Birds at Waddesdon Manor Aviary are hand-fed every hour in their delightful, gilded cage
Here is a giant treat, a giant glory and in every way a giant delight. The enormous aviary at Waddesdon, Buckinghamshire, is open for all to see (thanks to the National Trust) and of a most marvellous splendour. It was built by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild (pictured) in 1869 and ever since then has remained a great star in this filled-with-stars estate. The splendour was arranged by Rothschild in 1874, when he bought a great swathe of land. He immediately set to work on preparing it for his grand arrangements, all to be ruled over by a thumping great ‘Renaissance’ stately palace. It was built of stones that, if you please, were hauled from Bath – first by a train and then by teams of Percheron horses imported from Normandy for the job! Buckinghamshire had been the chosen spot for his dwelling, as the Rothschilds had already been so wildly...
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