Taormina ... the British Legacy
It all started with the The Grand Tour ..... In the 18th century British aristocracy would embark on what was known as 'The Grand Tour' visiting all of continental Europe enjoying the culture and embarking on purchasing fine works of art and antiques. Taormina was an obligatory stop on The Grand Tour and has played host to foreign visitors ever since. Being the last stop on the tour many decided to stay and make Taormina their home. Visitors chose Taormina for its peaceful location and beautiful landscapes with many drawing inspiration for paintings, poems and novels. They enjoyed Taormina’s glamourous way of life, with afternoon teas and soirees in beautiful villas and lush gardens. One of the first visitors to Sicily partaking in the Grand Tour was a Scottish gentleman called Patrick Brydone, the tour formed the subject of his book 'A Tour of Sicily and Malta' which was composed from letters that he had sent home to his travelling companion William Beckford. The book became a best seller.
D H Lawrence ..... From March 1920 to February 1922 Taormina became home to the author D H Lawrence and his wife Frieda living as the guests of Don Cicco Cacopardo in a house called Fontana Vecchia. The writer fell in love with Taormina and once wrote in a letter to a friend "We love Taormina and in particular our house, I like this place more than any other, I love the sunrise over the open sea to the East". It is said that he wrote Lady Chatterley's Lover here after drawing inspiration from an English noble lady living in the town who fell in love with her Sicilian gardener. Fontana Vecchia also played host to the English musical and playwright critic Howard Agg who recalled his stay in his book 'A Cypress in Sicily' which he wrote in 1967.
Casa Cuseni ..... this enchanting villa was designed and built for the painter Robert Hawthorn Kitson in 1905, his Taorminese house and its lush gardens are designed in an art nouveau way mixed with Sicilian style. The dining room was both conceived and designed by a friend of his Sir Frank Brangwyn who was a pupil of William Morris the famous member of the artistic movement 'Arts and Crafts' and also by Sir Alfred East who at the time was the President of the Royal Society of British Artists. After his death Roberts Kitson's niece Daphne Phelps inherited Casa Cuseni and in order to sustain the enormous cost of the house started to rent out a few of the rooms to illustrious guests who came to write and paint. The house became the favourite place for DH Lawrence and his wife to have their afternoon tea. In later life Daphne wrote a book 'A House in Sicily'. Today Casa Cuseni is a guest house and museum where you can see stunning frescoes in the dining room.
The Public Gardens ..... the gardens of Taormina are one of the most loved and visited sites of the town. The gardens were created by a Scottish lady named Florence Trevelyan who chose to settle in Taormina in the late eighteen hundreds after falling victim to its charm. It is said that she was invited to leave England after a rumoured romantic entanglement with Queen Victoria’s son the Prince of Wales, who was to be the future King Edward VII. Florence married a successful local doctor from Taormina and together they owned many properties and land including Isola Bella and Casa Silva.
Casa Silva ..... Casa Silva was built in the 1800’s and was once the property of Florence and her husband and was part of the public gardens. The villa was named Casa Silva by two Austrian designers who arrived in Taormina in the early nineteen hundreds who established a firm place in haute couture. Today it is home to ‘Babilonia’ Taormina’s language, culture and art school.
Isola Bella ..... Florence also bought Isola Bella in 1890, the beautiful rocky outcrop only attached to the mainland by a narrow sandy path off the coast below Taormina, she built a house and established a garden there. In among the native Mediterranean plants, she planted non-native trees, rare shrubs and grasses. It also became the home of various sea birds and some interesting lizards. It is with thanks to her that we have such a beautiful island in Taormina. Isola Bella is now protected by WWF and it has been declared a Nature Reserve thanks to its beauty and untouched nature.
The Ashbee Hotel ..... In 1907 construction began on Villa San Giorgio now The Ashbee Hotel. The villa was designed by English architect Charles Robert Ashbee, founder of English Arts and Crafts and was commissioned by Colonel Thomas Bradney Shaw-Hellier who was once the director of the Royal Military School of Music. He chose Taormina as a quiet, secluded location for rest and meditation. The villa was built on a plot of land that Colonel Shaw-Hellier had purchased which had a view across the Straits of Messina behind the Church of San Pancrazio which is built on the ruins of a Greek temple. A collection of photographs showing the visit of Charles Robert Ashbee to Taormina and the design work and construction of the Villa San Giorgio is kept in the National Library of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Additionally original drawings and sketches of the villa are held in the Drawings Collection of the Royal Institute of British Architects as well as in the English home of Colonel Shaw-Hillier at Wodehouse, Wombourne, Staffordshire. It was here at Villa San Giorgio that Colonel Montgomery made his headquarters during World War II and you can envisage him standing looking through his binoculars across the Straits of Messina. The Ashbee Hotel is a gorgeous luxurious and elegant hotel oozing Englishness and you can eat wonderfully in its St. George Restaurant.
St. George's Anglican Church ..... Situated on Via Pirandello you will find the Anglican Church of St George. Before the completion of this beautiful church in 1922 for the English speaking community of Taormina church services would be held in their private houses. Sir Edward and Lady Mabel Hill offered a private chapel which was in their house but it eventually became too small for the growing community so Sir Edward decided to purchase some land and build a church on it. English speaking services are still held there today and at Christmas the carol service is not to be missed. The church makes a perfect venue for destination weddings in Taormina.
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton ..... The film Cleopatra is best remembered for the affair between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton who fell in love on set. Whilst filming the blockbuster movie the couple snuck away and no one knew where they had gone. They were in fact sipping cocktails at the Wunderbar Caffe in Piazza Aprile IX and staying at the Grand Timeo Hotel where it is said that on another visit Elizabeth broke a guitar by smashing it on Richard's head during a row. In a excerpt from his diary written in Taormina on 30th July 1967 he wrote "A slow day, marking time, with a walk in which we bought sunglasses at a little shop. As we left the crowd which had gathered applauded us. Elizabeth thought it very sweet, which indeed it was. We dined in somnolence and some self-satisfaction as we compared our ancestors and former wives and husbands. Elizabeth has become very slim and I can barely keep my hands off her. She is at the moment among the most dishiest girls I’ve ever seen. The most. I mean dishiest".
Villa Angela ..... In the 1980's pop stars were charmed by Taormina with one so much that he bought a hotel. Scottish singer songwriter Jim Kerr the lead singer of the band Simple Minds fell in love with Sicily when he visited on tour, and later set up Hotel Villa Angela on the hillside above Taormina. He was not the only one, Mick Hucknall, the singer of Simply Red, bought an elegant country house at the foot of Mount Etna looking out over the volcano and the sea.Mick Hucknall first spent a holiday in Sicily and fell in love with the country house. He bought the property and cultivated the “Il Cantante” (translated into English "The Singer") vineyard on the hillside around Mount Etna together with the wine grower Salvo Foti. Many British bands and artists have performed at the ancient Greek theatre of Taormina, most recently, Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Elton John and Boy George.
Villa Brittania ..... located in front of Fontana Vecchia you will find Villa Britannia. The owners Anglo/Sicilian Louisa and her partner Marco have lovingly refurbished the villa with vintage, designer and antique furniture together with art and sculptures by local artists. The villa is surrounded by a beautiful garden which hosts an ancient Roman soldiers tomb. Villa Britannia is also home to one of the best Sicilian cookery classes in Taormina. Aside from cookery classes the Villa has two beautiful suites with one aptly named the DH Lawrence suite. Louisa and Marco are the perfect hosts and also offer wine tasting creating ambient evenings reminiscent of the times of Taormina's golden age.
The English Roses of Sicily ..... and finally my British legacy would not be complete without mentioning all my lovely Ex-Pat British friends who look after us so well. Most of whom came to Sicily in the 1970's and 80's and fell in love not only with Sicily but also the charms of the Sicilian men, marrying, starting families and deciding to stay on our beautiful island. Some even starred in a documentary for the 1980's daytime TV show 'Pebble Mill' in a feature called 'The English Roses of Sicily'. They enjoy coffee mornings together every week and I love listening to the tales of their Sicilian life whilst enjoying a mug of English tea and biscuits. I love them all to bits.
Walking tours are the perfect experience to discover
the history and ambience of Taormina.
Taormina Cult is a trail through Taormina showing "21 places where the muses found their home". It is a thematic route through and around the town which includes culture, history, literature, cinema and art and gives honour to Taormina’s glorious past. For the less energetic you can follow the trail with a guide in an Ape Calesse, a three wheel vehicle which is an icon of Italian style and design.
the history and ambience of Taormina.
Taormina Cult is a trail through Taormina showing "21 places where the muses found their home". It is a thematic route through and around the town which includes culture, history, literature, cinema and art and gives honour to Taormina’s glorious past. For the less energetic you can follow the trail with a guide in an Ape Calesse, a three wheel vehicle which is an icon of Italian style and design.
If you enjoyed this Blog post then you might enjoy these ones from my archive too:
Casa Cuseni … A House in Sicily https://whitealmond-privatesicily.blogspot.com/2016/08/casa-cuseni-house-in-sicily.html
Taormina … Miss Hill’s School of Lace https://whitealmond-privatesicily.blogspot.com/2023/06/taormina-miss-hills-school-of-lace.html
A Coronation Mass for King Charles III in Taormina https://whitealmond-privatesicily.blogspot.com/2023/05/taormina-coronation-mass-for-king.html
Links:
www.casacuseni.it
www.babilonia.it
www.theashbeehotel.com
www.anglicanchurchtaormina.it
www.villaangela.com
www.villabritannia.com
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As seen in
The Ultimate Guide to Visiting Sicily
By Essential Sicily
Sicily Weddings and Honeymoons
by Wedaways©️
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My Lemon Grove Summer
by Jo Thomas
The Secret Sister
by Jan Baynham
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