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Standing on the River Stour beneath the wonderful open Suffolk sky, Flatford Mill, one of the 18th century water-mills owned by the father of painter John Constable continues to present a captivating picture. The mill and equally memorable Willy Loft's Cottage, a romantic 17th century building in an idyllic location by a stream, are both immortalised forever in Constable's painting "The Hay Wain" one of his most important works.
Downstream from Flatford Mill, the River Stour winds gently through reed fringed banks past sloping fields where cattle graze and waterfowl wander. Further back is a hinterland of fields, water-meadows, church spires, cottages and ponds, these formed the settings for some of Constable's earlier works, they are scenes that blessedly remain largely unchanged, thus we are able to see them very much as the painter saw them.
The oldest building in Flatford is a Tudor property from the 15th century. It is a fine timber-frame building, with gables just a short distance away from Flatford Mill, and known as Valley Farm. Granary Barn, with its deep thatch hiding tiny bedroom windows stands close to Flatford Mill. In Constables time this was were the family stored grain from the mill. It is now converted to provide a comfortable home where the owners welcome guests for Bed and Breakfast.
In this exceptional country atmosphere amongst waters where swans glide, and mallard and ducks meander within the reeds, it is perfectly possible to understand the words of Constable when he wrote to a friend ' these are the scene's that made me a painter ' for the sheer serenity uplifts the soul and rejuvenates the spirit - the landscape here has a beauty quite beyond compare.
Flatford Mill is currently leased out as a Field Study Centre and offers courses based on the arts. Fortunately the attraction here is not the contents of the property but its sublime setting. The National Trust offer guided tours around the village as most of the properties, although little changed are now in private occupation.
in the county of Suffolk
(0.5 miles, 0.7 km)On arrival in Flatford there is little to prepare you for its overwhelming beauty, but you should not be surprised, for this after all is Constable Country, an area made famous by the great landscape painter and which features in so many of his pictures...
in the county of Suffolk
(1.3 miles, 2.2 km, direction N)This enchanting village gained lasting fame as Constable's birth place. It also has a very unusual medieval bell cage...
a Historic Market Town in the county of Essex
(1.4 miles, 2.2 km, direction W)There are two things that immediately strike you about this enchanting village, the first is the opulence of the beautiful 15th-century church, and the second is the fascinating view of the River Stour, which, like the church, has featured in Constable paintings...
a Historic Market Town in the county of Essex
(2.0 miles, 3.2 km, direction SE)The town shows fine examples of weavers cottages and walks through the town reveal fine Georgian facades behind which are Tudor and Elizabethan houses...
in the county of Essex
(2.7 miles, 4.3 km, direction E)Mistley lies on the south bank of the River Stour not far from Manningtree, to which it is joined via a tree-lined walk along the river which is oddly called The Walls...
All towns in Suffolk
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