Van Hire Stevenage

It was a dark and stormy night, when the great unwashed, in their pursuit of the mighty dollar, decided that the pen was mightier than the sword. So wrote the popular English writer and one-time resident of Stevenage, Edward George Earl Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton.

The Baron lived in Knebworth House, and penned these (and more) well-known phrases. Knebworth House is a country home located near to Stevenage, which was owned by the Lytton family in 1490 for many years. Take your Thrifty van hire for a tour, and see the home still being lived in to this day by the Lytton-Cobbold family. Since 1974 the grounds have been host to many concerts (including but not limited to guests such as Pink Floyd, Oasis, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Cliff Richard and Robbie Williams), and the home itself has featured in movies. Hertbeat FM, a local radio station, broadcasts from the old pump house, and deep below the breakfast show’s presenter’s chair is an old well.

Before you leave in your van hire, make sure you wander the gardens – there have been gardens on the site since the 1600s. But back to the Baron. Many of his writings can only be understood in light of the fact that he was a member of the Rosicrucianism, an esoteric order with beliefs that could be described as not run-of-the-mill. The reason for his rather long-winded name is that in 1844 he assumed the name and arms of the Lytton estate by royal licence, and hence his surname became Bulwer-Lytton, whereas before Lytton was a middle name. His brothers’ surname was kept as Bulwer.

With Thrifty you can travel the entire United Kingdom, so be sure to take your van hire from Thrifty and tour the sites of Stevenage, but be sure to stop in at Knebworth House.