Dartmoor

Hotel Endsleigh

For many years I’ve wanted to see Devon and Cornwall, the two counties that make up the southwestern tip of England. I picture elegant country estates and postcard-perfect seaside villages.

Our first stop checked off that elegant country estate box just perfectly. We spent two nights at Hotel Endsleigh on the edge of Dartmoor National Park in western Devon. The hotel is a destination unto itself, and I don’t think I ever left its expansive grounds. It sits on a hill that descends dramatically to the River Tamar, which forms much of the border between Devon and Cornwall.

Built between 1810 and 1816, Endsleigh Cottage was a favorite home to a famed aristocrat, arts patron, and socialite named Georgina Russell. Born to a noble family in Scotland, Georgina was originally supposed to marry Eugène de Beauharnais, a stepson of Napoleon. When that fell through she was intended to marry Francis Russell, the 5th Duke of Bedford. But he died before the wedding, so she instead married his younger brother, John, who became the 6th Duke of Bedford.

Giorgiana chose this spot for a summer home for her growing family, which included the Duke, three children from his previous wife Giorgiana, and 10 more children from the second Giorgiana. In 1823 artist Edwin Landseer was commissioned to paint a portrait of the duchess. He also gave her art lessons and had a very long affair with her. Landseer is best known as the sculptor of the lions at the base of Nelson’s Column in London’s Trafalgar Square.

We didn’t do much more here than enjoy Giorgiana’s beautiful home and spectacular gardens. All has been lavishly restored by Olga Polizzi, a famed English interior designer and hotelier. What a magical place she has created.