Watch Naxos Scenic Musical Journeys England Blenheim Palace, Leeds Castle and Castle Howard

Our tour takes us to three great English houses. The first, near Oxford, is Blenheim Palace, built for the first Duke of Marlborough by Sir John Vanbrugh. The second is the romantic Leeds Castle, in Kent, known for its spectacular setting, and the third is Castle Howard in North Yorkshire, designed for the Howard family by Vanbrugh. The music chosen to accompany our tour is by George Frideric Handel, who finally settled in England in 1712, assuming a dominant position in English music. His Water Music was written to entertain King George I, probably in 1717, as he sailed up the Thames, and the second, the Music for the Royal Fireworks was commissioned to celebrate the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1749, accompanying a firework display in Green Park.