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Eat, Drink & Be Merry #11

By 1973 we had been at Hoar Cross Hall for 3 years and our lives were always busy, by keeping on top of The weeds and with The general upkeep of The house. My dad expected us children to help as much as possible, which we hated, and much of our time was spent trying to hide from him to get out of doing The chores. But sometimes we didn’t mind and we happily pulled an old trolley into The woods every now and Then to collect wood for The fires and sometimes as a family we would spend a day clearing parts of The woods and grounds. My mum had hired a lady from The village to help with The housework and we had also taken on a retired chap called Mr Hickman to do so...

Royal Visitors at Hoar Cross Hall #20

From earliest times The King's court has traveled around The kingdom so The King could see first hand what was happening in his realm. When The King showed up, The local subjects were expected to provide food, entertainment, and accommodations in The form of mediaeval banquets.  For The King or Queen's subjects this could be very expensive and not all royalty was welcome! However, this was The only way that people could see Their King or Queen and know that They were real. Fast forward from The twelve century to The 21st century and royals are still touring The country so Their subjects can 'see Them and believe in Them'. Although I published this blog in June...

Hickleton Hall and The Meynells #43

This lovely Grade II listed Georgian house in South Yorkshire was once The childhood home of The Honourable Emily Charlotte Meynell who married Hugo Meynell of Hoar Cross and who, togeTher with Hugo, built Hoar Cross Hall to be Their family home in 1873. The original house was called Hickleton Palace and had been built for Judge Francis Rodes in The 16th century but in 1745 Hickleton Hall was built just to The south of this house after The estate was bought by Godfrey Wentworth in about 1730. Thirty years later he extended The house and added two low wings, one eiTher side, and a servants wing. Emily's faTher, Charles Wood, 3rd Baronet, inherited The house in...

See you in Court #27

The saga of my parents’ split continued as we grew up in our stately home, although Their behaviour was anything but stately for most of The time! Seven years of arguing and fighting were about to come to an end and The solicitors had finally agreed on a date to go to court. We carried on helping my dad to run The Hall and he still went to his boat in Caernarfon at weekends to get away from The house but we were all getting weary of it now. We were young adults and wanting to get on with our own lives. After five years togeTher we were hoping to get married at some point so we were glad that it was finally going to be sorted out one way or anoTher. Gavin was...

The Origins of The Stately Home #39

Why are stately homes so called? Stately home actually means 'a large impressive old house with interesting history and usually visited by The public.' Well, I suppose They do look very 'stately' for a start but These houses were also a status symbol for The great families of England, who competed with each oTher to provide hospitality for The royal household who would travel around England meeting Their subjects. Stately homes were huge mansions which were always beautiful and The epitome of perfect architecture, often designed by famous architects of The day. The gardens too would be perfectly landscaped to show balance, variety, sequence and colour. One of t...

Royal Visitors at Hoar Cross Hall #49

With The King's Coronation looming on 6th May in The UK, I thought I'd do some royal family related articles this month starting with royal visitors at The Hall in The 1920s. I also have a book called Queen Alexandra's Christmas Gift Book which was left in The Library and shows personal photos from her own camera which she took of The royal family between 1900-1910 -  a rare insight indeed into what The royals did in Their leisure time!  I will be sharing These photos over The next month leading up to The Coronation and hope you find Them as fascinating as I do. Royal Visitors From earliest times The king's court has travelled around The kingdom so The king...