English Thatched Roof Cottages

A thatched pub the williams arms at wrafton north devon england.

English thatched roof cottages. 25 lovely english thatched roof cottages. Cottages in the english countryside are typically accompanied by a wild seemingly untamed natural garden that adds to the quaint charm of the village. Wouldn t it just be the perfect place for a summer in england or a writing holiday.

A roof thatched by a skilled craftsman can last 40 to 50 years without needing refurbishment all the while providing excellent watertight insulation. Most thatch used in england is made of long wheat straw grown specially for the purpose. From about 1820 welsh slate started to replace thatch as the roofing material of choice and the canals and later railways made it easier and cheaper to transport to remoter areas of england.

The english thatched cottage is a beautiful adornment to the english countryside so much so that it attracted the attention of connoisseurs of the cult of the picturesque in the later part of the eighteenth century when popular artists such as helen allingham started painting the country thatch cottage and creating the romantic scenes that idolised cottage life. A good thatched roof not only makes a country cottage picturesque it is also remarkably long lasting. Up until the early 19th century thatching was the only style of roofing available for most people living in the english countryside.

Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw water reed sedge cladium mariscus rushes heather or palm branches layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof since the bulk of the vegetation stays dry and is densely packed trapping air thatching also functions. This impossibly quaint semi detached thatch roof cottage is located in the small village of wendlebury in oxfordshire.