Last night, I walked around the black etched shape of the Castle and onto the south lawns. The dogs immediately bustled off, busy exploring amidst the faint sound of birds settling high in the boughs well above. There was the smell of new leaves, the faint scent of philadelphus and lime trees and I walked with a certain degree of care, remembering the varying levels of the path as well as letting my eyes settle into the low levels of light. The dogs’ sight is far better adapted and they had no such qualms.
Looking up at the sky at night is a momentary glimpse of extraordinary peace. The scale and beauty must make us all feel rather humble – it is a place of wonder and dreams and fantastical tales with, of course, not a black hole in sight. But my distant school days reminds me they are there. Stephen Hawking said “Black holes are stranger than anything dreamt up by science fiction writers.” I have a faint understanding of them, but in some ways think they are part of the balance to the gravitational pull of stars, it is never just one sided.
Back here on earth, black holes have a strong association with money which, particularly round here, has a habit of disappearing into black holes without trace. Money comes in and, instead of following the mathematical rule of “multiply”, it seems to be subject to the other rule, the one of “subtraction”.
Of course, every government makes the first pass at the subtraction routine. Sales taxes, income taxes, car taxes, business taxes, capital taxes (assuming you ever catch enough income to keep some), fuel taxes, insurance taxes, climate change taxes, flight taxes, TV license, stamp duty. The list is endless. You are taxed from cradle to grave and I don’t think it much matters whether you live in the UK, the USA or anywhere else.
It is a black hole because it is all paid in by us and then disappears into some sort of witch’s brew whereby, by the time it is distributed to where we voted for it to go, there seems to be not much left to be distributed.
The Bible stories are much more optimistic. Jesus multiplied fish, loaves and wine: a much better system. A further bonus is offered because, if we do our best here, then heaven is an option and everything will get even better. Governments, of course, take a dim view of death and tax us on exit as well.
There are still records from medieval times of the taxes or tithes that were collected here at Highclere. One tenth of the agricultural income went to the church each year. Then there were further land taxes and extra levies in time of war as well as fines. In the 14th century even the sheep were taxed.
Three Follies : Jackdaws, Heavens Gate and Etruscan Temple
Furthermore, Highclere has plenty of black holes – the follies and ancient buildings have a tremendous gravitational pull on any revenue. The good news is that they add visibly to the beauty of the landscape and give moments of relaxation. Any project to do with the repair of buildings usually has a large hidden bill attached to it via such less visible “drains”, downpipes, damp, ditches and drives.
The Temple of Diana
As an aside to this, it has to be said that the staff photograph collections here at Highclere are odd to say the least. In order to find things again in times of need, Duncan, who is in charge of our computer network, is always photographing the ditches and cable runs on his phone. John, our Castle Manager, photographs drains, springs and puddles in case of flooding or car park issues whilst Scottish Robert, in charge of security, has a splendid collection of broken gates and fences. It is all marvelous viewing for spare time.
John Gundill’s fascinating photos of water coming up one molehill and down another …
I suspect I can’t talk as my photo collection is parts of WW2 planes we have found on the Estate but these are much more exciting!
Noel Coward wrote: “I have always paid income tax. I object only when it reaches a stage when I am threatened with having nothing left for my old age – which is due to start next Tuesday or Wednesday”.
Instagram
Aaaaah, the inevitability of death and taxes.
Lady Carnarvon,
Your skill with language and understanding of your feelings makes for a sense of calm when I read your prose.
That combined with today’ pictures is a sugarless treat!
I hope your week is happy.
Shirley taylor
Thank you!
Beautiful photos of the castle in silhouette, and seems so peaceful and tranquil as the light fades. One has to look across the grounds, stroll to the follies, sit under the Cedars of Lebanon, and understand the reason why we pay taxes 🙂 I often sit out at the seaside looking across to Mt. Olympus here, and tell myself, “yep, that why I just sent off a mighty sum for income tax, property tax, car tax, sales tax”…it is my “life-long rent” to have the blessing to live in Greece. So let’s look up at the night sky, count the stars, and count our blessings (and pay are taxes ).
I have been on holiday a few times to Greece and have loved the country and the people.
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Your night time photographs are stunningly beautiful. I could look at them all day and night.
How true the facts are about taxes and even here in the US the money we earn goes away before we can ever put it in the bank: black holes exist every where. Old houses seem to have an endless supply. You fix one leak, another appears the following month. Repair one crack and another one appears in a different room.
I am going to not think about black holes and taxes today but rather the starry night sky over Highclere instead. That gives me much joy!
Diana
Thank you – we are actaully having a leaky tap week here at the moment. I am focusing on Gallery bathrooms – then there can be a sense of achievement
Love reading your blog. Can’t wait until July when my husband and I will be visiting Highclere.
Dear Lady Carnavon,
You are truly an extraordinary woman to face the complex challenges of running Highclere, writing books, studying history, supporting charities, loving and caring for your animals and friends, and still having the time and energy to share your adventures and thoughts with us. I consider myself so very fortunate to have access to your blog.
Carolyn, Temecula, CA, USA
I should have said caring for your animals, family and friends
Lady Carnavon,
Am I right when I say that there was time when death taxes were levied?Its funny to think that we cant even die without being taxed!
I wish the government would follow the example of Jesus and engage in multiplication instead of subtraction.
Sringara
Death taxes or inheritance taxes are levied today in the UK – they began with probate duty a few hundred years ago moved on to estate duty and then inheritance tax. Ever up.
What lovely photographs and how lucky you are to live in such a beautiful place, although the responsibility must be enormous. I don’t envy you that part but the opportunity to leave your mark on such an historic estate must be some reward for all your hard work.
I agree with Shirley, your words are soothing and I receive your blog late in the evening here in Australia. Soon to bed, close my eyes and reflect on your words and I can touch the silhouette under those glowing skies. Sweet calm..to dreams. Thank you for your generosity in sharing mesmerizing Highclerc life with us, far and wide.
Tax his land, Tax his bed, Tax the table At which he’s fed.
Tax his tractor, Tax his mule, Teach him taxes Are the rule.
Tax his work, Tax his pay, He works for peanuts Anyway!
Tax his cow, Tax his goat, Tax his pants, Tax his coat.
Tax his ties, Tax his shirt, Tax his work, Tax his dirt.
Tax his tobacco, Tax his drink, Tax him if he tries to think.
Tax his cigars, Tax his beers, If he cries, then tax his tears.
Tax his car, Tax his gas, Find other ways To tax his ass.
Tax all he has Then let him know, That you won’t be done till he has no dough.
When he screams and hollers Then tax him more,
Tax him till he’s good and sore.
Then tax his coffin, Tax his grave, Tax the sod in Which he’s laid.
Put these words Upon his tomb, ‘Taxes drove me to my doom.. . ‘
When he’s gone, Do not relax, Its time to apply The inheritance tax
Your blog today reminded me of this poem, so I had to share.
I love it! Thank you – who’s the author? Please share….
Lady Carnarvon,
I must sadly admit that the lack of an income multiplier factor is the same in the States. We have expense “black holes” too! But, we don’t have the magnificent sunsets and stars over Highclere as a focus for calming meditation. Thank you for sharing the pictures and your observations. I look forward to your blog every Monday.
Last Monday my husband and I had the wonderful opportunity of visiting your marvelous home! It capped off a three week trip around the Mediterranean. Touring Highclere was the absolute high point for me. I absolutely love the autographed book that you so kindly extended to our tour group. Your love for Highclere is so very obvious and so very infectious!! I hope your ‘black holes’ are few and that you can remain the caregiver of the castle for many years to come so that many others others can immerse themselves in it’s atmosphere and it’s representation of times gone bye!!
Taxes, and death are the two certainties for us all.
Highclere’s follies bring me such joy – in pictures and in person. Amy is about to tackle a “black hole” here in south Alabama, USA, by renovating the farmhouse built by her great-grandfather. She may well need a boost of your encouragement when she sees you next year! We both look forward to seeing you again!
First one step and then another…
The pictures of the night sky are magical! Lovely post.
Stunning photos, thank you for sharing these lovely moments with us readers!
Greetings Lady Carnarvon,
I always enjoy your writings and photos.
You brought to mind how expensive it is to be thoroughly taxed. I believe you may remember a little thing called the Boston Tea Party. We may have representation, however, strictly concerning medical costs, ours are five times higher than in the UK from what I understand. As I understand it, your medical costs are covered by excessive taxation whereas ours are primarily covered by insurance to a point that some pay high premiums for.
However, I am interested to know what sort of land taxes are levied in the UK. Perhaps Highclere is exempt? Regardless, it seems that the UK taxes for the air you breath. I think I heard this in a song. LOL
As for us, we are fortunate. We do not pay tax on our property. We only pay the mortgage which is guaranteed by the Veterans Administration. Because of my husband’s service in the Army (21 years and two wars) and his 100% disability rating, he receives retirement and disability from the government enabling us to live comfortably. We also have Social Security accrued over our working lives and paid out each month to the elderly and disabled. The amount is moderate and some of those qualified must also work to survive.
There are other benefits connected to Hubby’s service such as free hunting and fishing licenses here in Texas and in other states as well. His health care is entirely free, even the gas mileage is reimbursed as we must travel over 2.5 hours to get to the facilities as we live in a small town. Of course, President Trump has signed a bill that allows veterans to more easily choose a specialist closer to home. President Trump has built facilities for veterans even before becoming President and has recently appointed David Shulkin to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs in order to ensure proper, complete and immediate care for veterans. They have even provided acupuncture. This medical care has been literally a life saver in many ways. Aside from saving his life, what we would have had to pay for medical care with his cancer (now cancer free for over 5 years) and his heart attack nearly two years ago would have been catastrophic.
Sorry to go on and on. As you can see, taxation is extremely important to all of us. My hope is that everyone can be fully protected for their retirement without having to sacrifice further for this protection. This requires a full revamp of our health care system with more coverage for alternative medicine.
In closing, I want to thank you for your thoughtful posts and I look forward to many more.
As always,
Susan
We pay tax in many ways and have no tax relief on the restoration work on projects such as the follies. The VAT at 20% on such repair work is punitive with no sales in input tax relief. It is not just us so adversely affected, and far from being supportive, the government taxes us for our good work. One might think God’s view in terms of multiplication and generosity is the converse of short term politicians.
I do think the on-going support of veterans needs to be addressed here as well as in the USA. In many ways the Heroes event in September is to acknowledge and say thank you to such men as your husband. Heroes are those who die and also those who survive as are their families in every guise.
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Once again your artfully composed words are painting a picture that all of us can relate to. The photographs of Highclere at twilight are stunning. What a lovely place to take an evening walk. Even though we live in a small coastal town by the Gulf of Mexico we would be hard pressed to capture the night sky as you did. We have too many lights to see the night sky as it really is. Thank you for sharing your slice of the sky as you see it!
We are so looking forward to the Heroes at Highclere event. Look out England, here we come! Brace yourselves!
Cheers,
Mrs. Linda Sue Smith
Englewood, Florida
Thank you – I look forward to seeing you at Heroes in September! I have been in a three hour meeting this morning and it would be so kind if you would share this event with your friends …we are not really able to be open much in the Autumn after that… for all the best reasons
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
It would be nice if there were an Historical Building Tax, to help with the Preservation of these beautiful buildings.
Hard to believe there are so many taxes, that yes, we are taxed to death and even thereafter, unless we do everything in our power to avoid them.
Your photos are stunning and I hope you will make them available for print. I have been looking at printing on metal here in SoCal. (Costco does it.) Another photographer friend has done many and I do love the look.
When you are finished with your projects, you are welcome here to sort mine, ha! I will be painting the house exterior here soon…stucco…and after that, resurfacing a pool. Running new landscape lines also. Now, mind you…most of the work is being done by me alone. No easy feat. I’m age 63!
Age is just a number!
For years I read about black holes and was confused about the fact that matter was taken into the hole but never came out the other side, if there is one. That seemed at odds with the law that matter cannot be destroyed. I was recently surprised to read they now think the black hole does eject/emit matter in some way and to somewhere. ‘Tis a puzzlement.
There is something special about seeing the Castle at night against a setting sun that brings the Castle into another world. I have been know to lie down on Castle Piece on a starry night and just look up at billions of other worlds and wonder is there another Highclere Castle out there.
Wow!!! Great pictures of a night sky we never get to see around here!!! Makes me want to move to the desert, 100 miles away from the closest busy, shopping mall!!! Unfortunately we have very few, (actually, NONE) beautiful castles that add to the night sky mystery that you have shared with all of us lucky enough to be on your mailing list!!
The sky is amazing wherever you are, it has its own myths and stories – I know some of the constellations. I look for Ursa Major, Orion and then Cassiopeia who boasted of her own and her daughter’s beauty and was placed in the sky as a punishment by an angry Poseidon … our minds and stories are amazing
Susan Mcfarland, you are extremely blessed to be tax exempt. Thank your husband for his service.
Lady Carnarvon, I’m sure even the money earned filming at Highclere is taxed. Thank you for allowing the filming at Highclere otherwise we would never had seen all the beauty of your magnificent estate.
Thank you,
Janet
All money is taxed and it does not grow on trees … but filming has been a good platform to welcome people here
I think this photo of the castle is my all time favorite. Job well done.
Thank you
Stunning pictures and such a pleasure to walk along with you, on your evening stroll, musing about earthly and heavenly equations! I truly enjoy your little visits with us! Thank you for taking the time to write. It is good to have visited your lovely home, and we hope to do so again! In the meantime, watch out for those mole holes!
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Have you maximize your income via souvenir items sold in Highclere’s Gift Shoppe ?
I have many suggestions for you—I can sympathize your enormous repair and upkeep bills
to keep the Castle in presentable state, let me help you with that…..send me a reply by regular mail with your code of arms on the return address space of your envelope.
It is VOTING DAY here in California tomorrow (June 5)—no matter who got elected,
we know that the vultures will suck us DRY.
I think our gift shop is good – different charming gifts and books of course!!!
Thank you so much for all your writing. I so enjoyed along with my travel friend,
Cynthia Cable, our tour of the Castle Oct, 2015, and our personal tour on our own tour of the castle grounds and a chat with the older gardener and young one. The statues and temples and the lovely fall color. Did you ever find the pair of earrings I left with the tour guide (Alice??)
Your letters keep our happy experiences alive and away from any black hole- Thank you.
Looking forward to all your creative writings. Fondly, Shirley Sloop. News Mexico & now Arizona
The photos of the night sky over Highclere are breathtaking. I vote we enjoy them and put the tax worries aside. Thank you for sharing the beautiful images!
We don’t spend enough time looking up at night – I guess we are sitting inside watching Downton Abbey!!!!
Stunning photos of the castle. The holes and drains are not quite as stunning, but please congratulate your staff on their unique perspective of Highclere.
John’s photos are special..
MARVELOUS!!!
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
As this blog post illustrates taxes are so very -taxing!!! (laughing) I guess I had not thought about the myriad of ways an estate like Highclere is taxed. I think that the only consolation to be found is for every dollar that blithely sails out to the government there is a happy visitor or much needed renovation done on the estate. Also, consider this, if the only certainties in life are death and taxes, be glad it is taxes you are enduring and not the alternative!! You make me smile as I read this because you are so pragmatic and cheerful. Not much gets you down Lady Carnarvon, and that is why all your readers love you so. Don’t mind spending the money because as the redoubtable Mrs Levinson of Downton fame put it, “You have to spend it on something”!!!
Regards (and my sympathies too),
Ann Catherine Flood
Just another comment about taxes. True, there never seems an end to them,
but look on the positive side, what do we get for our taxes? Many services
and security. Just a few: police, fire department, hospitals, schools, building
and repairing of roads, family allowances, pensions, social security etc. When
we stop for a moment and think of the benefits, it is money well spent.
Jesus was asked by the religious leaders of his day whether or not to pay
taxes, Jesus summed it up in a nutshell, he said, “Pay back Ceasar’s things to
Caesar, but God’s things to God”.
Carolyn
We visited England last week and got to attend the June 3rd event at Highclere. We had a great time and got to talk to your husband. What a special place! The lawn, the trees, Castle. Great collection of Egyptian artifacts. We look forward to visiting again.
Regards,
Roxana (USA)
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Yes, we all face that inevitability of death and taxes. And yes, there will come a day when the faithful will have their mansion that does not decay (for which I am looking forward to!) and there will be no taxes. Though we all bemoan the rapid flight of revenue down the black holes in our lives, we are grateful that we had enough in the first place to send down that hole. While I grumble about the deer eating my hostas, the rampant poison ivy that involves hours of attention in removal, carpenter bees, erosion, trees too close to the house that need to be removed, etc., I remember I could be living in a cramped apartment in a city somewhere, listening to roaring buses and gunshots. Give me the bees and the trees any day!
Thanks for sharing your thought and observations with us!
Highclere at dusk is magical and beautifully captured in your photos. Thank you for including us on your walk!
And yes we are watching the Downton Abbey series, again. Just last night, Lady Mary glided down your grand staircase to dance with her cousin Matthew … until next week …
MY DEAR LADY CARNARVON,
MARVELOUS HOME AND GARDENS.
Thank you
Dear Lady Carnarvon, just came back from visiting Highclere, second visit, and it felt like coming home again. Saw you dashing out of the gift shop, up to London. Highclere, is beautiful in the day, and now that you have shared these wonderful shots of it at night, it only brings back the scene of Matthew proposing to Lady Mary. At night with the snow falling. If you were an artist, you could add another profession to your already busy list. The many scenes of Highclere. Desiree.
I well remember the scene of Matthew and Mary! It was not real snow but creating the scene was a spectacle in itself
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
What a beautiful photographs of Highclere at dusk! I love the dark silhouette of the castle against the last fading lights of the evening.
Thank God that beautiful views and landscapes, and the delight of watching them, are not taxed!
Best regards,
Aleksandra
It is lovely