64-509: Holker Hall (pronounced Hooker by some) is a privately owned country house located about 2 km to the southwest of the village of Cartmel in the ceremonial county of Cumbria and historic county of Lancashire , England. It is "the grandest [building] of its date in Lancashire ;...by the best architects then living in the county." The building dates from the 16th century, with alterations, additions, and rebuilding in
128-534: A cascade , labyrinth and car park were added by Kim Wilkie, and a sundial by Mark Lennox-Boyd. The Holker Lime, in the grounds, is regarded as one of the largest and finest common limes ( Tilia × europaea ) in Britain. It was planted in the early 17th century, probably as part of the establishment of the formal garden. Its girth is 7.9 metres (26 ft). It was designated by the Tree Council as one of
192-401: A slate roof. Paley and Austin's west wing is in variegated red sandstone . Its entrance front faces the east has a porch placed asymmetrically, which is flanked by turrets with domes and pinnacles . Behind the porch is a tower with a copper-covered ogee -shaped cupola , and to the right of this is another tower, which is broad and square with a lead-covered pyramidal roof. At each end of
256-463: A fortified or unfortified building, a country house, similar to an Ansitz , is usually unfortified. If fortified, it is called a castle, but not all buildings with the name "castle" are fortified (for example Highclere Castle in Hampshire ). The term stately home is subject to debate, and avoided by historians and other academics. As a description of a country house, the term was first used in
320-428: A fortunate few; it was the centre of its own world, providing employment to hundreds of people in the vicinity of its estate . In previous eras, when state benefits were unheard of, those working on an estate were among the most fortunate, receiving secured employment and rent-free accommodation. At the summit of this category of people was the indoor staff of the country house. Unlike many of their contemporaries prior to
384-492: A gallery and four bedrooms. In the gallery are items of furniture, and these include a table with a purse once belonging to Georgiana Cavendish . Queen Mary's Bedroom gained its name when it was used by Queen Mary when she stayed in the house in 1937. The Wedgwood Bedroom contains a Carrera marble fireplace incorporating blue and white Wedgwood Jasperware . The four-poster bed is by Hepplewhite . The Gloucester Bedroom and Dressing Room gained their names when they were used by
448-529: A mixture of high architecture , often as interpreted by a local architect or surveyor, and determined by practicality as much as by the whims of architectural taste. An example of this is Brympton d'Evercy in Somerset, a house of many periods that is unified architecturally by the continuing use of the same mellow, local Ham Hill stone . The fashionable William Kent redesigned Rousham House only to have it quickly and drastically altered to provide space for
512-515: A pair of Baroque barley-sugar columns . In the Paley and Austin wing, the entrance porch leads into a long hall, which opens into the library, the billiards room, the drawing room and the dining room; all of these rooms have elaborately decorated plaster ceilings. In the library are about 3,500 books, some of which survived the 1871 fire, and some of the former possessions of the scientist Henry Cavendish (1731–1810), including his microscope. On
576-656: A poem by Felicia Hemans , "The Homes of England", originally published in Blackwood's Magazine in 1827. In the 20th century, the term was later popularised in a song by Noël Coward , and in modern usage it often implies a country house that is open to visitors at least some of the time. In England, the terms "country house" and "stately home" are sometimes used vaguely and interchangeably; however, many country houses such as Ascott in Buckinghamshire were deliberately designed not to be stately, and to harmonise with
640-440: Is Paley and Austin's "most important country house commission." The architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner expressed the opinion that the west wing is the "outstanding domestic work" of Paley and Austin. In 1970 the hall itself, together with its terrace wall, were designated Grade II* Listed buildings . The house stands in an estate of about 80 hectares, and is surrounded by formal gardens, parkland and woodland. Within
704-473: Is politics; they talk politics; and they make politics, quite spontaneously. There are no written terms for distinguishing between vast country palaces and comparatively small country houses; the descriptive terms, which can include castle , manor and court , provide no firm clue and are often only used because of a historical connection with the site of such a building. Therefore, for ease or explanation, Britain's country houses can be categorised according to
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#1732797834676768-501: Is the ITV series Downton Abbey . Hugh Cavendish, Baron Cavendish of Furness Richard Hugh Cavendish, Baron Cavendish of Furness FRSA DL (born 2 November 1941), is a British Conservative politician and landowner . Lord Cavendish owns Holker Hall and its 17,000 acre estate overlooking Morecambe Bay in Cumbria . The property became part of this branch of
832-550: The 7th Duke of Devonshire by George Webster of Kendal in Jacobean Revival style. In 1859–61 the Lancaster architect E. G. Paley carried out some minor alterations. In 1871 the front (west) wing of the house was almost completely destroyed by fire. An estimated 103 works of art were lost and the more notable items were: The Duke commissioned Paley again, together with Hubert Austin , (the firm
896-461: The Duke of Gloucester and his wife when they visited in 1939. The walls are decorated with engravings of Brighton Pavilion by John Nash . The Duke's Bedroom was used by the 7th Duke during the later years of his life. The formal gardens comprise 10 hectares, and the surrounding parkland, deer park and woodland, comprise 80 hectares. The formal gardens are on the south and west sides of
960-795: The board of governors of St Anne's School, Windermere (1983–89). He is a director of Nirex Ltd (since 1993) and served as High Sheriff of Cumbria (1978–79) and a member of the Cumbria County Council (1985–1990). He became president of the Dry Stone Walling Association of Great Britain in 2008. He is chairman of the Burlington Stone Company. Cavendish is the president of South Cumbria Rivers Trust. In 1970 Cavendish married Grania Mary Caulfeild (b. 1947), granddaughter of Sir William Lindsay Murphy , who served as British Governor of
1024-567: The 1850s, with the English economy booming, new mansions were built in one of the many revivalist architectural styles popular throughout the 19th century. The builders of these new houses were able to take advantage of the political unrest in Europe that gave rise to a large trade in architectural salvage. This new wave of country house building is exemplified by the Rothschild properties in
1088-402: The 1870s , the estates, of which country houses were the hub, provided their owners with incomes. However, the late 19th and early 20th centuries were the swansong of the traditional English country house lifestyle. Increased taxation and the effects of World War I led to the demolition of hundreds of houses ; those that remained had to adapt to survive. While a château or a Schloss can be
1152-504: The 18th and 19th centuries. The 19th century rebuilding was by George Webster in Jacobean Revival style and subsequent renovations were by E. G. Paley . Hubert Austin had a joint practice with Paley by the 1870s and they both rebuilt the west wing after it was destroyed by a major fire in 1871, only a decade after Paley's previous work on the structure. The fire also destroyed a number of notable artworks. Holker Hall
1216-419: The 18th century with houses such as Castle Howard , Kedleston Hall and Holkham Hall . Such building reached its zenith from the late 17th century until the mid-18th century; these houses were often completely built or rebuilt in their entirety by one eminent architect in the most fashionable architectural style of the day and often have a suite of Baroque state apartments, typically in enfilade , reserved for
1280-474: The 20th century, they slept in proper beds, wore well-made adequate clothes and received three proper meals a day, plus a small wage. In an era when many still died from malnutrition or lack of medicine, the long working hours were a small price to pay. As a result of the aristocratic habit of only marrying within the aristocracy, and whenever possible to a sole heiress, many owners of country houses owned several country mansions, and would visit each according to
1344-706: The 50 Great British Trees in the United Kingdom, to mark the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 2002. To the west of the hall is a two-tier circular ice house , which has been present since at least 1732. The north lodge with its gate piers , standing on the B5278 road, dates probably from the early 19th century and was possibly designed by George Webster. It is a single-story building in roughcast stone with ashlar dressings and slate roof. The gate piers are circular and rusticated with domed caps. To
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#17327978346761408-697: The British sub-stage of the Carboniferous period, the "Holkerian" derives its name from Holker Hall. The land on which the house stands was originally owned by Cartmel Priory . Following the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 16th century it was bought by the Preston family, who were local landowners. The first house was built in the early 16th century by George Preston. In 1644
1472-485: The Cavendish family's inheritance via his grandfather, Lord Richard Cavendish CB . Richard Hugh Cavendish was born as the second child and first son of Richard Edward Osborne Cavendish (1917–1972) and his wife, Pamela Thomas (b. 1918), daughter of Hugh Lloyd Thomas (1888–1938) and Hon. Gwendoline Ada Bellew (1891–1976), a great-granddaughter of Patrick Bellew, 1st Baron Bellew . Educated at Eton College , he
1536-467: The best-known examples of the showy prodigy house , often built with the intention of attracting the monarch to visit. By the reign of Charles I , Inigo Jones and his form of Palladianism had changed the face of English domestic architecture completely, with the use of turrets and towers as an architectural reference to the earlier castles and fortified houses completely disappearing. The Palladian style, in various forms, interrupted briefly by baroque ,
1600-524: The circumstances of their creation. The great houses are the largest of the country houses; in truth palaces, built by the country's most powerful – these were designed to display their owners' power or ambitions to power. Really large unfortified or barely fortified houses began to take over from the traditional castles of the crown and magnates during the Tudor period, with vast houses such as Hampton Court Palace and Burghley House , and continued until
1664-463: The country saw the building of the first of the unfortified great houses. Henry VIII 's Dissolution of the Monasteries saw many former ecclesiastical properties granted to the King's favourites, who then converted them into private country houses. Woburn Abbey , Forde Abbey and many other mansions with abbey or priory in their name became private houses during this period. Other terms used in
1728-428: The design of the wing around the next corner. These varying "improvements", often criticised at the time, today are the qualities that make English country houses unique. Wealthy and influential people, often bored with their formal duties, go to the country in order to get out of London, the ugliest and most uncomfortable city in the world; they invented the long week-end to stay away as long as possible. Their métier
1792-420: The dining room includes chairs by Thomas Chippendale . On the walls are portraits of family members, and a self-portrait by Anthony van Dyck . At the far end of the entrance hall is a cantilevered oak staircase which is approached through limestone arches. It contains over 100 balusters , each of which is carved with a different design. Its windows contain heraldic stained glass. The upper floor contains
1856-427: The early 1970s, hundreds of country houses were demolished . Houses that survived destruction are now mostly Grade I or II listed as buildings of historic interest with restrictions on restoration and re-creation work. However such work is usually very expensive. Several houses have been restored, some over many years. For example at Copped Hall where the restoration started in 1995 continues to this day. Although
1920-491: The estate was confiscated from his successor, Thomas Preston, by Parliament, but was later restored to him. On the death of Thomas Preston, the estate passed to the Lowther family by the marriage of Thomas' heiress, Catherine, to Sir William Lowther, 1st Baronet, of Marske . In 1756 it passed again by marriage to Lord George Augustus Cavendish, and has remained in the ownership of the Cavendish family since. The Jacobean house
1984-482: The full-time residence for the landed gentry who dominated rural Britain until the Reform Act 1832 . Frequently, the formal business of the counties was transacted in these country houses, having functional antecedents in manor houses . With large numbers of indoor and outdoor staff, country houses were important as places of employment for many rural communities. In turn, until the agricultural depressions of
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2048-423: The gardens are open to the general public during the summer months, an admission charge being payable. The former stable buildings have been converted into a café and gift shop. A series of events are organised in the hall and grounds, including an annual garden festival. Other events are organized from time to time in the house and grounds. Webster's remaining wing is in roughcast stone with ashlar dressings and
2112-516: The grounds are six structures listed at Grade II. Since becoming a private house following the Dissolution of the Monasteries , the estate has never been sold, having passed by inheritance from the Preston family to the Lowther family , and then to the Cavendish family . The house and grounds are open to the public at advertised times on payment of an admission fee. In chronostratigraphy ,
2176-416: The hall itself, also on the B5278 road, date from about 1875, and were also designed by Paley and Austin. In the grounds to the north of the hall is a lead statue of Inigo Jones by John Michael Rysbrack , dating from about the 1740s; this was moved from Chiswick House in the 19th century. Also in the grounds is a limestone underpass beneath the B5278 road that gave access from the formal gardens to
2240-479: The home counties and Bletchley Park (rebuilt in several styles, and famous for its code-breaking role in World War II). The slow decline of the English country house coincided with the rise not just of taxation, but also of modern industry, along with the agricultural depression of the 1870s. By 1880, this had led some owners into financial shortfalls as they tried to balance maintenance of their estates with
2304-603: The house, and to the north and west are pleasure gardens with a winding path leading to and through the arboretum. The formal garden to the south of the west wing is known as the Elliptical Garden, and to the left of this is the Summer Garden. To the northwest of the hall is the Sunken Garden containing a pair of summer houses . The pleasure gardens include a cedar planted by Lord George Cavendish in
2368-435: The household. These houses were always an alternative residence to a London house. During the 18th and 19th centuries, for the highest echelons of English society, the country house served as a place for relaxing, hunting and running the country with one's equals at the end of the week, with some houses having their own theatre where performances were staged. The country house, however, was not just an oasis of pleasure for
2432-556: The immediately preceding war then in World War I, were now paying far higher rates of tax, and agricultural incomes had dropped. Thus, the solution for many was to hold contents auctions and then demolish the house and sell its stone, fireplaces , and panelling . This is what happened to many of Britain's finest houses. Despite this slow decline, so necessary was the country house for entertaining and prestige that in 1917 Viscount Lee of Fareham donated his country house Chequers to
2496-438: The income they provided. Some relied on funds from secondary sources such as banking and trade while others, like the severely impoverished Duke of Marlborough , sought to marry American heiresses to save their country houses and lifestyles. The ultimate demise began immediately following World War I . The members of the huge staff required to maintain large houses had either left to fight and never returned, departed to work in
2560-417: The kitchen gardens. Country house An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house . This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these people, the term distinguished between town and country. However, the term also encompasses houses that were, and often still are,
2624-491: The landscape, while some of the great houses such as Kedleston Hall and Holkham Hall were built as "power houses" to dominate the landscape, and were most certainly intended to be "stately" and impressive. In his book Historic Houses: Conversations in Stately Homes , the author and journalist Robert Harling documents nineteen "stately homes"; these range in size from the vast Blenheim Palace and Castle Howard to
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2688-421: The late 18th century, and an Auracaria planted in 1844. There are also two areas of kitchen gardens, one to the northwest of the hall, and the other to the north of the B5278 road. In 1901 Thomas Hayton Mawson worked on the gardens. In 1910 Thomas Mawson redesigned the formal garden. His design included a terrace wall to the southeast of the hall. Since then there have been further developments. In 2003–04
2752-544: The latter two are ducal palaces, Montacute, although built by a Master of the Rolls to Queen Elizabeth I, was occupied for the next 400 years by his descendants, who were gentry without a London townhouse , rather than aristocracy. They finally ran out of funds in the early 20th century. However, the vast majority of English country houses, often owned at different times by gentlemen and peers , are an evolution of one or more styles with facades and wings in different styles in
2816-404: The long central corridor in the old wing are spiral staircases, which are contained in semicircular projections. On one side of the corridor are rooms including a drawing room and a small dining room. On the other side are service rooms, and behind these is a courtyard. The contents of the wing include panelling removed from Canon Winder Hall, Flookburgh , a chimneypiece from Conishead Priory , and
2880-655: The minuscule Ebberston Hall , and in architecture from the Jacobean Renaissance of Hatfield House to the eccentricities of Sezincote . The book's collection of stately homes also includes George IV's Brighton town palace, the Royal Pavilion . The country houses of England have evolved over the last five hundred years. Before this time, larger houses were usually fortified, reflecting the position of their owners as feudal lords , de facto overlords of their manors . The Tudor period of stability in
2944-416: The most eminent guests, the entertainment of whom was of paramount importance in establishing and maintaining the power of the owner. The common denominator of this category of English country houses is that they were designed to be lived in with a certain degree of ceremony and pomp. It was not unusual for the family to have a small suite of rooms for withdrawing in privacy away from the multitude that lived in
3008-399: The munitions factories, or filled the void left by the fighting men in other workplaces. Of those who returned after the war, many left the countryside for better-paid jobs in towns. The final blow for many country houses came following World War II ; having been requisitioned during the war, they were returned to the owners in poor repair. Many estate owners, having lost their heirs, if not in
3072-468: The names of houses to describe their origin or importance include palace , castle , court , hall , mansion , park , house , manor , and place . It was during the second half of the reign of Elizabeth I , and under her successor, James I , that the first architect-designed mansions, thought of today as epitomising the English country house, began to make their appearance. Burghley House , Longleat House , and Hatfield House are among
3136-454: The nation for the use of a prime minister who might not possess one of his or her own. Chequers still fulfills that need today as do both Chevening House and Dorneywood , donated for sole use of high-ranking ministers of the Crown. Today, many country houses have become hotels, schools, hospitals and museums, while others have survived as conserved ruins, but from the early 20th century until
3200-468: The owner of a "power house" or a small manor, the inhabitants of the English country house have become collectively referred to as the ruling class, because this is exactly what they did in varying degrees, whether by having high political influence and power in national government, or in the day-to-day running of their own localities or "county" in such offices as lord/deputy lieutenant , magistrates , or occasionally even clergy. The Country house mystery
3264-529: The owner's twelve children. Canons Ashby , home to poet John Dryden 's family, is another example of architectural evolution: a medieval farmhouse enlarged in the Tudor era around a courtyard, given grandiose plaster ceilings in the Stuart period , and then having Georgian façades added in the 18th century. The whole is a glorious mismatch of styles and fashions that seamlessly blend together. These could be called
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#17327978346763328-512: The ownership or management of some houses has been transferred to a private trust , most notably at Chatsworth , other houses have transferred art works and furnishings under the Acceptance in Lieu scheme to ownership by various national or local museums, but retained for display in the building. This enables the former owners to offset tax, the payment of which would otherwise have necessitated
3392-462: The private sale of the art works. For example, tapestries and furniture at Houghton Hall are now owned by the Victoria and Albert Museum . In addition, increasing numbers of country houses hold licences for weddings and civil ceremonies . Another source of income is to use the house as a venue for parties, a film location or a corporate entertainment venue. While many country houses are open to
3456-472: The public and derive income through that means, they remain homes, in some cases inhabited by the descendants of their original owners. The lifestyles of those living and working in a country house in the early 20th century were recreated in a BBC television programme, The Edwardian Country House , filmed at Manderston House in Scotland. Another television programme which features life in country houses
3520-519: The season: Grouse shooting in Scotland , pheasant shooting and fox hunting in England. The Earl of Rosebery , for instance, had Dalmeny House in Scotland, Mentmore Towers in Buckinghamshire, and another house near Epsom just for the racing season. For many, this way of life, which began a steady decline in 1914, continued well into the 20th century, and for a few continues to this day. In
3584-444: The second category of Britain's country houses are those that belonged to the squirearchy or landed gentry . These tend either to have evolved from medieval hall houses, with rooms added as required, or were purpose-built by relatively unknown local architects. Smaller, and far greater in number than the "power houses", these were still the epicentre of their own estate, but were often the only residence of their owner. However, whether
3648-451: The southeast of the hall are stable buildings in a U-shaped plan, constructed in stone with slate roofs. They are dated 1864, and incorporate a timber bell turret with a pyramidal roof, a clock, and a weathervane . The south lodge, also on the B5278 road, is dated 1875 and was designed by Paley and Austin. It is a two-storey building with an L-plan, constructed in limestone with a slate roof. The entrance gates and associated railings to
3712-493: The true English country house. Wilton House , one of England's grandest houses, is in a remarkably similar vein; although, while the Drydens, mere squires, at Canons Ashby employed a local architect, at Wilton the mighty Earls of Pembroke employed the finest architects of the day: first Holbein , 150 years later Inigo Jones, and then Wyatt followed by Chambers. Each employed a different style of architecture, seemingly unaware of
3776-442: The walls of the billiards room are four painted panels that are attributed to Jean-Baptiste Oudry , a caricature by Joshua Reynolds , and paintings by Jan Wyck and Matthias Reed. The walls of the drawing room are lined in silk, and the room contains a Carrara marble fireplace. Paintings in the room are by Claude Joseph Vernet (its companion-piece was destroyed in the fire), Salvatore Rosa , and Douglas Anderson. The furniture in
3840-520: Was a popular genre of English detective fiction in the 1920s and 1930s; set in the residence of the gentry and often involving a murder in a country house temporarily isolated by a snowstorm or similar with the suspects all at a weekend house party. Following the Industrial Revolution of the 18th century, a third category of country houses was built as newly rich industrialists and bankers were eager to display their wealth and taste. By
3904-407: Was altered in 1783–84 by John Carr of York . The parkland around the house was laid out in the late 18th century. Additions to the grounds were made during the 19th century and included an arboretum , a conservatory , terraces, and a walled garden. The conservatory was a large structure designed by Joseph Paxton , but has since been demolished. The house was largely rebuilt in 1838–41 for
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#17327978346763968-625: Was created a life peer as Baron Cavendish of Furness , of Cartmel in the County of Cumbria , on the advice of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher on 17 May 1990 and served as a lord-in-waiting (1990–92). He and his son, Hon. Freddy Cavendish, are in remainder to the dukedom of Devonshire . Cavendish is the chairman of the Holker Estate Group and has chaired the Morecambe and Lonsdale Conservative Association (1975–78) and
4032-500: Was then known as Paley and Austin ) to rebuild the wing. This they did on the same footprint, but on a grander scale, adding two towers, the whole being in Elizabethan Revival style. The estimated cost of this was about £38,000 (£3,160,000 as of 2014). The hall continues to be the home of Lord Cavendish and his wife. The older wing is used by the family and is not open to the public. Paley and Austin's west wing and
4096-422: Was to predominate until the second half of the 18th century when, influenced by ancient Greek styles, it gradually evolved into the neoclassicism championed by such architects as Robert Adam . Some of the best known of England's country houses were the work of only one architect/designer, built in a relatively short, particular time: Montacute House , Chatsworth House , and Blenheim Palace are examples. While
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