Clouds Hill facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Clouds Hill |
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The front of Clouds Hill in 2013
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| General information | |
| Type | Cottage |
| Location | near Wareham, Dorset |
| Coordinates | 50°43′03″N 2°15′04″W / 50.7176°N 2.2510°W |
| Completed | 19th century |
| Owner | National Trust |
Clouds Hill is a small, old cottage in Dorset, England. It was once the home of a famous person named T. E. Lawrence, also known as Lawrence of Arabia. This special cottage was built in the early 1800s. Today, it is owned by the National Trust, a group that protects important places. Clouds Hill is also a "Grade II* listed building," which means it's a very important historical place.
Contents
The Story of Clouds Hill
Clouds Hill is a small building with brick walls and a tiled roof. It was probably built around 1808 for someone who worked in the forest or on a farm. Later, between 1922 and 1934, T. E. Lawrence made many changes to it. He was a famous British soldier and writer.
Lawrence's Special Home
Lawrence first rented Clouds Hill in 1923. At that time, he was working at a nearby army base called Bovington Camp. He made the cottage a comfortable place to live with the help of a friend. In 1925, he bought it and used it as a holiday home.
Lawrence loved Clouds Hill very much. He called it his "earthly paradise." He wanted it to be a simple place, without anything too fancy or unique. This way, he felt free and not tied down.
Inside the Cottage
The cottage did not have electric lights. It had three main rooms: a room for eating, a room for books, and a room for music. Lawrence added special features to his home. For example, he lined the eating room with a material to keep it warm. He also kept his food under glass covers. In 1935, a round window from a broken ship was put into the cottage.
In the book room, Lawrence had a large, comfy leather sofa. In the music room above it, he had a gramophone. This was an old-fashioned record player with a big horn to make the sound louder. He also had another leather sofa and a chair there.
In 1934, Lawrence wrote a letter describing his home. He said the cottage looked simple from the outside. He felt that everything, both inside and outside, was perfect.
Lawrence's Last Days
In 1935, Lawrence left the Royal Air Force and lived at Clouds Hill. Just a few weeks later, he had a motorcycle accident near the cottage. He was 46 years old. He passed away on May 19, 1935, in a hospital nearby.
The year after he passed away, Lawrence's brother gave Clouds Hill to the National Trust. Today, it is a museum. It is open to visitors from March to early October each year.
Clouds Hill Today
The cottage looks much like it did when Lawrence lived there. It has an exhibition that tells the story of his life. Many of his original furniture and belongings are still there. The cottage shows how complex his personality was. It also shows his connections to the Middle East. You can see a painting there of a soldier cadet, which might be Lawrence himself.
There is also a walking path called the Lawrence of Arabia Trail. It starts and ends at The Tank Museum in Bovington. The trail includes Clouds Hill and the churchyard where Lawrence is buried.
Sleeping Bags for Guests
Lawrence had a special tradition for visitors who stayed overnight. He kept a sleeping bag just for guests. His own sleeping bag was marked meum, which means 'mine' in Latin. The guest's sleeping bag was marked tuum, meaning 'yours'.
Some famous writers, like George Bernard Shaw and E. M. Forster, used the tuum sleeping bag. In 1965, the guest's sleeping bag was stolen. This happened around the time the movie Lawrence of Arabia was released. People thought the movie's popularity might have caused the theft. But in 2001, the sleeping bag was returned anonymously from Belgium.
Gallery
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The Music Room, where Lawrence played his gramophone
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The Bunk Room
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The thatched garage of Clouds Hill, built in 1930, with an exhibition about Lawrence's life
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A painting by Henry Scott Tuke that might show T. E. Lawrence as a young cadet
See also
- Writer's home
