Leeds Castle: Can You Get There From Here?

Q. We will be traveling in England and would like to visit Leeds Castle. How do we get to Leeds from Hastings, Rye, Dover or Canterbury? - Carol Greene, Loudon, Tenn.

A. Leeds Castle, situated about 45 miles southeast of London, is in the village of Leeds, not in the northern city of Leeds, as is often assumed. Perhaps the easiest way to reach the castle from the towns and cities you are visiting is by a combination of train and bus.

While there is no train station in the village, the South Eastern Train Co. has a package for visitors to Leeds Castle that includes admission to the castle, round-trip rail tickets from several southeastern cities, and bus transportation to and from Bearsted station, which is about three miles from the castle.

The package costs about $23 from Dover, Canterbury West and Rye, and about $25.50 from Hastings. For information call (44-345) 484950.

Moated Leeds Castle, surrounded by 500 acres of gardens and parkland, dates back to the ninth century. It was rebuilt by the Normans in 1119 and was a royal palace from the 13th to the 15th centuries. Eventually it became a private home.

The castle has a fine collection of medieval furnishings, tapestries, and paintings; an aviary; a maze with an underground grotto; and a museum of antique dog collars.

Leeds Castle, Maidstone, Kent ME17 1PL. (44-1622) 765400, is open daily year around. Admission to the Castle and gardens is about $12.50; $9.50 to the gardens only.

Q. I am intested in visiting Antietam, Manassas, and other Civil War sites. Are there any tour companies I can use? - Mark Tanenbaum, New York, N.Y.

A. Yes, there are some organizations that specialize in educational tours of sites associated with the Civil War.

For instance, the Civil War Society, a private company that publishes Civil War Magazine and arranges tours and seminars, offers “The Eastern Theater Battlefield Tour” from Oct. 17 to 27. The itinerary includes the battlefields of Gettysburg, where, in 1863, Lee’s second invasion of the North was repulsed by Union forces; Antietam in Maryland, site of the bloodiest one-day battle in American history; Manassas, where the battles of Bull Run were fought; Lexington, seat of the Virginia Military Institute; and the court house in Appomattox, where Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to Grant.

Keith Gibson, a historian with the Virginia Military Institute, is scheduled to lead the tour, which costs $1,600, including hotel accommodations, some meals, bus transportation, and lectures. Information: The Civil War Society, Post Office Box 770, Berryville, Va. 22611; (540) 955-1176.

Throughout the year, the nonprofit Civil War Education Association, 21 North Loudoun Street, Winchester, Va. 22601, (800) 298-1861 or (540) 678-8598, offers tours - generally three days long - that focus on specific Civil War sites or campaigns.

For example, from Sept. 5 to 7, Gary W. Gallagher, a history professor at Pennsylvania State University, and Robert K. Krick plan to lead “A Walking Tour of the Wilderness.”

The tour visits an area of dense undergrowth and forest west of Fredericksburg, Va., where the armies of Grant and Lee met in May 1864. Visitors will track Grant’s advance, visit Widow Tapp Field, Saunders Field, and the 1790s house where two federal corps commanders made their headquarters.

Participants should pack comfortable walking shoes. The cost of the tour, $265, includes tours, bus transportation to sites, some meals, and lectures. Accommodations at the Holiday Inn Fredericksburg South, (540) 898-1102, are not included, but a special rate of $49, single or double, is available.

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