Unlike so many of the English Country Houses I like to visit, Waddesdon Manor is not many centuries old, evolving with alterations and additions to ancient medieval structures. Waddesdon was built in the 1870's by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild, great-grandson of the original founder of the family fortune. In the style of a French Renaissance chateau, the house has electric lighting, central heating, and even a lift. Please click on the pictures for full views.
Choosing a site previously "a bare hill," Baron Rothschild (1839-98) selected architect Gabriel-Hippolyte Destailleur of France to create a Renaissance chateau in the style of those in the Loire Valley. An eclectic assortment of architectural features: towers, turrets, classical pillars, dormers, and chimneys adorn the manor, as evidenced in the pictures above.
The mansion is set in exquisite gardens, just ending the tulip bonanza when we visited in May 2023. Below, left, a floral coronation display. Right, the fountain. In the center, a representation of Pluto abducting Proserpina to live in the Underworld, originally sculpted by Guiliano Mozani c.1720 for the Reggio di Colorno in Parma, Italy. Please click on the photos for full size versions.
Above left, a reproduction of the Apollo Belvedere. Right an image from the website shows the South Parterre in summer.
We entered the house anticipating the famous collections.
As could be expected in a structure created for entertainment and display, the visual treasures in each room almost overwhelm the viewer. Should I concentrate on the furnishings, the paintings, the textiles? Oh, it is a delightful dilemma. nless otherwise noted, the photos were taken by me or Kristine Hughes.
Below, left, inside the East Gallery is the large case for the Elephant Automaton. Alas, he was undergoing his occasional conservation, so the case was empty.
We entered the house anticipating the famous collections.
As could be expected in a structure created for entertainment and display, the visual treasures in each room almost overwhelm the viewer. Should I concentrate on the furnishings, the paintings, the textiles? Oh, it is a delightful dilemma. nless otherwise noted, the photos were taken by me or Kristine Hughes.
Below, left, inside the East Gallery is the large case for the Elephant Automaton. Alas, he was undergoing his occasional conservation, so the case was empty.
Above, left is a picture from the Waddesdon Manor website where you will also find the elephant's social media presence showing his performances and his Twitter (X) account. The automaton was made in London about 1770 by French clockmaker Hubert Martinet. Above right, one of the two large paintings of Venice by Francesco Guardi (1712-93) which hang on either side of the white fireplace in the East Gallery picture. Below, from Wikipedia, left, View of the Piazzetta of San Marco; right, the Bacino di San Marco with the Churches of San Giorgio Maggiori and Santa Maria della Salute, both painted between 1755 and 1770.
Above, left and right, the Breakfast Room, clearly showing the paneling from two Parisian houses of 1720-30. Like most of the rooms in the Manor, 18th C. French paneling was adapted and installed. On the left, the console tables both sides of the window show Meissen animals once exhibited in Dresden's Japanese Palace. The chandelier is the largest in the house.
Below, the conservatory, in which musicians often played for the guests in the next room.
Below, the conservatory, in which musicians often played for the guests in the next room.
Above, views of the dining room, as set for one of Baron Ferdinand's dinners in the late 19th century. The magnificent tapestries were woven between 1755 and 1778 at the Beauvais manufactory in France, to the rococo designs of Francois Boucher (1703-70).
Below, the Red Drawing Room, where arriving guests were welcomed in numbers up to forty at a time. As the central room of the house, it links the front entrance with access to the south front and the parterre. Left, the ceiling portrays Hercules received into Olympus, 1725, by Dutch artist Jacob de Wit (1695-1754). Right, among Waddesdon's excellent collection of 18th c. English portraits are Captain St. Leger, by Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-92), 1778-9, and Thomas Gainsborough's (1727-88) Sophia Charlotte Digby, Lady Sheffield, 1785.
Below, the Red Drawing Room, where arriving guests were welcomed in numbers up to forty at a time. As the central room of the house, it links the front entrance with access to the south front and the parterre. Left, the ceiling portrays Hercules received into Olympus, 1725, by Dutch artist Jacob de Wit (1695-1754). Right, among Waddesdon's excellent collection of 18th c. English portraits are Captain St. Leger, by Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-92), 1778-9, and Thomas Gainsborough's (1727-88) Sophia Charlotte Digby, Lady Sheffield, 1785.
Above left, Gainsborough's 1781 portrait of George Prince of Wales, later George IV; in front of the painting is a large pot-pourri vase of Sèvres porcelain, the Copenhagen Vase, from 1763, part of the extensive collection of French 18th C. porcelain. Right, also by Gainsborough is Frances Browne, Mrs. John Douglas, 1784.
Below, top row, left, the Grey Drawing Room where the ladies withdrew after dinner to be joined later by the men who had finished their port. Right is a drop front desk, c. 1770, with Sèvres Porcelain plaques.
Middle row left, Reynolds portrait of the Duchess of Cumberland, 1772-3, nee Anne Luttrell (1743-1808), widow of Christopher Horton. Her somewhat scandalous marriage to Prince Henry, youngest brother of King George III, prompted enactment of the Royal Marriage Act of 1772 requiring the permission of the monarch for any descendent of George II to wed. Middle row, right, Mrs. Abington as the Comic Muse , 1764-9, by Reynolds.
Below, top row, left, the Grey Drawing Room where the ladies withdrew after dinner to be joined later by the men who had finished their port. Right is a drop front desk, c. 1770, with Sèvres Porcelain plaques.
Middle row left, Reynolds portrait of the Duchess of Cumberland, 1772-3, nee Anne Luttrell (1743-1808), widow of Christopher Horton. Her somewhat scandalous marriage to Prince Henry, youngest brother of King George III, prompted enactment of the Royal Marriage Act of 1772 requiring the permission of the monarch for any descendent of George II to wed. Middle row, right, Mrs. Abington as the Comic Muse , 1764-9, by Reynolds.
Above, left, Lady Jane Tollemache, later Lady Jane Halliday, 1778-9, also by Reynolds; right, Sèvres vases; in the center, one of Waddesdon's three ship pot-pourri vases (of the ten known to exist in the world); below a painting of Pierrot, Harlequin and Scarpin by Jean-Antoine Watteau (1684-1721)
Below, left, a desk with superposed filing drawers (cartonniere), created by cabinet-maker Jean-Henri Reisener (1734-1806). Right, the monumental Roll-top Desk made for Pierre-Auguste Caron de Beaumarchais (1732-1799) depicting in marquetry scenes from his works such as The Barber of Seville and The Marriage of Figaro. Attributed to Jean-Francois Leleu (1729-1807), a Parisian cabinet-maker.
Below, left, a desk with superposed filing drawers (cartonniere), created by cabinet-maker Jean-Henri Reisener (1734-1806). Right, the monumental Roll-top Desk made for Pierre-Auguste Caron de Beaumarchais (1732-1799) depicting in marquetry scenes from his works such as The Barber of Seville and The Marriage of Figaro. Attributed to Jean-Francois Leleu (1729-1807), a Parisian cabinet-maker.
Above left, in the Baron's Room, once Ferdinand Rothschild's private area, many more 18th C. English portraits include Lady Hamilton as Calypso, 1791-92, by George Romney, and Anne Louisa Bertie, Lady Stuart, 1739-40, also by Romney (1734-1802). Right, Miss Theophila Gwatkin as Simplicity, 1785, by Reynolds; Mrs. Emma Scott of Danesfield, 1786, by Reynolds.
Below, left, views of the Morning Room.
Below, left, views of the Morning Room.
Above in the Morning Room, left, the 1782 portrait of Francis Nicholls by Gainsborough often known as The Pink Boy, freshly returned from cleaning and conservation. Right, Ferdinand de Rothschild, (1839-98), artist identified only as British School, created in 1880. Baron Rothschild married a cousin, Evelina, who died in childbirth in 1866. After his tragedy, he devoted himself to collecting and to building Waddesdon Manor in which to exhibit his treasures and to entertain friends and associates. As many accounts make clear, the house was never intended as a family home. Upon his death, it was inherited by his sister Alice de Rothschild (1847-1922) who added her collections. Although Waddesdon is now owned by the National Trust, a Rothschild Family Panel oversees the operation of the collection.
Below left, an exhibition of the George III silver service, presided over, right, amazingly, by a portrait of Louis XVI, painted in 1783 by Antoine-Francois Callet. (1741-1823).
Below left, an exhibition of the George III silver service, presided over, right, amazingly, by a portrait of Louis XVI, painted in 1783 by Antoine-Francois Callet. (1741-1823).
Above, left, the Blue Dining Room and its stunning chandelier, commissioned for this space in 2003 and created by German lighting designer Ingo Maurer, titled Porca Miseria, or roughly 'Oh my goodness!' Right, Staffordshire ceramic The Death of Munro, figure modeled after automaton found in India, now in the collection of the V&A Museum, London.
Several more rooms display additional collections, but honestly, I had exceeded my capacity to absorb more, as fascinating as the exhibits were. I did revive enough, however, to enjoy the Bachelor's Wing, and its billiards room, below, though I had transcended my ability to take many more pictures. Next time I visit, I will have to reverse my pathway to give more attention to the far end of the house.
Would you believe that this is just a taste of the temptations you will see at Waddesdon? Actually, I suppose you would believe it, if you have stayed with me this long!!!
Several more rooms display additional collections, but honestly, I had exceeded my capacity to absorb more, as fascinating as the exhibits were. I did revive enough, however, to enjoy the Bachelor's Wing, and its billiards room, below, though I had transcended my ability to take many more pictures. Next time I visit, I will have to reverse my pathway to give more attention to the far end of the house.
Would you believe that this is just a taste of the temptations you will see at Waddesdon? Actually, I suppose you would believe it, if you have stayed with me this long!!!
Above from the 2023 website, Waddesdon lit for Christmas, wishing all of you a festive holiday season.
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