Prime Ministers' Residences & Why They're Important
Nick Bourne wonders why we don't pay more respect to the legacies of former prime ministers.
8 Sep 2011, 10:26
Arundells - home of Sir Edward Heath
In France too, Presidents have their massive vanity projects such as les pyramides at the Louvre, the Grande Arche at La Defense, the Pompidou Centre and so forth. Colombey Les Deux Eglises in eastern France is a shrine to De Gaulle’s memory. This is not a plea for such grandiose gestures. There is nothing wrong with understatement but one would think a statement of some sort would not be too much to expect.
In fairness there are a few exceptions to the rule. Chartwell preserves for posterity the contribution of that greatest of Prime Ministers, Sir Winston Churchill, while Hughenden, the home of Disraeli (touted to be the most unexpected Victorian Prime Minister), protects the contribution of that great Victorian statesman. Although Disraeli was not possessed of any great financial resources he considered that the ownership of landed property was essential to preserve the status of a leading public figure. Arguably, Llanystumdwy is an exception to the rule too, preserving much of Lloyd George’s (so far the only British Prime Minister to have been Welsh) considerable contribution to national life for visitors.
These are exceptional though. The way that former Prime Ministers are bundled out of the back of Downing Street on losing office, to make way for their successors is sometimes perceived as brutal and is somewhat symptomatic of the way that we treat Prime Ministers and their contributions to our country. I have never been able to discover whether the story of Churchill wandering aimlessly about the streets of London at night after his shock defeat (in 1945) on being turned out of the Downing Street residence is true but this may be due to the unexpectedness of a resplendent career abruptly cut short rather than being dispossessed of Downing Street.
I am not a particular devotee of Edward Heath as Prime Minister, but he undoubtedly made a massive contribution to national life and was Prime Minister at a pivotal moment in our history. It is extremely sad, I believe, that his former home in Salisbury, Arundells, which was left by him in trust for the nation, is to be closed to visitors despite the fact that it continues to sell out beyond expectations.
The house is a beautiful one, set in delightful gardens in the Cathedral Close in Salisbury. The house and gardens are open to public view. The contents of the house are a virtual testament and museum of Sir Edward’s illustrious career. Tours are organised and will continue, I believe, for one more year.
The entrance hall is adorned with sailing paintings, and this area contains memorabilia of one of Sir Edward’s burning interests. He was, of course, an accomplished sailor and captained the victorious British team that won the Admirals Cup in 1971. He won many other yachting contests and only gave up competitive sailing at the age of 70 in 1986.
The drawing room is full of political memorabilia and photographs of Ted Heath with other world leaders, statesmen and stateswomen. There are some fine paintings including a Lowry and two by Sir Winston Churchill, and paintings of Arundells itself by John Piper.
Edward Heath had many active interests and these included music and travel, which are also recorded in gifts from overseas, including a ceramic Tang Dynasty horse, six superb Japanese seascapes, and a collection of oriental ceramics.
There is also a considerable range of cartoons and other memorabilia like the Garter presented to Sir Edward by the Queen in 1992 when he was installed as a Knight of the Garter.
The gardens are superb too with about two acres of lawn, trees and shrubberies. They represent a peaceful retreat in the shadow of Salisbury Cathedral and must have provided much solace to the owner.
Virtually all of Sir Edward Heath’s estate (about £5 million) was left to the Sir Edward Heath Charitable Foundation to preserve the house and gardens for the visiting public. He had done all that he could. It is sad that the nation has not been able to rise to that challenge.
There is a broader issue about the future and perhaps some plans to be earmarked from the funds of the Heritage Lottery Fund for the enduring legacy of Prime Ministers, regardless of their position on the political spectrum. They all, admittedly some more than others, contribute massively to the development and history of our nation.
The author
Nick Bourne
Nick Bourne is the former leader of the Welsh Assembly Conservative Group.
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"...........of Edward Heath as Prime Minister, but he undoubtedly made a massive contribution to national life and was Prime Minister at a pivotal moment in our history."
I disagree that Edward Heath made a massive contribution to national life. I think he was an unmitigated disaster whose obsessive desire to get Britain into the, then, EEC at any cost has cast a long dark shadow over this country.
His delusion as to his own ability to be Prime Minister has only been surpassed by Gordon Brown who has the very rare distinction of having done more damage to this country even than joining the EEC/EC/EU has done.
I think the reason that we, as a nation, don't revere former PMs is that with a very few exceptions they have left with their failings exposed. All political careers are said to end in failure and, put simply, this is recognised.
08/09/2011 17:21