Anne of Cleves (1515-1557) was born to a noble family in Düsseldorf, then in the Kingdom of Germany. After the death of his third wife, Jane Seymour, King of England, King Henry VIII wanted to form a political alliance with Anne of Cleves’s brother, a leader of the Protestants in western Germany. He sent an artist to portray Anne and her sister, and by that picture, the 49 years old King Henry destined 24 years old Anne to be his wife. On her way to England, Anne and the king met. During that meeting, she was unaware she was meeting the king and future husband and barely paid attention to him; he, on the other hand, was disappointed with her looks and lack of sophistication. Yet, they got married after five days but never consummated their marriage. Six months later, she was ordered to leave and give her agreement to an annulment. On 12 July 1540, only seven months after their wedding, Anne’s marriage to the king was annulled on the grounds of non-consummation. As part of the annulment settlement, Anne received a generous income, three estates, including the family home of the king’s second wife Anne Boleyn, and a property in East Sussex, which became known as Anne of Cleves House, though she never lived there. In the following years, Anne became close friends with the king; she was a frequent visitor to his court and maintained a good relationship with his two daughters and future queens, Mary and Elizabeth. When Mary succeeded the throne, Anne was accused of plotting with Elizabeth to replace her and make England Protestant again. She was never invited to the court again. Anne died a few years later, at the age of 41. Although Anne of Cleves never lived in the house named after her, the 16th-century timber-framed structure preserves Tudor’s way of life. The architect Walter Godfrey restored the house as a museum, and the Sussex Archaeological Society operates it. On display are authentically furnished rooms, including a Tudor kitchen, parlor, a bedroom with four poster beds, a collection of domestic artifacts, and a selection of royal clothes that visitors may try on. The museum also exhibits Wealden iron-making exhibition, which includes a hammer found in Etchingham, a cannon, and several iron firebacks. Do not miss a visit to the garden, home to shrubs, herbs, and fruit trees, which were planted according to traditional Tudor planting schemes. Also in Lewes are Virginia Woolf’s Monk’s House, Lewes Castle & Barbican House Museum, the 1500’s Grange gardens, and the Glyndebourne Opera house. Read more...

The Monk’s house was the home of Virginia Woolf, one of the most prominent writers of the 20th century. Woolf and her husband, the journalist and socialist activist Leonard Woolf, bought the 16th-century cottage in 1919 for 700 pounds. Over the years, the couple made many changes and additions to the house, including the writing lodge – Woolf’s “Room of Her Own.” In that same lodge, she hosted members of the Bloomsbury Group and wrote many of her novels, including Mrs. Dalloway, To the Lighthouse, Orlando, The Years, and her final novel, Between the Acts, which she wrote with the inspiration she got from the village of Rodmell and the ways of lives of its residences. Currently, the National Trust owns and operates the house as a historic house and museum. The visitors can access the sitting room, kitchen, dining room, and bedroom. Among the items on display are the couple’s art collection and personal items, such as her complete collection of Shakespeare books, her Stephen Tomlin bust, and many artworks by Woolf’s sister, Vanessa Bell, including Woolf’s portrait and the painted matching table and chairs. On the way to Woolf’s writing lodge, visitors can stroll the English garden designed and nurtured by Leonard. Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) was born in London into a wealthy family. She attended the Ladies’ Department of King’s College London, where she became familiarized with feminist views that influenced her. During that time, Woolf became part of the Bloomsbury group, a weekly gathering of intellectuals and artists. After experiencing several personal losses, she turned to writing as a therapeutic source. Woolf experimented with her writing, breaking the norms of Victorian literature structure and creating new forms of expressions and narrative methods, today known as stream of consciousness. At 30, she married Leonard Woolf, and three years later, she published her first novel, The Voyage Out. In 1919, the Woolfs moved to the village of Rodmell in East Sussex and wrote most of her work, including the groundbreaking essay A Room of One’s Own. Over the years, she published eight novels, hundreds of short stories, dramas, essays, and autobiographic memoirs. Throughout her life, she struggled with her mental health, had numerous breakdowns, and tried to commit suicide several times. On March 28th, 1941, at 51, she filled her coat pockets with stones, walked into the river behind Monk’s House, and drowned herself. Consider visiting other historical sites in East Sussex, such as Anne of Cleves House in Lewes, the 4th century Pevensey Castle in Pevensey, the Royal Pavilion of King George IV in Brighton, and the medieval Bodiam Castle near Robertsbridge. Read more...