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Horse-Mad

5/25/2025

I spent my pre-teen and some teen years as a girl mad about horses. I petted and rode them, mucked out stalls, collected statues and pictures, tried to paint their images, and thought about horses incessantly. Were you like me? Did you know where every horse in your neighborhood could be seen? Did you beg your parents to drive you to the stables?

I was recently reminded of my love for this book when I came across an old newsletter from the Royal Oak Society with an article about English horses, especially the three founding sires of all Thoroughbreds in the 18th century: The Darley Arabian, The Byerley Turk, and The Godolphin Arabian, aka King of the Wind, in the novel by Margaret Henry. I was lucky to live near Wayne, Illinois, where Henry lived and wrote the books I adored, with illustrations by the equally brilliant artist Wesley Dennis, such as the four below. Click on the pictures for full-size versions.

The Royal Oak article on English horses, particularly racehorses, wrote of several famous artists who often painted the favorite champions of the 18th and 19th centuries, and whose portraits have gained widespread fame, such as those shown below. Left, Whistlejacket, by George Stubbs (1724-1806), original in the National Gallery, London, and right, a copy hanging at the Wentworth-Woodhouse estate. My photos.

Above left, Jason, his Groom and Sir Harry Harpur by Sawrey Gilpin (1733-1807), which hangs at Calke Abbey;
right, Hambletonian Rubbing Down, also by Stubbs, which hangs at Mount Stewart in County Down, Northern Ireland. Both photos from National Trust Collections.

The closest I ever came to racing was months schooling this retired racing mare for a friend and colleague in Maryland who paused her riding while she carried her third child. I loved every minute of putting the mare through her paces to become a collected and amiable mount whether in the ring, on the trail, or even hunting.

Since both my colleague and I were journalists, we both must have been cheering Journalism in his brilliant stretch run to win the Preakness, right there in Maryland. In tracing the long line of Journalism's pedigree, we find it goes through Native Dancer, Eclipse, and all the way to the Darley Arabian, perhaps to all three of the founding Thoroughbred Sires.

Visiting Montacute House as Seen in Wolf Hall: the Mirror and the Light

5/1/2025

Montacute House (above, the east front) in Somerset plays the role of Greenwich Palace, aka Palace of Placentia, Henry VIII’s main London seat and the site of Anne Boleyn’s arrest in the first series. From the NT post:
"Locations manager, Rebecca Pearson says, 'In Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, the scene we shot there that audiences will remember is [in Episode 4] when Henry and Cromwell play chess by the window. It’s that moment where their relationship is starting to change."

From the NT: "The UK National Trust property Montacute House has stayed virtually frozen in time since the Elizabethan era. It’s built in an ‘E’ shape, a popular design of the period...
Of course, Henry VIII had loads of palaces--plus his hunting lodges. We were told by a curator that basically, [the Tudors] would stay in one palace for a few months until it smelt so much, they’d pack everything up, tapestries, furniture, clothes, and the whole court would move to the next palace. That’s why they had so many palaces.”

Please click on the small photos to enlarge. Above left, Palace of Placentia, artist's rendering; right, stone marking the former location of Greenwich Palace, near the present site of the Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich, on the Thames downstream from London, shown below

From Wikipedia Common: "The Old Royal Naval College, viewed from the north. Between the two college buildings appears the Queen's House in the middle of the picture. On the skyline stands a statue of James Wolfe at the end of an avenue of chestnut trees, with the Royal Observatory visible at right."
Below left, Montacute, west front; right, one of two lodges at the corners of the East Court.

Above, statues of two of the Nine Worthies in niches on the east facade, described in Wikipedia as "nine historical, scriptural, and legendary men of distinction who personify the ideals of chivalry established in the Middle Ages, whose lives were deemed a valuable study for aspirants to chivalric status...The Nine Worthies include three pagans (Hector, Alexander the Great, and Julius Caesar), three Jews (Joshua, David, and Judas Maccabeus, and three Christians (King Arthur, Charlemagne, and Godfrey of Boullion)."
Below, left, part of the Great Hall Screen, and right, in he Great Hall.

Above left, the ground floor Drawing Room and right, the Parlour. These rooms adjacent to the Great Hall would have originally the principal family rooms.
Below, the Dining Room, as adapted in the 18th century, once part of the Buttery. Left, the fireplace; right the Phelips family arms, the motto "Pro aris et fois" translates to "For homes and hearths," from 1599.

Above left, Sir Edward Phelips (c. 1555/1560 – 1614) Speaker of the House of Commons, who built Montacute House and established the dynasty which owned the estates until it was sold in the early 20th century. At right, Lord Curzon who leased the house and lived there with his mistress, the novelist Elinor Glyn. After his death in 1925, the house was emptied of its art and furnishings, remaining unwanted. In 1931, Ernest Cook of Thomas Cook Travel Agents purchased the empty Montacute House for the National Trust, as the second stately home under its protection.
Below James Lees-Milne (1908-1997), Historic Buildings Secretary of the NT, who with Eardley Knollys, initiated a drive to stimulate donations of period-appropriate acquisitions to furnish the house; right, Detail of The Hunter, a 16th C. tapestry from the Gobelins factory in Paris, dated 1788, one of many precious objects donated to the house by Sir Malcolm Stewart (1872-1951), philanthropist and founder of the London Brick Company.

Above, left, the silver epergne was once owned by the Phelips family and purchased in 2006 by the NT; right, the cabinet on a stand is English, in the Japanese style, in lacquer and gilt, dating from the mid-18th century.
I have wandered far afield from the brilliant PBS television series based on the late Hilary Mantel's trilogy Wolf Hall. But I cannot resist just one more nod to the fine work of Mark Rylance, who stars as counselor to Henry VIII, Thomas Cromwell. An excellent performance.

Sevres Porcelain Pot-Pourri Ships

3/23/2025

This exquisite pot-pourri vase in the collection of the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland, is one of only ten remaining of its kind in museums in Europe and the USA. When the JASNA AGM is held in Baltimore in October, 2025, participants will have a chance to see it on display there.
According to Wikipedia, the "Pot pourri à vaisseau or pot pourri en navire ('pot-pourri holder as a vessel/ship') is the shape used for a number of pot-pourri vases in the form of masted ships, first produced between the late 1750s to the early 1760s by the Sèvres manufactory near Paris." Below, the reverse side of the vase.

"The difficulty of firing such a fragile piece with "multiple openwork piercings in the body weakened the overall structure, and they tended to collapse in the kiln. Consequently, only about twelve were ever produced, ten of which survive today." Below, the three similar vases we saw at Waddesdon Manor, the Rothschild Collection in Buckinghamshire, UK, recently.

The vases were designed to hold dried herbs and spices to perfume the air of rooms. Below, one of the ships on display at Waddesdon between a pair of Sèvres porcelain vases and below the oil painting "of five players of the commedia dell'arte shown in half-length..." from the Waddesdon collection, by Jean Antoine Watteau (1684-1721) executed in 1719.

We have accounted for four of the remaining ten ships and we can find some others pictured on the web. Below, left, cupids adorn the version in the metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, "designed by Jean-Claude Duplessis...dated about 1757–58...is believed to (have been) the vase in the ownership of Louis-Joseph de Bourbon, Prince de Condé; right, from the Louvre, Paris, another pink version "by Jean-Claude Duplessis (c. 1695–1774), painted by Charles-Nicolas Dodin (1734–1803), c. 1760 ...with a chinoiserie scene in the main panel, after a painting by Francois Boucher...once in the bedchamber of Madame de Pompadour at the Hôtel d'Évreux, which is today the Elysee Palace. Please click on the pictures for larger versions.

Above left, with later addition of a gilt-bronze base: from The Frick Collection, New York City.
Right, "acquired by George IV, the vase in the Royal Collection is the largest of the three models of this shape produced at Sèvres...and depicts a genre scene...inspired by David Teniers the Younger (1610–90). The ends of the vase are in the form of a bowsprit, projecting from the jaws of a marine head, and at the masthead is a fluttering white pennant, patterned with fleurs-de-lis...purchased in 1759 at Versailles from Madame de Pompadour (who is known to have owned at least three examples of this model (including those now in the Louvre and Royal Collection)."

From the website of Waddesdon Manor: "Pot-pourri vase in the shape of a masted ship, the cover (extensively pierced) resembling sails and rigging and with a pennant attched to the top of the mast. On four scrolling feet. Bleu céleste ground colour with a battle scene on the front; the back decorated with flowers..." The form is attributed to Jean-Claude Duplessis (c.1695-1774). It was acquired by Ferdinand de Rothschild in 1861 and bequeathed to the National Trust in 1957.
Below, the back of the vase shown above. Because the vases were most often displayed in front of a mirror, the backs were painted as beautifully as the fronts.

Just a wee bit of browsing images on the web will show you hundreds of exquisite and elaborate Sèvres porcelain vases and figurines, among the most prized of decorative objects in the world. Waddesdon Manor exhibits many, as do stately homes, palaces, and museums, but apparently none more renowned than the fragile Pot pourri à vaisseau or pot pourri en navire (pot-pourri holder as a vessel/ship). Enjoy!

Winston Churchill's sesquicentennial birthday

11/30/2024

Winston Churchill (1874-1965) was born the 30th of November 1874 in Blenheim Palace, home of his uncle, the 8th Duke of Marlborough. Sir Winston died January 24, 1965, at age 90, after a long career in British government. Photo above from 1941 by Yousuf Karsh. The room where he was born is on view to Blenheim visitors.
Below, left, Blenheim Palace, Oxon; right, Jennie Jerome Spencer-Churchill, mother of Jack (1880-1947) on the left and Winston, at right, photographed in 1959. Jennie was American-born and married Lord Randolph Spencer-Churchill, a younger son of the 7th Duke of Marlborough.

Above, left, Clementine Hozier Churchill in 1915; right, Clementine and Winston in 1959. Married in 1908, the Churchills had five children. After her husband's death, Clementine was awarded a life peerage. As a baroness, she was a member of the House of Lords. She died at age 92 in 1977.
Below, left, the front of the Churchill's Kent country house, in which they lived from 1922; right, the view from the gardens of the many floors of the house, now open to the public and maintained by the National Trust.

Above, left, Sir Winston's painting studio with works on view; right, Churchill at his easel.
During his long life and distinguished career, Sir Winston filled what little leisure time he had by painting.
I will not attempt to list all of his accomplishments, such as wining the Nobel Prize for Literature as well as multiple posts in the British government including several times achieving the rank of Prime Minister. Perhaps he is best regarded as the man who won World War II, the result of his determination and ability to rally much of the world to defeat fascism.
Below, the statue of Sir Winston in Parliament Square, London, sculpted by Ivor Roberts-Jones, 1973.

Small Artifacts from The Cleveland Art Museum

11/9/2024

At our recent visit to Cleveland for the JASNA AGM, we spent most of a day at the Cleveland Art Museum. Exhibited among 18th C. paintings and sculpture were examples of furniture and small luxury items from the period in England. Please click on the photos to enlarge.

Above, left. portrait Miniature of Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland (1721-1765); enamel on copper; right, Chatelaine and Case (Etui) c. 1770.
The label Luxury's Troubled Ties states, "Luxurious objects were an essential part of a privileged wardrobe during the 1700's, emphasizing their owner's refinement and wealth. Jewelry, miniatures, and necessaires -- small expensive sets designed to hold grooming, writing, and sewing tools -- were often given as intimate gifts, intended to be seen and admired. Their glittering surfaces, however, disguised a system based on the labor and suffering of enslaved and indentured people, whether in gold or stone mines, tobacco farms, or shops where these goods were made.
Small elaborate boxes held snuff, a form of powdered tobacco that was inhaled in tiny amounts. Like cotton, sugar, and tea, snuff came from British colonies in America, India, and the Caribbean, where enslaved people were exploited to grow these crops under extremely harsh conditions."
Below, left, Snuff Box, c.1770 (George III); enamel on copper; right, snuff box, c. 1759 (George II), gold and blue agate.

Above, left. Snuff Box, about 1790-1810 (George III), gold, moss agate, pearls, enamel; right, Snuff Box , 1750-60 (George II), gold, moss agate, hematites (reddish iron oxide).
Below, left, Figure of Britannia, c. 1756, maker: Longton Hall Porcelain Factory, Staffordshire, and decorator: Vauxall Porcelain Factory, 1751-64; right, Hen & Chicks Covered Tureen on stand, c. 1755, Chelsea Porcelain Factory, London, 1745-84
About Britannia, the museum writes, "The creation of this triumphant personification of the nation was likely spurred on by Great Britain’s conflict with France in the Seven Years’ War (1756–63)...In this depiction of Britannia, the figure is surrounded by symbols of England’s power and military might. On one side, she and a lion, another symbol of Britain, support a shield adorned with the Union flag. Below it lay motifs associated with war such as armor, a trumpet, and a flag. On her left, Britannia presents a medallion to the viewer as she rests her feet on a globe, a symbol of the nation’s territorial aspirations. The portrait may depict the reigning king, George II (1683–1760), or Prince Frederick Louis (1707–1751), his recently deceased heir.

Above, one of a pair of Candlesticks (torchieres). c. 1773, by Thomas Chippendale (1718-1779); right, Flower Pyramid, c. 1699, by Adrianus Kocx, Dutch, manufacturer, active 1686-1791, tin-glazed earthenware.
The museum states, "This pair of gilded candle stands was made by Thomas Chippendale, the most renowned cabinetmaker in eighteenth-century London, for the grand drawing room of Brocket Hall, a large country house in Hertfordshire, England. With finely carved acanthus leaves, swags, fluting, and oval masks depicting the Roman goddess Diana, these candle stands exhibit Chippendale’s masterful understanding of neoclassical proportion, scale, and ornament. His landmark book of furniture designs, The Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker’s Director (first published in 1754), was highly admired as a source of inspiration by cabinetmakers and architects around England as well as in Europe and America.
In reference to the Flower Pyramid, the museum says, "The iconic blue-and-white ceramics from Delft originated as an attempt to copy Chinese porcelain...
Allegorical figures representing Faith, Hope, and Love decorate the base of this pyramid, on which rest six tiers with spouts where flowers can be placed. Flower pyramids are among the most complex and luxurious types of ceramics produced in Delft in the late 1600s. This example was made in the Greek A Factory, owned by Adrianus Kocx. During his tenure, the factory became the most prestigious of Delft potteries and received commissions from Queen Mary II, who ruled over England, Scotland, and Ireland together with her husband, William III. She contributed to the international spread of the fashion for Delft ceramics."

The Cleveland Museum of Art

10/28/2024

The recent AGM of the Jane Austen Society of North America gave me a welcome opportunity to browse the excellent Cleveland Museum of Art and view, in person, Lady Manners by Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830). Last February10, I wrote on this blog describing my interest in seeing the portrait.

I quoted the museum's description: "The Irish poet Lady Manners rejected as 'unflattering' this portrait representing her as the goddess Juno, symbolized here by the peacock. Thomas Lawrence exhibited the painting at the Royal Academy in 1794 with the label 'to be disposed of [sold],' but it was still in the artist’s collection when he died. Though it offended Lady Manners, the painting displays all the hallmarks of Lawrence’s flamboyant style: dazzling, fluid brushwork and an innovative use of unconventional colors that helped secure his role as the most fashionable portrait painter in turn-of-the-century Britain."

I have no idea what Lady Manners looked like, though Lawrence was usually said to flatter his sitters. But looking at the portrait, perhaps I would have made the same judgement and rejected the canvas. Would you have wanted this view for posterity? I wonder if she ever imagined it would hang in a place of honor in a 'colonial' museum and even be featured on advertising banners? Nearby portraits seem far less controversial. Below, left, a portrait of Lady Leneve, c. 1617, by Peter Lely (1618-1680); right George Pitt, 1st Baron Rivers, by Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788). Please click on the pictures for larger versions.

Above left, Portrait of Charlotte and Sarah Carteret-Hardy, 1801-1806, also by Sir Thomas Lawrence. The label notes, "There was a seemingly insatiable demand for Lawrence's portraits representing stylish English society, but he was notoriously slow working." Charlotte's face is almost as moon-like as Lady Manners, but sweeter.
Right, a nearby sculpture of Terpsichore Lyran (Muse of Lyric Poetry) by Antonio Canova (1757-1822).
Below, left, Portrait of Hugh Hope, c. 1810, by Scottish artist Henry Raeburn (1756-1823); Hugh Hope was the second son of Sir Archibald Hope, 9th Baronet Hope of Craighall, and served the East India Company; right, a Settee, c.1802-07, by Thomas Hope (1768-1831), the influential Regency furniture maker and author of the 1807 work, Household Furniture and Decoration. The museum states, "The acorn finals, ram's heads and clusters of stylized honeysuckle are typical of Hope's neo-classical designs." Although the last names are the same, Hugh and Thomas were not related, Thomas having been born in the Netherlands.

Above, left, The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons, 6 October, 1834, by Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851). The view is from downriver on the southwest bank of the Thames. Another version of the event by Turner is in the Philadelphia Museum of Art, viewed from Westminster Bridge. The Cleveland Museum writes, "Although Turner based the painting on an actual event, he magnified the height of the flames, using the disaster as the starting point to express man’s helplessness when confronted with the destructive powers of nature. Brilliant swathes of color and variable atmospheric effects border on abstraction."
Above, right, Portrait of Mary Anne Jolliffe, after 1788, by Gainsborough Dupont (1754-1797). Mr. Dupont was his uncle's only assistant, and "apprenticed with Thomas Gainsborough before setting up his on studio. It is often difficult to distinguish the late works of both artists."
Below, left, Portrait of Mary Wise, c. 1774, by Thomas Gainsborough; The museum writes, "Mary’s modest and contemplative demeanor is a counterpoint to a rather elaborate ensemble consisting of a gown embroidered with gold flower sprigs, trimmed with lace and pearls, and tied with a gold sash, as well as a gold-striped veil and a bracelet with eight gold bands. Gainsborough’s compact oval format and the sitter’s informal pose lend this portrait an air of intimacy."
Below, right, Portrait of George III, 1783, by Benjamin West (1738-1820); the Gallery label states "George III commissioned more than 80 paintings from West... (this one) likely was intended to bolster George III's reputation which had been tarnished the previous year when he was forced to formally recognize American independence." West, born in Philadelphia where he began his artistic career, took a grand tour to Italy and arrived in London in 1763, never returning to the US. His many successes lead to his choice as second president of the UK's Royal Academy of Art.

Above, left, Portrait of Elizabeth Shewell West and her son Raphael, c.1770. "West was the first American artist to study in Italy, where he spent three years before permanently settling in London. He so admired the artistic ideals of the Italian Renaissance master Raphael that he named his eldest son after him, and he imitated Raphael’s celebrated Madonna of the Chair when composing this tender double portrait of his wife and child."
Right, Portrait of Jean Terford David, 1813, by Thomas Sully (1783-1872); From the label: "According to his own inventory, the astonishingly productive Sully painted more than 2,600 works during his career. Most of these paintings were commissioned portraits, including this one of John Terford David, who had just recently married. French-born David was an American officer who served as a paymaster during the War of 1812. His rank is indicated by the fringed epaulet on his left shoulder and the lack of one on his right. In composing the portrait, Sully ingeniously positioned David's body on an angle to emphasize the single epaulet and downplay the uniform's lack of symmetry."

More from Cleveland Museum of Art and the JASNA AGM SOON.

Queen Mary's Dolls' House Turns 100

10/5/2024

In 1924, at Windsor Castle a miniature Palace was unveiled. For a century, it has delighted visitors as they prepare to tour the famous fortress begun in the time of William the Conqueror.

The famous dollhouse is found near the Visitor Entrance to the Castle in an area specially designed for its display. The viewer will want to linger for a long time to see all the astonishing furnishings and bibelots in every room, not that one could ever absorb it all at once. Please click on the small photos for larger versions.

Above left, the first section showing the entrance hall at the bottom and the lobby above it; right, the entrance hall closer up. To quote from a guide-book"...(it) is not a dolls' house in the usual sense of the words--that is as a children's toy. It is instead a glorified and fully furnished architectural model, created by the great British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869-1944), and intended to be a historical record of the ideal early twentieth-century English house...also a source of fun."
Below left, the Dining Room; right, the Saloon.

Above, left, the King's Bedroom; right, the Queen's Bedroom, both shown with the hand of a curator to illustrate the 1/12th size of the objects. More than 1,500 artists and craftsmen worked on the contents. Princess Marie Louise (1872-1956),
a granddaughter of Queen Victoria and cousin of King George V, was responsible for the creation of the dollhouse as a tribute to the royal family "for their steadfast leadership during the war."
Below, left, Princess Marie Louise, portrait by Josefine Swoboda; right, Architect Sir Edwin Lutyens by William Rothenstein, NPG.

Above, left, a view of the kitchen; right; the garage.
Below, left and right, my favorite room, the library.

Above, the miniature King's Dispatch Box. Right, a book specially written by Vita Sackville-West for the library in 1922.
To celebrate the centenary of Queen Mary's Dollhouse, Queen Camilla wrote one of twenty new books for the library.
Below, left, the Queen holds her tiny book, accompanied by Glenn Bartley, of the Royal Bindery; Right, More of the new additions to the library. The books are 1.8 inches in length.

Above, left, the book by Queen Camilla; right, the dollhouse garden, designed by famed landscaper Gertrude Jekyll (1843-1932).
Several videos of Queen Mary's Dollhouse can be found at the Royal Collection Trust website and on youtube.

My Novella Cover: Mother of the Bride

7/26/2024

My latest novella "Mother of the Bride" is found in Regency Summer Weddings, an anthology published by Dreamstone Publishing. Additional stories from other award-wining, best-selling authors Arietta Richmond, Regina Jeffers, Olivia Marwood, and Janis Susan May. Available in Amazon Kindle and free for members of Kindle Unlimited.

Mother of the Bride by Victoria Hinshaw
Widowed Amy, Countess of Blakemore, is utterly focused on the arrangements for her daughter’s wedding. She needs no distractions, or surely it won’t all get done on time! Then, for the first time, she meets her son-in-law-to-be’s much older half-brother, who proves to be more distracting then she could ever have imagined. William Easton, Baron Hartley, had shown no interest in marrying again, since the mother of his two daughters died. Now, as his half-brother is about to marry, the idea suddenly seems much more appealing. Of course, that might just be because he can’t take his eyes off the beautiful mother of the bride-to-be. But will she accept his suit?

My interior cover picture is a detail from the English Carriage Costume in LaBelle Assemblee Magazine, February 1818: Round dress of fine cambric muslin, superbly embroidered round the border in three distinct rows. Pelisse of rich Tobine silk striped, of Christmas holly-berry color, and bright grass green, trimmed round collar, cuffs and down the front with very broad swansdown.

The Sad Story of Wanstead House

7/7/2024

Not unexpectedly, I fell into another research rabbit hole while working on a novella, "Mother of the Bride," included in the regency summer collection from Dreamstone Publishing this year, Regency Summer Weddings.

Now Available: At Amazon

Recently I wrote in this blog about Palladian Bridges and included a bit about Palladian architecture in general. In this regard, I read about the now-demolished Wanstead House, pictured above. And the terrible scandals tied to the marriage of heiress Catherine Tynley Long, known as the Wiltshire Angel, and William Wellesley Pole, a nephew of the 1st Duke of Wellington. Below left, Catherine (1789-1825) and William (1788-1857 ).

Above, The Angel and the Cad: Love, Loss and Scandal in Regency England is an excellent account of both the 1812 marriage and the mansion's fate by author Geraldine Roberts, published in 2015. Another excellent source is the website Wicked William, from Greg Roberts.
From Wikipedia: "Wanstead House was a mansion built to replace the earlier Wanstead Hall. It was commissioned in 1715, completed in 1722 and demolished in 1825. Its gardens now form the municipal Wanstead Park in the London borough of Redbridge." Below, many bits and pieces from the estate can still be found. Left is a pillar from the gate; right, the grotto. Photo from British Listed Buildings.

Above left, another source for learning about Wanstead is Wanstead House: East London's Lost Palace by Hannah Armstrong, published in 2022, covering the history, architecture, sale of contents and demolition in 1824-25.
Right, a drawing of the original plan by Scottish Architect Colen Campbell (1676-1729). The Wanstead design shortly preceded the design of Burlington House, London, for Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Burlington, an early proponent of the neo-Palladian style. William Kent (1685-1748) was in charge of the interiors of both residences. below, a Hogarth painting of the interior, The Assembly at Wanstead House, 1728-32, now in the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Above, a brighter painting by Flemish painter Joseph Francis Nollekens of the Family of Sir John Tylney in the saloon of Wanstead House, 1740, Fairfax House, York Civic Trust.
It was the décor above that William decided to update after he gained control of Catherine's fortune, just one of his myriad extravagances, including gambling and adultery, which left the couple penniless and needing to flee Britain with their children by 1823.
Heartbroken and suffering from illness, perhaps a venereal disease her husband gave her, Catherine was successful in getting her children and herself back to England, where she made certain her children were protected from William before she died in 1825. No surprise to Regency aficionados, Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, William's uncle, guaranteed the control of the children remained with Catherine's sisters, Dora and Emma, though none ever fully recovered from their abusive father's influence.
Below left, drawing of the Gardens "in their heyday" from the London Gardens Trust; right, Pastoral scene before Wanstead House and Basin, by William Havell, 1815, Yale Center for British Art.

All this research refreshed my knowledge of the situation, which will contribute to no more than a line or two of conversation in my novella. Of course, I enjoyed every moment of the effort. That's half the fun of writing regencies. Nevertheless, the excessively abusive behavior of Catherine's husband, who eventually was named 4th Earl of Mornington and did not die until 1857, more than thirty years after his unfortunate wife Catherine, stings even today. Certainly the epitome of a cad!
For a happier story, look for the Anthology titled Regency Summer Weddings, in the summer of 2024. My story is "Mother of the Bride."

Visiting Montacute House

6/16/2024

Montacute House is an Elizabethan-era house in Somerset which I visited in July 2018 while on my way from Lyme Regis to Bath with the JASNA tour.

The West Front, above, was added to the house in 1787. The East Front, below, opens into the courtyard, now a garden and lawn. The house was built in the late Elizabethan period, about 1598, a typical Prodigy House of the era. The owner was Sir Edward Phelips (c.1555-1614), a wealthy lawyer and politician, Speaker of the House of Commons, one of the prosecutors of the 1605 Gunpowder Plotters, and later named Master of the Rolls.

The East Front exhibits an English Renaissance style, in the words of the website, the house "...must have seemed beyond the dreams of most of those who lived nearby, a work of astonishing splendour and pride...The architecture is a mix of two styles, the traditional Gothic and the new fashionable Renaissance...built on a grand scale with turrets, obelisks, shell niches, pavilions and walls of glass. On the east front stand the Nine Worthies, statues of biblical, classical and medieval figures, including Julius Caesar and King Arthur."

The Phelips family descendants lived at Montacute for more than 300 years before leasing it out in the early 20th century. Among the residents was Lord Curzon after his term as Viceroy of India. Once his wife died, he came to live at Montecute around 1915, sometimes with his mistress, the novelist Elinor Glyn. Lord Curzon installed modern plumbing, but only in his own bedroom.

The original plan of the house followed the medieval pattern of a Great Hall connected to subsequent more private chambers, without corridors. The remodeling of the house in the 18th century added a central corridor and the arrangement of rooms was altered.

Above, entrance into the Great Hall.

Above and below, views of the Great Hall.

Below, the Drawing Room. The portrait of three men hunting over the fireplace is by Daniel Gardner (1750-18050.

This drawing room was once a bedchamber; it is now furnished in the 18th century style. The red upholstered mahogany chairs are by William Linnell (1703-1763) of London, and were commissioned by Sir Richard Hoare for the drawing room at Barn Elms in 1753.

Above, the cabinet on a stand, left, is English, in the Japanese style, in lacquer and gilt, dating from the mid-18th century. The console table, at right, with the gilded eagle and marble top, dates from the mid-19th century.

The Library at Montacute House, Somerset ©National Trust Images/James Dobson. Most of the pictures were taken by me, but I failed to get a good overall shot of the former Great Chamber, now the library. Below, a corner detail, and the great fireplace.

Below, the Great Chamber/Library window with the arms of the family.

Montacute played the role of Cleveland House, the country home of Mr. and Mrs. Palmer in the 1995 film of Sense & Sensibility.

Garden views. The gardens with their quaint corner pavilions are lovely. Once probably used as small banqueting halls, the pavilions are empty now.

The Orangery.

The Montacute Phelips Lions. Next, the Long Gallery and an exhibition of portraits related to Queen Elizabeth II's ancestors, focusing on Elizabeth of Bohemia, 'The Winter Queen.'