A charming 4-bedroom cottage called Maple Farm House can be rented on the Highclere Estate. Highclere Castle, as every Downton Abbey fan knows, is the setting for this mini-series, which is currently being shown on PBS on Sunday nights.
I imagine this house as a perfect setting for Barton Cottage and the Dashwood ladies. Or as a cousin to Steventon Cottage, where Jane Austen grew up. The surroundings are magnificent and bucolic, to say the least.
Beacon Hill, Highclere Estate
Visits to to Highclere Estate and the mansion resume in April. But one lucky family can choose to live nearby year round.
Jane Austen's World 
Really beautiful scenery and the house is a dream come true. Absolutely lovely and charming.
A perfect writer’s retreat! Atmosphere…
How gorgeous!
How many bathrooms (being American here)? ;)
I see two in the pictures, @Curtis.
Excellent! ;)
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Now it’s just a case of winning the lottery so I can afford to move to the UK.
How lovely!
I love how the English referred to these homes as quaint little “cottages”…. when Maple Farm House looks similar in size to the 4-bedroom Colonial I grew up in. Quite large enough for a family of four! :)
Yes, these “cottages” now sell for the equivalent of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
You are joking! That cottage, with that view and probably being a four bedroom cottage, would retail for about £500,000!
Fiz, yes, that would be about $750,000 U.S. dollars, I think? Getting close to a cool million!
Beautiful. That would be great to see in person. Wow. Thanks for sharing.
Plot over the top – has anyone noticed Matthew’s mother playing a rather silly dragon lady? Also, Bates now working in a pub? I thought he inherited money. Last episode was better. Rooting for Lady Mary.
Patty, keep watching the series and you’ll understand why Bates needs to work. As for Isobel, she has a purpose and sees an opportunity to have her way. She is overstepping her bounds, however, and heading for a showdown with the aristocratic Crawleys.
I’d be curious to hear what others think about Lady Edith. Is she lifelike, or too much of a contradiction between selfish/unselfish?
Shelley, I’m not sure Lady Edith knows what she wants. She is conflicted, switching between jealousy over Lady Mary, the anointed elder sister whose beauty outshines hers and upon whom the family depends to make a great match. As a middle daughter with ordinary looks and no great deal of talent, her role of marrying well is significantly reduced. Lady Mary stands in the way of her ever attracting a gentleman who would seriously court her.
The war changed many women, and Lady Edith, having been taken out of her routine, is itching to contribute something that is unique and worthy. This viewer thinks that she means perform good services for the men, but that her rivalry with her older sister will always sink her back to the level of infighting and backbiting. Let’s see what happens!
I visited Highclere last year and have to say I wasn’t too impressed with the house, the visitor welcome, the gardens or the refreshment facilities. Sure, they will of course benefit from the publicity and should improve their skills when it comes to opening their home and sharing it for a few months of the year (for which a big thank you) as a result of the increased numbers, but if you plan on visiting Highclere do check out the other historic houses nearby, especailly the Duke of Wellington’s Stratfield Saye.
http://visitinghousesandgardens.wordpress.com/2011/08/29/review-of-highclere-castle-hampshire-now-firmly-on-the-tourist-trail/
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