Trip 1: The Men Who Lost America, A Special Invitation
Created specifically for the Charleston Library Society for the year of 2026 honoring the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, you are invited to join Caroline Stanley, Countess of Derby and descendant of Charles Cornwallis, for an entirely bespoke tour to London, Windsor, and her home at Knowsley Hall with husband Edward, the 19th Earl of Derby.
Excerpted highlights are featured below. To access a PDF of the Detailed Itinerary and Rates, click HERE.
Tour is limited to 22 total guests and we expect it to book quickly, please let us know if you have questions (email lpelzer@charlestonlibrarysociety.org), or click the ‘book now’ link just above/right of photo to secure your booking through the Travel Muse portal.
TOUR HIGHLIGHTS
With a lens toward the English men who lost the American Revolutionary War, the tour will begin with two nights at The Stafford Hotel in London, where we will get acquainted with key historical figures at the National Portrait Gallery. We are also privileged to have special access to a number of sites near and dear to Charleston Library Society including the London Library and Benjamin Franklin House. We will then head north to Knowsley Hall for a four-night stay. This grand house remains in the original ownership as a private residence for 600 years, and is still home to Edward and Caroline, 19th Earl and Countess of Derby. En route to Knowsley Hall we will stop for lunch at Drayton House, set on 200 acres of parkland in Northamptonshire, and never open to the public. It was the home of Lord George Germain, who served as Secretary of State for the Colonies, and left behind an invaluable archive. The tour will end with one night at the incomparable Coworth Park Hotel in Ascot, not far from Windsor Castle, where we will visit the Royal Library as well as the Royal Collection.
London
- Visit the London Library, a sister library to Charleston Library Society, established in 1841 and open to all with an annual subscription. The library was founded on the initiative of Thomas Carlyle, who was dissatisfied with some of the policies at the British Museum Library.
- Behind-the-scenes tour with renowned architect, historic preservationist and Charleston resident Anne Keigher MBE at the Benjamin Franklin House. The house, c. 1740, was
occupied by Franklin for almost 16 years. Anne dedicated herself full time to fundraising and project management beginning in 1997 through 2006. - After-hours visit in The King’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace to see the special exhibition: Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style followed by dinner at the London home of Lord and Lady Derby.
Knowsley Hall
- Hear a before-dinner talk by Michelle Charters OBE, Head of the International Slavery Museum relating to the direct ties between Liverpool and Charleston.
- Visit with Proprietors of The Liverpool Athenaeum, one of the greatest in the UK, for a private look at treasures relating to the ties between England and the U.S.
- Attend a performance of Macbeth at the Shakespeare North Playhouse, designed in the round as Shakespeare Globe
- Enjoy a behind-the-scenes Knowsley Hall Safari Park – the modern-day successor to the 13th Earl’s menagerie, which exemplified the natural history interests that he shared with his contemporaries such as Charles Darwin.
Windsor Castle
- Take a curator-led tour at the Royal Collection with special emphasis on George III, his life and role in the Revolutionary war. We will tour the grandest sequence of baroque State Apartments in England containing some of the most important works of art – from magnificent examples of porcelain, furniture and paintings, to displays of arms and armor, silver gilt and sculpture.
- Librarian tour of the Royal Library, located in a series of three rooms adjacent to the State Apartments. It contains more than 200,000 items, including not only books and manuscripts, but also music, sound recordings, insignia, medals and coins.