Free Lyttelton's Britain by Iain Pattinson

of the Dukes of Wellington since 1817, where visitors can see the grave of the first Duke’s stallion, Copenhagen. It was after the Battle of Waterloo, where Wellington famously spent 18 hours in the saddle, that a grateful nation gave him his country seat – although he couldn’t use it for at least a fortnight. Copenhagen was buried at Stratfield Saye House with full military honours. The grave is marked by a simple headstone and four hooves sticking out of the ground.
    Jane Austen lived at nearby Steventon, and during her time there started a romance with a Basingstoke man, widely believed to be a forester, but their engagement lasted only one night. History doesn’t record what suddenly prompted her to leave Acorn Willy Jenkins.
    One of Basingstoke’s most famous sons is Thomas Burberry, inventor of rain-proof gabardine. He perfected his proofing method after noticing that an oily substance from wool made a shepherd’s trousers water resistant after prolonged contact with sheep. And it must have taken a mighty inventive brain to witness that sight and think about raincoats.
    Famous names associated with Basingstoke include Hollywood movie star Elizabeth Hurley, who as a young girl was born and educated in the town. Her primary school teacher recalls Elizabeth taking her first acting lesson, and having seen her many films, the pupils were keen to invite her back for a second one.
    The family of Sarah, Duchess of York, came from the nearby village of Dummer, which is presumably why she is constantly referred to as ‘one of the Dummer Fergusons’.
    Another Royal connection is that of Arthur Nash, official broom maker to Her Majesty the Queen, who lives in Basingstoke. Her Majesty doesn’t believe in modern contrivances such as vacuum cleaners, when carpets can be cleaned perfectly well simply by ringing a small bell.

    Eton, 1936, shortly after a small hole appeared in the wall of the adjoining Nurses’ Home changing rooms

WINDSOR

    W INDSOR gave its name to a type of chair, a knot and most famously, a soup, although this was before the Royal Borough changed its name from ‘Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom-on-Thames’.
    But a stone’s throw across the river is Eton, with its world-renowned school. A browse through the school records reveal that: ‘famous Old Etonians include the Duke of Wellington, William Gladstone, George Orwell and Humphrey Lyttelton, the jazz musician and panel game chairman’. Curiously they don’t record what the other three were famous for.
    Windsor has a proud association with the Royal Family. It was in 1917 that the house of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha took their new name from the place where they loved to spend so much of their time. By the same tradition, when the young Sarah Ferguson married Prince Andrew, she naturally assumed the title ‘Duchess of Airport’.
    For the finest view of Windsor Castle it is best approached through ‘Henry VIII’s Gateway’, which thanks to a recent merger, is now officially known as ‘Henry VIII’s Budgens’.

    A family enjoys the third week of their holiday, summer 2008
    A short journey out of town takes you to Windsor Safari Park, where if you’re lucky, you might glimpse a pride of lions in search of wildebeest migrating south across the vast plains of the Thames Valley. You might also like to pay a visit to the successful new ‘Legoland’ theme park next door. For a small fee, parents can take their children to enjoy a large area of toy buildings constructed out of plastic bricks. Alternatively, they can save their money and take the kids to Milton Keynes for the day.

    Windsor, where organic products, including banana oil car-wax, were developed

READING

    R EADING is a fine town steeped in a rich history. When the Norman King Henry I’s body was returned from battle in France, his remains were buried at nearby Reading Abbey, although his heart was buried at Rheims, his eyes and tongue at Calais, while his bowels remained at Rouen, although