De Grey Mausoleum, Beds.

English Heritage.
Attached to a small church in a not very interesting village is a remarkable mausoleum, housing a sequence of 17 sculpted and effigies monuments, spanning nearly three centuries (1615-1899), to the De Grey family of Wrest Park.

These are well worth seeing, but your visit requires a bit of preparation. The mausoleum is kept locked, with a keyholder in the village. You might imagine that the keyholder’s house would be next to the church, but it wasn’t – it was a car drive away at the other end of the village. You are advised to phone the keyholder in advance (when I went to the house I’m almost sure the keyholder was expecting someone else 🙂 ) There is an audio tour (not available on site) which you can download. The lock on the mausoleum gate was awkward, but will open if you twist and pull in the right order.

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