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THE STATELY HOMES OF ENGLAND
by
LLEWELLYNN JEWITT, F.S.A., ETC., ETC.
and
S. C. HALL, F.S.A.
Complete in Two Series.
Illustrated with Three Hundred and Eighty Engravings on Wood
New York
A. W. Lovering, Importer.
INTRODUCTION.
ENGLAND is rich—immeasurably richer than any other country under the
sun—in its “Homes;” and these homes, whether of the sovereign or of
the high nobility, of the country squire or the merchant-prince, of the
artisan or the labourer, whether, in fact, they are palace or cottage,
or of any intermediate grade, have a character possessed by none other.
England, whose
“Home! sweet home!”
has become almost a national anthem—so closely is its sentiment
entwined around the hearts of the people of every class—is, indeed,
emphatically a Kingdom of Homes; and these, and their associations and
surroundings, and the love which is felt for them, are its main source
of true greatness. An Englishman feels, wherever he may be, that
“Home _is_ home, however lowly;”
and that, despite the attractions of other countries and the glare and
brilliancy of foreign courts and foreign phases of society, after all
“There’s no place like home”
in his own old fatherland.
Beautifully has the gifted poet, Mrs. Hemans, sung of English “Homes,”
and charmingly has she said—
“The Stately Homes of England,
How beautiful they stand
Amidst their tall ancestral trees
O’er all the pleasant land!”
and thus given to us a title for our present work. Of these “Stately
Homes” of our “pleasant land” we have chosen some few for illustration,
not for their stateliness alone, but because the true nobility of
their owners allows their beauties, their splendour, their picturesque
surroundings, and their treasures of art to be seen and enjoyed by all.
Whether “stately” in their proportions or in their style of
architecture, in their internal decorations or their outward
surroundings, in the halo of historical associations which encircle
them, or in the families which have made their greatness, and whose
high and noble characters have given them an enduring interest, these
“Homes” are indeed a fitting and pleasant subject for pen and pencil.
The task of their illustration has been a peculiarly grateful one to
us, and we have accomplished it with loving hands, and with a sincere
desire to make our work acceptable to a large number of readers.
In the first instance, our notices of these “Stately Homes” appeared in
the pages of the _Art-Journal_, for which, indeed, they were specially
prepared, with the ultimate intention, now carried out, of issuing them
in a collected form. They have, however, now been rearranged, and have
received considerable, and in many instances very important, additions.
The present volume may be looked upon as the first of a short series
of volumes devoted to this pleasant and fascinating subject; others
of a similar character, embracing many equally beautiful, equally
interesting, and equally “stately” Homes will follow.
LLEWELLYNN JEWITT.
WINSTER HALL, DERBYSHIRE.
CONTENTS OF FIRST SERIES.
PAGE
I.—ALTON TOWERS, STAFFORDSHIRE 1
II.—COBHAM HALL, KENT 37
III.—MOUNT EDGCUMBE, DEVONSHIRE 54
IV.—COTHELE, CORNWALL 70
V.—ALNWICK CASTLE, NORTHUMBERLAND 78
VI.—HARDWICK HALL, DERBYSHIRE 116
VII.—ARUNDEL CASTLE, SUSSEX 153
VIII.—PENSHURST, KENT 172
IX.—WARWICK CASTLE, WARWICKSHIRE 192
X.—HADDON HALL, DERBYSHIRE 221
XI.—HATFIELD HOUSE, HERTFORDSHIRE 294
XII.—CASSIOBURY, HERTFORDSHIRE 308
XIII.—CHATSWORTH, DERBYSHIRE 322
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
FIRST SERIES.
Page
I.—ALTON TOWERS.
Lion Fountain 1
Ruins of Alton Castle 2
Alton Towers, from the Terrace 4
” from the Lake 6
The Octagon 8
The Conservatories and Alcove 11
The Temple 19
The Conservatories 22
The Pagoda 24
Choragic Temple 27
View from the Lower Terrace 29
The Gothic Temple 31
Part of the Grounds 33
Hospital of St. John 34
II.—COBHAM HALL.
Initial Letter 37
Cobham Hall 38
The Three Sisters 43
The Lodge 45
Interior of the Church 48
The College Porch 50
The College 52
III.—MOUNT EDGCUMBE.
The Eddystone Lighthouse 54
Plymouth Breakwater 57
Mount Edgcumbe, from Stonehouse Pier 59
The Mansion 61
Lady Emma’s Cottage 64
The Gardens 65
The Ruin, the Sound, Drake’s Island,
&c. 68
The Salute Battery 69
IV.—COTHELE.
The Mansion 73
The Landing Place 75
V.—ALNWICK CASTLE.
Lighting the Beacon 78
Plan of Alnwick Castle 80
Alnwick Castle, from the River Aln 81
The Barbican 83
The Prudhoe Tower and Chapel 85
The Keep 87
Norman Gateway in the Keep 89
The Armourer’s Tower 91
Figure of Warrior on the Barbican 93
The Well in the Keep 94
The Constable’s Tower 95
Figure of Warrior on the Barbican 96
The East Garret 98
The Garden Gate, or Warder’s Tower 99
Bond Gate: “Hotspur’s Gate” 103
Alnwick Abbey 105
The Percy Cross 107
Hulne Abbey: The Percy Tower 109
” The Church 111
The Brislee Tower 114
VI.—HARDWICK HALL.
Ancient Pargetting, and Arms of
Cavendish 116
Hardwick Hall, with the Entrance
Gateway 118
The West Front 122
The Great Hall 125
The Grand Staircase 127
The Chapel 129
The Presence Chamber 131
Mary Queen of Scots’ Room 133
The Picture Gallery 135
Ancient Lock, and Arms of Hardwick 137
Hardwick Hall, from the Park 139
The Old Hall at Hardwick 142
Interior of the Old Hall 144
Fac-simile of the Countess of Shrewsbury’s
Signature 145
Hault Hucknall Church 146
The Grave of Hobbes of Malmesbury
in Hault Hucknall Church 148
VII.—ARUNDEL CASTLE.
Horned Owls in the Keep 153
The Quadrangle 156
Entrance Gate, from the Interior 158
The Keep 160
The Library 163
The Church of the Holy Trinity 169
Tombs of Thomas Fitzalan and Lady
Beatrix in Arundel Church 171
VIII.—PENSHURST.
The Bell 172
Penshurst, from the President’s Court 174
North and West Fronts 177
View from the Garden 179
The Baron’s Court 182
The Village and Entrance to Churchyard 185
The Record Tower and the Church,
from the Garden 186
The Hall and Minstrels’ Gallery 188
IX.—WARWICK CASTLE.
The Swan of Avon 192
The Castle, from the Temple Field 194
The Keep, from the Inner Court 196
Earl of Warwick and Humphrey, Duke
of Gloucester 198
Earl of Warwick’s Combat before the
Emperor Sigismund and the Empress 199
Earl of Warwick Departing on a Pilgrimage
to the Holy Land 200
Badge of the Earl of Warwick 201
Cæsar’s Tower 202
The Castle, from the Bridge 203
The Castle, from the Island 205
Guy’s Tower 206
The Warder’s Horn 207
The Castle, from the Outer Court 209
The Inner Court, from the Keep 211
Guy’s and the Clock Tower, from the
Keep 212
The Castle, from the banks of the Avon 214
The Beauchamp Chapel; Monument of
the Founder 216
The Confessional 217
The Oratory 218
Warwick: The East Gate 219
X.—HADDON HALL.
Dorothy Vernon’s Door 221
Haddon, from the Meadows on the
Bakewell Road 223
The “Peacock” at Rowsley 225
Haddon, from the Rowsley Road 226
Arms of Vernon quartering Avenell 227
Arms of Lord Vernon 230
Haddon, from the Meadows 234
The Main Entrance 235
Inside of Gateway 236
Ground and Garden Plan of Haddon 237
The first Court-yard 239
Gateway under the Eagle Tower 240
The Chaplain’s Room 241
The Chapel 242
Norman Font in the Chapel 244
Wall-paintings in the Chapel 248
Steps to State Apartments 249
Roman Altar, Haddon Hall 250
The Banqueting-Hall: with the Minstrels’
Gallery 251
Old Oak-table in the Banqueting-Hall 252
The Hand-lock in the Banqueting-Hall 252
Staircase to Minstrels’ Gallery 253
Oriel Window in the Dining-room 255
Ante-room to the Earl’s Bed-room 256
The Ball-room, or Long Gallery 257
Steps to the Ball-room 259
Dorothy Vernon’s Door: Interior 260
Dorothy Vernon’s Door: Exterior 261
The State Bed-room 263
The Archers’ Room, for Stringing
Bows, &c. 264
The Rack for Stringing the Bows 265
The Eagle, or Peverel Tower 266
Gallery across Small Yard 267
Room over the Entrance Gateway 268
The Terrace 270
The Hall from the Terrace 271
Arms of Family of Manners 272
Arms of the Duke of Rutland 278
The Foot-Bridge 279
Ring found at Haddon Hall 280
Washing-Tally found at Haddon Hall 281
Bakewell Church 283
Monument of Sir John Manners and
his Wife, Dorothy Vernon 286
Ancient Cross, Bakewell Churchyard 290
XI.—HATFIELD HOUSE.
Armed Knight 294
The Old Palace at Hatfield 295
The Front View 297
The Garden front of Hatfield House 299
The East View 302
The Gallery 304
The Hall 305
XII.—CASSIOBURY.
Crest of the Earl of Essex 308
Back View 310
From the Wood Walks 313
From the South-west 315
The Swiss Cottage 317
The Lodge 318
Monument in the Church at Watford 320
XIII.—CHATSWORTH.
Entrance to the Stables 322
The Old Hall as it formerly stood 325
Chatsworth from the River Derwent 333
The Entrance Gates 335
The Grand Entrance-Lodge at Baslow 340
Edensor Mill Lodge and Beeley Bridge 341
Entrance Gate 342
The Bridge over the River Derwent, in
the Park 343
The Great Hall and Staircase 344
Vista of the State Apartments 346
Grinling Gibbons’ Masterpiece 348
The Old State Bed-room 349
The State Drawing-room 351
The State Dining room 352
The Drawing-room 355
The Hebe of Canova 356
The Library 357
Fireplace by Westmacott in the
Dining-room 359
The Sculpture Gallery 360
Mater Napoleonis 361
The Pavilion and Orangery, from the
East 363
Carving over one of the Doors of the
Chapel 365
Carving over one of the Doors of the
Chapel 366
Carvings in the Chapel 367
The Private or West Library 370
The Sculpture Gallery and Orangery 372
Bust of the late Duke of Devonshire 373
The French Garden 374
The Great Cascade 375
The Alcove 376
Waterworks—The Willow Tree 377
Part of the Rock-work 378
The Great Conservatory 379
Part of the Rock-work—The Rocky
Portal 380
The Emperor Fountain 381
The Garden on the West Front 382
West Front from the South 383
The Hunting Tower 384
Mary Queen of Scots’ Bower 385
The late Sir Joseph Paxton’s House 386
The Victoria Regia 388
Edensor Church and Village 389
Monumental Brass to John Beton 391
Cavendish Monument, Edensor Church 392
Tomb of the Sixth Duke of Devonshire 393
The Chatsworth Hotel, Edensor 395
ALTON TOWERS.
[Illustration]
WE commence this series with ALTON TOWERS, one of the most interesting
of the many Stately Homes of England that dignify and glorify the
Kingdom; deriving interest not alone from architectural grandeur and
the picturesque and beautiful scenery by which it is environed, but as
a perpetual reminder of a glorious past—its associations being closely
allied with the leading heroes and worthies of our country.
The Laureate asks, apparently in a tone of reproach—
“Why don’t these acred sirs
Throw up their parks some dozen times a year,
And let the people breathe?”
The poet cannot be aware that a very large number of the “parks” of
the nobility and gentry of England are “thrown up” not a “dozen times”
but a hundred times in every year; and that, frequently, thousands of
“the people” breathe therein—as free to all the enjoyments they supply
as the owners themselves. Generally, also, on fixed days, the chief
rooms, such as are highly decorated or contain pictures—the STATE
APARTMENTS—are open also; and all that wealth has procured, as far as
the eye is concerned, is as much the property of the humblest artisan
as it is of the lord of the soil.
And what a boon it is to the sons and daughters of toil—the
hard-handed men—with their wives and children—workers at the forge,
the wheel, and the loom,—who thus make holiday, obtain enjoyment,
and gain health, under the shadows of “tall ancestral trees” planted
centuries ago by men whose names are histories.
[Illustration: _Ruins of Alton Castle._]
Indeed a closed park, and a shut-up mansion, are, now, not the rule,
but the exception; the noble or wealthy seem eager to share their
acquisitions with the people; and continually, as at Alton Towers,
picturesque and comfortable “summer houses” have been erected for the
ease, shelter, and refreshment of all comers. Visitors of any rank or
grade are permitted to wander where they will, and it is gratifying
to add, that very rarely has any evil followed such license. At Alton
Towers, a few shillings usually pays the cost consequent upon an inroad
of four thousand modern “iconoclasts:” the grounds being frequently
visited by so many in one day.
The good that hence arises is incalculable: it removes the barriers
that separate the rich from the poor, the peer from the peasant, the
magnate from the labourer; and contributes to propagate and confirm the
true patriotism that arises from holy love of country.
Alton, Alveton, Elveton, or Aulton, was held by the Crown at the
time of taking the Domesday survey, but, it would appear, afterwards
reverted to its original holders; Rohesia, the only child of the last
of whom, brought Alton, by marriage, to Bertram de Verdon, who had been
previously married to Maude, daughter of Robert de Ferrars, first Earl
of Derby. Alveton thus became the _caput baroniæ_ of the Verdon family,
its members being Wooton, Stanton, Farley, Ramsor, Coton, Bradley,
Spon, Denston, Stramshall, and Whiston.
From the Verdons, through the Furnivals and Neviles, Alton passed to
the Earls of Shrewsbury, as will be seen from the following notice
of the Verdon family. Godfreye Compte le Verdon, surnamed de Caplif,
had a son, Bertram de Verdon, who held Farnham Royal, Bucks, by grand
sergeantry, circa 1080. He had three sons, one of whom, Norman de
Verdon, Lord of Weobly, co. Hereford, married Lasceline, daughter
of Geoffrey de Clinton, and by her had, with other issue, Bertram
de Verdon, who was a Crusader, and founded Croxden, or Crokesden,
Abbey, near Alton, in the twenty-third year of Henry II., anno 1176.
He married twice: his first wife being Maude, daughter of Robert de
Ferrars, first Earl of Derby (who died without issue in 1139), and
his second being Rohesia, daughter and heiress of a former possessor
of Alton, through which marriage he became possessed of that manor,
castle, &c. He was Sheriff of the counties of Warwick and Leicester,
and, dying at Joppa, was buried at Acre. By his wife Rohesia (who died
in 1215) he had issue—William; Thomas, who married Eustachia, daughter
of Gilbert Bassett; Bertram; Robert; Walter, who was Constable of
Bruges Castle; and Nicholas, through whom the line is continued through
John de Verdon, who, marrying Marjorie, one of the co-heiresses of
Walter de Lacie, Lord Palatine of the county of Meath, had issue by
her—Sir Nicholas de Verdon of Ewyas-Lacie Castle; John de Verdon, Lord
of Weobly; Humphrey; Thomas; Agnes; and Theobald, who was Constable
of Ireland, 3rd Edward I., and was in 1306 summoned as Baron Verdon.
He died at Alton in 1309, and was buried at Croxden Abbey. His son,
Theobald de Verdon, by his first wife, Elizabeth, widow of John de
Burgh, Earl of Ulster, and daughter and one of the co-heiresses of
Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester, by “Joane de Acres,” had a
daughter, married to Lord Ferrars of Groby; and, by his second wife,
Maude, daughter of Edmund, first Baron Mortimer of Wigmore, had issue,
besides three sons who died during his lifetime, three daughters, who
became his co-heiresses.
[Illustration: _Alton Towers, from the Terrace._]
One of these, Margaret (who married three times), had Weobly Castle
for her portion; another, Elizabeth, married to Lord de Burghersh,
had Ewyas-Lacie Castle for her portion; and the other, Joan, had for
her portion Alton, with its castle and dependencies. This lady (Joan
de Verdon) married, firstly, William de Montague; and, secondly,
Thomas, second Lord Furnival, who, for marrying her without the king’s
licence, was fined in the sum of £200. She had by this marriage two
sons, Thomas and William, who were successively third and fourth Barons
Furnival, lords of Hallamshire. This William, Lord Furnival, married
Thomasin, daughter and heiress of Nicholas, second Baron Dagworth of
Dagworth, and had by her a sole daughter and heiress, Joan de Furnival,
who, marrying Thomas Neville of Hallamshire, brother to the Earl of
Westmoreland, conveyed to him the title and estates, he being summoned
in 1383 as fifth Baron Furnival. By her he had issue, two daughters
and co-heiresses, the eldest of whom, Maude, “Lady of Hallamshire,”
married, in 1408, John Talbot, afterwards first Earl of Shrewsbury
and sixth Baron Talbot of Goderich—“_Le Capitaine Anglais_.” This
nobleman, whose military career was one of the most brilliant recorded
in English history, was summoned as Baron Furnival of Sheffield in
1409; created Earl of Shrewsbury, 1442; and Earl of Waterford, &c.,
1446. He was slain, aged eighty, at Chatillon, in 1453, and was buried
at Whitchurch. This Earl of Shrewsbury, who so conspicuously figures
in Shakespeare’s _Henry VI._, enjoyed, among his other titles, that
of “Lord Verdon of Alton”—a title which continued in the family, the
Alton estates having now for nearly five centuries uninterruptedly
belonged to them.
The titles of this great Earl of Shrewsbury are thus set forth by
Shakespeare, when Sir William Lucy, seeking the Dauphin’s tent, to
learn what prisoners have been taken, and to “survey the bodies of the
dead,” demands—
“Where is the great Alcides of the field,
Valiant Lord Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury?
Created, for his rare success in arms,
Great Earl of Washford, Waterford, and Valence
Lord Talbot of Goodrig and Urchinfield,
Lord Strange, of Blackmere, _Lord Verdun of Alton_,
Lord Cromwell of Wingfield, Lord Furnival of Sheffield,
The thrice victorious Lord of Falconbridge;
Knight of the noble order of Saint George,
Worthy Saint Michael, and the Golden Fleece;
Great Mareshal to Henry the Sixth
Of all his wars within the realm of France.”
To which, it will be remembered, La Pucelle contemptuously replies—
“Here is a silly stately style indeed!
The Turk, that two-and-fifty kingdoms hath—
Writes not so tedious a style as this—
Him that thou magnifiest with all these titles,
Stinking and fly-blown, lies here at our feet.”
From this John, Earl of Shrewsbury,—“the scourge of France,” “so much
feared abroad that with his name the mothers still their babes,”—the
manor and estates of Alton and elsewhere passed to his son, John,
second earl, who married Elizabeth Butler, daughter of James, Earl of
Ormond, and was succeeded by his son, John, third earl, who married
Catherine Stafford, daughter of Humphrey, Duke of Buckingham; and was
in like manner succeeded by his son, George, fourth earl, K.G., &c.,
who was only five years of age at his father’s death. He was succeeded,
as fifth earl, by his son, Francis; who, dying in 1560, was succeeded
by his son, George, as sixth earl.
[Illustration: _Alton Towers, from the Lake._]
This nobleman married, first, Gertrude Manners, daughter of Thomas,
Earl of Rutland; and, second, Elizabeth (generally known as “Bess of
Hardwick,” for an account of whom, see the article on Hardwick Hall
in the present volume), daughter of John Hardwick, of Hardwick Hall,
Derbyshire, and successively widow, first, of Robert Barlow, of Barlow;
second, of Sir William Cavendish, of Chatsworth; and, third, of Sir
William St. Loe. She was the builder of Chatsworth and of Hardwick
Hall. To him was confided the care of Mary Queen of Scots. He was
succeeded by his son Gilbert, as seventh earl. This young nobleman
was married before he was fifteen to Mary, daughter of Sir William
Cavendish of Chatsworth. He left no surviving male issue, and was
succeeded by his brother, Edward, as eighth earl, who, having married
Jane, daughter of Cuthbert, Lord Ogle, died, without issue, being the
last of this descent, in 1617. The title then passed to a distant
branch of the family, in the person of George Talbot, of Grafton;
who, being descended from Sir Gilbert Talbot, third son of the second
earl, succeeded as ninth earl. From him the title descended in regular
lineal succession to Charles, twelfth earl, who was created by George
I. _Duke_ of Shrewsbury and _Marquis of Alton_, and a K.G. At his
death, the dukedom and marquisate expired, and from that time, until
1868, the earldom has never passed directly from a father to a son.
The thirteenth earl was a Jesuit priest, and he was succeeded by his
nephew as fourteenth earl. Charles, fifteenth earl, dying without
issue, in 1827, was succeeded by his nephew, John (son of John Joseph
Talbot, Esq.), who became sixteenth earl. That nobleman died in
1852, and was succeeded as seventeenth earl, by his cousin, Bertram
Arthur Talbot (nephew of Charles, fifteenth earl), who was the only
son of Lieut.-Colonel Charles Thomas Talbot. This young nobleman was
but twenty years of age when he succeeded to the title and estates,
which he enjoyed only four years, dying unmarried at Lisbon, on the
10th of August, 1856. Earl Bertram, who, like the last few earls his
predecessors, was a Roman Catholic, bequeathed the magnificent estates
of Alton Towers to the infant son of the Duke of Norfolk, Lord Edward
Howard, also a Roman Catholic; but Earl Talbot (who was opposed in his
claim by the Duke of Norfolk, acting for Lord Edward Howard; by the
Princess Doria Pamphili, of Rome, the only surviving child of Earl
John; and by Major Talbot, of Talbot, co. Wexford) claimed the peerage
and estates as rightful heir. After a long-protracted trial, Earl
Talbot’s claim was admitted by the House of Lords, in 1858; and after
another trial his lordship took formal possession of Alton Towers and
the other estates of the family, and thus became eighteenth Earl of
Shrewsbury, in addition to his title of third Earl of Talbot.
His lordship (the Hon. Henry John Chetwynd Talbot, son of Earl Talbot)
was born in 1803. He served in the Royal Navy, and became an admiral
on the reserved list. He was also a Knight of the Order of St. Anne
of Russia, and of St. Louis of France, a Knight of the Bath, and a
Privy Councillor. In 1830, his lordship, then Mr. Talbot, represented
Thetford in Parliament; and in the following year was elected for
Armagh and for Dublin; and from 1837 until 1849, when he entered the
Upper House as Earl Talbot, he represented South Staffordshire. In 1852
his lordship was made a Lord in Waiting to the Queen; in 1858 Captain
of the Corps of Gentlemen at Arms; and was also Hereditary Lord High
Steward of Ireland.
[Illustration: _The Octagon._]
He married in 1828 Lady Sarah Elizabeth Beresford, eldest daughter
of the second Marquis of Waterford, and by her had issue living four
sons, viz.—Charles John, present, nineteenth, Earl of Shrewsbury;
the Hon. Walter Cecil Talbot, who, in 1869, assumed, by Royal Sign
Manual, the surname of Carpenter in lieu of that of Talbot, on his
succeeding to the Yorkshire estates of the late Countess of Tyrconnell;
the Hon. Reginald Arthur James Talbot, M.P. for Stafford; and the
Hon. Alfred Talbot; and three daughters, viz.: Lady Constance Harriet
Mahunesa, married to the Marquis of Lothian; Lady Gertrude Frances;
and Lady Adelaide, married at her father’s death-bed, June 1st, 1868,
to the Earl Brownlow. The eighteenth Earl died in June, 1868, and
was succeeded by his son, Charles John, Viscount Ingestre, M.P., as
nineteenth earl.
The present peer, the noble owner of princely Alton, of Ingestre, and
of other mansions, Charles John Talbot, nineteenth Earl of Shrewsbury,
fourth Earl of Talbot, of Hemsoll, in the county of Glamorgan, Earl of
Waterford, Viscount Ingestre, of Ingestre, in the county of Stafford,
and Baron Talbot, of Hemsoll, in the county of Glamorgan, Hereditary
Lord High Steward of Ireland, and Premier Earl in the English and Irish
peerages, was born in 1830, and was educated at Eton and at Merton
College, Oxford. In 1859 he became M.P. for North Staffordshire, and,
in 1868, for the borough of Stamford. In 1868 he succeeded his father
in the titles and estates, and entered the Upper House. He formerly
held a commission in the 1st Life Guards. His lordship married, in
1855, Anne Theresa, daughter of Commander Richard Howe Cockerell, R.N.,
and has issue one son, Charles Henry John, Viscount Ingestre, born in
1860; and three daughters, the Hon. Theresa Susey Helen Talbot, born in
1856; the Hon. Gwendoline Theresa Talbot, born in 1858; and the Hon.
Muriel Frances Louisa Talbot, born in 1859.
The Earl of Shrewsbury is patron of thirteen livings, eight of
which are in Staffordshire, two in Worcestershire, and one each in
Oxfordshire, Berkshire, and Shropshire.
The arms of the earl are, _gules_, a lion rampant within a bordure
engrailed, _or_. Crest, on a chapeau, _gules_, turned up, _ermine_, a
lion statant, with the tail extended, _or_. Supporters, two talbots,
_argent_.
We have thus given a history of this illustrious family from its
founder to the present day, and proceed to describe its principal seat
in Staffordshire—the beautiful and “stately home” of Alton Towers.
The castle of the De Verdons, which was dismantled by the army of the
Parliament, stood on the commanding and truly picturesque eminence now
occupied by the unfinished Roman Catholic Hospital of St. John and
other conventual buildings, &c. A remarkably interesting view, showing
the commanding site of the castle, and the valley of Churnet, with
Alton Church, &c., is fortunately preserved in an original painting
from which our first engraving is made.
The site of Alton Towers was originally occupied by a plain house,
the dwelling of a steward of the estate. A hundred and forty years
ago it was known as “Alveton (or Alton) Lodge,” and was evidently a
comfortable homestead, with farm buildings adjoining.
When Charles, fifteenth Earl of Shrewsbury, succeeded to the titles
and estates of his family, in the beginning of the present century,
he made a tour of his estates, and on visiting Alton was so much
pleased with the natural beauties of the place, and its surrounding
neighbourhood, that he determined upon improving the house and laying
out the grounds, so as to make it his summer residence.[1] With that
view he added considerably to the steward’s dwelling, and having, with
the aid of architects and landscape gardeners, converted that which
was almost wilderness into a place of beauty, he called it “Alton
Abbey,”—a name to which it had no right or even pretension. To his
taste, the conservatories, the temples, the pagoda, the stone circle,
the cascades, the fountains, the terraces, and most of the attractive
features of the grounds, owe their origin, as do many of the rooms of
the present mansion. A pleasant memory of this excellent nobleman is
preserved at the entrance to the gardens, where, in a noble cenotaph,
is a marble bust, with the literally true inscription—
“He made the desert smile.”
After his death, in 1827, his successor, Earl John, continued the
works at Alton, and, by the noble additions he made to the mansion,
rendered it what it now is—one of the most picturesque of English
seats. In 1832 his lordship consulted Pugin as to some of the
alterations and additions, and this resulted in his designing some new
rooms, and decorating and altering the interior of others. Mr. Fradgley
and other architects had also previously been employed, and to their
skill a great part of the beauty of Alton Towers is attributable. The
parts executed by Pugin are the balustrade at the great entrance,
the parapet round the south side, the Doria apartments over Lady
Shrewsbury’s rooms, on the south-east side of the house, called
sometimes the “plate-glass drawing-room,” the apartments over the
west end of the great gallery, and the conservatory, &c. The fittings
and decorations of many of the other rooms and galleries, including
the unfinished dining-hall and the chapel, are also his. The entrance
lodges near the Alton Station are likewise from Pugin’s designs.
[Illustration: _The Conservatories and Alcove._]
The principal, or state, entrance to the mansion is on the east side,
but the private foot entrance from the park is by the drawbridge,
while that from the gardens and grounds is by a path leading over the
entrance gateway or tower. To reach the state entrance the visitor
on leaving the park, passes a noble gateway in an embattled and
machicolated tower, with side turrets and embrasures, near to which
he will notice the sculptured arms of De Verdon, of Furnival, and
of Raby, and on the inner side of the tower, those of Talbot, with
the date, 1843. Passing between embattled walls, the entrance to the
right is a majestic tower, bearing sculptured over the doorway the
armorial bearings, crest, supporters, with mantling, &c., of the Earl
of Shrewsbury. The steps leading to the doorway are flanked on either
side by a life-size “talbot,” bearing the shield and the family arms,
while on the pedestals, &c., are the monogram of Earl John, and the
motto “Prest d’accomplir.” Passing through the doors the visitor enters
the ENTRANCE TOWER, a square apartment of extremely lofty proportions.
“The doors being closed after him, he will at once notice the most
striking feature of this hall to be, that the entrance-doors and the
pair of similar folding-doors facing them—each of which is some twenty
feet high, and of polished oak—are painted on their full size with the
arms, supporters, &c., of the Earl of Shrewsbury. This fine effect,
until the place was dismantled a few years since, was considerably
heightened by the assemblage of arms, and armour, and of stags’
antlers, &c., with which the walls were decorated. In this apartment
the old blind Welsh harper, a retainer of the family, with his long
dress, covered with medals and silver badges, sat for years and played
his native strains on the ancient bardic instrument of his country.
“From this apartment one of the immense pairs of heraldic doors opens
into ‘THE ARMOURY,’ a fine Gothic apartment of about 120 feet in
length, with oak roof, the arches of which spring from carved corbels,
while from the central bosses hang a series of pendant lanterns.
The ‘armoury’ is lit on its north side by a series of stained-glass
windows, the first of which bears, under a canopy, &c., the portrait
and armorial bearings of William the Conqueror; the next those of
‘Marescallus pater Gilberti Marescalli Regis Henrici Primi, temp.
Will^{m.} Conq^r.;’ the third, those of Donald, King of Scotland,
1093; the fourth, those of Raby; the fifth, those of De Verdun, the
founder of the castle of Alton (‘Verdun fund: Cast: de Alveton,
originalis familiæ de Verdun, temp. Will. Conq^r.’); and the sixth, of
Lacy—‘Summa soror et heres Hugonis de Lacy, fundatoris de Lanthony in
Wallia; Mater Gilberti de Lacy, temp. Will. Conq^r.’ In this apartment,
from which a doorway leads to the billiard and other rooms, hang a
number of funeral and other banners of the house of Talbot, and at one
end is the Earl’s banner as Lord High Seneschal or Lord High Steward of
Ireland—a blue banner bearing the golden harp of ‘Old Ireland’ which
was borne by the Earl of Shrewsbury at the funeral of King William IV.
In the palmy days of Alton this apartment was filled with one of the
most magnificent assemblages of arms and armour ever got together,
amongst which not the least noticeable feature was a life-size
equestrian figure of ‘the great Talbot’ in full armour, and bearing on
his head an antique coronet, in his hand a fac-simile of the famous
sword which he wielded so powerfully while living, bearing the words—
‘Ego sum Talboti pro vincere inimicos meos
and on his shoulders his magnificent ‘Garter’ mantle, embroidered with
heraldic insignia. The horse was fully armed and caparisoned, the
trappings bearing the arms and insignia of its noble owner. The figure
was placed on a raised oak platform, richly carved; and on this, at
the horse’s feet, lay the fine war helmet of the grand old Earl. At
the farther or west end of the armoury, a pair of open screen-work
doors of large size, formed of spears and halberds, and surmounted
by a portcullis—the whole being designed by a former Countess of
Shrewsbury—opens into—
“THE PICTURE-GALLERY.—This noble gallery, about 150 feet in length,
has a fine oak and glass ceiling, supported by a series of arches,
which spring from corbels formed of demi-talbots, holding in their
paws shields with the Talbot arms, while in each spandrel of the roof
are also the same arms. The room is lit with sumptuous chandeliers.
In this gallery was formerly a series of tables, containing articles
of _vertu_ and a large assemblage of interesting objects, while the
walls were literally covered with paintings of every school, including
the collection formed by Letitia Buonaparte, which was purchased in
Paris by Earl John. It is now entirely denuded of this treasure of art.
From the Picture-Gallery a pair of Gothic screen-work oak and glass
folding-doors, with side lights to correspond, opens into—
“THE OCTAGON (sometimes called the ‘Saloon,’ or ‘Sculpture-Gallery’),
an octagonal room designed to some extent from the splendid Chapter
House at Wells Cathedral. Like this it has a central pier, or clustered
column, of sixteen shafts, from the foliated capital of which the ribs
of the vaulted roof radiate. Other radiating ribs spring from shafts
at the angles of the room; and where the radiations meet and cross
are sculptured bosses, while a series of geometric cuspings fills in
between the intersecting ribs at the points of the arches. Around the
base of the central column is an octagonal seat, and stone benches
are placed in some parts of the sides. It is lit with pendant Gothic
lanterns.
“The ‘Octagon’ opens on its east side into the ‘Picture-Gallery;’
on its west into the ‘Talbot Gallery;’ and on its north into the
‘Conservatory.’ On its south is a fine large window of Perpendicular
tracery filled with stained glass, while on the other four sides are
small windows, diapered in diagonal lines, with the motto, ‘Prest
d’Accomplir,’ alternating with monograms and heraldic devices of
the family. Over the Picture-Gallery doorway the following curious
verses—a kind of paraphrase of the family motto, ‘Prest d’Accomplir,’
which is everywhere inscribed—are painted in old English characters on
an illuminated scroll:—
“‘The redie minde regardeth never toyle,
But still is Prest t’accomplish heartes intent;
Abrode, at home, in every coste or soyle.
The dede is done, that inwardly is meante;
Which makes me saye to every vertuous dede,
I am still Prest t’accomplish what’s decreede.
“‘But byd to goe I redie am to roune,
But byd to roune I redie am to ride;
To goe, roune, ride, or what else to bee done.
Speke but the word, and sone it shall be tryde;
Tout prest je suis pour accomplix la chose,
Par tout labeur qui vous peut faire repose.
“‘Prest to accomplish what you shall commande,
Prest to accomplish what you shall desyre,
Prest to accomplish your desires demande,
Prest to accomplish heaven for happy hire;
Thus do I ende, and at your will I reste,
As you shall please, in every action Prest.’
“Above this, and other parts of the walls, are the emblazoned arms of
Talbot, Furnivall, De Verdun, Lacy, Raby, and the other alliances of
the family; while in the large stained-glass window on the south side
are splendid full-length figures of six archbishops and bishops of the
Talbot family, with their arms and those of the sees over which they
presided. Beneath this window are two beautiful models, full size, of
ancient tombs of the great Talbots of former days. One of these is the
famous tomb, from Whitchurch, of John, first Earl of Shrewsbury, who
was killed in battle July 7, 1453. It bears a full-length effigy of the
Earl in his Garter robes and armour, and bears on its sides and ends a
number of emblazoned shields of the Talbot alliances, and the following
inscription:—
“‘_Orate pro anima prœnobilis domini, domini Johanis Talbot, Comitis
Salopiæ, domini Furnival, domini Verdun, domini Strange de Blackmere,
et Mareschalli Franciæ; qui obiit, in bello apud Burdeux_ VII _Julii_
MCCCCLIII.’
“It is related that when this noble warrior was slain, his herald
passing over the battle-field to seek the body, at length found it
bleeding and lifeless, when he kissed it, and broke out into these
passionate and dutiful expressions:—‘Alas! it is you: I pray God
pardon all your misdoings. I have been your officer of arms forty years
or more. It is time I should surrender it to you.’ And while the tears
trickled plentifully down his cheek, he disrobed himself of his coat of
arms and flung it over his master’s body. This is the knight of whom we
read—
“‘Which Sir John Talbote, first Lord Fournivall,
Was most worthie warrior we read of all.
For by his knigh thode and his chivalrye
A Knight of the Garter first he was made;
And of King Henry, first Erle Scrovesberye.
To which Sir John, his sone succession hade,
And his noble successors now therto sade;
God give them goode speede in their progresse,
And Heaven at their ende, both more or lesse.
The live to report of this foresaid lorde
How manly hee was, and full chivalrose:
What deedes that he did I cannot by worde
Make rehersal, by meter ne prose;
How manly, how true, and how famose,
In Ireland, France, Normandy, Lyon, and Gascone
His pere so long renyng I rede of none.
* * * * *
Which while he reigned was most knight
That was in the realme here many yere,
Most dughty of hand and feresest in fight,
Most drede of all other with French men of werr
In Ireland, France, Gyon; whose soule God absolve
And bring to that Llyss that will not dissolve.’
“From the north side of the ‘Octagon’ a flight of stone steps leads
up to a glass doorway, which opens into a glass vestibule, forming a
part of the ‘Conservatory,’ of which I shall speak a little later on.
This conservatory leads into the ‘Dining-room’ and the suite on the
north side, and the view along it from the Octagon is charming in the
extreme, not the least striking and sweetly appropriate matter being
the motto painted above the flowers and around the cornice of the
vestibule:—
“‘The speech of flowers exceeds all flowers of speech.’
“On the west side a similar flight of steps and doorway open into
“THE TALBOT GALLERY, a magnificent apartment of about the same size
and proportions as the ‘Picture-Gallery.’ It has a fine Gothic ceiling
of oak and glass, supported, like that of the Picture-Gallery, on
arches springing from demi-talbots bearing shields. The walls, to about
two-thirds of their height, are covered with a rich arabesque paper of
excellent design, while the upper part is painted throughout its entire
surface in diagonal lines with the Talbot motto ‘Prest d’Accomplir,’
alternating with the initials T. (Talbot) and S. (Shrewsbury). On this
diapered groundwork are painted, at regular intervals, shields of arms,
fully blazoned, with tablets beneath them containing the names of their
illustrious bearers. The series of arms on the south side shows the
descent of the Earl of Shrewsbury from the time of the Conquest, while
those on the north side exhibit the armorial bearings of the alliances
formed by the females of the House of Talbot. As these series are of
great importance, and have only heretofore been given in Mr. Jewitt’s
work upon Alton Towers, from which the whole of the description of the
interior here given is copied, I have carefully noted them for the
reader’s information. On the south side, commencing at the end next the
‘Octagon,’ the arms are as follows, the arms being all impaled:—
“William the Conqueror and Matilda of Flanders.
King Henry I. and Matilda of Scotland.
Geoffrey Plantagenet, Earl of Anjou, and Matilda, daughter of King
Henry I.
King Henry II. and Eleanor of Aquitaine.
King John and Isabella d’Angoulême.
King Henry III. and Eleanor of Provence.
King Edward I. and Eleanor of Castile.
Humphrey Bohun, Earl of Hereford, and Elizabeth, daughter of King
Edward I.
James Butler, Earl of Ormond, and Eleanor, daughter of the Earl of
Hereford.
James, Earl of Ormond, and Elizabeth, daughter of the Earl of Kildare.
James, Earl of Ormond, and Anne, daughter of Baron Welles.
James, Earl of Ormond, and Joane, daughter of William de Beauchamp.
John Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, and Elizabeth, daughter of the Earl
of Ormond.
Sir Gilbert Talbot, Knight of the Garter, and Audrey Cotton.
Sir John Talbot and Ada Troutbecke.
Sir John Talbot and Frances Clifford.
John Talbot and Catherine Petre.
John Talbot and Eleanor Baskerville.
John, Earl of Shrewsbury, and Mary Fortescue.
Gilbert Talbot and June Flatsbury.
George, Earl of Shrewsbury, and Mary Fitzwilliam.
Charles Talbot and Mary Mostyn.
John Joseph Talbot and Mary Clifton.
‘John, now Earl of Shrewsbury, Waterford, and Wexford,’ and Maria
Talbot.
Richard, Baron Talbot, ancestor of the Earl of Shrewsbury, and
Elizabeth Cummin.
John, father of Elizabeth Cummin, and Joane de Valence.
William de Valletort, Earl of Pembroke, and Joane Mountchesney.
Hugh, Count de la Marche, and Isabel d’Angoulême.
Aymer, Count d’Angoulême, and Alice de Courteney.
Peter, fils de France, and the Heiress of Courteney.
Louis VI., King of Fiance, father of Peter de Courteney.
Richard Talbot and Eva, daughter of Gerrard de Gournay.
Hugh Talbot and Beatrix, daughter of William de Mandeville.
Richard Talbot and Maud, daughter of Stephen Bulmer.
Richard Talbot and Aliva, daughter of Alan Bassett.
William Talbot and Gwendiline, daughter of Rhys ap Griffith, Prince of
Wales.
Richard Baron Talbot and Elizabeth Cummin.
John Cummin, grandfather of Elizabeth, and Margery Baliol.
John Baliol and Dorvegillia, Lady of Galloway.
David the First, King of Scotland, and the Lady of Galloway.
“On the north side, beginning at the west end, the arms of the female
alliances are as on the other side—impaled—and are as follows:—
“Joane Talbot, married to John Carew.
Joane Talbot to John de Dartmouth.
Elizabeth Talbot to Waren Archdekene.
Katherine Talbot to Sir Roger Chandos.
Phillippa Talbot to Sir Matthew Gournay.
Jane Talbot to Sir Nicholas Poynings.
Anne Talbot to Hugh, Earl of Devon.
Mary Talbot to Sir Thomas Greene.
Elizabeth Talbot to Sir Thomas Barre.
Jane Talbot to Hugh de Cokesay.
Elizabeth Talbot to Thomas Gray, Viscount Lisle.
Margaret Talbot to Sir George Vere.
Anne Talbot to Sir Henry Vernon.
Margaret Talbot to Thomas Chaworth.
Eleanor Talbot to Thomas, Baron Sudeley.
Margaret Talbot to Henry, Earl of Cumberland.
Mary Talbot to Henry, Earl of Northumberland.
Elizabeth Talbot to Lord Dacre of Gilsland.
Anne Talbot to Peter Compton.
Anne Talbot to William, Earl of Pembroke.
Anne Talbot to John, Baron Bray.
Anne Talbot to Thomas, Lord Wharton.
Catherine Talbot to Edward, Earl of Pembroke.
Mary Talbot to Sir George Saville.
Grace Talbot to Henry Cavendish.
Mary Talbot to William, Earl of Pembroke.
Elizabeth Talbot to Henry, Earl of Kent.
Alatheia Talbot to Thomas, Earl of Arundel.
Gertrude Talbot to Robert, Earl of Kingston.
Mary Talbot to Thomas Holcroft.
Mary Talbot to Sir William Airmine.
Margaret Talbot to Robert Dewport.
Elizabeth Talbot to Sir John Littleton.
Mary Talbot to Thomas Astley.
Joane Talbot to Sir George Bowes.
Mary Talbot to Mervin, Earl of Castlehaven.
Barbara Talbot to James, Lord Aston.
Mary Talbot to Charles, Baron Dormer.
Mary Alathea Beatrix Talbot to Prince Filippo Doria Pamfili.
Gwendaline Catherine Talbot to Prince Marc Antonio Borghese.
“On and over the doorway are the arms and quarterings of the Talbots,
and the sculptured stone chimney-pieces are of the most exquisite
character, having Talbots supporting enamelled banners of arms under
Gothic canopies, and shields on the cuspings. At the top also is a
shield, supported by two angels. The fire-place is open, and has
fire-dogs; and the tiles are decorated alternately with the letter S
for Shrewsbury, and I T conjoined, for John Talbot.
“At the west end is a splendid stained-glass window, exhibiting the
names, armorial bearings, and dates of Earl John and nine of his
ancestors, who have been Knights of the Garter—the garter encircling
each of the shields. The names are Gilbert, Lord Talbot, 19 Henry VI.;
John, Earl of Shrewsbury, 1460; George, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury; George
Talbot; Francis, 5th Earl of Shrewsbury; Sir Gilbert Talbot, 1495;
George, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury; Gilbert, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury, 1592;
Charles, Earl of Shrewsbury, 1604; and John, Earl of Shrewsbury, 1840.
“In the palmy days of Alton Towers, this room, the Talbot Gallery,
contained a splendid collection of choice paintings, a fine assemblage
of rare china, some exquisite sculpture, and a large number of articles
of _vertu_ of every imaginable class and character. From the north side
a small door opens into—
“THE OAK CORRIDOR, a narrow passage leading in a straight line to the
North Library, and having doorways opening on its left into both of the
state-rooms. The first of these rooms, after passing the ‘waiting-room’
or ‘ante-room,’ is—
“THE STATE BOUDOIR, an octagonal apartment with a magnificent carved,
painted, and gilt Gothic ceiling. This, in former days, when it
contained some fine old cabinets, a service of regal Sèvres china, and
some exquisite portraits, and was filled with sumptuous furniture, was
one of the most charming rooms imaginable. Next to this is—
“THE STATE BED-ROOM.—The ceiling is panelled, being divided by deep
ribs into squares, having the ground painted a pale blue; rich tracery
of oak and gold stretches toward the centre of each compartment, and
terminates with a gold leaf; the hollow mouldings of the ribs are
crimson, studded with gold; below is a deep cornice of vine-leaves and
fruit picked out green and gold; and the walls are hung with paper of
an azure ground, relieved with crimson and gold.
[Illustration: _The Temple._]
“The State Bed, which is about 18 feet in height and 9 feet in width,
is a sumptuous piece of massive Gothic furniture, all gilt in every
part and massively carved. Around the canopy hangs the most costly
of bullion fringe, and the hangings, as well as those of the windows
and other furniture, are of the richest possible golden Indian silk.
This room formerly contained a toilet service of gold, and the whole
of the furniture and decorations were of the grandest character. The
chimney-piece is of white marble, exquisitely carved, and bearing
on the spandrels the Talbot arms—a lion rampant within a bordure
engrailed. The furniture is all gilt like the bed, with which also the
drapery is _en suite_. The windows, as do also those of the boudoir,
look out upon a perfect sea of magnificent rhododendrons. One door
opens into the Oak Corridor, and another into—
“THE DINING-ROOM, from which, by a doorway, the Oak Corridor is also
entered, and from which, by a light staircase, access to the upper
suite of sleeping apartments, including the ‘Arragon room’ (and to the
lower rooms) is gained. From this ante-room—
“THE WEST LIBRARY is entered. This apartment, a fine, sombre,
quiet-looking room, has a panelled ceiling, at the intersections of
the ribs of which are carved heraldic bosses. In the centre is a large
and massive dark oak table, and around the sides of the room are
ranged fine old carved and inlaid cabinets and presses for books. Over
these presses, and in different parts of this room and of the ‘North
Library,’ are a number of well-chosen mottoes, than which for a library
nothing could well be more appropriate. Thus, in these mottoes, among
others we read—