If you have been following this blog for a while, you know that I have spent several months presenting selections from my talk on London Mansions at the 2019 Beau Monde Conference in NYC on July 22. I covered the major houses discussed, and a few which I did not have time to complete, numbering fourteen posts in all. Now I have another house in greater London which I visited in September with my traveling companion Kristine Hughes Patrone.
We had a free day in London, unplanned in advance, an unusual occurrence for sure. We decided to venture forth to the neighborhood of Richmond, an easy tube ride. On arrival and after a much-needed coffee, the information desk told us we could take bus 371, and when we got off at Ham Street, we would immediately see the house. Easy peasy, we thought. Wrong!
It was a very long tramp which we somehow achieved without direction. The house was NOT in view of the bus stop. Eventually, we found it, and required immediate breakfast and more coffee! In the Orangery Cafe, we were comforted by lovely bouquets everywhere.
It was a very long tramp which we somehow achieved without direction. The house was NOT in view of the bus stop. Eventually, we found it, and required immediate breakfast and more coffee! In the Orangery Cafe, we were comforted by lovely bouquets everywhere.
On this stunning day, we were eager to investigate the extensive gardens before we entered the house itself.
Before the entrance to the house we were greeted by this statue of Neptune, aka Father Thames, in Coade Stone purchased by the 6th Earl of Dysart in the early 19th century. The NT guidebook quotes Mary Berry's statement in 1809: "I was much pleased with the house and its situation, surrounded as it is by large avenues of trees, with its terraced gardens and its great bowling green;...as perfectly quiet and secluded as if the house were placed in the furthest county from London."
Below, left, Neptune from the entrance; pineapple near the gates also made of Coade stone; busts of Roman Emperors and British Kings in niches along the forecourt wall.
Below, left, Neptune from the entrance; pineapple near the gates also made of Coade stone; busts of Roman Emperors and British Kings in niches along the forecourt wall.
The house was built about 1610 for retired naval captain Sir John Vavasour, hero of battles with Spain, in the familiar Jacobean H style; the exterior remains much as it was in its early days. Below, the Great Hall, as remodeled in the early 18th C.
The NT Trust Guide tells us the house was "acquired" by William Murray, and the website indicates the house and property was a gift of King Charles I in 1626 to his childhood friend and companion and perhaps whipping boy. Murray and his daughter Elizabeth decorated the house and developed it as a treasure chest of rare quality. Through cunning and luck, the family survived the English Civil War and rule of Cromwell. Once Charles II was crowned in 1660, Elizabeth was supported in her ownership of Ham House.
Above, Elizabeth Murray, Countess of Dysart, later Duchess of Lauderdale (1626-1698). Below, left, Duke and Duchess of Lauderdale; Duchess's Bedroom; her desk.
The Withdrawing Room is called The Volury Room based on the former existence of many bird cages and the tapestries and paintings of avian subjects.
Below, more views of Ham House treasures: Ham House from the South, 1670's, by artist Henry Danckerts; 17th C. Chinese lacquer cabinet and Chinese jars; Fire Screen.
There's much more to cover at Ham House...next week. Stay tuned.
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