Manderly was based off of Menabilly, a large abandoned house that Daphne du Maurier came across as a young woman. Roaming into the woods of Fowey and discovering the house, she would visit it time and time again, eventually using its gothic portrayl and ivy-covered exterior as inspiration for creating the concept of Manderley.
Manderley is significant to the novel Rebecca because it is the great estate of Maxim De Winter. This location is where most of the novel takes place, as well as several major plot points. To the narrator, it is a place of dread and fear, as Rebecca, Maxim's late wife, haunts the estate through word of mouth and personal objects throughout the course of the novel. Manderely is described as very lush in greenery and overrun by flowers, always being cared for very well by the house servants. The narrator says, "The peace of Manderley. The quietude and the grace. Whoever lived within its walls, whatever trouble there was and strife, however much uneasiness and pain, no matter what tears were shed, what sorrows borne, the peace of Manderley could not be broken or the loveliness destroyed" (du Maurier 401). This location illustrates a great house as inherited power, as Maxim inherited Manderley from his family, but Rebecca made it into what it becomes; a great estate used as an object of power to show off to the rest of Kerrith. Rebecca tells Maxim, "I'll look after your precious Manderley for you, make it the most famous show-place in all the country, if you like. And people will visit us, and envy us, and talk about us; they'll say we're the luckiest, happiest, handsomest couple in all England" (du Maurier 305). At the end of the novel, Manderley goes up in flames and burns to the ground. This illustrates a loss of power for Maxim, as Rebecca regains control and essentially "wins" at Manderely's destruction. Mapping this location on COVE reveals how the novel's real geography grounds its atmosphere, and how significant Manderley is in regards to keeping up appearances and showcasing power in the novel.
Bibliography:
Research: https://britishheritage.com/travel/daphne-du-mauriers-cornwall
du Maurier, Daphne. Rebecca. Virago Press, 2018
Image: https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQEFW81ivtxH-XMqUg…