Castle Drogo

Castle Drogo is the last country castle, which was built in Britain. It is located in the southwestern English county of Devon, near the village of Drewsteignton.

The original design for the high above the gorge of the River Teign lying pseudo - castle by the architect Edwin Lutyens commissioned by Julius Drewe, a businessman and founder of the Home and Colonial Stores. The 1910 started and never quite finished manor (1930 ran out of money ) is made entirely of granite. Stylistically, the architecture of castles of the Middle Ages and the Tudor period modeled on, connected with contemporary design features.

The castle has a beautiful formal garden, designed by Lutyens and Gertrude Jekyll created by, which is in marked contrast to the landscape on the edge of Dartmoor. The planting consists of rhododendron and magnolia and herbaceous borders. The gardens include a rose garden, a garden with ornamental shrubs and a large, circular lawn for croquet.

The property is part of the National Trust since 1974 and was the first property from the 20th century, which was acquired by the Foundation. Since 2012, the castle, to fix a much needed renovation subjected to the intrusion of water through the roof and through the windows. The castle is threatened by the entry of water into its safety and would otherwise have to be closed to the public. The problems in the building, probably, therefore, among other things, that the built in very prominent place on Dartmoor Castle has no window sills were noted as early as 1915, but since 1933 they were very obvious. The National Trust is funding the construction including through the sale of parts of the roof, but also by the National Lottery money flowing in the preservation of the building. As part of the renovation, the exhibition was remodeled in the castle and take as before a realistic equipment of the rooms, the history of the building is now being shown in scenic installations. The work during which the castle is open still be expected to continue until 2016.

Castle Drogo is today with approximately 120,000 visitors annually to the most visited castles in Devon and Cornwall.