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When Shelley was ten, he was sent off to
study at the Syon House Academy—a
site which we located more as a matter of
serendipity than scholarship. We knew that
the school was located in Islesworth, on
the Great Western Road in Thames Valley. We
assumed that it would be near the great
Syon House estate for which it had been
named. But no one at the Syon park had
heard anything of the establishment. As we
drove around the park, we noticed a
preparatory school, and checked with the
administrators there. No one knew of the
academy, but one teacher told us she
remembered seeing a plaque on one of the
brick walls surrounding Syon House
park.
We proceeded on foot around the
perimeters of the estate, searching vainly
for the plaque. As we searched, however, we
went past a large brick
building—several times. It was called
"Syon Lodge" and seemed to be roughly the
right age and size. The main building was
given over to offices, while the old stable
area, kitchen, and walled garden were used
as a showroom by "Crowther of Syon Lodge,"
a purveyor of antique replicas that has
occupied the site for over 65 years.
Despite its careful upkeep, the box-like
structure seemed fairly grim, and it was
easy to imagine the site as the place
Shelley considered such a prison.
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