second.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25I'm sure the Eugene Rimmel would be impressed that his invention,
0:13:25 > 0:13:30now applied on an industrial scale, has changed the face of beauty.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40From Ashford International station,
0:13:40 > 0:13:44I'm taking a short trip westwards along the line towards Tonbridge.
0:13:48 > 0:13:50My next stop will be Headcorn.
0:13:50 > 0:13:54Bradshaw's rather dismissively says that the village possesses
0:13:54 > 0:13:58"no feature of particular or general interest beyond the splendid
0:13:58 > 0:14:00"old oak tree in the churchyard".
0:14:00 > 0:14:04But with evening drawing on, there is a cryptic mention of a hotel.
0:14:06 > 0:14:11I plan to finish my day at the George, if I can locate it.
0:14:14 > 0:14:18Several miles later and I find myself in the next town.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29Looking for the George Inn at Headcorn,
0:14:29 > 0:14:33mentioned in my Bradshaw's, I've had to come as far as Cranbrook,
0:14:33 > 0:14:36but this could well be the one mentioned in the guidebook,
0:14:36 > 0:14:38because it's old enough.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41Queen Elizabeth I stayed here in 1573.
0:14:41 > 0:14:45Now she, poor lady, was probably slowly poisoned by
0:14:45 > 0:14:48the white face paint that she applied.
0:14:48 > 0:14:50So I'd like to drink her health.
0:14:50 > 0:14:52Not that that will MAKE UP for it.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03It's the start of my second day
0:15:03 > 0:15:07and at Headcorn, I'm rejoining the Southeastern network
0:15:07 > 0:15:11that serves this beautiful part of Kent to make another short journey.
0:15:15 > 0:15:18I shall be leaving this train at Marden.
0:15:18 > 0:15:20Before the wireless or television,
0:15:20 > 0:15:24music provided entertainment for many a home.
0:15:24 > 0:15:26And thanks to technological development
0:15:26 > 0:15:28throughout the 19th century,
0:15:28 > 0:15:30one instrument in particular
0:15:30 > 0:15:33contributed mightily to family harmony.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39PIANO PLAYS A SEDATE MELODY
0:15:45 > 0:15:48On the Southeastern main line,
0:15:48 > 0:15:52Marden is my alighting point for Finchcocks Musical Museum.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59Housed in a glorious Georgian mansion,
0:15:59 > 0:16:04it's an outstanding collection of over 100 keyboard instruments,
0:16:04 > 0:16:10with chamber organs, harpsichords, as well as around 70 pianos.
0:16:11 > 0:16:16From the original grands to the more compact squares,
0:16:16 > 0:16:18right through to modern uprights.
0:16:18 > 0:16:22I want to find out more about this instrument,
0:16:22 > 0:16:25which became ubiquitous in the Victorian era.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28Gary Branch is both pianist and piano historian.
0:16:31 > 0:16:33Gary, a lovely welcome. What was that piece?
0:16:33 > 0:16:37Well, that was a piece called The Lake by William Sterndale Bennett
0:16:37 > 0:16:41and it was very typical of the type of music that would have been
0:16:41 > 0:16:44played on square pianos just like this one.
0:16:44 > 0:16:49What sorts of families would be able to afford pianos during the 19th century?
0:16:49 > 0:16:52And did they spread, as it were, down the social scale?
0:16:52 > 0:16:55Absolutely. When you go back to the 18th century,
0:16:55 > 0:16:59they would have only been affordable by the wealthiest people in society.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03As the Industrial Revolution came along, mechanisation
0:17:03 > 0:17:08and changes in industrial skills and technology made it easier and cheaper
0:17:08 > 0:17:12to make pianos, so you have more people who could afford and also you
0:17:12 > 0:17:14were able to make the instruments much cheaper,
0:17:14 > 0:17:16so it became hugely popular.
0:17:16 > 0:17:19The piano was sort of the centre of the home.
0:17:19 > 0:17:21It was the home entertainment system.
0:17:21 > 0:17:26So it was really put upon, often, young ladies of the house to learn
0:17:26 > 0:17:29to play the instruments and then other members of the family sing along.
0:17:29 > 0:17:31This is a very handsome instrument.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35- Do we know its origin, do we know who owned it?- We do.
0:17:35 > 0:17:38And it's interesting story, because this particular one was
0:17:38 > 0:17:42hired by a very, very special person indeed and that was Queen Victoria.
0:17:42 > 0:17:46- Queen Victoria hired this piano? - She did indeed, yes.
0:17:46 > 0:17:50On three or four occasions in the 1860s
0:17:50 > 0:17:54and then permanently from 1870 to 1901.
0:17:54 > 0:17:56- And she played?- She played, she was a good pianist.
0:17:56 > 0:18:00She was not as good, of course, as her husband Prince Albert.
0:18:00 > 0:18:04He'd had lessons with Felix Mendelssohn,
0:18:04 > 0:18:05Queen Victoria was a wonderful singer.
0:18:05 > 0:18:09So they would sit and play and sing together to the family.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12So they were doing very much what people in the rest
0:18:12 > 0:18:15of the country were doing in their own homes
0:18:15 > 0:18:18and sort of leading the way, as it were, in music at that time.
0:18:20 > 0:18:24The instrument that Queen Victoria hired was a square piano
0:18:24 > 0:18:28by Broadwood, one of the pre-eminent makers of the day.
0:18:28 > 0:18:30In the late 19th century,
0:18:30 > 0:18:33it started to produce a model designed for the masses.
0:18:33 > 0:18:35The upright piano.
0:18:35 > 0:18:40Compact and cheaper, it suited smaller houses and wallets.
0:18:40 > 0:18:44The company still exists today as John Broadwood and Sons.
0:18:44 > 0:18:49And alongside manufacturing, they conserve and restore pianos.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52Hilary Martin is one of the restorers.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56- Hello, Hillary.- Hello. - Sorry to disturb you.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58What is this piano you're working on?
0:18:58 > 0:19:03This is a 1870s Broadwood Cottage upright.
0:19:03 > 0:19:05It came in in a very sorry state.
0:19:05 > 0:19:10- Looks like you're pretty much finished and you're just tuning it up now, are you?- Yes.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12This will give you the first note, C.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15We put that C into that fork note
0:19:15 > 0:19:20and then we work out from there the intervals within the scale
0:19:20 > 0:19:24and then work out in octaves going to the top and going to the bottom.
0:19:24 > 0:19:26We've pretty much done this one, but...
0:19:26 > 0:19:27PLAYS OUT-OF-TUNE NOTE
0:19:27 > 0:19:30There's one note that's not quite right.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33- We've put the crank on the right string...- Mm-hm.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36So if you care to have a hold of the...
0:19:37 > 0:19:39- ..the lever there.- Yes.
0:19:39 > 0:19:42And then play that octave, F to F.
0:19:42 > 0:19:44And just see if you can bring up that note.
0:19:47 > 0:19:48PLAYS NOTE IN TUNE
0:19:48 > 0:19:50- Oh!- Sounding better?
0:19:50 > 0:19:54That's pretty impressive, considering it's your first attempt!
0:19:54 > 0:19:57Got it in one! THEY LAUGH
0:19:57 > 0:19:58Beginner's luck, I think.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00Yes, not bad.
0:20:00 > 0:20:04This piano, it's about 145 years old. Will it last another 145?
0:20:04 > 0:20:06Oh, yes, easily.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09I'm sure the people who made it would never have guessed that this
0:20:09 > 0:20:11was going to last well into 21st century.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14- The Victorians built to last. - They certainly did.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24I'm heading back to the station at Marden.
0:20:24 > 0:20:28And for the next part of my journey, I'll remain in the gentle, rural
0:20:28 > 0:20:32scenery of the Kentish Weald as I travel westwards along the tracks.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41My next stop will be in what Bradshaw's calls
0:20:41 > 0:20:44"the beautiful village of Sevenoaks,
0:20:44 > 0:20:48"which contains Knole Park, the seat of the Sackvilles.
0:20:48 > 0:20:51"The mansion is in the old English style,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54"castellated with square towers, one of the most splendid
0:20:54 > 0:20:59"seats in the kingdom, and the collection of paintings is very fine".
0:20:59 > 0:21:03I look forward to hearing the family history from a Sackville.
0:21:11 > 0:21:18The Southeastern Railway came to Sevenoaks relatively late, in 1868.
0:21:18 > 0:21:20And within just a few years,
0:21:20 > 0:21:23it was already an attractive commuter town for London,
0:21:29 > 0:21:32with access to beautiful green spaces.
0:21:36 > 0:21:42Located close to the town centre is Knole Park, a vast 1,000-acre
0:21:42 > 0:21:47medieval deer park, which is also the setting for the imposing Knole House.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53Originally built in the mid 15th century,
0:21:53 > 0:21:59since 1604, it's been the seat of the Sackvilles, an aristocratic family
0:21:59 > 0:22:04which over the years has been in and out of the public eye.
0:22:04 > 0:22:06Michael, welcome to Knole.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09To find more about this intriguing family,
0:22:09 > 0:22:13I'm meeting the current Baron, Robert Sackville-West.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16It is a stunning house, as my Bradshaw's had promised me.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18How did it come into the Sackville family?
0:22:18 > 0:22:21Well, it began life as a small manor house. It was then
0:22:21 > 0:22:23acquired by the archbishops of Canterbury, as their sort of
0:22:23 > 0:22:28personal residence, and then was confiscated from them
0:22:28 > 0:22:32by King Henry VIII, who used it as a royal residence, and then
0:22:32 > 0:22:36Thomas Sackville, the first member of my family to live at Knole,
0:22:36 > 0:22:40who was Lord Treasurer - that's sort of the equivalent of Chancellor of the Exchequer.
0:22:40 > 0:22:42And in those days, if you are Lord Treasurer,
0:22:42 > 0:22:45you could award or sell to whoever you liked,
0:22:45 > 0:22:49royal freeholds, and so he did decide to sell
0:22:49 > 0:22:52a royal freehold to himself at a reasonable price.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55And, well, he got a very nice property
0:22:55 > 0:22:57and I dare say a good bargain too.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00What somewhat surprises me is it's so close to Sevenoaks.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03It's not removed at all. That's quite unusual, isn't it?
0:23:03 > 0:23:05Well, it is unusual
0:23:05 > 0:23:10and it was the temporary closure of the park in the 19th century
0:23:10 > 0:23:15that sparked what can only be described as riots in Sevenoaks in 1884.
0:23:15 > 0:23:17One of my ancestors, Mortimer,
0:23:17 > 0:23:22decided for his own reasons to close the park to the public.
0:23:22 > 0:23:28And 1,500 townspeople tore down the posts
0:23:28 > 0:23:32he'd erected across the gate, shouted abuse at Mortimer,
0:23:32 > 0:23:34broke a few windows and threatened that
0:23:34 > 0:23:37if Mortimer was brought out to them, they would hang him.
0:23:37 > 0:23:41A compromise was reached within about a year
0:23:41 > 0:23:44and it's been open without interruption ever since.
0:23:44 > 0:23:48- I imagine you Sackvilles have been fairly cautious about public opinion ever since?- Extremely!
0:23:48 > 0:23:49THEY LAUGH
0:24:02 > 0:24:05Knole House is enormous.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07Built on a magnificent scale.
0:24:07 > 0:24:11Its interior reveals one opulent chamber after another,
0:24:11 > 0:24:14housing priceless artworks and tapestries
0:24:14 > 0:24:17collected over the centuries.
0:24:17 > 0:24:22It's also home to the most complete set of royal Stuart furniture
0:24:22 > 0:24:25in the world, which came from the royal palaces
0:24:25 > 0:24:28of Kensington, Whitehall and Hampton Court.
0:24:32 > 0:24:34So who was it that succeeded Mortimer?
0:24:34 > 0:24:38Well, he was succeeded by his rather feckless younger brother,
0:24:38 > 0:24:40Lionel Sackville-West, in 1888.
0:24:40 > 0:24:45But he brought with him to Knole an encumbrance, really.
0:24:45 > 0:24:49And that encumbrance was the fact that he had five illegitimate children.
0:24:51 > 0:24:54Lionel Sackville-West had a 19-year relationship
0:24:54 > 0:24:58with a Spanish dancer known as "Papita",
0:24:58 > 0:25:00which produced the five children.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04One of them, Victoria, managed to inherit the estate by marrying
0:25:04 > 0:25:09her first cousin, also called Lionel, who was the heir.
0:25:09 > 0:25:12Such a prize didn't go unchallenged.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15There was a moment in 1910 where they were probably the most
0:25:15 > 0:25:18notorious family in the country,
0:25:18 > 0:25:22because one of the five illegitimate children brought a claim
0:25:22 > 0:25:27that he was in fact the legitimate heir to the title and to Knole.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30The succession case in which they were embroiled was on the front
0:25:30 > 0:25:34pages of newspapers both in America and in England.
0:25:34 > 0:25:36And did he succeed in that?
0:25:36 > 0:25:40He didn't succeed and, tragically, about four years later,
0:25:40 > 0:25:41he committed suicide.
0:25:41 > 0:25:45The best known member of your family is probably Vita Sackville-West.
0:25:45 > 0:25:46Now, where did she derive from?
0:25:46 > 0:25:52She was the daughter of Victoria and Victoria's first cousin, Lionel,
0:25:52 > 0:25:55and she was born and brought up at Knole
0:25:55 > 0:25:58and she absolutely loved her lonely childhood,
0:25:58 > 0:26:02wandering around the house, looking in drawers, finding things out.
0:26:02 > 0:26:04She adored the place.
0:26:04 > 0:26:10Born in 1892, Vita Sackville-West was a successful poet and novelist.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13She's remembered for her works of literature
0:26:13 > 0:26:18and for her same-sex affairs, notably with Virginia Woolf,
0:26:18 > 0:26:22whose famous novel Orlando celebrates their friendship.
0:26:22 > 0:26:27On the death of Vita's father in 1928, Knole passed not to her,
0:26:27 > 0:26:33but to the next male heir, Robert's great-uncle, Charles Sackville-West.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36You're the 14th generation of your family to live at Knole.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39What is it about the place that captures you?
0:26:39 > 0:26:42I think most people, the first thing that strikes you about Knole
0:26:42 > 0:26:44is its sheer size.
0:26:44 > 0:26:49And that you can wander around it and still make discoveries here.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52But the other thing, from my perspective,
0:26:52 > 0:26:57is that it is very unusual for one house to have been inhabited
0:26:57 > 0:27:00continuously, really, for 400 years by members of one family.
0:27:00 > 0:27:04And though at times that sense of history can be a little oppressive,
0:27:04 > 0:27:07at other times, it's wonderful experience.
0:27:11 > 0:27:15Whilst one family has lived here for hundreds of years,
0:27:15 > 0:27:18the 19th century was a time of change.
0:27:18 > 0:27:23Advances in piano-making enabled the middle-classes to enjoy
0:27:23 > 0:27:27home-made music and the sight of mothers and daughters playing
0:27:27 > 0:27:31and singing together is a Victorian cliche.
0:27:31 > 0:27:36Elsewhere, technological advances produced non-toxic make-up
0:27:36 > 0:27:40and the change was more than cosmetic.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44It transformed what was considered proper and decent
0:27:44 > 0:27:49and the New Woman, in her lipstick and mascara, was unlikely to
0:27:49 > 0:27:53believe that her proper place in life was on the piano stool.
0:27:57 > 0:27:58Next time...
0:27:58 > 0:28:00TRAIN WHISTLES
0:28:00 > 0:28:02..I volunteer at a heritage railway...
0:28:03 > 0:28:05Wah!
0:28:05 > 0:28:07..and feel the pressure.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10I discover a 19th-century painter who, 100 years later,
0:28:10 > 0:28:13changed the course of history...
0:28:13 > 0:28:17President Obama talks about being converted to a life
0:28:17 > 0:28:21of political activity through a sermon on Watts's painting of Hope.
0:28:21 > 0:28:25..and I have a blast with a formidable Victorian invention.
0:28:25 > 0:28:27Three, two, one...
0:28:28 > 0:28:29Whoa!