Belle Isle (Windermere)
It is rumoured that in Roman times a villa was once built on the island, with a possible connection to the Roman fort at Ambleside. In 1250 it was the seat of the district's Lord of the Manor. It was also a Royalist stronghold during the English Civil War.
Island House was built in 1774 to designs by John Plaw. It is unusual in that it is circular in plan, built of brick, three floors high with a four column portico; it draws closely on the Pantheon, Rome. The house was sold along with the island to the wealthy Curwen family who renamed the island after their daughter, Isabella. It was then sold on to Isabella Curwen by her family in 1781 for £1,720 and was permanently renamed after her. The descendants of Isabella and her husband John Christian Curwen lived on the island until 1993.
It is called 'Bell Island' not 'Isabella Island' because of use of the shortened form of Isabella- Bella, which lost the 'a' to become 'Bell', spelt 'Belle' by the Ordnance Survey map of 1925 over the years. It was known locally as the Great Island or Long Holme and formerly known as Longholm, before its renaming in 1774.
In 1996 (some records suggest 23 December 1994), Belle Isle House suffered serious damage following a large fire. However, it was repaired and is once again a place of residence.
References
- ^ "History of Windermere and Bowness". Go Lakes. 8 April 2015. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
- ^ "Windermere: islands". Lake District National Park. 28 March 2013. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
- ^ "Windermere Islands". Lake District National Park. Archived from the original on 3 May 2008.
- ^ "The islands of Windermere". BBC. 10 July 2006.
- ^ "Journeying Through Time on Lake Windermere". timetravel-britain.com.
54°21′43″N 2°56′04″W / 54.36194°N 2.93444°W
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