VOL. XIV, No. 397.] SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 1829. [PRICE 2d.
* * * * *
Burleigh, Northamptonshire.
[Illustration]
The above is a view of the grand screen and entrance lodges to Burleigh,
or Burghley, the seat of the Cecil family, and now the property of the
Marquess of Exeter. The house and principal part of the demesne, are
within the parish of Stamford St. Martin, in the church of which are
some costly monuments to several eminent persons of the Cecil family;
and this estate gave title to William Cecil, Baron Burleigh, in 1570.
The park was formed, and the mansion, which is one of the most splendid
in the kingdom, was mostly built by the great Lord Treasurer, in the
time of Queen Elizabeth, and the following inscription, over one of the
entrances, within a central court, records the era of this work:--"W.
DOM. DE BVRGHLEY, 1577." Beneath the turret is the date of 1585, when
some grand additions were made to the mansion; and the above Grand
Entrance, towards the north, appears to have been added in 1587. Since
these dates, several material alterations and additions have been made
by subsequent possessors; and the whole, as a building, with its vast
and varied collection of works of art, is one of the most magnificent
show-houses in England. The spacious and finely wooded park and large
lake are also very fine. The house surrounds a square court, to the east
of which is the great hall, kitchen, various domestic offices, with
spacious stables, coach-houses, &c.--all indicative of the splendid
hospitalities of the Elizabethean age and old English character. The
south front commands a fine sloping lawn, with a broad sheet of water,
formed by Brown, together with some interesting park-scenery; the
western side has nearly the same views, with the advantage of distant
objects in Rutlandshire, Lincolnshire, and the spires of Stamford. From
the north front the ground gradually slopes to the river Welland. A
complete list of the pictures and valuable curiosities of Burleigh will
be found in a Guide published by the ingenious Mr. Drakard, bookseller,
of Stamford, as well as in that gentleman's excellent _History of
Stamford_.
About two miles west of Burleigh, are the ruins of Wothorp, or Worthorp
House. According to Camden, a mansion of considerable size was erected
here by Thomas Cecil, the first Earl of Burleigh, who jocularly said,
"he built it only to retire to out of the dust, while his great house at
Burleigh was sweeping." After the Restoration the Duke of Buckingham
resided here for some years.
* * * * *