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Windmill immortalised by Turner returns to glory on Isle of Wight

Chuck Eccleston/National Trust/PA Wire Bembridge WindmillChuck Eccleston/National Trust/PA Wire
The windmill boasts scenic views of the Isle of Wight countryside

The last surviving windmill on the Isle of Wight has been renovated as part of a £38,000 National Trust project.

Bembridge Windmill, which was immortalised in a watercolour painting by JMW Turner, was built in the 1700s.

It was in action for more than 200 years and later used as a Home Guard headquarters during World War Two.

The National Trust said it planned to reopen the mill for pre-booked appointments as soon as it was allowed under Covid-19 restrictions.

JMW Turner/Tate Turner windmill watercolourJMW Turner/Tate
Turner began his watercolour of the windmill in 1795, but the piece was never finished

It fell out of use when its workers left the island to fight in World War One and it never returned to service.

When artist Turner visited in 1795, he began a watercolour showing the sea lapping at the bottom of the hill on which the mill stands.

A copy of the unfinished painting has been kept in the windmill kiosk.

Work to return the structure to its former glory included replacing the rotten sweeps and stocks - the timber frame and beams of the sails.

Chuck Eccleston/National Trust/PA Wire Bembridge WindmillChuck Eccleston/National Trust/PA Wire
The rotten sweeps and stocks - the timber frame and beams of the sails - were replaced

Geoff Wallis, of Dorothea Restorations, was the last millwright to fit sweeps to the mill 40 years ago and oversaw the renovation.

He said: "Being a small country mill it was probably never prosperous enough to be updated with modern machinery so much of its original construction is still intact.

"It's basically an authentic 18th Century mill. You can see all the little changes that have taken place over time though, and these things tell the mill's story.

"For a millwright like me it's absolutely fascinating, and a great privilege."

Chuck Eccleston/National Trust/PA Wire Bembridge WindmillChuck Eccleston/National Trust/PA Wire
Bembridge Windmill was built in the early 1700s

The cost of the restoration was covered by local fundraising and a £10,000 grant from the government's Culture Recovery Fund.

Kathryn Wilson, the National Trust operations manager on the island, said: "People on the island will be thrilled to see the mill reunited with its sails; it's looked so forlorn without them.

"We're really looking forward to welcoming visitors back to the mill, to discover its stories, and to enjoy the thrill of clambering to the top and taking in those glorious views across the fields and out to the sea."

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