"This is home, a real home after 41 years of wandering," Gen. Marshall said of Dodona Manor, where he lived until his death in 1956. (George C. Marshall International Center)

Saved from development a decade ago, Gen. George C. Marshall's country estate in Leesburg, Va., officially opened to the public for the first time last weekend after a 10-year restoration. Eleven European countries that benefited from the Marshall Plan after World War II contributed to the $7 million project.

Marshall lived in the 19th-century Dodona Manor in Leesburg, Va., from 1941 until his death in 1959. "There is nothing I would as much prefer to do this spring as to turn my mind to the wholesome business of gardening rather than the terrible problems and tragedies of war," he said in 1942.

The 3.8-acre property was slated for commercial development when a group of residents decided to buy it in 1995.

"It took them a while to acquire the property," says Kristie Lalaire, assistant director of the George C. Marshall International Center, which oversaw the restoration. "It's in an area that seemed lucrative for commercial development. There was certain importance to acquire the property as soon as possible."

The three-story Federal-style mansion was in bad shape before the project began, with overgrown grounds, rotting furniture, and peeling wallpaper.

About 300 people visited the manor last weekend, Lalaire says. "It's exciting because this is the first time we've really opened it to the public."

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