Around the world


Living with a piece of history


Little beats the thrill of living in a house with a history, where the very walls connect you with notable people or events. Carla Passino scours the globe in search of the best


Torres Novas, Portugal


A Portuguese romance Quinta da Torre de Santo António towers above a verdant landscape of farms and country houses in Torres Novas, in the centre of Portugal. Designed to be imposing, the property dates from the 17th century, but underwent extensive remodelling at the end of the 19th century. The process was insti- gated by the then owners, the Condes da Foz, an illustrious Portuguese family, who man- aged to pull off a fine balance between the original Manueline architectureÐ a lavish late-Gothic style popular in Portugal at the turn of the 16th centuryÐ and the Romantic taste of the late 1800s. Inside, many of the palace' s 30 rooms have eye-catching Portu- guese azulejosÐ panels of glazed tilework


Ð as well as frescoed ceilings, columns and grand fireplaces. Formal French-style gar- dens stretch away from the house; the rest of the 60-hectare (148-acre) estate is vine- yards and woodland. The grounds are criss- crossed by watercourses and peppered with outbuildings, including a chapel, a dovecote and a watermill. Sotheby' s International Realty quotes a price of €10 million (00 351 911 870 217; www.sothebysrealtypt.com).


54 Country Life International, Summer 2011


Bordeaux, France


Vinous grandeur Story has it that treasure has lain buried in the grounds of this extraordinary 18th- century château since the years of the Knight Templars, who owned the estate in the Middle Ages. But the true gold is in the vineyards that surround the house. Wine production on the estate began in the knights' time, well before the present château was built, and continues today with vines of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon and Muscadelle grapes produc- ing some 375,000 bottles every year. The rest of the property' s 420 acres are partly laid to formal gardens, and partly taken up by forests and meadows that are perfect for hunting wild boar and stags, and for shoot- ing game. The house, which was given its dramatic look in the 1870s, is not to be sniffed at either. Fully renovated, it has 10 bedrooms and grand reception rooms that lend themselves to entertaining on a large scale. The price is in excess of €7 million (not including the wine stock) through Christie' s International Real Estate affiliate Maxwell Storrie Baynes (00 33 557 84 08 82; www.maxwellstorriebaynes.com).


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