sheepless yards, churchills in churchyards (Blenheim Part II)

Here's Winston Churchill's tomb, in a next door churchyard.

Churchill was born at Blenheim, which helps make it more important.  Even though his tomb is free access, his birthplace is not.  We peered wistfully through the gate.

Break-in unsuccessful.

(Of course we didn't actually do this!)

We contented ourselves with moseying around in the backyard instead.

The sheepless part:  Some Romantic-period well-to-doers wanted to gaze out their windows at sheep romantically scattered across their backyard.  However, they disliked the practical effects of having livestock in the yard.  So, they constructed terraced ridges -- the sheep couldn't come up on the higher ridge, but the ridge itself is invisible from the house (example below).  So from the window, the view is uninterrupted green.

(photo from Wikipedia, of Heaton Hall)

The term for these ingenious walls:  Ha-ha's.  (Think of the jokes waiting to happen from that name...)