【英语时差8,16】布伦海姆宫（在线收听）

Blenheim Palace Helen: Today we’re taking you to a huge and stunning palace about two hours north-west of London. It’s called Blenheim Palace. First John told us why the house was built. It was due to a battle that happened over 300 years ago. The huge palace was built in the 18th century for the first Duke of Marlborough in 1704. He inflicted a huge defeat, unexpected defeat on the armies of France. Queen Anne wanted to give him a gift, but she also wanted the future to remember the victory. So she built him this house, this palace, to live in and the dukes still live here to this day, on the left where I’m gesturing. The whole house is built on such a splendid, dramatic scale, that it stands as a monument and that’s what it’s about. As we look out there, that’s the other feature of Blenheim. That’s the park, totally man made, landscaped by Capability Brown in the 1760s. Now that magnificent landscape there and this wonderful Baroque building contributed both of them to Blenheim being chosen as the United Nations, in the 1980s, as a world heritage site. If I tell you other world heritage sites are the Pyramids, the Great Wall of China, you realise what a stately home this is. It’s the only one in the country, the only stately home, which is a world heritage site. Helen: So this is definitely a very prestigious title to have. And if you are interested in Winston Churchill,then you’ve got to visit Blenheim, because this is where Winston Churchill was born and buried!