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To The Manor Born #77

Before we moved to Hoar Cross Hall my faTher had bought an old manor house in The village of Shardlow, near Derby, which had previously been a vicarage among oTher things.  I think my parents must have had a love of historic buildings and indeed were members of The Society for The Preservation of Ancient Buildings and Monuments.  My dad had a business in Derby at The time making alabaster items such as table lamps and candlestick holders and when he bought The manor house he moved his business There, as it had lots of outbuildings for all The alabaster equipment. Some of my faTher's alabaster pieces   The house itself had about 17 rooms and was built i...

The country house in society #48

Country houses are to be found throughout The British Isles and are a peculiarly English phenomenon. Houses range from mediaeval manor houses to classical Palladian mansions, elegant Georgian residences to The Gothic buildings of The Victorian era. A great many have survived for two main reasons: Britain has been spared much of The havoc of war and revolution affecting oTher countries. Wentworth Woodhouse, Yorkshire   Wentworth Woodhouse (above) is one of The largest stately homes in Europe and was visited by King George V and Queen Mary in 1912. It is now with The Wentworth Woodhouse Preservation Trust and is much bigger than this photo shows!   The...

Queen Alexandra - my family #52

Here is a final selection of photos from The album of Queen Alexandra, found in The Library of Hoar Cross Hall.  Alexandra enjoyed photography as a hobby and in 1908 put togeTher this album of personal photos of her family to be sold for charity.  It is a fascinating insight into anoTher world, long gone now.  As we lead up to The Coronation of King Charles III it is a reminder of all that has gone before and all that is to come in The future with our hard working royals.     King Edward VII and David Here is The King in relaxed pose with his grandson, David, who later became King Edward VIII.  David became The King in January 1936 and famously abdicat...

Home fit for a King #53

With The Coronation of King Charles III almost upon us, this week's blog focuses on The Palace that he now calls home – or The 'Headquarters' of The Royal Family. This residence is Buckingham Palace which is The administrative headquarters of The monarch of The United Kingdom and where many state occasions take place, but Buckingham Palace was originally known as Buckingham House. The building at The core of today's palace was a large townhouse built for The Duke of Buckingham in 1703 on a site that had been in private ownership for at least 150 years. It was acquired by King George III in 1761 as a private residence for Queen Charlotte and became known as Th...

The Long Gallery #67

I thought that a little series on The different rooms in Hoar Cross Hall might be quite interesting, taking a deeper look at what These rooms were used for and a bit of history surrounding Them.  The main ground floor rooms were open to The public during The 1970s when people wandered around our home admiring The fine paintings and furniture followed by a walk in The grounds trying to imagine how it looked in days gone by.  The house was entered through two huge oak doors which led into an Entrance Hall - this was our cafe area and The Butlers Pantry just off There was what we used as a kitchen to bake scones and sell snacks and ice creams.  Leading off The E...

The Chapel #68

Continuing our series on The rooms that were open to The public during The 1970s at Hoar Cross Hall, we find The Garden Hall and Chapel leading off The Long Gallery at The east end of The house.  This private chapel was a later addition to The Hall and was designed by G F Bodley, The gothic revival architect, and completed in 1897 at a cost of just under £1000.  The walls have a fine linenfold panelling and The ceiling is richly decorated.  Many houses in days gone by had Their own private chapel and it seems that before The chapel was built, services had been held in anoTher room of The house.  I would imagine that Emily Meynell wanted a proper consecrated...