The Pateshalls of Allensmore Court

Throughout their years at Allensmore Court, the Pateshall family proved themselves to be kind and generous – indeed, they donated most of the money needed to restore the church in 1880, and Evan Pateshall donated the land for the building of a village school in 1870. (The school closed in 1957, but the building is now used as a village hall).

Servants were clearly well treated and many remained loyal for many years – in 1863 it was reported that Henry Neat, aged 43, died after many years being the faithful servant of Mrs. Burnam Pateshall; then in 1859, Mrs. Elizabeth Harper died at Allensmore Court aged 53, being described as “the faithful and attached servant of Mrs. Burnam Pateshall”.
In 1939, Alfred Kitson of Hereford, died aged 74 and the headlines were “Faithful Servant – Family Tribute to Dead Employee.” It went on to say that for 60 years he worked in the gardens at Allensmore Court, and served three generations of the Pateshall family, including Lt. Col. Evan P. Pateshall (died 1912) and Col. Henry Evan Pateshall, Deputy Lieutenant for Herefordshire and Chairman of the County Territorial Association.

Rear Admiral Nicholas Lechmere Pateshall

Nicholas was the fourth son of Edmund Pateshall, born 13th September 1781. He survived his elder brother, Edmund Burnam Pateshall and succeeded to his estates in 1848. He remained on active service until 1816, being engaged in many distinguished actions.

In 1840 he was Mayor of the city of Hereford, and he also became a Justice of the Peace.

He died 18th October 1854 and in 1858 a fine gothic monument in Caen stone was erected in his memory, in the monumental chamber over the family vault in Allensmore Church.

Evan Pateshall

Evan was the youngest son of David Thomas of Radnorshire, and was born December 1817. He was educated in Shrewsbury, and then King’s College London. He became a Magistrate and Deputy Lieutenant for Herefordshire as well as for Brecon and Radnor. He commanded one of the companies of the Hereford Rifle Volunteers.

Evan Pateshall was Mayor of Hereford in 1863, and in that same year he was returned as a member of the Town Council.  In 1873, Evan was again returned to the Town Council but Alderman Shellard petitioned against his election on the grounds that he was not a city dweller, and therefore not eligible to sit on the Council.  After an official enquiry, the seat was declared vacant.

The following year, Evan contested the MP of the city in the Conservative interest and was elected, however in 1879 he resigned his seat due to ill health.
Evan married Anne Elizabeth in 1842, she being the only child of William Pateshall. He took on the name Pateshall in 1855.
He died on April 9th 1885 aged 67.

Anne Elizabeth Pateshall lived until the good age of 95 when she died in 1910.

A treat for the Wesleyan Sunday School Children

The Hereford Wesleyan Sunday School enjoyed an annual treat, and in 1877  Evan and Anne Pateshall agreed that they could use one of his meadows at Allensmore Court.

140 children duly arrived with teachers;  ministers and friends, and a wonderful day was enjoyed, with games of cricket;  leaping;  swinging and running until hunger stopped play and they all devoured a magnificent tea on the grass.

During the evening Evan turned up to see that all was well, and was pleased to see the children enjoying themselves so much.  He then led the whole party on a tour of the garden and lake until it began to get dark.

Everyone finished the day with hymns and a big vote of thanks for Mr. and Mrs. Pateshall before heading back to Hereford in “vans” – sprung, covered carts.

It was reported that it was a most enjoyable day “without any serious injury”!

Edmund Burnam Pateshall

Edmund Burnam Pateshall was a well respected man, and became a Magistrate and Deputy Lieutenant for Herefordshire.

He was the eldest son of Edmund Lechmere, afterwards Pateshall,  and later when his mother died in 1820 he assumed by Royal license the additional surname and arms of Burnam.

The Royal License………take a deep breath before attempting to read!

Whitehall, March 1, 1820…….The King hath been pleased to give and grant unto Edmund Pateshall of Allensmore in the county of Hereford, Esq. one of his Majesty’s Lieutenants and in the Commission of the Peace for the said county, eldest son and heir of Edmund Pateshall of Allensmore aforesaid, Esq. deceased, by Ann his wife, only daughter and heir of William Burnam of Westington in the parish of Grendon Bishop in the said county of Hereford, also deceased, his Royal license and authority, that, from an affectionate regard to the memory of his said late honoured mother’s family, he the said Edmund Pateshall and his issue may take and use the surname of Burnam in addition to and preceding that of Pateshall.  And also to command that the said Royal concession and declaration be registered in his Majesty’s College of Arms.

in 1804 he married the eldest daughter of James Ingram of Burford, Salop, but they had no children.

Edmund died in 1848 aged 69.

Miss Alice Muriel Pateshall

I do love descriptions of weddings, and Alice’s in 1915 sounded lovely.
“A very pretty and fashionable wedding, and one of considerable interest to West Suffolk was solemnised at St. Mary’s Church, Kington, Herefordshire, when Mr. Windsor Duncan Parker, son of the late Duncan Parker J.P. and of Mrs. Parker, Clopton Hall, Woolpit, Suffolk, was married to Miss Alice Muriel Pateshall, daughter of the late Lieut. Col. Henry Evan Pateshall of Allensmore Court, Hereford. Owing to the war, the marriage took place very quietly. The ceremony was performed by the Lord Bishop of Hereford, assisted by the Rev. R. Pelly. The bride, who was given away by her mother, Mrs. Pateshall, was charmingly attired in a gown of silver toned charmeuse draped with an exquisite old Brussels lace shawl to form an Empire coat, with sprays of myrtle and orange flowers and Brussels net veil. She carried a beautiful bouquet of white carnations, lilies of the valley and white heather, and wore a pearl and diamond necklet, the gift of the bridegroom. There were no bridesmaids; the bride’s mother wore a gown of soft lavender brocade of simple design, with a beautiful blonde lace fichu draped with a velvet flower. Mrs. Duncan Parker, the bridegroom’s mother was attired in black charmeuse draped with black lace.

Allensmore Court Household and servants 1851 census

 Allensmore Court Household and servants 1861 census

Allensmore Court Household and servants 1871 census

Allensmore Court Household and servants 1881 census

 Allensmore Court Household and servants 1891 census

Allensmore Court Household and servants 1901 census

Allensmore Court Household 1921 census

In 1793 The Woodhouses moved away and Aramstone House was advertised for let, either furnished or unfurnished, for 3, 5 or 7 years and described thus:

Description of Aramstone House

Situated on a beautiful dry, healthy healthy spot on the banks of the river Wye in the parish of Kings Caple, a huge red brick mansion, consisting of a breakfast parlour;  dining parlour;  drawing room;  another parlour;  library;  housekeeper’s room;  six bedrooms on the first floor and six in the attic, with dressing rooms and closets.  New stove grates and other grates in all rooms.

Servants hall;  butlers pantry;  kitchen;  Brewhouse;  dairy;  larder and other offices, with servants bedrooms;  very large vaulted cellars;  and excellent stables for twenty horses.  Coach houses for five carriages;  two large granaries;  a dove house;  large walled garden;  two hot houses;  forcing house;  greenhouse;  icehouse;  cold bath, shrubberies and pleasure grounds.

It took some  time before a suitable tenant was found for this impressive house.

1808 – Aramstone House

In 1808, Aramstone House was once again up for rent, then in 1814 John Woodhouse was back in his family seat (or one of them anyway – he also owned Yatton Court in Aymestry), and he remained there for many years before finally putting the house up for auction in 1865, at which time Vice Admiral Hillyar was in residence.  He was followed by the Rev. Clement Ley, and I assume (but may be wrong of course) that the house didn’t sell and these two people were tenants.

It does seem that one way and another, descendants of John Woodhouse retained ownership of Aramstone House until the mid 20^th century.

In 1861 Aramstone House was being looked after by a caretaker.

1871 – Aramstone  House Household

1881 – Aramstone House Household

1891 – Aramstone House Household

1901 – Aramstone House Household

1908

Mr. Lea in residence;  outbreak of fire in the storeroom which destroyed books chairs and other articles.  The fire was thought to be caused by mice nibbling matches and causing them to ignite.

1911 Aramstone House Household

In 1957 the then owner, Mrs. Barbara Wyndham Williams found herself unable  to cope with the heavy burden of taxation on the house coupled with urgently required repairs and modernisation and decided to demolish Aramstone unless a new tenant could immediately be found. She estimated that at least £10,000 would be needed for the repairs alone.

However, the Minister of Housing and Local Government held an enquiry to decide whether to confirm a provisional order that he had made to restrict any alteration or demolition of the house.

As a result of that enquiry, the Minister said that nothing should be done until a scheduled article about Aramstone House had appeared in a national Magazine, in the hope that it would provoke interest from a suitable tenant.

Sadly, despite the magazine plug the house remained empty and Aramstone House was demolished later that year;  it was not the only one to suffer this fate, and several other wonderful and very old houses were destroyed at this time in history.

Some of the garden features survive, including the ice house and dovecote.

1841 – Aylton Court Household

1851 – Aylton Court Household

Avis Perry above was married to J.J. Perry who died before seeing one of his sons, Marten Perry who went to Queen’s College Birmingham, passed the examination to become a member of the Royal College of Surgeons.  During his collegiate course, Marten Perry obtained the Botany Certificate of Honour, the Midwifery silver medal and certificate, and the Governor’s gold medal for conduct.

In 1853, Avis Perry gave up Aylton Court and all the livestock, farming implements, dairy articles, brewing utensils and household furniture were put up for sale by auction.

John Foulger at Aylton Court

Aylton Court was then leased by John Foulger, but in 1855 a terrible tragedy occurred within his family.  His 12 year old son, Henry, found a gun in the house which he believed to be unloaded – in fun he pointed it at his sister Emma who was on the staircase, and shot her dead.  Emma was buried at nearby Aylton church, and imagine the terrible distress of the family when shortly afterwards the grave was raided and her body was taken.  Perhaps Emma’s spirit was disturbed by the grave robbers, because legend has it that she still haunts the staircase where she was shot by her brother.   John Foulger left Aylton Court three years later.

1861 – Aylton Court Household

The Badham family were at Aylton Court for a brief while, before the Cowles moved in – poor Sarah Cowles had a child more or less every year, and had at least 12.

1871 – Aylton Court Household

1881 – Aylton Court Household

1891 – Aylton Court Household

1901 – Aylton Court Household

1911 – Aylton Court Household

1921 – Aylton Court Household

The land was duly bought from the Cornewall family in about 1775, and Brown set to work designing and creating the landscape (this was to be his last big project) which included a lovely man- made lake which covers a whopping 14 acres, and a walled garden full of fruit trees. Meanwhile, the building of the house was carried out by his son in law, the architect Henry Holland who completed Berrington Hall in 1783.

Admiral Lord Rodney

Thomas Harley had no sons, but his daughter Anne married the son of Admiral Lord Rodney and so Berrington Hall passed to the Rodney family. The Admiral was a much admired naval commander who had roundly beaten the French, Spanish and Americans in many battles, but he was deeply flawed and had a gambling addiction. He also tended to spend way above his means and at one point, he was obliged to hastily leave Britain in order to escape his creditors. His wife Anne must have been a bit fed up with her husband, to put it mildly, and then to make things worse a succession of tragedies befell the family. First of all her brother in law was lost at sea, and then her three sons (the third, fourth and fifth Baron Rodney) died in 1842, 1843 and 1846.

The Rodneys of Berrington Hall

September 1843 – Death of Lord Rodney at Berrington Hall, he was the second son of George, second Lord Rodney, and brother of the late Lord whom he succeeded in 1841. Born 12th April 1784, he never married.
His will was rather long winded and amounted to some 16 or so pages, and was proved by his brothers – the Rt. Hon and Rt Rev Spencer Baron Rodney and the Hon. W.P. Rodney. Amongst other bequests, he left a year’s wages to each of his servants who had been with him for five years or more but most of his wealth was distributed throughout the family. However, he did particularly mention “four brass cannons, taken by my grandfather from the Spaniards” which were objects of great interest at Berrington Hall.
When the sixth Lord Rodney took over Berrington Hall it was rather dishevelled and needing much attention. However, he was very fond of hosting lavish parties, and took any excuse that he could to do so……… In August 1844 during the Leominster Races (where he gambled ferociously) he held an enormous party at Berrington Hall for his friends. When his wife gave birth to a son and heir in February 1857, he organised a huge and lavish ball for over 200 of their friends and neighbours by way of celebration, then later in the same week he threw open his gardens and grounds to all his tenant farmers plus their families and friends, and also invited local tradesmen. He was clearly generous!
He died in August 1864 of consumption after being ill for some considerable time. He was only 46 and left three children – two boys and a girl of which the eldest boy aged seven succeeded to the title and estates.
The following year, in September 1865, an advert appeared in various papers:
“To be let furnished, with shooting………Berrington Hall, four miles from Leominster; it stands in a beautiful park and commands extensive views, is well furnished and in perfect order for immediate occupation. The shooting is about 4,500 acres of which nearly 360 are woodland and well stocked with game. Good private rifle range close to the house. Can be let for three, five or seven years”
This was to bridge the gap until the seven year old boy came of age and was able to take possession of Berrington Hall.

Berrington Hall is Let

Joseph Tarratt and his wife moved in and remained there until his death in 1869. They were followed by Oswald Bloxsome.

7th Lord G.B.D. Rodney

Then in February 1878, the heir to the estate, the seventh Lord G.B.D. Rodney came of age. He returned to Berrington and was due to have had a celebration party, but this was postponed due to the death of his great aunt, the Dowager Lady Rodney, widow of George, third Lord Rodney. He became a Lieutenant 2nd Life Guards after attending the School of Musketry at Hythe St. Leonard in Kent, and went out to Egypt – upon his return to Berrington Hall in November 1882 he was met at Leominster by many local dignitaries as well as the local Volunteer Band, who all processed with him to the Town Hall where he was feted with congratulatory speeches. Like his ancestor the Admiral, he appeared to be a fearless military man, but unfortunately he took after the Admiral in other ways too and he was more than a little fond of gambling. His obsession spiralled, and he began to lose more than just money – valuable paintings were sold to enable him to pay his debts, followed by expensive fittings from inside the house. Farms were sold off too, and still he gambled………and lost.
In October 1887 it was reported that although Berrington Hall had been up for sale in 33 lots, it had failed to change hands. I have yet to discover for certain why Lord Rodney would have wished to sell up, but in all probability he had wanted to raise a substantial amount of cash by whatever means.
In 1891, Lord Rodney married and on their return from honeymoon were greeted by lavish festivities and celebrations. They were met just outside Leominster by a detachment of the Shropshire Yeomanry Cavalry and escorted through the festooned streets to the Town Hall where there were speeches by the Mayor and others. They then carried on to Berrington Hall to be greeted by a Guard of Honour by the Leominster volunteers. More speeches followed, given by their tenants, the Cricket Club and the Leominster volunteers. Later, nearly 300 people enjoyed lunch in a marquee. So in spite of his gambling habit, or perhaps because of it, he was a popular man. By 1900, there was simply no money left, and little of value inside the house = it was put up for sale, and in 1901 was bought by Frederick Cawley, a Lancastrian who had made his money in the cotton industry.

Frederick Cawley at Berrington Hall

When Queen Victoria died, and black clothes were worn nationwide, Frederick Cawley patented a pure black dye which gave him further wealth. He was made a Baronet in 1906, and Berrington Hall came back to life as he redecorated and restored the house.
He and his wife had four sons and one daughter:
John Stephen who was born in Lancashire in October 1879; he went to Sandhurst and joined his regiment the 20th Hussars, in India. He served in South Africa, and Egypt, and in 1911 was made Instructor at the Cavalry School in Netheravon. By all accounts he was a sportsman, and an excellent rider. In 1914, as Brigade Major to the lst Cavalry Brigade he was sent to France where he was killed.
The second son, Harold, was born in 1878 in Lancashire. He attended Rugby school and then went up to Oxford from where he was called to the Bar. In 1910 he was elected as the Liberal candidate during the general election. Just a couple of short weeks after arriving in Gallipoli, he too was killed.
The Cawleys third son, Oswald, also attended Rugby school and Oxford. Very sadly, very close to the end of the war, he too was killed.
Frederick Cawley, an MP since 1895, became a peer of the Realm in 1918.

During the second World War, the house was transformed into a hospital building, but despite all the upheaval and probably heartbreaking changes to the house and grounds (remember Downton Abbey!) the new Lord and Lady Cawley did their best to maintain high standards whilst making the best of things.
Lord Cawley died in 1957 and the family was crippled by death duties. Berrington Hall was taken over by the National Trust, but Lady Cawley was allowed to remain living there until her death in 1978. Perhaps nobody expected her to live until she was 100!

Berrington Hall was built of sandstone, a relatively soft material which had deteriorated over the years, and the National Trust spent a great deal of money carrying out repairs so that now the house is restored to its former glory.

Initially The Coppice was used as a vicarage until it was sold to Colonel Harry McCalmont

Colonel Harry Leslie Blundell McCalmont

In the late 18th century the house was owned by Colonel Harry Leslie Blundell McCalmont who came from an Irish family, and his ancestors were involved in Demerara British Guiana where their sugar plantations were worked by slaves. When slavery was abolished, the family was given compensation for the loss of their slaves.

Harry McCalmont’s Military Career

Harry went to Eton College, then aged just 20 he gained a commission in the 6th Regiment of Foot; he later transferred to the Scots Guards.
He became Colonel of the 6th Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment before retiring from the Regular Army in 1889, but then the Boer War broke out and he and his battalion went to South Africa – on his return home he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath in recognition of his war service.

Harry McCalmont Spends His Inheritence

Harry became an Conservative MP for Newmarket in 1895, and was extremely wealthy thanks to being bequeathed a vast amount of money by his great uncle, and he was able to indulge in his passion for horse racing. He bought many racehorses, and won the Triple Crown with his prize horse, Isinglass, and also had a positive fleet of yachts built to his own specification – one of these eventually was used by the Spanish royal family. As well as buying horses and yachts like they were going out of fashion, and of course the house in Walford, Harry also bought a house in St. James’s Square in London and the Cheveley Park estate near Newmarket which he proceeded to tear down before building a massive mansion, and he did a fair job of spending much of the fortune left to him!
As far as I can tell, Harry never lived at Bishopswood House (still known as The Coppice) himself, but let it out until in 1898 when he put it up for sale by auction; the reserve price wasn’t reached, and the house was later sold privately to Sir George Bullough. Sir George was also keenly interested in the owning and breeding of racehorses, and one of his horses won the Grand National in 1917. He also had great success on the flat, including the Ascot Gold Cup. He was given the knighthood for transforming one of his boats into a hospital for use during the Boer War.
Harry McCalmont died at his London house of heart failure.
During the early 20th century, The Coppice was renamed Bishopswood House and was bought by Robert Holme Storey.

1851 – The Coppice Household

1861 – Coppice Vicarage Household

1871 – Coppice Vicarage Household

1881 – The Coppice Vicarage Household

1901 – The Coppice Household

1911 – The Coppice Household

1921 – The Coppice Household

The school closed in 1987, when it was bought by the Taylor family who turned the estate into something of a pleasure park, with bars, rifle ranges, go cart racing, paintball, function rooms, restaurants etc. etc., which was all well and good, but unfortunately the owners didn’t value the glorious grounds and allowed rubble, rubbish and waste metals to be dumped in great piles all over the place. The Arkwrights must have been turning in their graves.
On the death of Ray Taylor, his son inherited the house and found he owed enormous death duties – eventually the banks repossessed Bodenham Manor and it was sold at auction. The new owner took up residence in a caravan whilst carrying out essential renovation work, but was hassled to a remarkable degree by the son of Ray Taylor (a vast amount of information is out there on the internet so I won’t attempt to unravel it on here – just type in Taylor – Bodenham Manor) who could not accept that he no longer owned the house.
In 2014 the house was again put up for sale at auction but was unsold – described thus:
“Bodenham Manor is located in the village of Bodenham, situated to the north of Bodenham Lakes, and has an elevated position with far reaching views across Bodenham Lake Nature Reserve, Deer Park and surrounding countryside.
It is approached by a private driveway and requires modernisation and updating.
It comprises :
Main Building – substantial three storey extended manor house and basement, with stone elevations and internally arranged as 9-11 flats; ground floor entrance; hall; former restaurant; bar; function room; kitchens; offices; WCs; ancillary rooms, and cellar.
Outbuildings – (former stable block), function rooms, bar area, kitchen, WCs on the ground floor; kitchen, shower room WCs on the first floor.
The future of this once lovely house is now in the balance.

The Arkwrights had at least twelve children, and it is rather nice to note that the same Nurse, Sarah Bradbury, stayed with the family to look after the brood through the years.

1851 – Bodenham Manor Household (the Vicarage)

1861 – Bodenham Manor Household (the Vicarage

1871 – Bodenham Manor Household (the Vicarage)

1881 – Bodenham Manor Household (the Vicarage)

1921 – Bodenham Manor Household (The Vicarage)

The original house is thought to be 15^th century, and was built on the site of a Roman encampment, Ariconium – it was doubtless the scene of many  battles between contending armies and a great many Roman coins and other relics have been turned up by the plough in the fields adjoining the house.   Included in these are some fine old bronze coins in mint condition, amongst which were those embossed with Caesar, Agrippa and others.  Sadly much of the site of Ariconium was destroyed in 1785.

Richard Ap Meryk

In 1441 Richard Ap Meryk was born in the house, and he later became the customs officer to Henry VII and then the founder member of Bristol’s Society of Merchant Adventurers;  he ended up with his own Merchant’s Mark – basically a trade mark – and was exceedingly wealthy.  Richard altered his name to Ameryk, and  rumour has it, that he gave his name to America, and certainly the Meryk family crest which boasts stars and stripes could be the origin of the American Flag.

A descendant, Walter Meyrick, left Bollitree House  as it was known then, to his nephew Thomas Hopkins Merrick from Pencoyd in 1776 and here comes the sorry tale.

Thomas Hopkins Merrick

Thomas Hopkins Merrick was deeply in love with a Spanish lady, but she declared that she couldn’t possibly live in England unless it was to be in a castle – Thomas duly set about transforming the façade of Bollitree House to give it some vague appearance of a castle, but his lady was unimpressed and Thomas was left out of pocket and without his bride.siBder s

By 1789uchow forms someone’s back garden wall, but is visible from the r

By 1789 the hapless Thomas Hopkins Merrick was dead, and his entire stock of farming utensils and impliments etc. were sold by auction.  These consisted of five wagons;  three carts;  ploughs;  drays;  harrows and rolls.  Also all his furniture and household goods, along with a chaise and harness for four horses.

The Palmer Family

It appears that the Palmer family who then took over Bollitree Castle were related in some way to the Merricks as Merrick was used as a middle name for a son for a Palmer descendant.  For many years Mr. George Merrick, a Saddler in Ross on Wye proudly sold Swedish Turnip Seed as grown by Mr. Palmer at Bollitree

A pack of hounds was kept at the castle, and the surrounding countryside provided excellent hunting grounds.  The Castle  also had an excellent reputation for cider production, especially under the Palmer family;  George Palmer made bottled cider and perry which was favourably compared with the best champagne.

George Palmer was also a grower of excellent quality crops, and he was a kindly gentleman who gave many people cause to think of him fondly.  For example, George let the Weston Cricket Club use one of his fields, and this along with other things prompted the Club to present him with a lovely silver goblet.  The inscription read “Presented to George Palmer Esq. by the members of the Weston Cricket Club, in remembrance of his many kindnesses to them.  Season 1868”

In 1903 Bollitree Castle and Estate was put up for sale – “An excellent opportunity will be offered to capitalists, sportsmen and others”.

The description included “the property is highly adapted for a breeder of pedigree stock or for a sportsman, being in the centre of a good hunting district, close to a good market town, with the land in a high state of cultivation.”

It was further said that it was hoped that a thoroughly good sportsman and agriculturist would become the new owner;  live there, and do his utmost to show sport, and, with horse, dog and gun, join in the merry hunt of fur and feather;  as well as the production of blood stock, beef, mutton and corn for which the land is eminently qualified.  The well known strength and quality of Bollitree cider and perry was also mention, and it was hoped that production would continue.

Charles Watkins duly moved into Bollitree Castle in 1903, but whether he had bought the property or was simply renting it I have yet to ascertain.  He was certainly a man of means, and his son C.R. Watkins was selected in the same year to row No. 6 in the Cambridge boat in the following year’s inter varsity boat race.  His weight was 13 stone if anyone is interested!

1841 – Bollitree Castle Household

1851 – Bollitree Castle Household

1861 – Bollitree Castle Household

1871 – Bollitree Castle Household

1881 – Bollitree Castle Household

In 1891 William Marfell was still at Bollitree,

1901 – Bollitree Castle Household

1911 – Bollitree Castle Household

1921 – Bollitree Castle Household

I am not convinced that the transcription of “Gammond” is correct – it actually looks more like Jammond, but I cannot find anything to confirm either name.

Although the castle appears in the Domesday book of 1086 it is not clear exactly when it was built, but it was known to belong to Ralph de Mortimer before passing to the Harley family to whom it belongs to this day along with estates at Brampton Bryan.
In the 17th century, the Civil War saw the castle almost completely destroyed, but the ruins can still be seen.

See Brampton Bryan Hall for full details.

The Harley family have passed the property down through generations since Domesday, although originally they lived in the Castle, which was more fortified house than castle, and the current owner is president of the Historic Houses Association,

Sir Robert Harley at Brampton Bryan Hall

Sir Robert Harley, K.B. married three times, his last wife being Brilliana Conway the daughter of Lord Conway – one of the first soldiers and statesmen of the age. Sir Robert was described as a man of the highest worth and public spirit, and was a conspicuous member of the Long Parliament where he represented Hereford, although was previously a member for Radnor. He was also a magistrate and Deputy Lieutenant of Herefordshire.

Lady Brilliana Harley

Lady Brilliana was twenty four years younger than Robert, but was a very strong and highly intelligent woman so perhaps the pairing was far more suitable than had she married a much younger man. Whilst Robert attended the sittings of the Long Parliament in London in November 1640, Brilliana took care of all his interests at home, but keenly followed the proceedings of that memorable Parliament.
Lady Brilliana wrote frequent letters, and in January to wrote to her son who had joined his father in London “now your father and you are from me, my contentment is in the happy proceedings of the Parliament, which makes amend for your father’s long absence”
Then in the February, she wrote “I rejoice that your father is well, and that is my comfort in his absence. I could wish I could undergo some of the pains for him, but I would have him act the understanding part”
In March she wrote “I hope that the Lord will give your father double strength to undergo the weight of these employments which lie on him”.

The Brave Defence of Brampton Bryan Castle by Lady Brilliana Harley

Loyalist Herefordshire was in some turmoil, and Lady Brilliana found herself facing resentment and even hatred wherever she went – she was threatened with an assault on Brampton Castle, and was frightened for her own safety being alone with no friends, and without her husband or son. At first she wanted to leave the castle to its fate, and was horrified by the hate and abuse assailing her husband and herself, although she herself had done nothing to merit it.
However, she squared her shoulders and resolved to stay to defend the castle and contents for as long as she could, despite the fact that she was unwell and of mild character. Firstly she set about stocking weapons and ammunition, but initially had problems because although the powder and matches arrived, there was no sign of the muskets. She had been told that only qualified people could make the shot, so she asked a plumber to write to Worcester in the hope that it could be kept secret. She ordered fifty weight of shot, but worried that it might not be enough, and asked her son to ask her husband about it. She also wrote to her husband Sir Robert, pleading for instructions as to how best to defend herself when attacked.
One has to wonder whether she was hoping that Sir Robert would order her away from Herefordshire, given that she wrote to her son asking him to ask her husband whether she had enough shot, and then wrote to her husband asking how to defend herself……whether this was the case or not, no such order was given and she declared that she was unafraid and put her faith in God. Her health was failing, but her courage deepened when the danger grew – everyone was against her, and the harassment increased; the collecting of her rents was banned, and all her horses were taken away; nobody was allowed to leave the castle and in December 1642 she wrote a letter to her son outlining her sorrow and distress. She feared that the stockpiles of food would run out, and that the barns would be burnt.
The Marquis of Hertford threatened her with a siege, but it never happened and she was understandably very relieved and put it down to God’s work. A council of war was held in Hereford, and it was determined to blow up Brampton Castle, but the troops who were to carry this out had to go to help the besieging forces at Gloucester so once again Brilliana and the castle was reprieved, although the intimidation continued unabated.
Coningsby, Governor of Hereford, and other Royalists swore to drive away her cattle and starve her out, but Brilliana kept her faith in God. She wrote another letter – “their aim is to enforce me to let those men I have, go, that then they might seize upon my house and cut our throats by a few rogues, and then say they knew not who did it; for so they say they knew not who drove away the six colts, but Mr. Coningsby keeps them, though I have written to him for them. They have used all means to let me have no man in my house, and tell me that then I shall be safe, but I have no cause to trust them”
Brilliana was asked to surrender, with a threat of being treated as a traitor and attacked as such, but she remained defiant saying that as long as her husband wanted her to defend the castle then she would do so, but her situation was becoming dire……..food was running out, and everyone was against her. Remarkably, the castle once again escaped attack when at the battle of Highnam the Royalists were defeated by the Parliamentary forces, and other defeats followed including the surrender of Hereford. For the moment, Brampton Castle was safe and Brilliana could gather her wits and some more provisions.
On 25th July Brilliana and her small band of followers prayed to God for help as they faced the enemy gathered at the base of the castle led by Sir William Vavasour. The attack was terrible; all the castle buildings were destroyed, including the mill some distance away; the parish church; the parsonage and numerous other houses. Disgust was later voiced at the way that the besiegers poisoned a stream which supplied the village with water, and shot a cook with a poisoned bullet.
Brilliana wrote again to her son, telling him that William Vavasour had left after the attack, leaving Mr. Lingen with the soldiers and she was praying that she would not fall into their hands. Fortunately, at the end of six long weeks, the besiegers left.

The End of Brilliana and Brampton Bryan Castle

In October 1643, Brilliana wrote to her son Ned informing him that she had a horrible cold, and expressing hope that the Lord would make her better – unfortunately she grew more ill, and on 31lst October 1643 she died of pneumonia.
In the spring of 1644, Brampton Bryan castle fell to the Royalists after another siege, and was destroyed, but the Royalist cause was lost and Sir Robert Harley was given today’s equivalent of over a million pounds in compensation for the destruction of his home.

General George Staunton

Before 1881, Brampton Bryan was spelt Brampton Brian and was listed as partly being in Radnorshire, and in 1871 the occupants of Brampton Bryan Hall were General George Staunton, his wife Henrietta (nee Cooper) and their seven children. They married on 15th November 1859, and George died on 4th April 1880. He was invested as a Companion, Order of the Bath.
George and Henrietta married on 15th November 1859, and had their first two children in South Africa before returning to England. Although they lived at Brampton Bryan Hall for several years, they were probably renting from the Harleys, who never relinquished ownership.

Brampton Bryan Hall Household – 1871

Brampton Bryan Hall Household – 1881

Brampton Bryan Hall Household – 1891

Brampton Bryan Hall Household – 1901

In 1726 the Manor of Bredenbury was owned by Richard West of Standford, Worcestershire in, but in 1820, a descendant and owner occupier, William West, bought more land on tick and he went bankrupt having failed to pay off the large amount of money due.
Charles Dutton bought the land, and for some time it was tenanted, although he resided at Bredenbury House. Sadly, his wife Phoebe died aged just 51 on 26th April, 1824

Bredenbury House Household 1851

Robert Johnson

The next owner of Bredenbury House was Robert Johnson and he is shown to be living there in 1858, with no occupation listed, other than being a gentleman. In 1861, along with James Gregg of Ledbury, he leased Keephill Heath with shooting rights over Horsnett. The cost of the lease for one year was £50.
His marriage to Miss Heathfield took place at Stoodleigh in Devon, with much ceremony. Flowers, evergreens, moss and even flags decorated the approach to the church and schoolchildren lined the road each carrying a posy of flowers. Afterwards each child was fed with buns for their part in the proceedings!

Bredenbury House Household 1861

The Barnebys at Bredenbury Court

The name and estates of the Barneby family go back for a very long time, and they were considered to be one of the oldest in Herefordshire. The family came from Yorkshire, and a descendant, staunch Royalist John Barneby, was nominated Knight of the Royal Oak in 1660. He married twice, and after his death in 1684 was succeeded by his eldest surviving son Richard. Richard’s only son died unmarried in 1726 but left his estates including those in Herefordshire to his nephew Bartholomew Richard Lutley of Salop. One of their great great grandsons was W. Henry Barneby the squire of Bredenbury Court, being the second son of William John Barneby MP of Brockhampton. He married Alice Mary Hicks-Beach, daughter of Sir Michael Hicks-Beach MP.

W.H. Barneby

William was exceptionally wealthy and exceedingly generous, donating large amounts of money towards the building of a new church, as well as paying for new bells and other necessities such as an organ. He also completely funded a village school.
He was also an author of some note, and in 1884 his new book “Life and Labour in the Far Far West” was published for the price of 16s by Cassell & Co. Ltd. Of London. This was described as being very entertaining, and came from his tour of the far west during the Spring and Summer of 1883, where he passed through some of the finest scenery in North America. He had lots of opportunities to observe the condition of Agriculture, especially in the Dominion of Canada and British Columbia, and of considering the suitability of the country as a “field for emigration” and for the “investment of capital”.
As was the case with most of the gentry in the big houses, William Barneby was an MP, serving his area as a Conservative.

In 1895, on Christmas morning, William Barneby entertained all the rural and town postmen, 20 in all, to a big breakfast at the Falcon Hotel.
On Boxing night, William invited the postment employed at the Bromyard office and also the local employees on the Great Western Railway to meet him at dinner at the Hop-pole Hotel, where a substantial repast was provided. The gathering totalled nearly 30, and although William had to leave unexpectedly soon, the praise for him was extensive, with Mr. Robinson declaring on behalf of the railway employees that they all knew what a friend Mr. Barneby had been to all officials connected with public institutions in that town, and that he was devoted to the welfare and prosperity of the district. Mr. William Harbour, the oldest postman, said that Mr. Barneby had always been a staunch friend to the postmen.

Sale of properties at Bredenbury

William sold several of the freehold properties on the estate, most of them fronting on to the main Bromyard/Tenbury road half a mile from the railway station. The houses were:
Instone – comprising a substantially built residence.
Peacock’s Heath with cottage. Purchased by Hon B.M. St. John for £400
A parcel of pasture land, purchased by Mr. Phipps of Buckenhill for £270
Symore Hill Cottage, purchased by Mr. Phipps of Buckenhill
Withy Beds, cottage and pasture land, purchased by James Parker for £830
Foxhall Park Cottage bought in at £150

He and his wife had many children, but in 1869 on 17th October their three month old son sadly died at the Court.
In 1890 they celebrated their silver wedding anniversary at Bredenbury Court, with all their friends and tenants in a wonderful day of partying.

Bredenbury Mansion Household 1871

Lavish ball at Bredenbury Court

William Barneby set about renovating and extending the house, after which time it was known as Bredenbury Court and to celebrate completion of the work, a ball was held to which 400 guests were invited (although only about 200 were able to attend) and no expense was spared; the party began at 10 in the evening and people arrived from all over the country and from Scotland. The library and drawing room were used as a ballroom and Messrs Howard and Sons of London were employed for the decorations, which were spectacular. Around the top of the walls were festoons of figured muslin in pale blue, upon which were festoons of red and white roses amongst green foliage. There were Florentine and Venetian glasses, and the mantlepieces were covered in flowers and foliage.
Nearly 200 lights lit the room and it must have been a glorious sight.
The guests entered through a covered way of drapery which led around the house and through a tent which served as a cloak room, before entering the ball room. All along the covered way were more foliage plants and many pots of flowers; the hall was used as a saloon, lit by Japanese lanterns, whilst tea was served in the study.
Dancing began at 10, to music from Weippert & Co’s band from London, with a programme of Quadrilles; Brigaads; Lancers; Carnival, Valse,Claribel; Galop Die Maiblumen; Galop Madame Angot; Valse Faust; Lancers original etc. etc. etc., and although there was a break for supper in the dining room, dancing then continued until half past five in the morning.

In 1900, the mother of William’s wife, Alice Mary, died to the great sadness of the family. She was the Dowager Lady Hicks-Beach, also mother of the Chancellor of the Exchequer at the time, and she died at Penllergare near Swansea. She was 87.

The Greswolde Williams family at Bredenbury Court

Francis (Frank) Greswolde-Williams

Francis owned land in Africa as well as Herefordshire, so was not always in residence at Bredenbury.

The Happy Valley Set and Frank Greswolde Williams

He was not an unkind man, but his reputation was somewhat unsavoury given that he was a member of the Happy Valley set – a collection of aristocratic English roisterers who had properties in the Wanjohi Valley, Kenya, and who enjoyed nothing more than loads of drugs and booze before/during episodes of extra marital sex and violence. However, Francis was unlikely to have indulged in the sex bit due to his rather portly figure and the fact that he was usually less than sober, but he was thought to have been included in the “set” because he provided the drugs. He also lived apart from the others, having property in the Kedong Valley where he indulged his passion for big game hunting, especially lions, and back in Herefordshire he loved the local hunt – the North Herefordshire, who kept their hounds at Bredenbury Court, and he became Master of the Ledbury Hunt.  He lost an eye in a shooting accident, but I don’t know whether this was in Africa or in Herefordshire.

Death of Frank Greswolde Williams’ only son

He was often accompanied  by his only son, F.H.J. Greswolde-Williams, and his three daughters on the big game shoots in Africa, and acted as transport officer with the British East African force. His son who was educated at Eton, was given a commission in the King’s African Rifles, but on 2nd August 1917 he was killed in East Africa during a large engagement with German forces. He was just 18. He was of course the only heir to all William’s estates, not only in Herefordshire, but also Birmingham, Warwickshire, Worcestershire and of course the very large estate in the Kedong Valley, between Nairobi and the Grate Lake, in Africa.
Another casualty of the war with connections to Bredenbury Court was the head gardener, who was much respected and had been a very successful exhibitor at the Royal Horticultural Exhibition in London, specialising in chrysanthemums and carnations. Private Herbert Tribe of the Shropshire Light Infantry was killed in action in France on 7th September 1918.

Bredenbury Court Household 1901

Frank Greswold Williams is charged with Breach of Promise

In 1925, by which time Francis (known as Frank) was a widower, his wife having died in 1923, he found himself in court charged with breach of promise. In the press reports, the name has become Greswold rather that Gresolde .
The judge was Mr. Justice Avory, and a special jury in the King’s Bench Division was formed to hear the case between the plaintiff Mrs. Adelaide Margaret Constance Lubbock, the grand daughter of an earl and cousin of a viscount, and the exceptionally wealthy Mr. Frank Greswold Williams who was known throughout Worcestershire and Herefordshire and had been Master of the Ledbury Hounds.
Sir Henry Maddocks K.C. acting for Mrs. Lubbock said that she was married in 1914 to Ralph Lubbock but she divorced him in 1922. There was no fault on her side. Both parties were keen on hunting and became acquainted in 1911 when Mrs. Lubbock’s brother was the tenant of Bredenbury Court, which was owned by Frank Greswold. He was kind to her and gave her a horse, and called her by a pet name of “Tibby”. Neither was of a romantic age it was said, but in 1924 they met at a London Hotel and Frank said “you know Tibby, I am very miserable. You know what Ann (his wife) was to me, and you Tibby have had a jolly rotten time and been treated very badly by Ralph. I have always looked upon you as the whitest woman I have ever met and Tibby, I would like to marry you”.
Mrs. Lubbock said that he had taken her by surprise, but said that she had always liked him so told him that she could make him a good wife, following which Frank said that they should choose an engagement ring; they went to a jeweller, and Frank choose a whopping ring which he gave to Mrs. Lubbock, and she was also measured for a wedding ring which had to be left for alteration. They told Frank’s daughter and friends of their plans to marry, who were all delighted for the couple, and then a bit later on Frank spoke to Mrs. Lubbock’s sister on the phone, telling her that he would be marrying Mrs. Lubbock on the following Saturday. He gave her £200 as a present, and she went to the Registry Office to arrange the wedding.
When she came back from “an entertainment” that afternoon, it seemed to her that Frank’s daughters had grown decidedly cool, and on the Friday Frank told Mrs. Lubbock “Look here Tibby, my family are not half going for me about marrying you!” She asked why, and he said that it was because she was a divorcee and that if he married her before his daughter, Sally’s wedding, not one of the family would speak to him again let alone go to his wedding. He said “Will you be a brick and postpone our wedding until after Sally’s? After she is married, we can do as we like” Mrs. Lubbock agreed to this.
Later, Frank spoke again to her and said “my family are playing the devil. If I marry you they won’t speak to me and have nothing to do with me, and it must be off”. This annoyed and upset Mrs. Lubbock and wrote to him about his decision saying that she bore him no ill will, but was “hit jolly hard”. She told him that she cancelled the order for the wedding ring, and had been in bed since with shock!

Frank’s defence was not that he didn’t make the promise, but that it was rescinded by mutual consent on January 12th, and that he responded to her letter thus “You are a brick. I shall not say much about it to anyone. My nerves are all upset. Cheer up love. From Frank.”
Some time later whilst visiting her dentist in London, Mrs. Lubbock bumped into Frank and he kissed her. His affection led her to believe that things would be okay once he got free from his family and that he would still marry her. She wrote to him again after that:
“I am fed up to the back teeth, and at the present time I haven’t a dime in the world and am truly in the soup. For old time’s sake – do help me. Five hundred pounds will see me though. I am sure my goodness, that if I don’t get some money by Wednesday I am in for it properly. I feel that things will come right and I always want to be a brick to you. I wish you all happiness and if you marry I hope that you will have somebody you deserve. “

The hearing was adjourned and I am still searching for the outcome.

R. Logan Kitson

Bredenbury Court was purchased in the 1920s by R. Logan Kitson.

Bredenbury Court becomes a School

In 1944 Bredenbury Court became the home of a Preparatory Boarding school which replaced the junior school at the Cheltenham Ladies’ College.

For nearly five hundred years, the Court was in the hands of the Dansey family, who extended the house and added things such as the moat around the property, but eventually the line of Danseys came to an end, and in 1815 Brinsop Court was advertised for sale by auction:
The freehold estate comprised the Manor of Brinsop, with farm and cottages, including 550 acres of rich arable pasture, orchards and meadows. There was also beautiful woodland divided into seven coppices which formed the boundary to the estate. It was described as being “the most eligible property delightfully situated within the circle of a good neighbourhood, in a very fertile and beautiful part of the County, abounding with game and fish, and offers a desirable and beneficial investment for money.
The Turnpike Road from Weobley to Hereford runs through the estate, which is five miles distant from Hereford, ten from Leominster and two from the River Wye.”

David Ricardo

David Ricardo was born in April 1772 in London, the third son of a family of Dutch Jews. He went into his father’s business at the age of 14, but he fell out with him over religion and struck out on his own as a member of the stock exchange.
He was something of a character to say the least, but very clever in his dealings on the stock exchange, and became extremely wealthy as a financial broker and speculator. Some reports on the internet have him being linked to the killing on the stock exchange following the French defeat at Waterloo – however given that he died in 1823 this seems a little far fetched! (Nathan Rothschild was the one who supposedly, by foul means, brought about the plunge in shares and then subsequently made a fortune – but this was a smear produced by an anti-Semitic who wrote under the name of “Satan”, and his writings have fairly recently been proved to be totally false).
David Ricardo was married to Priscilla and they produced three sons, and two daughters.
He bought many large properties, including Brinsop Court and Gatcombe Park – whilst he never lived at Brinsop, he died at Gatcombe Park.
He died in 1823 aged just 51, and his Will which was dated 4th April 1820 included the following legacies which rather show the extent of his wealth:

The Will of David Ricardo

To his widow he left four thousand pounds, plus a further four thousand pounds per annum for life.
His house in Upper Brook Street was to be sold, but all the furniture; carriages; horses; plate; library and wine etc. were also left to his wife.
His unmarried daughters were left £20,000 each, with any married ones receiving £5,000.
The estates of Bromesberrow, the White-leafed Oak Estate with furniture and effects, and others in the counties of Worcester and Gloucester were left to his son, Osman. (There was some speculation as to whether the ownership of Bromesberrow was valid, so David Ricardo left provision in the shape of £50,000 to cover any expenses regarding defence of same).
Gatcomb Park, with all furniture and effects, plus other estates in Gloucestershire, and also Brinsop Court were left to his son David.
Hadlow Place and Berrow in Kent were left to his third son, Mortimer.

For a brief period, David Ricardo’s son Osman took up residence at the Court, and was nominated Sheriff for Herefordshire.
Brinsop Court was then advertised for lease:
“All that Capital Farm called Brinsop Court, six miles from the city of Hereford, consisting of five hundred and fifty one acres of superior grass, arable and hop land. The incoming Tenant to enter upon the usual covenants of a Michaelmas Take, with the advantage of an ensuing crop of wheat.”

Thomas Hutchinson

The tenants who first leased the Court were Thomas and Mary Hutchinson, husband and wife.

In 1844, the Hutchinsons advertised for a Ploughman to work with a large team of horses – they needed him to be married so that his wife could also be put to work, but they categorically stated that a large family would not be welcome!

Poet Laureate William Wordsworth frequently visited Thomas’s sister Mary at Brinsop Court, causing quite a stir on each occasion which usually resulted in a mention in the papers, and she went on to become his wife.  Her sister Sara was also a frequent visitor, she being a previous love interest of Samuel Taylor Coleridge.  Mary died a widow in Grasmere on 17^th November 1858, at the home of her husband William Wordsworth.

Following the death of the Hutchinsons, Brinsop Court was first leased by a leading agriculturalist, Mr. Higgins, before being taken over by the Edwards for over 60 years, a farming family from Wales, starting with Peter Norman Edwards, and continuing on with his son Dearman.

Death of Child on Brinsop Court Estate

In 1858, this tragic story was reported and I include it because it is representative of many such events which came about because parents were forced to leave their children home alone.

“Brinsop – Another child burnt to death. On Tuesday last, H. Underwood Esq. held an inquest in this parish on the body of a child four years and six months old, the son of John Fox, a labourer for Mr. Edwards of Brinsop Court. On the previous Wednesday the deceased boy and a number of his brothers and sisters were left by themselves in the house while their mother and father were out at work hardy by. By some means, the boy’s clothes caught fire, and his terrific screams soon brought his parents to the spot. But before they came, a little sister only 11 years of age, with heroic courage and wonderful presence of mind considering her tender age, had stripped the clothes from the boy; but not until he had been burnt so badly that death ensued on the following Sunday, although Mr. Lomax, surgeon of Weobley, was called in and prescribed for the child. Another of Fox’s children had been previously burned, but not fatally.”

Brinsop Court falls into disrepair

In 1867 a group of archaeologists paid a visit to Brinsop, and the report was as follows:
“From the church, the party passed on to Brinsop Court, a celebrated mansion of the 15th century formerly the seat of the Dansey family, surrounded by a broad moat. This place afforded a rich treat to the archaologists from the many noticeable features of interest it contains; amongst others, the remains of a large hall or refectory, which has seemingly never been touched as regards repairs from its first formation. The old timbered roof of this building is in good preservation, being supported on curiously decorated arches springing from king posts erected on the centre of stout cross girders. The windows, now filled in, are otherwise in good preservation. Some remnants of the original and some rude colouring and plaster still remain. The place is now a farmhouse, fast falling into decay. The poet Wordsworth is said to have planted the fine Yew tree now standing in front of the house. The front gable of the house has the remains of a grotesquely carved figure…..”
It seems clear from this that whilst the tenants may have been very good farmers, they were less inclined to tend to the upkeep of the house and the landlord was not doing his job either!
The Yew tree planted by Wordsworth fell victim to severe gales in 1915

The Astley family at Brinsop Court

In 1912, Hubert Delaval Astley and Lady Sutton bought Brinsop Court, and they set about renovating and restoring the gardens. They also added an extension to the house.
Hubert, born in 1860, was a noted Ornithologist and in 1900 had a book published “My birds in freedom & captivity.”
The son of Lt. Col. Francis L’Estrange Astley, he graduated from Oxford University with a Master of Arts, and became the Rector of Ellesborough, Buckinghamshire. He married Constance Edith Corbet (this was her second marriage) in 1895, and died in May 1925 at Brinsop Court.
His son,Captain Philip Astley M.C. took over the Court, although his mother remained in residence, and this was his country seat whilst he had a flat near Cavendish Square and a villa near Lake Como in Italy.
Philip went to Eton, then Sandhurst; following the outbreak of war, he went to France in 1915 and won the M.C. during the retreat from St. Quentin, while serving with the Machine Gun Corps. As well as Brinsop Court, he also owned an estate in Kenya.
In 1931 he became engaged to one of England’s most beautiful and successful actresses, Madeleine Carroll, who was a B.A of Birmingham University, and was once a school teacher. Just before the announcement of the engagement, she was in the stage production of “After All” at the Criterion Theatre, but the stress of this and recent film work made it necessary for her to take a rest. She went abroad to Italy, and shortly afterwards Captain Philip Astley joined her – they married at a quiet ceremony and remained together for nine years enjoying high society life before Madeleine returned to acting and eventually, divorce.
She was rather a wonderful and compassionate lady, and following the death of her sister in an air raid on London she devoted much of her time to helping those affected by the war; she became a member of the Red Cross and turned her French Chateau to war orphans.

Sir Derrick Bailey

After the war, Captain Astley sold Brinsop Court to Sir Derrick Bailey – a fascinating man born in London in 1918, his father was Sir Abraham Bailey 1st Bt, a millionaire and companion of Cecil Rhodes. His half brother, John, married Churchill’s daughter, Diana. Derrick also had a twin sister, Ann.
He was educated at Winchester and then Christ Church, Oxford, and gained cricketing expertise playing for Oxfordshire in 1937. By this time his father was growing old, and Derrick went to South Africa to help him, then when war broke out he joined the South African Irish Regiment. Unfortunately he contracted malaria and was transferred to the South African Air Force in 1940. Three years later, he became a member of RAF 223 Squadron, flying the Baltimore bomber. He was eventually made formation leader after many sorties, and his biggest challenge was the support of the Allies when they advanced on Italy – after 50 bombing sorties during the Italian campaign he was awarded the DFC. He left the Squadron in 1944 to serve in the Middle East and South Africa before leaving as a Captain in 1946, at which point he inherited his father’s baronetcy and bought Brinsop Court.
Derrick went to the Royal Agricultural College in Circencester before applying himself to the farm at Brinsop, he also took up cricket again and secured a place on the Gloucestershire second X1 team. He went from strength to strength and became a first class cricketer and also Captain of the team in 1951/52 after which he devoted his free time to the Herefordshire Gents cricket side and also hunting – he became joint Master of the Radnor and West Herefordshire Hunt, and later Master of the North Hereford Hunt. He also loved racing, and joinly owned “Holmbush” the mount of Lester Piggott who rode to a splendid win in 1950.
Derrick never lost his love of flying, and in the 1960s he set up Glos-Air, an aircraft maintenance company based at Staverton airport. Also he established Aurigny Air Services which ran between Alderney, Guernsey, Jersey, France and England. He took up golf, a hobby he pursued until his death aged 90.
He married twice – in 1946 to Nancy Stormonth Darling, with whom he had four sons and a daughter, and following divorce, in 1980 to Jean Roscoe. This marriage also ended in divorce.

In 2008, Brinsop Court was purchased by Martin and Pat Churchward who have set about further repairs to the building. It is now funded by its rebirth as a self catering holiday centre.

1841 census for Brinsop Court

Brinsop Court Household and Servants 1851 census

Brinsop Court Household and servants 1861 census

Brinsop Court Household and servants 1871 census

Brinsop Court Household and Servants 1881 census

Brinsop Court Household and Servants 1891 census

Brinsop Court Household and Servants 1901 census

Brinsop Court Household and Servants 1911 census

Broadfield Court began life in the 13th century, and in the 14th century was owned by a monastic order. By the 16th century the house was privately owned and in 1770 the estate was settled on Robert Phillipps. Over the following years, the house was allowed to fall into disrepair until it was purchased by John H. Burchall who began renovations in the 19th century.

 
The house is partly two storey, and partly three storey being probably two separate buildings joined into one. Additions were made in the late 16th century, and the brick facing was added in the early 18th century. Much of the rest of the house dates from the 18th and 19th centuries.
During the war, the grounds were made over to opium poppy cultivation for the production of morphine, and to this day the odd opium poppy bravely pushes through the soil, although currently that soil is given over to growing grapes for wine making.

1841 – Broadfield Court Household

1861 – Broadfield Court Household

1881 – Broadfield Court Household

1891 – Broadfield Court Household

1901 – Broadfield Court Household

William finally finds himself a new wife after so many years of being a widower;  she is much younger but is producing children for him.

1911 – Broadfield Court Household

The original house, a rectory built in the mid eighteenth century and lying close to the Ross on Wye to Hereford road, was known as Upper Court and first was owned by the Dean and Chapter of Hereford Cathedral before being sold to the Skyrme family whereupon it passed down through the family until it was again sold to William Stallard in 1833.

The Stallard family at Brockhampton Court

In 1851 William T Stallard, aged 2 and son of the above William was in residence home alone……in the charge of two servants Mary Bough, and Sarah A Gibbons. He appears some twenty years later in Worcester, as a Clerk to a firm of Architects, and later in 1881 was back living with his parents William and Ellen after they had moved to Tupsley in Gloucestershire. By this time he was a Solicitor, having gained his degree at Cambridge.
At some point between here and 1861 the name of the house was changed to Brockhampton Court, and William, a farmer of some 630 acres, and his wife Ellen had a 2 year old son in the shape of Alfred, born at Brockhampton Court. They had three servants:
Elizabeth Stockham aged 23 from Monmouth – cook and dairy maid;
Lydia Watkins aged 16 from Foy, Herefordshire, – kitchen maid
Mary Drew aged 17 from Kempley, Glos, – nursemaid.
In 1863 the eldest daughter of above married W. R. Holden at the little church in the grounds of Brockhampton Court. (This is now a private house)

 
Bridesmaids were Miss S. Stallard, Miss Ann Stallard and Miss Alice Stallard and the ceremony was performed by the uncle of the bride, the Rev. J.O. Stallard. The workers at Brockhampton were treated to a sumptuous dinner of roast beef and plum pudding with “an ample allowance of drinkables wherewith to drink the health of the bride and to make merry and still be wise”. Schoolchildren sang after the ceremony, and presented the bride with an elegantly bound bible as a measure of their affection, and they in turn were liberally entertained at Mr. Stallard’s expense.
As far as country house weddings go, this was a fairly low key affair with few guests, but at this time Brockhampton Court was not very big, and to me it sounded like a lovely family wedding.
William Stallard retired from farming and put the Court up for sale, and it was purchased in 1869 by Baronet Christopher Robert Lighton, after which two of his son temporarily occupied the house

The Lighton family at Brockhampton Court

In 1871, only three souls were in residence – Christopher Robert Lighton who was 23 and a Batchelor of Divinity, Cambridge;  Henry Alfred Hamilton Lighton who was 19 and an undergraduate at Cambridge, and one trusty servant in the shape of William Williams, a 66 year old gardener and general dogsbody who hailed from Wormbridge, Herefordshire.

Henry Alfred Hamilton Lighton

The family had a long run of tragedy and in 1882 Henry Alfred Hamilton Lighton died after falling ill. In 1880 he had had an attack of haemoptysis (basically, coughing up blood) and was advised to spend the winter abroad which he duly did – returning much improved. However as autumn arrived his health deteriorated, and despite heading for Madeira to spend time cruising on a friend’s yacht, he died that November. He had been too ill to complete the thesis for his degree, but he died a much loved and respected man.

John Hamilton Plumtree Lighton

Another son, John Hamilton Plumtree Lighton, was tragically killed at the age of 17 during a cricket match at his school, Repton Hall when he was struck on the side of the head by the ball, and although he appeared to recover from the initial shock and carried on playing, he quickly deteriorated and within a few hours had died.

Andrew Hamilton Digby Lighton

In 1864 a further son, Andrew Hamilton Digby Lighton, whilst training as a Naval Cadet on board Britannia at Dartmouth, was running about the rigging when he slipped and fell from the main chains , striking his head against the gangway and fracturing his skull as well as receiving severe internal injuries before falling into the water. Two of his fellow cadets jumped in to hold his head above water, but were struggling in the strong tide. They were about to be forced to let go, when Lieutenant Hereford jumped in to assist them and between them they kept hold of him until a boat was able to pick them up. The injuries were so severe that he was not expected to live but he was taken to Dartmouth hospital where against all expectations he very gradually regained strength, however he unfortunately lost his sight as a result of the accident and his naval career was over. He eventually died aged 78.

Christopher Robert Lighton Jnr.

Christopher Robert Lighton Junior took himself a wife in the shape of Miss Houldsworth and on 20th May 1880 returned with her to Brockhampton Court where the whole area was in a state of high excitement. Numerous arches were erected around which flowers and greenery were entwined, and many messages of goodwill were added to the decorations. Late afternoon saw the crowds swelling in anticipation, and the Fownhope band struck up to announce their arrival at the Falcon before heading the carriage up towards the Court. At the top of the hill, ten men from Christopher’s bible class removed the horse from the traces and picked up the shafts themselves to take the carriage up to the door of the house, to the accompaniment of loud cheering from the crowd and beating of anvils. The following day saw huge celebrations culminating in fireworks.

When the senior Sir Christopher Robert Lighton died in 1875,  his widow sold Brockhampton Court, and her son Christopher and wife Helen moved to Kent.

Alice Madeline Jordan and Colonel Arthur Wellesley Foster

The house was purchased by Ebenezer D. Jordan of Boston, Massachusetts who transformed it into the impressive building it is today, before giving it as a wedding present to his daughter Alice Madeline when she married Colonel Arthur Wellesley Foster of Hornby Castle, Lancashire, in 1885.  The wedding took place at Trinity Church in Boston, America and was described as perhaps the most brilliant affair that had ever occurred in Boston, with the church being overcrowded by the invited guests.

Uninvited public contented themselves with packing the surrounding streets in order to get a glimpse of the beautiful bride.  The bridal party arrived on time at 7.30 p.m, and Mr. Jordan handed over his daughter to the groom who was attended by his brother, Frederick C. Foster.    I love the description of the bride’s dress……..”plain white satin cut with a long graceful train borne by two charming children, the little niece and nephew of the bride.  The dress front was completely veiled with the richest Brussels point, the same lace being arranged around the bodice and very short sleeves.  A tulle veil fastened by a diamond star to the hair, a diamond pendant in the form of a lyre at the throat, and a bouquet of lilies of the valley completed a dress of exquisite grace.”

Arthur and Alice boarded the Oregon steamer shortly afterwards, and arrived in England on 6th December, when they travelled to Hornby Castle to be greeted by cheering friends, staff and children.  The couple didn’t move into Brockhampton Court immediately as Arthur was ordained to a Staffordshire curacy and held a living in Lancashire, but in 1901 the house was fully staffed and awaiting their arrival.

Colonel Arthur Welesley Foster and Alice take up Residence at Brockhampton Court

By 1906 they were in residence, and in the July of that year they held an “at home” to raise funds for the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.   The welfare of children was a cause dear to Mrs. Foster’s heart, and in 1898 subscribed to a fund set up for William Herbert True, a Gloucester lad who had been playing hide and seek amongst railway trucks when he was knocked down and seriously injured by shunting operations.  He was taken to Ross Cottage hospital, and underwent operations which included amputation of his right foot and left leg, and the fund sought to provide enough money to fit him with prosthetics as well as send him to the National Industrial Home for Crippled boys.

Mrs. Foster was fond of art, and in 1906 purchased a portrait of John Kyrle,  The Man of Ross by Sir Godfrey Kneller

Arthur was picked by the Queen for the office of High Sheriff of Herefordshire, and his love of horses and hunting saw him becoming Master of the South Herefordshire Foxhounds – rather a rarity for  a clergyman of the Church of England in full orders.  In 1904 he became President of the Herefordshire Horse Show Society, and like many country house owners he had a keen interest in breeding livestock of all descriptions.   For example, in 1902 his Dexter bull was second only to HM the King’s beast at the Tewkesbury livestock show.

Arthur Wellesley Foster was by all accounts a charming and loveable personality, with a keen sense of humour, who showed enormous courage when in his last years he suffered great pain. I have to say that I am beginning to take the endlessly glowing descriptions of the gentry during the 19th and 20th centuries with a tiny bucket of salt;  some of them we know were less than moral, especially when it came to the young female servants in their houses, and a few were downright tyrannical.  Still, without written evidence, it is impossible to weed the bad from the good so the only way is to report what was written in newspapers at the time.

He died in Newquay in September 1929, and was described in his obituary as a true English gentleman.

Alice Foster

His wife Alice died just three years later at Brockhampton Court;  she was the first woman magistrate in Herefordshire and was also instrumental in setting up the first branch of the Womens Institute in Herefordshire.  She was a generous donor to hospitals, and paid for an operating theatre at the Ross on Wye Cottage hospital.

Whilst she always remained loyal to America where she was born, she nevertheless threw herself into the interests and well being of Herefordshire.  Like her husband, she suffered with ill health in her later years but never stopped trying to help others.  Her funeral was at All Saints, Brockhampton…..a church that she had had built in memory of her mother;  work was completed on this church in 1902 and the original church in the grounds of the Court was closed.

Drusilla Madeline Foster and Gerard Leigh Clay

Drusilla Madeline Foster, granddaughter of Arthur and Alice, who had been living at Brockhampton Court for some time, married Gerard Leigh Clay in 1931 and after their wedding in Hereford Cathedral  they took over the running of the Court.

Brockhampton Court Today

Brockhampton Court was handed down through the family until it was eventually sold  and  in the 1940s was turned into a hotel with function rooms, 26 bedrooms and an attached riding school.   In 1949 it was put up for auction,  and currently it is a nursing home.

1881 Census for Brockhampton Court

1901 Census for Brockhampton Court

1911 Census for Brockhampton Court

1921 Census for Brockhampton Court

Food Rations in the Workhouse

Food rations for Bromyard were much the same as elsewhere in other Workhouses, and they were extremely basic, as decreed by the Poor Law Act.
Breakfast – 3lbs 8oz bread plus 10 ½ pints of gruel to last the week, although the women were allocated 13oz less bread.
Dinner – for two days there was 8 oz bacon plus 2lbs of potatoes; for two more days there were 2 pints of soup, l lb 6oz bread, and for the last three days l lb 5 oz bread and 6 oz cheese.
Supper – for the week, 2lbs 1oz bread and 10 ½ oz of cheese.
Again, the women were given the same as the men but less, and the elderly were allowed some tea, butter and sugar instead of gruel.

Disease in the Workhouse

Bromyard Workhouse was not immune to outbreaks of disease, and in 1893 Smallpox was brought into the Workhouse – presumed by tramps – and it was not long before a cottage half a mile from the workhouse was turned into an isolation hospital to deal with such outbreaks.

News from the Workhouse

Advertisement for Schoolmistress

An advertisement was posted for a schoolmistress for the Bromyard Union Workhouse, at a salary of 10 pounds per year.

John Sunderland, a man of aliases

February 1856 – John Sunderland, a man with a number of aliases, was charged with running away from his wife and two children who had in consequence become chargeable to the parish of Stoke Lacey. The wife said that her husband had left her in Staffordshire three years earlier, and that she had come down to the Bromyard Workhouse. “John” blamed his bad behaviour on being out of work initially, and then on being injured on the railroad. He was sent to gaol for one month.

Egenia Philpotts – murderess

June 1857 – Egenia Philpotts was committed for trial at Hereford Assizes for the murder of her new born child. Mr. and Mrs. Brailsford, Master and Matron of the Bromyard Union Workhouse, said that the defendant who had been an inmate at the Workhouse, left on 20th then returned on 24th, saying that she had been confined at her father’s house and that the child was dead. However, Egenia’s mother told the court that her daughter had informed her that the confinement had taken place at the Union Workhouse. Superintendent Harward deposed that on confronting the prisoner on the Tuesday morning, she stuck to her story that she gave birth in the Workhouse where she was attended by Mr. Owen the Surgeon and Mrs. Brailsford the Matron, and that she supposed that after the baby died they buried it in Bromyard churchyard. Later however, she admitted that she gave birth in Mr. Rowberry’s field and that she buried the child in a ditch. After a search, the baby was found and although there were no external marks there was evidence of clay in it’s mouth and blood coming from the nose.
Egenia said that it was an accidental birth as she was on her way home, and that she was unconscious afterwards. On waking the baby was dead.
She was committed for trial!!

Workhouse Porter attempts suicide

June 1891 – The last train was approaching Suckley, when a young man ran down the embankment and threw himself across the rails; the driver blew his whistle and immediately braked, managing to stop just in time. The dazed man was put in a sitting position, and was recognised as Richards, who had been a porter at the Bromyard Workhouse. He was taken into custody after some resistence, and it was decided that he was of unsound mind. He was remanded by Magistrates on the charge of attempted suicide.

Tramps revolt at the Workhouse

September 1892 – Thomas Morgan, John Timbs, Peter Allen, William Green, Thomas James, John Lomas and William Smith, all tramps, were brought before the court by Thomas Arter, Master of Bromyard Union Workhouse charged with refusing to complete their allotted task of breaking stone. They were admitted into the Workhouse, and the following morning told to break the stone, but by the evening they had failed to finish the task and Thomas Arter gave the information to the police and had them all locked up. Roberts, the porter, said that he had told the defendants that they had to break 9cwt of stone each but they barely completed a quarter of this amount and refused to do any more. Thomas Morgan also damaged a door, trying to get out. They were all committed to 14 days hard labour, with Thomas Morgan earning himself another 7 days for damaging the door.

Bromyard Union Workhouse Staff and Inmates 1901 Census

Benjamin Biddulph died before the house was completed and nothing at all had been done to the surrounding grounds, and although some trees were planted along the years the full splendour of pleasure grounds, gardens, summer houses and parkland was not recorded until 1832.

The Woodhouses at Burghill Court

In 1874 the house was purchased by John Woodhouse, a wine merchant, and he set about rebuilding it and transforming it into a lovely big Georgian house which from then on was called Burghill Court.
John’s wife, Elinor along with her two daughters were well loved members of the community and were highly respected; they were also generous, and in 1898 Elinor built the club house in Tillington for use by local men, and also gave many to the church for necessary repairs.

 
The eldest daughter, Elinor Drinkwater Woodhouse, was at one time engaged to a missionary, but was grief stricken when she learned that he had been killed, and presumably eaten, by cannibals. She never married.

 
Elinor’s son John Gordon Woodhouse made a somewhat unwise marriage to Violet Gwynne of Folkington Manor, she being something of a shopaholic and rather flighty. They moved to London and her influence changed him for the worse – his mother Elinor was not so unkind as to totally disinherit him, but when she died in 1923 she was clever enough to leave him Burghill Court but only a pittance in cash, thus ensuring that he could never afford to live there and his two sisters could continue to do so in peace. John Gordon and Violet later moved to Stroud in Gloucestershire.
Murder at Burghill Court
Just three years later, the two sisters were brutally murdered by Charles Houghton, a long time employee of the Woodhouse family, being first taken on as a footman before rising to the post of butler.
After 22 years in service he became an alcoholic, and eventually Elinor and Martha Woodhouse were forced to dismiss him – he was given a month’s pay and asked to leave by the following day, but when he protested at such short notice he was told that he could stay until the end of the week.
The following morning he appeared to be normal, even attending family prayers and serving breakfast, but shortly afterwards he shot both sisters. The police broke into his room, where he had botched an attempt at suicide having cut himself seven times with a razor.
On 5th November 1926, Houghton was held in the condemned cell at Gloucester prison following his sentence of death, and although an appeal was made against the sentence this was withdrawn although his solicitors did try to plea insanity hoping that it might save Houghton from the scaffold. The Home Secretary refused to interfere with the sentence, and at 8 on Friday 3rd December 1926 Houghton was hanged by Thomas Pierrepoint.
Houghton was buried alongside the north wall of the prison, in a space reserved for such offenders.

Burghill House Household – 1851

1857 Thomas Monington Weston in residence.

Burghill House Household – 1861

Burghill House Household – 1871

Burghill Court Household – 1881

Burghill Court Household – 1891

Burghill Court Household – 1901

Burghill Court Household – 1911

If you are ever in the area, then a guided tour would not only fill a few pleasant hours, but would also help bring the history of this lovely building to life.

The Brewster family at Burton Court

The Brewster family appeared in mid 17th century, and it was John Brewster from neighbouring Gloucestershire who bought Burton court in April 1662.  He and his wife Margaret had two sons, William and John, William was described as “middle sized, lame, and stump footed” which might account for the fact that he became scholarly rather than pursuing energetic outdoor activities, and which resulted in him becoming  the well known Dr William Brewster of Hereford who was an eminent scholar with an impressive collection of important books.   He  died in 1715 leaving many of these books to All Saints Church Hereford, where they formed the famous chained library which can now be seen in Hereford Cathedral, where he himself was buried.

Margaret died when William was only three and a half years old, and she was buried at Eardisland on 18th April 1669, following which her widower John took himself a new, and much younger, wife in the shape of Blanche Howarth and they duly had a daughter, Elizabeth, followed by three more children.

Painting by unknown  artist of Elizabeth Brewster, dated 1690.  Please note the wording attached to the painting, as it is one of the few images on this site that cannot be freely taken.

Reproduced by permission of Hereford Museum and Art Gallery, Hereford Museum Service. Please contact the museum for permission to use this image herefordmuseums@herefordshire.gov.uk

John had settled Burton Court on this second wife, Blanche shortly after the birth of their first daughter, and after his death on 10th May 1684 he was buried in Eardisland Parish Church near to the grave of his first wife.

Blanche Brewster

Blanche was Lady of the Manor of Burton as stipulated by John, and she remarried two years after his death, her new husband being Thomas de la Hay of Peterchurch, a widower.  After this second husband died, in 1698 she settled Burton Court on her son Benjamin and upon his marriage he took up residence.  They had three sons, and one daughter although they tragically lost their second son in 1706.

Benjamin died in 1737, and his wife shortly afterwards, and there followed a line of succession of Brewsters residing at Burton Court, until in 1774 John Brewster was left as the last surviving male member of the family at Burton Court where he lived with his ageing mother, Margaret;  his wife Anne and daughters Margaret and Anna.

The Evans family at Burton Court

In 1782, daughter Margaret married William Evans, son of Arthur Evans of Buckland in the parish of Docklow, and by 1796 only an ageing John and his other daughter Anna remained in residence at Burton Court, his mother and wife both having died.  After his death in 1804 his two daughters were joint heiresses, with only the unmarried Anna living at Burton Court and she made a will the contents of which she hoped would prevent her sister Margaret’s husband from ever getting his hands on Burton Court.  Of course, with him being entitled by right of marriage to half of Margaret’s possessions this was never going to work and after Anna died in 1811 aged only thirty nine, the next Lord and Lady of the Manor were William Evans and his wife Margaret.  They both died in 1822, and thus the occupation of Burton Court passed to the Evans family.  Memorial in St. Mary the Virgin, Eardisland

Rev W.E. Evans

In 1830 the Rev. W.E. Evans, the youngest son of J. Evans M.D., married Elizabeth Evans, one of his cousins, who had inherited Burton Court.  He had been educated at Cambridge and after taking Holy Orders became Curate of Llanymynech in Shropshire.  In 1841 he was appointed prebendary of Hereford.

Rev. W.E. Evans was on the provisional Committee,  and was a shareholder of the  Welsh Midland Railway, which was to connect Birmingham with Swansea via Worcester, Leominster, Ludlow, Hereford, The Hay, Brecon, Llandovery, Llandilo.  Capital to be raised was three and a half million pounds in 70 thousand shares.  He became Canon of Hereford Cathedral and wrote several books which received acclaim, including one called “The Songs of the Birds” (or analogies of animal and spiritual life), which was re published after his death.

Burton Court Household  – 1841 Census

Burton Court Household and Servants  – 1851 Census

Burton Court Household and Servants –  1871 Census

It is believed that in late 1873, John Clowes retired to his other property,  Wardour Lodge, Sunningdale, Berkshire, leaving Burton Court available for rent until such time as his son married and took over the manor.

Burton Court Household and Servants – 1881 Census

The Clowes family at Burton Court

In  September 1864,  Burton Court was bought by John Clowes, a kindly gentleman who with his wife did a great deal for the village of Eardisland;  they took a huge interest in the cricket matches and would provide teas which were served by local ladies from the village;  they also held shoots and tennis parties at the Court, to which people would travel from miles around.   Mrs. Clowes had an imposing black horse, on which she rode around the area,  which with a somewhat stern countenance gave her the impression of being somewhat intimidating – however she had a very soft spot for the village children, and gave vast parties for them, especially at Christmas.

George Arbuthnot and Burton Court

Thus it was that George Arbuthnot and his family took up residence for a few years, until they moved to Norton Court in Gloucestershire.  It is entirely possible, given that both John Clowes and George Arbuthnot were important military men, and that they both had strong connections with Sunningdale, that they were good friends and some sort of agreement may have been made so that in fact is was more that Burton Court was loaned to the Arbuthnots and not rented.

Whatever the arrangement, the Arbuthnots moved from Chelsea to Herefordshire after Lt. Col. R.A  George Arbuthnot retired from the army life.  He was born in Madras on 9th June 1836 and was educated at Eton.

He entered the army in 1855 and progressed from Captain, through Major to Lt. Colonel and served in India and Abyssinia and was mentioned in despatches three times.  Once retired, he kept himself busy as M.P. for Hereford 1871 – 1874 and 1878 – 1889. Then on his move to Norton Court in Gloucestershire he became J.P for Gloucester, and J.P. and D.L for Hereford.  He died 26th December 1912 at Hillingdon Middlesex, and was buried at Sunningdale.

In 1895 by Deed of Settlement in anticipation of marriage to Edith Emily Warren, John Clowes settled Burton Court and the Lordship of the Manor on his son Peter Legh Clowes .  Ediths father was George Warren (of the Warren Steamship Line) of Woolton, Liverpool.  The marriage took place in Leighton Buzzard, on 18th September.

Colonel Peter Legh Clowes was a serving Army Officer and commanded his Regiment in the South Africa Campaign 1897-1901;  upon his return he went back to Burton Court and settled to civilian life.  He had one son, Warren Peter Clowes, born in Kensington, who was commissioned into the 8th Kings Royal Irish Hussars and who was killed in action in France on 30th March 1918, and when Peter himself died on 23rd February 1925 his wife Edith inherited the estate.  She was some twelve years younger than her husband, and continued to run Burton Court and the Estate as well as she could until her eventual death in late 1949.

Colonel Peter Clowes left over £40,000 in his will, and Edith left over £126,000.  The estate was sold off in lots in 1926.

Extraordinary Herefordshire Cow at Byford Court

In 1819, Sir John G. Cotterell Bart. Was in residence, and one of his cattle made the headlines when it came up for auction.
“A valuable cow of great weight and astonishing fatness, without ever having eaten corn or oil cake, and has been constantly kept as a store beast until the last twelve months, the property of Sir John G. Cotterell Bart., and bred by him, will be offered for sale by auction in the Herefordshire Agricultural Show in Broad Street, Hereford on 19th October 1819, being the eve of the Hereford Great Cattle Fair; when those gentlemen and breeders who are judges of genuine Herefordshire cattle will have an opportunity of seeing one of the most superior and extraordinary animals the county ever produced.”

Contents of Byford Court Sold

In 1836, the then proprietor of Byford Court, Mr. Heycock, left the estate and put up a great many items for auction, including “highly respectable household furniture; wagon and nag horses and implements”.

1841 – Byford Court Household

There were servants in the household,  but the census page is so badly faded that they are not legible.

1851 – Byford Court Household

1861 – Byford Court Household

1871 – Byford Court Household

1881 – Byford Court Household

1891 – Byford Court Household

1901 – Byford Court Household

1911 – Byford Court Household

In 1645, during the Civil War, the house came under siege by Cromwell’s Scottish army, and the residents had no choice but to demolish the medieval church in order to build defences.

The Hoptons at Canon Frome Court

After the war, the Royalist Sir Edward Hopton and his wife Deborah returned to what was left of the house and church. The church was eventually rebuilt in around 1680 (unusually for the time, in brick) but the only part of this second church that now remains is the tower, with the current church having been built by the Rev. John Hopton in about 1860 in memory of his wife and three of his daughters. He was the eighth generation of the Hopton family to live at Canon Frome Court, which was rebuilt in the eighteenth century. The Rev. John Hopton was actually John Parsons by birth, but his father had been willed the arms and name of Hopton in 1841, as well as the estate. He had 13 children, of which six had died by 1859.
Dating from around 1786 the present Canon Frome Court was built for Richard Cope Hopton and remained in the family until being bought by the Herefordshire County Council in 1952, who turned it into a school for 13-15 year olds. In 1978 the school was closed, and the Court once again changed hands. It is currently an intentional community, which is approached via a long driveway at the end of which are two large brick pillars dated 1905 (the ornate iron gates can still be seen but these days they are never closed). On top of these are two carvings – one of a Griffin’s head with a severed hand in its mouth, and the other of a chained Talbot hound, resting a paw on St. Andrews Cross. Both of these appear on the Hopton family crest.

Richard Hopton

In 1829, it was reported that Richard Hopton, the second son of the Rev. J. Hopton, was a somnambulist and on this unfortunate occasion he managed to sleepwalk out of one of his bedroom windows and fell to the ground. Initial hysterical reports suggested that he was dead, but this was not the case. One of the servants heard him fall, and medical help was duly summoned – his worst injury was a broken collar bone, but he was rather badly bruised all over and probably was in an extreme state of shock having been so rudely awoken! However, a few years later in 1835, Richard suffered a burst blood vessel and died.

John Dutton Hunt Hopton

John Dutton Hunt Hopton was the only son of Captain John Dutton of Farnshill Park, Radnor, and when in 1899 he married Sybil Maude, the eldest daughter of Walter Mynors Baskerville of Clyro Court and granddaughter of John Hopton of Canon Frome, he was granted the name Hopton by Royal Licence.

He was by all accounts a very tall gentleman and was not only an excellent shot (shooting in the 1908 London Olympics) he was also a noted musician, being a Director of the Royal Academy of Music and a composer of many waltzes and songs. To further his love of playing the organ, he built a music room at the Court and commissioned an organ to be made by Jardines, who had also built the organs for the Cathedrals of Hereford, Worcester and Gloucester.

John Dutton Hunt Hopton was the founder of the Army Rifle Association, Captain of the Army Eight, and Commandant of the first British Rifle team to visit Australia.  He was also Commandant of the School of Musketry, Hythe, and Chief Inspector of small arms.  On his own rifle range he did a great deal of experimental work with new ammunition.

1934 – Burial of Colonel John Dutton Hopton

Colonel Hopton of Canon Frome Court died on 6th June in 1934.  He had shot at Bisley for England on 36 occasions and in his Will he stated that we wished to be buried close to the 1500 yard firing point on the range at Canon Frome, regardless of whether the ground had been consecrated.

He hinted strongly that it would be a jolly good show if the Bishop did consecrate the patch, and indeed the Bishop of Hereford duly obliged as well as conducting the funeral service.

A hymn was sung, set to music by the Colonel who was an accomplished musician.

Later, a lovely white mausoleum was erected over his grave and it could be seen from a great distance as it was on the summit of a hill.

1940 – Sybil Maude Hopton, the wife of Colonel Hopton, died July 3rd 1940 and left instructions in her Will to be buried beside her husband on the rifle range.

The Hoptons down the years

October 1839, The Rev. J. Hopton’s wife, Grace Ann aged 53, died at Canon Frome Court.
September 1841, Grace Anne eldest daughter of above aged 30, married James Poole of the Homend, Ledbury
October 1855 the late Miss M.P. Hopton bequeathed £100 to Hereford General Infirmary.
June 15th 1857, death of Anna Maria, youngest daughter of Rev. John Hopton
December 1870 the death of Rev. John Hopton aged 88
November 18th 1875 marriage of Walter Thomas Baskerville, of Clyro Court Radnorshire to Bertha Maria, only child of John Hopton of Canon Frome Court and Kemerton Court, Glos.
November 10 1876 death of charles Edward Hopton aged 52 youngest son of the late Rev. John Hopton
April 1879 the death of Rev. William Parsons Hopton , born 1802, and son of the late William Hopton of CFC and Kemerton Court. He was the oldest encumbent in the diocese of Hereford. In 1858 was appointed a Prebendary of Hereford; he was a Magistrate and deputy lieutenant for Herefordshire and took a prominent part in the affairs of the county. In 1830 he married Diana Christian, daughter of the late Rev. W. Shuckburgh of the Moot, Downton, Wilts. He leaves three children, Edward, Lft. Colonel 88th regiment (Connaught Rangers), Michael, Vicar of Canon Frome, and Diana, married to Mr. Charles Eales of Eastdon, Devon.
7th March 1891 death of John Hopton aged 82

Will of John Hopton

Valued at £50,871 8s 9d proved by the Executors Colonel Edward Hopton and the Rev. Michael Hopton, to each of whom the testator bequeaths the sum of £200. To his nieces Gwendoline, Winifred and Mauda, daughters of the testators late brother Charles, £100 each, and to his foreman, butler and coachman, £100 each. The testator devises his real estate in the counties of Gloucestershire and Worcester to the same uses as the real estate settled on the marriage of his only child Bertha Maria, with Mr. Walter Thomas Mynors Baskerville; but the person entitled is always to bear the name and quarter the arms of Hopton. The residue of the late Mr. Hopton’s estate is left to his daughter, Mrs. Baskerville, for life, with power of appointment to her in favour of her children, or in default of appointment, for her two daughters Sybil and Dorothy
May 1893
Christie, Manson and Woods – auctioneers of repute – advertised the forthcoming sale of the late John Hopton’s cellar of wines, which included ports of the vintage 1858 and 1863, plus sherry and Madeira.
September 1897
W.T.M Baskerville of CFC and Clyro Court Radnorshire, died at his Radnorshire seat at the age of 58. The eldest son of the late Thomas Baskerville, a former MP for Herefordshire, who assumed the surname Baskerville in lieu of Mynors, the deceased was born in 1839 and educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford. In 1864 on the death of his father he took over the extensive estates in Herefordshire and Radnorshire

1857 Evesham Agricultural Show classes

Whilst perusing the results of the Evesham Agricultural Show for this year as many prominent families took pride in breeding champion stock, I was rather stunned to discover that amongst the classes for pigs, horses, cattle etc., there were also those for people! They were clearly considered less important than “Roots and vegetables” as they came below these on the list, and were under the heading “Labourers and Domestic Servants” and entries were submitted by the employers. The Hoptons were no exception, and in fact one of their “entries” won second prize.
Classes were as follows:
Class l.
Labourers, or labourers’ widows who had brought up the largest family without parochial relief. First prize £2
Class 2.
Labourers or servants who had served the greatest number of years for the same master or mistress and who would receive a good character from their employers.
Class 3.
Labourers as above, under 40 years of age.
Class 4.
As above, but under 20 years of age.
Class 5
Female servants, as class 2.
Class 6
Female domestic servants above 20 years of age who have lived on the same premises for the longest period, or with the same master or mistress, at yearly wages of not more than £12 and shall receive a good character.
Class 7
Female domestic servants as above under 20 years of age.
Class 8
To the Shepherd who has reared the greatest number of lambs for the same master or mistress with the least loss of ewes, in proportion to the number of ewes put to the tup, the flock not to be less than 40.
Classes 9 and 10 also were for shepherds.
It was striking that in many cases, no second or third places were awarded so one wonders if this was because employers simply couldn’t be bothered , or whether there were not enough worthy entrants. Certainly the prize money for the winners in each category was not to be sniffed at, and the labourers and domestic servants would no doubt have been very glad of it.

Canon Frome Court Household and servants in 1841 census

Canon Frome Court Household and servants in 1851 census

Canon Frome Court Household and servants in 1861 census

1871, the family were at their other property, Kemerton Court in nearby Gloucestershire

Canon Frome Court Household and servants in 1881 census

Canon Frome Court Household and servants in 1891 census

Canon Frome Court Household and servant in 1911 census

Mary Sole b. 1878 Wheaton Aston, Staffs – Housemaid
Sarah Ring b. 1879 East Grinstead, Surrey – Cook

Canon Frome Court Household 1921

The original Cheney court dated from the 15th century, and up until the mid 1800s was called China Court, the house being enlarged in around 1870 and then tragically lost forever when it burnt down in 1888, although the private chapel still remains.

This is the modern replacement.

 
Legend has it that at one time there were two strange rooms in the house – Heaven and Hell. Heaven being adorned with paintings and panels of Sybils and boasting a ceiling full of cherubims. Hell was merely a closet of incredible depth, supposedly used when the house was a monastery in medieval times.
It was bought by a Mr. John Jones in the mid 1800s and he quickly sold it on to James Moilliet of Abberley Hall in Worcestershire, who then considerably improved and updated the house – he being from a family of great wealth and owner of many properties. On James’ death in 1878, Cheney Court was inherited by his son, also James. He decided to rent the house out and it was taken on by Alfred John Monson, although James did stipulate that one room had to be set aside for storage of some of his valuables, including pictures and a library of books.

Alfred John Monson

Alfred Monson rented Cheney Court over a two year period in 1887 and 1888. He was a good horseman and loved hunting, keeping several horses for the purpose, as well as a pack of Harriers.

Mr. Monson started a private school for civil and military instruction, and it grew to quite a size; he employed a nurse, cook, housemaid and scullery maid, as well as a butler, a page boy and some gardeners. The pupils, mostly with wealthy parents, stayed at the house and paid for their tuition and keep, for the oldest the fee was around £200 a year – their ages ranging from 12 to 25. They were well fed and looked after, and at least one boy kept his hunter in the stables.
His wife was young and sweet natured, and became very friendly with one of the older pupils, with her husband giving permission for them to go walking or driving alone together. I am not sure whether anything should be read into this!

People gossiped that the household expenses etc. must surely be at least two thousand pounds per year, a huge sum at the time, and it seems that Monson began to run into difficulties.

The Fires at Cheney Court

Soon after all this, Monson took out insurance policies, and within an indecently short time a hayrick burned down but of course the loss was covered. The next fire was not long in coming, this time in the butler’s pantry, which was thought to have started with the accidental lighting of paraffin, but this time it was discovered and put out before too much damage was done.
The next fire was potentially horrible; at the beginning of July 1887 the beautiful stables set right next to the house were seen to be alight – villagers sent for the neighbouring fire brigades whilst throwing water on the flames with whatever receptacles they could find. Then came the awful realisation that the horses were still in the stables and the door was locked. Mr. Monson seemed to have forgotten this until the villagers yelled at him to set the horses free, but he merely mumbled something that couldn’t be heard amidst the general clamour and did nothing.
In despair, the villagers grabbed axes and other implements and proceeded to bash down the doors so that the terrified horses could be released – the stables were totally destroyed. Take note – Mr. Monson had insured the horses and the building for quite a large sum.
Early in the morning of 27th July 1888, some men who were walking to work saw flames shooting from the roof of Cheney Court; at the time, only the butler was in the house and as he was asleep in a back room he didn’t at first hear the shouts of alarm outside. Eventually stones thrown at his window woke him up, and he managed to scramble to safety whilst messengers were organised to ride for the Ledbury and Bromyard Fire Brigades, but by the time they arrived much of the building had been engulfed and all the firemen could do was try to prevent the fire spreading to the servants quarters.
Cheney Court was destroyed but it was “lucky” that the fire happened when it did, as only two days before the Monsons and servants were in residence. Monson had instructed the servants to leave the house just one day before the fire, and also on that day Mrs. Monson went to London. Later that day, Mr. Monson was taken to Ledbury Station by the butler who then returned to the Court – walking around the house he saw nothing awry and went to bed.
The fire was put down to an overheating incubator in the library, and virtually nothing of the contents could be saved, including Mr. Molliet’s valuable belongings. Rumours abounded that the fire was set deliberately, but nobody could prove it conclusively. Mr. Monson had of course insured his furniture for a hefty £2000 and Mr. Molliet had insured the house for £4000, and his valuables stored in the one room were also well insured.

Alfred Monson’s Debts begin to spiral

Mr. Monson had a reputation for not paying his bills, although his servants were always paid on time, but he did try to settle some debts when the pupils’ fees became due. However Ledbury and Bromyard tradesmen began to refuse to send him goods unless he sent money with the order, and the County Court bailiff served many processes on him.
The vicar, and the father of one of the pupils acted as security for him for a large sum of money, but eventually the vicar had no choice but to make Monson bankrupt, after which Monson and his wife moved away. Occasionally he returned to Bishops Frome and stayed with the vicar, and on one of these times the local butcher called on him to ask for £90 which was owed him for meat. Monson said that he had not yet received the insurance money from the fire and so couldn’t pay, but it has to be said that as soon as he did get an instalment from the insurance company he immediately sent some money to the butcher. The rest of the debt was paid in full later on. Actually, Monson did pay off several debts once he received all the insurance money.
He left Herefordshire for good, and tried but failed to start a stud in Leicestershire, to supply horses for hunts. He then disappeared off the radar until the Ardlamont case.
After his acquittal (see below) it seems that Monson delved into the seedy world of money lending, and was eventually imprisoned for five years in 1898 for his part in insurance fraud.
On his release, Monson went to South Africa, where he  married Agnes Maud Day in 1881 – it is believed that they had at 7 or more children.

Monson worked in various capacities in South Africa, including as a tutor and also he attempted to set up a stud farm using a different name but details of this and of any success are not documented.

The Ardlamont Mystery

A murder case known as the Ardlamont Mystery involved Mr. Cecil Hambrough, the victim and pupil of Mr. Monson, one time tenant of Cheney Court, the possible murderer.
There is a great deal about this case out there on the internet if anyone wishes to look further, but basically despite evidence which appeared to nail Monson, he was given a “not proven” verdict at the trial.

1851 China Court (Cheney Court) Household

1871 Cheney Court Household

1881 – Cheney Court Household

Presumably, the stud owner shown below with his wife was housed above the stables, as the Court itself was in ruins.

1901 – Cheney Court Household

In his lifetime Hugh was not only an MP for Herefordshire but was also Sheriff of Staffordshire and Shropshire. There was also Sir John de Croft who was Governor of Merk Castle in France and was involved in negotiations in Flanders between 1402 and 1404, and who married Janet, a daughter of Owen Glyn Dwr (whose leather-clad ghost is reputed to wander the Castle; as nobody knows where he died or was buried, then I suppose that this lovely building is as likely a place as any).

The Croft family remained at the castle through the centuries, until circumstances forced the sale of the castle, and then in July 1922 Croft Castle was put up for let; it was described as a fine old historical border castle with the finest trout and grayling fishing in the county. The Estate Agent’s blurb tells us that there is central heating, electricity, modern drainage, telephone and an unfailing water supply. Also, stabling for 9 horses and two carriage houses.

 
In 1923 the Trustees of the manor, Sir James Croft 11th Baronet bought back Croft Castle from the Kevill Davies family. Sir James was killed in 1941 when on active service with No.1 Commando, and he was buried in the parkland of the castle. Sir James bequeathed the castle to his cousin the 1st Lord Croft, who was the Under Secretary of State for War at the time.
A few years later, Lord Croft’s son Michael managed to buy back the rest of the estate, but when hit by massive death duties was forced to sell the castle. However, he managed to ensure that it remained in the family by finding a buyer in Major Owen Croft, but when the Major died in 1956 the castle and estate’s future was once again uncertain.
A partnership between the Ministry of Works, the National Trust and the Croft family saved the day, and a grant was given for essential repairs. The National Trust took over the freehold, but Lord Croft and other family members provided an endowment for maintaining the property – they still live there and one hopes that descendants will continue to enjoy their ancestral home.

Sir Richard Croft

Richard Croft was a great warrior in the fifteenth century, and at the Battle of Teweksbury in 1471 took prisoner the unfortunate youth, Prince Edward, son of Henry VI. He was Sheriff of the County of Hereford – fought at the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross, on Croft land, the outcome of which put King Edward IV on the throne.

James Croft

James Croft, was appointed MP for Herefordshire and in 1551 was made Lord Deputy of Ireland by King Edward VI, a position he held for just one year before he became Deputy Constable of the Tower of London……..a position of trust possibly bestowed on him because of his friendship with Lady Jane Grey. He certainly was in the forefront of the pro Queen Jane movement in Herefordshire, which was quashed, but on 21st February 1554 he was imprisoned in the Tower of London for being part of the Wyatt rebellion. He was released with his life on 1st January the following year, but after gaining the affections of Queen Elizabeth who made him Governor of Berwick he found himself on the losing side at the Siege of Leith, and was accused of bad mouthing General Lord Gray whilst favouring the French. Although he lost the title of Governor of Berwick, the Queen still liked him and gave him control of her household – perhaps an unwise decision given that later papers suggest that he betrayed her secrets and frequently lied to her. He died in 1590 and was interred in Westminster Abbey with a simple gravestone.

William Croft

In 1643, William Croft was captured at the siege of Hereford, then was killed in 1645 fighting for the King at Stokesay in Shropshire. His brother Herbert who was Dean and Bishop of Hereford, was given a Baronetcy, along with his son, in recognition of the services of the Croft family, and also in 1645, Royal troops more or less dismantled much of Croft Castle in order to prevent the Parliamentarians from taking possession during the Civil War, and the Croft family subsequently found that they just did not have the finances to hold on to and restore the Castle. They were forced to mortgage the Castle to the Knight family who carried out many alterations to the interior, and it then passed by marriage to the Johnes family and was sold in September 1878 by Thomas Johnes (Jones) MP for Cardiganshire, to Somerset Davis of Wigmore for fifty six thousand pounds.

He carried out further restorations to the exterior, and modernised the interior. The only daughter of Somerset Davis – Anne Isobella – married the Rev. James Kevill and he subsequently moved in with her at the Castle. (I cannot resist adding a report that was directly beneath the announcement of this marriage……..namely that during the firing of the guns in the park to celebrate the birth of the King, several schoolboys and others climbed over the fence and walked in front of the guns…….they were hit by the wadding, and unfortunately two died whilst the others were “desperately wounded”; one being “shot completely through” and another “had certain parts of his body carried entirely off”.)

Sir Herbert Croft

Whilst perusing eighteenth century newspaper articles, (a most delightful way to spend a few hours!) I was struck by how vague and inaccurate many of the reports were at that time; for instance, in November 1720 the death of Sir Herbert Croft of Croft Castle, MP for Hereford was announced……….that bit was correct, but then according to which paper you read, it was his brother/eldest son named Andrew/Archer/Arthur who took on the estate and title of Baronet.
Sir Herbert died in Paris aged 65- he had lived for 15 years in a Monastery in Flanders spending his time in solitude and religious devotion. He was described as an author of some celebrity, and one of the few remaining literary friends of Dr. Johnson.

Herbert George Denman Croft

On Monday 18th November 1861 Herbert George Denman Croft, born 1838 and only son of Archer Denman Croft, Baronet, was called to the Bar, having been educated at Eton and being a Master of Arts at Oxford University. He married Georgiana Eliza Lucy Marsh in January 1865 and moved to Lugwardine Court in Herefordshire.
February 1867 Sir Herbert croft was in attendance at a meeting of the Central Chamber of Agriculture and the Turnpike Trusts, along with other Members of Parliament from all over the country. After a long and animated discussion they decided that a full enquiry into the system of turnpikes had shown them to be vexatious and expensive, and that under certain conditions the abolition of turnpike trusts in their present form would be beneficial, and that as some trusts were already in the process of being abolished, inflicting serious hardship and injustice on certain parishes it was thought that turnpike trusts should be abolished simultaneously and that future provision for the maintenance of all public roads should be settled by legislation on a fair and equitable basis. They also thought that as much of the cost of setting up the turnpike roads was incurred for Imperial purposes, then the consolidated fund should aid in the liquidation of the remaining debt when that debt has been fairly appraised and validated. A deputation was appointed to take these proposals to the Home Secretary.
Sir Herbert owned at least one racehorse, Arabia, which had success running at Hereford. Clearly a keen racing man, he was on the board of stewards at Hereford racecourse. He also was a renowned pig breeder, and won prizes at local shows for his Berkshires, and was President of the Ledbury Agricultural Society.

Sir Herbert Croft and Politics

Sir Herbert was proposed as succcessor to Mr. King who had been Conservative MP for Herefordshire for many years. In November of that year he canvassed in Ledbury to great reported success, although he was up against Michael Biddulph who was also extremely popular. (also it was reported that a very large dog otter had been captured in Leddon brook at Ledbury – the newspaper gave equal space and importance to the two articles!) Sir Herbert Croft was elected to parliament and made his debut speech in an amusing and passionate manner on 3rd March 1869, in which he stoutly defended the views of the yeomen of Herefordshire regarding expenses for MPs during elections being born by local rates – they resented the idea of having to pay for elections. At the time, all expenses were born by the contestants, which precluded any normal people from taking part.
Later in the same month, he was busy campaigning for a new government dept to be set up to deal specifically with agriculture. He was heavily involved in conserving salmon fisheries, and later he was instrumental in campaigning for rates to be removed from hospitals, infirmaries and dispensaries.
1870 found him on the side vehemently against giving women the vote. The anti women voter brigade were roundly beaten, with Sir Herbert’s arguments being condemned as weak.:
The matter was debated at length in the House of Commons, with an astonishing statement from a Mr. William Fowler who believed that women should not be given the vote because it would cause them annoyance and persecution – he said that they belonged in the home not in politics, and with insight, worried that women voting would lead to them securing seats in Parliament. Something which scared him rigid it seems, along with Sir Herbert who added that he really didn’t see the need for it. After this, poor sir Herbert was warned in the press that he would suffer greatly at the polls for his views.
In 1873 Sir Herbert announced his intention to stand down as MP for Herefordshire, having entertained the House for many years with his witty and sometimes hilarious speeches, however he served on the Bench at Hereford Magistrate’s Court and was rather strict by all accounts. For example, one prisoner – a labourer by the name of William Taylor – was charged with stealing a peck of turnips valued at 3s; Sir Herbert fined him 2s 6d plus costs of 7s 6d and imprisonment for seven days with hard labour. Still, he maintained a glorious sense of humour which was frequently reported on cases that were brought before him. Meanwhile, his wife was having babies at a phenomenal rate! Sadly, there were some mortalities.
As a matter of local interest, in 1881 Sir Herbert presided over a meeting to decide what steps should be taken to lessen the damage done to land by the constant floods on the River Lugg. It was suggested that £100,000 was needed to carry out the necessary work, but Sir Herbert dismissed this and said that it could be done for £25,000. Either way, it was a vast sum of money for the time!
He became an Inspector of Constabulary which involved travelling all over the country, and died 11th February 1902.

Sir Richard Croft. Bart. M.D

Sir Richard succeeded to the Baronetcy on the death of the above Sir Herbert Croft, who was well known in the literary world and he served an apprenticeship to Mr Chavasse an apothecary at Burton upon Trent, where he showed himself to be very intelligent and capable; after this he was sent up to London to complete his medical education as a pupil under the celebrated Dr. Hunter. A fellow pupil, Dr. Baillie, set him up with lodgings with Mr. Denman who became the most celebrated Accoucheur doctor of his time. (Accoucheur being a word for male obstetrician or midwife…….my readers may tut and say that they knew this!)
Sir Richard started his career as a surgeon, apothecary and man-midwife at Tudbury, where his love of field sports brought him into contact with Lord Vernon, and from there he moved to Oxford and then back to London, where he renewed his contact with Mr. Denman and subsequently married one of his daughters. Following this, Mr. Denman gradually retired from practice thus allowing Sir Richard to succeed him.

Sir Richard Croft and Princess Charlotte Augusta

In October 1817, Sir Richard was amongst those who appointed a wet nurse who was to attend to the expected royal infant of Princess Charlotte Augusta, daughter of the Prince Regent, and wife of Prince Leopold. In the early hours of Tuesday 4th November 1817 Princess Charlotte went into labour, and the various privy councillors who were to be present at the birth were sent for, along with Dr. Baillie, and once they all had arrived Sir Richard reported to them that all was progressing satisfactorily with the labour, or “illness” as he called it.
On 5th November, at around 9 in the evening, Sir Richard asked for a Doctor Sims to be sent for so that he could have consultation if necessary and Dr. Sims duly arrived at 3 the following morning. Things were clearly not going too well, but in order to satisfy a restless public waiting for news a bulletin was issued to say that Princess Charlotte’s labour was progressing very slowly, but hopefully, favourably. Dr. Sims and Sir Richard consulted together, and concluded that there was no reason why the birth should not continue naturally and unassisted. This was shortly followed by an announcement that she had been delivered of a still born son, but that she herself was fine. The child was perfectly formed, and was deemed to have been alive right up until the moment of birth, although it was later suggested that due to the size of the head and formation of the skull, the birth might well have been up to a month overdue. Princess Charlotte was reported to be calm and composed, and seemed to be recovering well so all the doctors retired for the night. However, when she was offered soup a little later she had great trouble swallowing and complained of pains and feeling cold. She started having “spasms” or seizures, and the doctors were hastily recalled but their efforts were in vain. On 6th November, with great shock it was announced that Princess Charlotte had died

Sir Richard Croft falls from grace following the death of Princess Charlotte

It was not long before the sniping began………people were outraged to discover that the princess had no attendants at Claremont who could in any way be useful to her during her pregnancy or childbirth, and there were mutterings of how strange it was that her only doctor was one that lived 16 miles from London, and that Dr. Sims was only sent for when the princess had been in labour for some time, and his presence was in a purely advisory capacity – he did not assist at the delivery. Reading between the lines of the quaintly worded letters etc., I think that one of the beefs was that if Charlotte had been a commoner then Richard would have been able to rummage around a little if the baby needed help to be born……however, with royalty, and with no Matron or experienced lady in any shape or form present, he would not have been able to touch her. I may be wrong of course! Her father The Prince Regent however remained above all the gossip and sent a letter to Richard saying that he blamed him not one jot, and that he believed that nobody could have prevented what happened. He also stressed that he had utmost confidence in Richard’s abilities as a doctor. There were others who stoutly defended Richard, and who were appalled by the bitter and angry backlash which was relentlessly picking up pace and attacking Richard’s integrity and professional ability.
On 2nd December, Prince Leopold added his support for Richard by having a letter sent to him in which he assured him that he held him in high esteem and knew that he had done all that he could for his wife. He also expressed concern over the increasingly worrying mental state of Richard.
He was not the only one to be worried – many of his friends and colleagues were becoming increasingly alarmed by Richards state of mind; he was deeply depressed and was behaving at times very oddly., as well as seeming to have lost all confidence in his abilities as a doctor and when the princess’s body was being prepared for embalming, he was reported to be extremely upset and agitated.

Suicide of Sir Richard Croft

On the Friday morning of 13th February 1818 it was made known that Sir Richard Croft, 57, had died suddenly at the house of Mrs. Thackeray, a lady in Wimpole Street, whom he was attending in labour. Ever since Princess Charlotte died, Sir Richard had been severely affected mentally, and his friends were so worried that they were probably expecting something of this nature. Various rumours had been circulating of a very delicate nature (concerning him substituting a high born girl for a low born boy) but the papers refused to give credence. The press was forbidden access to the inquest, due to immense pressure from family and friends who wished to keep the circumstances of his death private, however a witness account was published.
“On Monday morning early, the deceased was summonsed to attend the lady of the Rev. Dr. Thackeray, of 86 Wimpole Street, Cavendish Square. He was in attendance until Tuesday evening at 11 o’clock when finding his continued presence not necessary he went out for a time on his other engagements. An apartment in the floor above Mrs. Thackeray was appointed for Sir Richard, in the bedroom of which there were two pistols belonging to Dr. Thackeray. Sir Richard retired to bed at half past twelve on Thursday morning; about one o’clock Dr. Thackeray heard a noise apparently proceeding from the room occupied by Dr. Croft, and sent a female servant to ascertain the cause. She returned to say that she found the doctor in bed, and conceived him to be asleep. A short time after, a similar noise was heard and the servant was once again sent. She rapped at the door but received no answer. This circumstance created alarm, in consequence of which the door of his apartment was broken open. Here a shocking spectacle presented itself; the body of Sir Richard Croft was lying on the bed shockingly mangled, his arms extended over his head and a pistol in each hand. Both were discharged and the head of the unfortunate gentleman was blown to pieces.” (Dr. Thackery later refuted this, and claimed only one gun was discharged and that there was no facial disfigurement, only the removal of the back of his head. It seems that different witnesses had differing accounts.
The jury concluded that he killed himself whilst in a fit of temporary derangement.
Mrs Thackeray was safely delivered of her child, but was not immediately told of what had happened. Prince Leopold, the grieving husband of Princess Charlotte, was devastated by the news of the death, and was inconsolable – he clearly had great regard of Sir Richard.
The body was taken to Sir Richard’s house in old Burlington Street, he being survived by a rather ill Lady Croft, the daughter of the late Dr. Denman.

Sir Richard Croft, King George IV and Mrs. Fitzherbert

Unfortunately, his death did not stop the gossips from coming up with stories to discredit Richard, and the talk in February 1818 amongst society was that some years previously an unnamed Lord made both his duchess and his mistress pregnant at the same time……..they were delivered of a girl and boy respectively in the same house in Paris at roughly the same time, attended by Sir Richard. The story went that he was privy to the swapping of the babies so that the boy inherited one of the largest estates in England, whilst the girl was brought up as an illegitimate. Some considerable time later, in 1839, a woman named Sophia Elizabeth Guelth Sims came forward claiming to be the daughter of King George and Mrs. Fitzherbert. She was reported to be well dressed, and she claimed that she wanted nothing but her rightful due of money for maintenance etc. She claimed that her nurse, on her deathbed, had told her about the complicity of the Duchess and Sir Richard, and the innocence of Mrs. Fitzherbert (King’s mistress). The Lord Mayor presiding at the hearing, wondered why she had waited so long to come forward, and dismissed her claim as preposterous. Mrs. Guelth Sims said that her mother had been told that her child, a boy, was still born, when in fact he was given to the Duchess, and that she herself was brought up as a nobody, given to the care of a woman named Bosville in France, where an attempt was made to assassinate them both.
The Lord Mayor was still having none of this…..however she persisted and said that as well as the dying declaration of Peggy White, her nurse, Lady Jersey also sent letters testifying to her birthright. There was actually further evidence, all of which became rather muddy and muddled, and one does wonder as to the truth. However, the Lord Mayor refused to take the matter further.
There are fascinating letters which certainly seem, on the surface, to prove that this lady was in fact telling the truth, if indeed they are genuine. They detail not only the circumstances of her birth, but also the necessity for total secrecy; letters from the woman that she believed was her mother, confessing that she was high born and that her real mother believed her stillborn. They are all very convincing, but when reading through I am struck by the excessively sickly devotion that each writer had for the girl……..in fact the tone of each letter is remarkably similar. Could it be that she wrote all these letters herself? Certainly if she did, she was remarkably clever and well educated considering her lowly upbringing. I also wonder why, given the dangers of revealing such a secret, any of this would have been committed to paper.

Anyway, the press ran with the story……all of them printing the letters, and some going so far as to headline it as “Kings daughter married to a journeyman baker” and “newly discovered daughter of King George IV and Mrs Fitzherbert”, however no concrete proof was ever put forward. To this day, there are those who believe that they are descendants of King George and Mrs. Fitzherbert – perhaps a dna test would help to determine the truth once and for all!
Having grown very fond of poor sir Richard during my research, I would much rather believe that he had nothing to do with any swapping of babies simply because of their gender.

Archer Denman Croft

An obituary in January 1865, which nicely sums up his life, was written thus:
“Sir Archer Denman Croft, 8th Baronet of Croft Castle in the county of Hereford, whose melancholy and sudden death at his town house, 1 Sussex Place, Hyde Park, occurred on the 10th instant on the very evening of his son’s wedding. He was the second son of Sir Richard Croft, the 6th Baronet, by his wife Margaret, daughter of Thomas Denman M.D. He was born December 7th 1801 and was educated at Westminster School. He was called to the Bar by the Hon. Society of Lincoln’s Inn, having been appointed a Master of the Court of Queen’s Bench in 1838. Sir Archer married August 3lst 1837, Julia Barbara, widow of Athelston Corbet. He left a daughter, Julia Helen and his only son, Herbert George Denman Croft the 9th Baronet.

The Kevill Davies family

We cannot ignore the Kevill Davies family who held Croft Castle for several decades, and who wholeheartedly threw themselves into Herefordshire life. Mr. & Mrs. Kevill Davies regularly attended local and not so local hunts, and on occasion they hosted the Herefordshire Bow Meeting, where archery skills were on show – shooting in August 1854 was declared to be excellent, and the contest was followed by dancing and feasting at the Castle. They were definitely not short of a bob or two, and moved in Royal circles as well as the best of high society, moving to their town house in London each year in time for “the season”. In February 1857 Kevill Davies stood as the Conservative candidate for Hereford but was defeated by the Liberal candidate. However, he continued to do his bit for Herefordshire, for example he chaired a public meeting regarding the drainage of the land between Leominster and Orelton which was causing considerable problems.
Later in the same year, poor old Kevill Davies was loading his gun when it exploded………unfortunately, the injuries incurred resulted in the amputation of his arm below the elbow.
A son of Mr. Kevill Davies had a very able chestnut racehorse – a steeplechaser by the name of Prince George which was trained and run in Ireland and England – he was entered for the Irish Grand National in 1875 but I am so far unable to find out his fortunes in that race! However, Mr. Kevill Davies himself was no mean rider, and he regularly rode, and won, with his own horses. He became a Steward, and travelled around the racecourses in England.

Captain William Trevelyan Somerset Kevill Davies

A son of the above Mr. Kevill Davies, he was born in 1817 and was educated at Eton. He entered the army and received a commission in the 17th Lancers. He served with that regiment throughout the Zulu campaign, and at the battle of Ulundi he distinguished himself. In the heat of fighting, he noticed a member of his regiment unhorsed and surrounded by Zulu warriors; he found and caught a loose horse and galloped over to the man – at great risk to his own life he got him remounted and they both returned to the charge. The soldier wrote later to his father, recounting that his horse had been killed under him and he had been left standing in the centre of crossfire, and had it not been for the incredible bravery of Kevill Davies he would be a dead man.

In September 1879 he was promoted to Captain of the 17th Lancers, however in August the following year this was cancelled when he retired from the service. Shortly afterwards, the puzzling reason for this became clear…………his fellow soldiers were constantly talking of the extremely shabby way that he had been treated by the Horse Guards. Captain Kevill Davies gained his troop on the death of Captail Wyatt Edgell who was shot at Ulundi, and was declared to be one of the most popular men in the cavalry with pluck abounding, and a superb horseman. Every brother Officer swore by him, and nobody at the Cape behaved better or deserved his promotion more. Yet, after having earned it in the field, when he returned home he was required to pass a special army exam before he left the service, or have his promotion cancelled. He refused to take this exam, and everyone backed him up in his decision, – the meanness and shabbiness of the Horse Guards was universally condemned.
He became a Magistrate in Herefordshire and lived a quiet life in the County before dying on Christmas Day 1896 aged 48.

Lft. William Albert Somerset Herbert Kevill Davies

Lft. William Albert Somerset Herbert Kevill Davies, 7th Hussars attached to the 9th Lancers, died of wounds received at Ypres on 15th May aged 38. He served during the South African war, and was mentioned in Despatches as well as received the Queen’s medal and four clasps.

Rev William Trevelyan Kevill Davies

In 1887, the Rev William Trevelyan Kevill Davies was the subject of High Court action by a certain Fanny Emma Russell who was claiming annual annuities for her child. It transpired that in 1862 the Rev. prepared Fanny for Confirmation and that the pair became close, extremely close, resulting in Fanny becoming pregnant in 1864. In November the following year, she gave birth to a child of which the defendant was the father. In the previous month, the Rev. had executed a Deed that stated that if Fanny reached 21 and was still single, then he would pay her £150 a year until either her marriage or death. He also covenanted £1000 for the child on surviving the mother, reaching 21 or marrying.
Once the child, Eva, was born, Fanny lived with her mother as a “widow” and in 1869 reached the age of 21 being still unmarried. The annuity became payable, and WAS paid until 1882, however during this time Fanny met a man and desperately wanted to marry him, and frequently wrote to the Rev. asking him to relieve her of the constraints of the Deed, saying that she would go out of her mind if not allowed to do so. The defendant executed another Deed, by which he confirmed the original one and also covenanted £50 a year if she should marry – all quite reasonable I would have thought, especially as he also provided her and Eva with a house He also made it quite clear that this payment would only be continued if she refrained from hassling him or his family and friends, as it was becoming exceptionally tiresome.
However, Fanny was slowly becoming mentally deranged, and began a serious campaign of “molestation and annoyance” towards the Rev. She would find out where he was staying and rant and rave in the street outside, to such an extent that frequently the police had to be called. Eventually she went completely mad, and was incarcerated in a mental institution in Church Stretton, Shropshire. The annuity was cancelled as she had broken the terms of the Covenant, but the Rev. did try to settle matters out of court.
This was not the end of the story however, because Fanny was released from the mental home and in 1890 she threatened to kill the Rev Kevill Davies unless he paid the considerable amount of money she considered to be owing to her, and was so persistent that he eventually brought her to trial for her threats; at her court appearances she was clearly absolutely beside herself, screaming and shouting and talking complete nonsense, and although cautioned to behave herself, she eventually had to be forcibly removed from the room. Even then, she continued to rant during her removal, demanding the money rightfully due to her from the Rev. The case was adjourned, but a couple of days later the Rev. withdrew the charges against Fanny and the matter was forgotten by the papers……..however, perhaps the whole sorry business took it’s toll, and in 1892 he resigned as Rector of Croft and Yarpole and presented the stipend to one of his sons, Rev. E. Kevill Davies
Five years later, the Rev. was declared bankrupt – his debts amounting to nearly £62,000, which he blamed on agricultural depression and the subsequent falling off of his income. He admitted to living above his means and then incurring huge interest payments on borrowed money. Shortly afterwards, he began selling off valuable paintings, silver and crockery from Croft Castle – one of the paintings, a portrait of the former owner’s wife Mrs. Somerset Davies by George Romney, was sold for 1290 guineas; thereafter the creditors were gradually paid off

Croft Castle residents and servants  – 1841

Croft Castle residents and servants – 1851

Croft Castle residents and servants –  1861

Croft Castle residents and servants –  1871

The Gardeners, Grooms, and shepherds etc. lived in cottages on the estate.

Croft Castle residents and servants  – 1881

Croft Castle residents and servants – 1921

Henry James Brydges

The Pearle family lived in the Court for over a hundred years, one of the descendants being Henry James Brydges who was born in 1673 to Mary Pearle and Sir John Brydges. He became MP for Hereford, and then Paymaster of the Forces Abroad during the War of the Spanish Succession. By various means, Henry James Brydges amassed a large fortune equating to way over £50 million in today’s money. Sadly though, James was something of a spendthrift and also invested unwisely, resulting in an almost total loss of his fortunes in the South Sea Bubble financial crash and in 1731 all his estates including Dewsall were sold to Guys Hospital.

Sir Charles Clore

Guys sold Dewsall Estate to Sir Charles Clore in the mid 20th century, by which time it was in some disrepair, and he wanted to demolish the house.  He got as far as removing the roof before the Council stepped in and made him put it back.  He never lived at Dewsall.

Dewsall Court Restored and given a New Lease of Life

Dewsall Court was purchased in 1989, at which time it was in dire need of renovation – the family, who still own it, turned it into the beautiful property that it is today .   It was a family home until 2010, when they turned it into a thriving event/wedding venue.  What better setting for that special occasion!

Dewsall Court Household 1841

Guys Hospital Rent out Dewsall Court

In 1844 James Price was in residence

Peregrine Prince

During the mid 19^th century the owner was Peregrine Prince but he himself lived at St. Nicholas, Hereford, renting Dewsall Court to farmers.    He was a keen breeder of cattle and sheep, and won prizes at such shows as The Smithfield

By 1859, Peregrine Prince decided to relinquish his agricultural pursuits, and put up for sale all the cattle, sheep etc. from the Dewsall Estate.

The next residents at Dewsall Court were the Morris family, and they were to remain for over 30 years.  Walter Morris, head of the household was elected a member of the Royal Agricultural Society in 1861 and was a very successful and relatively wealthy farmer.  He was kindly to his labourers, and was apt to give lavish dinners for them after the harvest had been successfully brought in.

Walter’s daughter, Mary Caroline, died of diphtheria aged just 17 whilst at Dinan, France

Dewsall Court Household and Servants 1871

Dewsall Court Household and servants 1881

Dewsall Court Household and Servants 1901

Dewsall Court Household 1921

These wonderful photographs have been kindly supplied by Arthur Henry Morris’s granddaughter, and I would ask that you do not use them without contacting me as permission will need to be sought.

This shows the occasion of her father’s Christening (Walter Andrew Morris) in 1898, and Arthur Henry Morris is standing behind his wife, Edith.

Amy Gertrude Morris (shown on the 1881 census) is the elegant lady holding the baby’s bootee.

Edith Morris in front of Dewsall Court

Dormington Court dates from the early 17^th century, and became much larger when  an extension was built in the early 18^th century.

It is part timber frame and part brick, and originally boasted a superb stable block;   it is now a hotel and  many of the original farm buildings have been bulldozed and replaced with a housing estate.

One of the most notable owners was William Vevers.

William Vevers.

William Vevers of Dormington Court was born in 1782, the son of John Vevers of Yarkhill Court.  He was a rider to hounds and was well known in the area since childhood, few better men across country were to be found anywhere in England.

William Vevers and Horse Racing

William was a frequent competitor for the Hunters’ Stakes at Hereford Races, not only riding his own horses but also those of his friends.  He was said to have an elegant and firm seat, and he won the race at Warwick in 1816 for the Hunters’ Stakes, in five heats, with his mare Bradamante, by Brigliadoro.  He owned many racehorses, including the incredible Lady Byron who was perhaps the best four mile horse of her time.  She was by Sir Ulic, and was a small, light, horse but had a glittering career which ended with her winning at Newmarket in 1818.  The race made her a great favourite for the Worcestershire Stakes, but a rather stupid trainer gave her one gallop too many during the preparation, and she broke down just before the race.  She was kept on as a brood mare and she produced some stunning horses.

William Vevers and Steeple Chasing

It was in the steeple chasing sphere that Mr. Vevers was most well known;  he began by winning the Ross Steeple Chase with his horse Sailor Boy, even though incredibly he suffered a heavy fall in the course of the race.  One of his most famous steeplechasers was Charity, by Woodman, who was bought by Mr. Vevers from Mr. Williams of Cowarn Court, Herefordshire, having never won a race.  This soon changed, and he won the Usk stakes and the hurdle race at Cardiff, as well as the hurdle race at Monmouth in 1836.  He went on to win numerous other prestigious races including the great Liverpool steeplechase in 1841 (the Grand National of the day?).His last race was at Swindon, which he lost through no fault of his own, and William Vevers kept him at home until he died on 3^rd March 1848 – the anniversary of his win at Liverpool.

William went on to own many superb horses and had many successes, including at Paris in 1846 when he was 64 years old, although in this instance he came second.  The last steeplechase he rode was at Ledbury in 1849, which he won on his horse Vengeance.

In October 1855, his whole valuable stud was put up for sale by auction, including the steeplechasers Vainhope;  Vengeance;  Hardwick and Little Tommy.

William Vevers was also a courser, and a breeder of top class dogs although he wasn’t too keen on this, but he did enjoy fishing.

Testimonials to William Vevers

A testimonial, in the form of a massive silver tea and supper service, with toast rack, spoons and forks,  was presented to William in 1845 by friends and neighbours, which perhaps sums up his character:

“Presented to William Vevers Esq. of Dormington Court, Herefordshire, by his friends and neighbours, in testimony of his generous and social qualities, superior talent and determined zeal and activity which have distinguished him as a sportsman for more than half a century;  and in grateful acknowledgement of the spirited manner in which he upheld the pre-eminence of his native county in the contest between the members of the Herefordshire and Monmouthshire Hunts at their steeplechase on 27^th February 1845”.

In 1838, a silver tankard was presented to him:
“The gift of the Rev. J. Leyson Penoyre to William Vevers Esq. of Dormington Court for the best thoroughbred stallion used in the county of Hereford, and also for the spirited exertions in the improvement of the breed of horses in that county”.
In fact, the best hunter he ever owned was Rattler, a very fast animal who was able to carry 20 stone. At the age of ten he was sold to the French Government for 300 guineas, and proved to be one of the best stallions ever imported to France.
William died on 23rd April 1858 after a long illness, he was 76.
William’s wife, Elizabeth, died 28th February 1862 at Dormington Court

Dormington Court Household 1851

Dormington Court Household 1861

Dormington Court Household 1871

Dormington Court Household 1881

Dormington Court Household 1911

The Knight Family at Downton Castle

Thomas Andrew Knight

Thomas Andrew Knight was born at Wormsley Grange, near Weobley in Herefordshire on 19^th October 1758, and was the youngest son of the Rev. Thomas Knight whose father had amassed a great deal of money through hard work and expertise as an Ironmaster.  This was way before steam was used to smelt and produce iron, and the factories had to be next to running streams or rivers.  One of his biggest forges was at Downton on the river Teme,  and it was here that he built Downton Castle in the 18^th century.

Thomas Andrew Knight lost his father when aged only 3, and the lack of a father figure possibly helped to shape his future;  he was a country boy and was able to freely roam the fields instead of being chained to studies, and it was said that not a leaf or blossom unfolded its bud, or an animal or insect crossed his way, that did not make  an impression on his infant mind.  At the age of 9 he went to school in Ludlow, and then Chiswick, before going to Balliol College Oxford, but when he got back to Herefordshire,  he continued with his study of nature and reveled in breeding programmes for animals.

After his marriage to Frances Felton in 1791 he initially lived at Elton Hall, Ludlow, but later moved to Downton Castle in 1809 when his brother, Richard Payne Knight, moved to London.

Thomas Andrew Knight the Horticulturist

Knight devoted a great deal of his time to studying cider apple trees, and to working out a solution to the problem of them becoming less productive and more diseased.  He realised that the common method of grafting was not a huge success, and conducted several experiments over time, and fertilised the blossom of hardy crab apple trees with pollen taken from cider and dessert fruits, and then sowing the artificially impregnated trees.  In the late 18^th century, he sent his first paper to the Royal Society and from then on never looked back, being hailed as a very superior vegetable physiologist.

He published a book entitled “A Treatise on the Culture of the Apple and Pear, and on the Manufacture of Cider and Perry”, and was hugely knowledgeable on the subject, extending his research and expertise to plums, strawberries, nectarines and all manner of fruit.

Thomas Andrew Knight the Farmer

Thomas was also a great lover of Herefordshire cattle, and was considered a very good judge of the breed, so was frequently asked to judge at agricultural shows;   he himself had the largest herd of Hereford Cattle in the country, known famously as the Leinthall herd.   It was he who sought to improve the breed of draught horses by crossing big London dray horses with his own breed of a smaller more compact horse, but he died before seeing the results.

A letter to the paper in 1833 showed how he combined his desire to teach good agricultural practices with good treatment of his tenants – at the time, crops were not doing well generally, partly due to a lack of understanding of how to manage the land and the produce grown there.  He was roundly praised thus:

“….although we have had occasion to mention the liberality of T. Andrew Knight Esq. of Downton Castle in various ways, by his late good judgement it will give a stimulus to his tenants to benefit themselves, and improve his land, and an example to all with the landed interest.  Mr. Knight has given this year three prizes to his tenants – the first, ten dozen of hurdles to that tenant who grows the best 20 acres of turnips – the second, six dozen to the one who grows the best 15 acres;  and the third, four dozen to the one who grows the best 15 acres.  Those accustomed to farming must know the culture of turnips is the best method to clean the ground and to improve the land.”

The prizewinners were Mr. Ashwood of Downton who grew 40 acres all equal in goodness;  Mr. Edward Ashwood the second, and Mr. Edwards of Cop Hall, the third.

He was a much loved man by all accounts, and he took great pleasure in making sure that the poor and destitute were fairly dealt with;  he was extremely good natured, gentle and intelligent and was thought of as a true English country gentleman.  He died in 1838 in London.

Thomas Andrew Knight Jnr

Thomas as above had just one son, Thomas Andrew Knight Jnr. For whom he gave a lavish 21^st birthday party at Downton Castle – the church bells pealed from an early hour, and two oxen were roasted, one at Bringewood Hill and one at Long Lantall, with a band playing in each village.  There were eight hogsheads of cider, six hundred loaves of bread and twenty one hogsheads of old beer.

In the evening, the tenantry of R. Payne Knight followed a playing band to the Castle, bearing a very expensive blue satin flag

“In 1817 on Monday June 23^rd  the only son of Thomas Andrew Knight came of age, when the happy event was celebrated with every demonstration of joy and respect in the vicinity of Downton Castle.  At a very early hour on Monday morning, the bells of Leintwardine were set in motion to ring a merry peal, being the birthday of Mr. Knight.  Two oxen were roasted whole, one at Bringewood Hill and one at Long Lantall;  at place a band of music attended, and eight hogsheads of cider were given to the populace, with six hundred loaves of bread, independent of twenty one hogsheads of old beer, given by Andrew Knight at the Castle.  In the evening the tenantry of R. Payne Knight preceded by a band of music, went in procession to the Castle with a most costly flag, painted on blue satin with the family crest encircled with a palm, and having an angel at the top holding a scroll.  There was a motto on the flat “May his happiness increase with his years” and at the bottom was a fabulous gold fringe – it was presented to Thomas Jnr. By R. Hoy;  The Rev. T. Price of Birriton;  J. Smith of Paton, and Mr. Wheeler of Trippleton.

Mr Hoy gave a speech, in which he eulogised on the respect held for the Knight family and offered the beautiful flag as a gift from tenants and neighbours saying that they hoped that while even a vestige of the flag remained, the name of Knight would inhabit the Castle and descend to future ages.

Thomas Jnr  answered most eloquently and emotionally and assured them that he would never forget their kindness and attention to him on that day.

More than 200 ladies and gentlemen from the neighbourhood were invited to tea, supper and a ball, with the Castle being lit up and the ballroom decorated with plants and flowers.  At midnight, the supper rooms were opened and were described as an enchanted fairy palace, with every delicacy of the season provided – also many wines.  The ladies ate first with Mrs. Knight presiding, followed by the gentleman with the birthday boy sitting at the head of the table.  After eating, he left for the ballroom leaving Mr. Hoy to preside over the gentlemen and he kept them in high spirits until six in the morning.  Those in the ballroom danced the night away and everyone felt that the occasion was a joyous and successful occasion.

Sadly, the hope of a long life at Downton Castle with children and heirs was not to be, and Thomas Andrew Knight Jnr died aged 30 following a shooting accident.

Charlotte Knight

The youngest daughter of Thomas Andrew Knight Snr, Charlotte, married Sir W.E. Rouse Boughton, Bart. Of Downton Hall, Salop (a few miles away from Downton Castle) in 1824.  It was reported that on the day of the wedding, Bringwood hill opposite Downton Castle, was ablaze with the light from bonfires;  four sheep were roasted and five hogsheads of cider were given to the populace along with two fat oxen distributed to the poor of Downton and Leintwardine.

There was a brilliant display of fireworks at night, and thousands cheered with fervent wishes for the lasting happiness of the pair.

Elizabeth Knight

Elizabeth was the second daughter of Thomas Andrew Knight Snr, and she married Francis Walpole the younger son of the Hon. Robert Walpole, formerly Envoy Extraordinary at the Court of Lisbon, and grandson of the first Lord Walpole of Walterton.

When she died, her body was brought back from Eaton Square,  London to Ludlow where she was laid in the Feathers Hotel before being interred in the family vault in Elton in Herefordshire, where she was born.

Most of the shops closed for the day, and the bell of St. Lawrence tolled for an hour.

The ownership of Downton Castle

As reported above under the life of Thomas Andrew Knight Snr, the Castle was owned by his brother, Richard Payne Knight and upon his death in 1844 there was much consternation amongst the Knight family residing in Downton Castle, as well as amongst the tenantry and others, with their future seemingly in doubt.

However, the validity of Richard’s Will was proved in the House of Lords in favour of the possessors of the property, i.e. Mrs. Knight the widow of the late Thomas Andrew, brother of the testator.  The relief was clearly enormous, and a huge banquet was arranged to celebrate.

There seemed to follow a period of uncertainty at Downton Castle, and it was reported in the press in 1848 that the house and gardens were in a deplorable and neglected state.

In 1852, Downton Castle was advertised for let, fully furnished, and was described as being the residence of the late Thomas Andrew Knight.

Andrew Johnes Rouse Boughton Knight

Andrew Johnes Rouse Boughton Knight was the second son of Sir William E. Rouse-Boughton, tenth baronet, of Lawford Hall Warwick, by his wife Charlotte, youngest of the three daughters and co-heirs of Mr. Thomas Andrew Knight of Downton Castle.

In 1857 he added the name “Knight” to comply with a direction in the will of his grandfather.

In 1858, Andrew Johnes Rouse Knight married Eliza, the youngest daughter of John Michael Severne of Thenford House, Northamptonshire,  and the celebrations were out of this world, starting with the firing of cannon at dawn at both Downton Castle, and Downton Hall over the border in Shropshire.  Many fine oxen, with bread and ample supplies of cider were provided for the “peasantry” along with the opportunity to play old English sports.  Ludlow fair fell on the same day, and many neighbouring farmers and tradesmen of the town were unavoidably prevented from joining in the festivities, so it was arranged for them to have a dinner at the Feathers Hotel the following week.

Once again, the festivities were not confined to Downton Castle, but were shared with equal zeal by the tenantry at Dowton Hall, the residence of Sir Charles Boughton, brother of Mr. Knight.  A series of rather funny donkey races were well contested, and there was general merriment throughout the day. They went on to have three sons and four daughters.

He was deputy Lieutenant and magistrate for Herefordshire and Salop, and served as High Sheriff for Herefordshire in 1860, as well as being chairman of the Wigmore bench of Magistrates, and was for many years a guardian of the poor.

He died in 1909 , leaving a fortune of £240,000.  £11,000 had been allocated to each of his two daughters, but some legacies were revoked or reduced by codicil due to the huge increase in taxation on landed estates  and the amount left to his daughters was considerably reduced.

His oldest son, Charles Andrew Boughton Knight took over Downton Castle and estate

Present Day Downton Castle

Currently, the Castle and Estate is not open to the public, but it has been developed as a centre for shooting pheasants, and many of the farm buildings have been put to good use as Lodges for the shooting parties.

Downton Castle Household and servants 1861 Census

Downton Castle Household and servants 1871 Census

Downton Castle Household and Staff 1881 Census

Downton Castle Household and Servants 1901   Census

Downton Castle Household and Servants 1911 Servants

The Knight Family at Downton Castle

Richard Payne Knight

Born in 1750, Richard Payne knight was the eldest son of the Rev. Thomas Knight;  he was a somewhat sickly infant and consequently managed to avoid a formal education either at school or at home due to his father’s indulgence of him.

However, once his father died in 1764 he attended grammar school and became a first class scholar in Latin, then Richard took up the study of Greek after leaving school and it was to become a lifelong passion.

Richard’s health was still not the best, and he decided to go to Italy – presumably for the climate – where he fell in love with the arts, including sculptures by Greeks.  He began to amass a collection of art and antiques, especially bronzes and Greek coins, which he kept in a specially appointed room in his house in Soho Square, London.

Richard Payne Knight had been bequeathed the Downton Estate by his father, and when he came back from Italy he put his energies into building a magnificent house.  Although he was elected into Parliament in 1780, he was not particularly interested in politics.

In 1814 Richard was made a Trustee of the British Museum, and he left his entire collection of art and antiques to this establishment on his death on 24th April 1824.  Although he died in London, his body was taken back to Herefordshire and buried at Wormesley Church.

Thomas Andrew Knight

Thomas Andrew Knight was born at Wormsley Grange (click here for Wormsley Grange), near Weobley in Herefordshire on 19th October 1758, and was the youngest son of the Rev. Thomas Knight whose father had amassed a great deal of money through hard work and expertise as an Ironmaster. This was way before steam was used to smelt and produce iron, and the factories had to be next to running streams or rivers.

One of the Rev. Knight’s  biggest forges was at Downton on the river Teme, and it was here that he built Downton Castle in the 18th century.

Thomas Andrew Knight lost his father when aged only 3, and the lack of a father figure possibly helped to shape his future; he was a country boy and was able to freely roam the fields instead of being chained to studies, and it was said that not a leaf or blossom unfolded its bud, or an animal or insect crossed his way, but it made an impression on his infant mind.

At the age of 9 he went to school in Ludlow, and then Chiswick, before going to Balliol College Oxford, but when he got back to Herefordshire, he continued with his study of nature and revelled in breeding programmes for animals.
After his marriage to Frances Felton in 1791 he initially lived at Elton Hall, Ludlow, but later moved to Downton Castle in 1809 when his brother, Richard Payne Knight, moved to London.

Thomas Andrew Knight the Horticulturist

Knight devoted a great deal of his time to studying cider apple trees, and to working out a solution to the problem of them becoming less productive and more diseased. He realised that the common method of grafting was not a huge success, and conducted several experiments over time, and fertilised the blossom of hardy crab apple trees with pollen taken from cider and dessert fruits, and then sowing the artificially impregnated trees. In the late 18th century, he sent his first paper to the Royal Society and from then on never looked back, being hailed as a very superior vegetable physiologist.
He published a book entitled “A Treatise on the Culture of the Apple and Pear, and on the Manufacture of Cider and Perry”, and was hugely knowledgeable on the subject, extending his research and expertise to plums, strawberries, nectarines and all manner of fruit.

Thomas Andrew Knight the Farmer

Thomas was also a great lover of Herefordshire cattle, and was considered a very good judge of the breed, so was frequently asked to judge at agricultural shows; he himself had the largest herd of Hereford Cattle in the country, known famously as the Leinthall herd. It was he who sought to improve the breed of draught horses by crossing big London dray horses with his own breed of a smaller more compact horse, but he died before seeing the results.
A letter to the paper in 1833 showed how he combined his desire to teach good agricultural practices with good treatment of his tenants – at the time, crops were not doing well generally, partly due to a lack of understanding of how to manage the land and the produce grown there. He was roundly praised thus:
“….although we have had occasion to mention the liberality of T. Andrew Knight Esq. of Downton Castle in various ways, by his late good judgement it will give a stimulus to his tenants to benefit themselves, and improve his land, and an example to all with the landed interest. Mr. Knight has given this year three prizes to his tenants – the first, ten dozen of hurdles to that tenant who grows the best 20 acres of turnips – the second, six dozen to the one who grows the best 15 acres; and the third, four dozen to the one who grows the best 15 acres. Those accustomed to farming must know the culture of turnips is the best method to clean the ground and to improve the land.”
The prizewinners were Mr. Ashwood of Downton who grew 40 acres all equal in goodness; Mr. Edward Ashwood the second, and Mr. Edwards of Cop Hall, the third.
He was a much loved man by all accounts, and he took great pleasure in making sure that the poor and destitute were fairly dealt with; he was extremely good natured, gentle and intelligent and was thought of as a true English country gentleman. He died in 1838 in London.

Lavish Coming of Age Party for Thomas Andrew Knight Jnr

In the evening, the tenantry of R. Payne Knight followed a playing band to the Castle, bearing a very expensive blue satin flag.
“In 1817 on Monday June 23rd the only son of Thomas Andrew Knight came of age, when the happy event was celebrated with every demonstration of joy and respect in the vicinity of Downton Castle. At a very early hour on Monday morning, the bells of Leintwardine were set in motion to ring a merry peal, being the birthday of Mr. Knight. Two oxen were roasted whole, one at Bringewood Hill and one at Long Lantall; at place a band of music attended, and eight hogsheads of cider were given to the populace, with six hundred loaves of bread, independent of twenty one hogsheads of old beer, given by Andrew Knight at the Castle. In the evening the tenantry of R. Payne Knight preceded by a band of music, went in procession to the Castle with a most costly flag, painted on blue satin with the family crest encircled with a palm, and having an angel at the top holding a scroll. There was a motto on the flat “May his happiness increase with his years” and at the bottom was a fabulous gold fringe – it was presented to Thomas Jnr. By R. Hoy; The Rev. T. Price of Birriton; J. Smith of Paton, and Mr. Wheeler of Trippleton.
Mr Hoy gave a speech, in which he eulogised on the respect held for the Knight family and offered the beautiful flag as a gift from tenants and neighbours saying that they hoped that while even a vestige of the flag remained, the name of Knight would inhabit the Castle and descend to future ages.”
Thomas Jnr answered most eloquently and emotionally and assured them that he would never forget their kindness and attention to him on that day.
More than 200 ladies and gentlemen from the neighbourhood were invited to tea, supper and a ball, with the Castle being lit up and the ballroom decorated with plants and flowers. At midnight, the supper rooms were opened and were described as an enchanted fairy palace, with every delicacy of the season provided – also many wines. The ladies ate first with Mrs. Knight presiding, followed by the gentleman with the birthday boy sitting at the head of the table. After eating, he left for the ballroom leaving Mr. Hoy to preside over the gentlemen and he kept them in high spirits until six in the morning. Those in the ballroom danced the night away and everyone felt that the occasion was a joyous and successful occasion.
Sadly, the hope of a long life at Downton Castle with children and heirs was not to be, and Thomas Andrew Knight Jnr died aged 31 following a shooting accident.

The Death of Thomas Knight

His death was a tragic accident;  one Thursday, a party of his friends met at his father’s mansion preparatory to the Ludlow Assembly that evening of which he was to have been President.  In the morning, they went hunting but returned early when no fox was found.

Thomas Knight was keen to further entertain his friends, so took a couple of them pheasant shooting in the woods near Downton.  About a mile from the castle, a pheasant rose, and one friend brought up his gun to shoot – at the very instant that he pulled the trigger, Thomas came from behind a tree into the line of shot, and received most of the charge which entered one eye and penetrated his brain.

The friend was beside himself with horror and remorse whilst Thomas was taken home where two surgeons, Baines and Wakefield, declared that they were very much afraid that Thomas was in great danger.

Thomas died at ten the following morning surrounded by family.

The Hereford Journal Eulogy for Thomas Knight

Blessed with an understanding of the first order – heir to a large fortune – and rich in mental endowments, Mr. Knight was equally remarkable for his unassuming deportment, his exemplary moral worth, his contempt for the vicious, and his respect for the virtuous.

He was a most affectionate son and brother, a kind and indulgent landlord almost adored by his tenants, and to the poor, a discriminating and benevolent friend.  Whilst a mere youth he had selected the sterile regions of the north as the first sphere of his travels, and escaped many perils in the adventurous excursion.  He afterwards visited the Continent, and with a mind improved by travel, and a truly English heart, despising the littleness which seeks distinction amongst the follies of the age, he chose the nobler and more virtuous career of usefulness;  and in the bosom of his affectionate and admiring family, fulfilled the amiable duties of an English country gentleman.  He gave employment alike generous and considerate to all the poor and aged around him, visiting them at their humble dwellings with a courtesy that enhanced even the boons of charity and kindness;  and providing for their wants and the permanent welfare of their families, he was justly termed the poor man’s friend.

By his equals he was universally beloved, admired and respected, and was distinguished by liberality, generosity, benevolence and charity.

He gave bright promise of future eminence in the more imposing duties of public life, by the best of all pledges, moral worth, in a private station, and those duties he would have doubtless been called upon to fulfil if providence had spared him.

To the truth of all we have shortly said, the deep regrets alike of the rich and the poor in the vicinity of Mr. Knight’s late happy residence and of his friends in more distance places, bear ample testimony, and by them his virtues will long be remembered, and his early death deeply lamented as a serious private calamity and a public loss.

Charlotte Knight

The youngest daughter of Thomas Andrew Knight Snr, Charlotte, married Sir W.E. Rouse Boughton, Bart. Of Downton Hall, Salop (a few miles away from Downton Castle) in 1824. It was reported that on the day of the wedding, Bringwood hill opposite Downton Castle, was ablaze with the light from bonfires; four sheep were roasted and five hogsheads of cider were given to the populace along with two fat oxen distributed to the poor of Downton and Leintwardine.
There was a brilliant display of fireworks at night, and thousands cheered with fervent wishes for the lasting happiness of the pair.

Elizabeth Knight

Elizabeth was the second daughter of Thomas Andrew Knight Snr, and she married Francis Walpole the younger son of the Hon. Robert Walpole, formerly Envoy Extraordinary at the Court of Lisbon, and grandson of the first Lord Walpole of Walterton.
When she died, her body was brought back from Eaton Square, London to Ludlow where she was laid in the Feathers Hotel before being interred in the family vault in Elton in Herefordshire, where she was born.
Most of the shops closed for the day, and the bell of St. Lawrence tolled for an hour.

The ownership of Downton Castle

As reported above under the life of Thomas Andrew Knight Snr, the Castle was owned by his brother, Richard Payne Knight and upon his death in 1844 there was much consternation amongst the Knight family residing in Downton Castle, as well as amongst the tenantry and others, with their future seemingly in doubt.
However, the validity of Richard’s Will was proved in the House of Lords in favour of the possessors of the property, i.e. Mrs. Knight the widow of the late Thomas Andrew, brother of the testator. The relief was clearly enormous, and a huge banquet was arranged to celebrate.

There seemed to follow a period of uncertainty at Downton Castle, and it was reported in the press in 1848 that the house and gardens were in a deplorable and neglected state.
In 1852, Downton Castle was advertised for let, fully furnished, and was described as being the residence of the late Thomas Andrew Knight.

Andrew Johnes Rouse Boughton Knight

Andrew Johnes Rouse Boughton Knight was the second son of Sir William E. Rouse-Boughton, tenth baronet, of Lawford Hall Warwick, by his wife Charlotte, youngest of the three daughters and co-heirs of Mr. Thomas Andrew Knight of Downton Castle.
In 1857 he added the name “Knight” to comply with a direction in the will of his grandfather.
In 1858, Andrew Johnes Rouse Knight married Eliza, the youngest daughter of John Michael Severne of Thenford House, Northamptonshire, and the celebrations were out of this world, starting with the firing of cannon at dawn at both Downton Castle, and Downton Hall over the border in Shropshire. Many fine oxen, with bread and ample supplies of cider were provided for the “peasantry” along with the opportunity to play old English sports. Ludlow fair fell on the same day, and many neighbouring farmers and tradesmen of the town were unavoidably prevented from joining in the festivities, so it was arranged for them to have a dinner at the Feathers Hotel the following week.
Once again, the festivities were not confined to Downton Castle, but were shared with equal zeal by the tenantry at Dowton Hall, the residence of Sir Charles Boughton, brother of Mr. Knight. A series of rather funny donkey races were well contested, and there was general merriment throughout the day. They went on to have three sons and four daughters.
He was deputy Lieutenant and magistrate for Herefordshire and Salop, and served as High Sheriff for Herefordshire in 1860, as well as being chairman of the Wigmore bench of Magistrates, and was for many years a guardian of the poor.
He died in 1909 , leaving a fortune of £240,000. £11,000 had been allocated to each of his two daughters, but some legacies were revoked or reduced by codicil due to the huge increase in taxation on landed estates and the amount left to his daughters was considerably reduced.
His oldest son, Charles Andrew Boughton Knight took over Downton Castle and estate and died at the house in 1947.

Downton Castle Household and servants 1861 Census

Downton Castle Household and servants 1871 Census