Welbeck Abbey

Welbeck Abbey is a country house and former Premonstratensian monastery in the Dukeries in the north of the English county of Nottinghamshire . After the dissolution of the English monasteries , it served as a residence for the Dukes of Portland . Welbeck Abbey is one of four neighboring ducal properties in north Nottinghamshire and the house is listed by English Heritage as a Grade I Historic Building.

history

The property is mentioned in the Domesday Book as being owned by Hugh FitzBaldric . Thomas de Cuckney founded the monastery in 1140. It was a Premonstratensian abbey , dedicated to St. James the Elder . The abbey has received donations from the Goushill , D'Eyncourt , Basset and others of Nottinghamshire families , as well as a substantial grant from King Edward I.

In 1393, King Richard II launched a serious investigation into the abbey:

Pardon to William Broun of Norton by Welbeck of suit of the King's peace for felonies, treasons and other offenses under the following circumstances: Robert Veel, keeper of the rolls of the King's Bench, and John Wynchecombe, appointed by the king to take carts for the carriage of the rolls, being directed on Saturday before the feast of St Katherine last by Walter Clopton , Chief Justice, and other justices to carry the said rolls from York to Nottingham , where upon by reason of excessive rainfall affecting the roads, they could not without additional horses reach Nottingham, where upon by virtue of their commission and the justices order they took at Norton aforesaid two horses of John Levet and John Turnour of Norton, to be paid for in due course. There upon the said William Broun, John Northeryn, Robert Bocher, all of Norton, and Hugh Matt, servant of John Baukwell, Abbot of Welbeck, with various other evil doers came armed with bows and arrows, sticks and swords, and at dusk of the same day raised all the men of Norton to insurrection, pursued the said Robert and John to Warsop and instigated by Simon de Castleton, canon of Welbeck, and John Worsop, vicar of Cuckney and canon of Welbeck, assaulted them, shot at and pierced the books in the carriage and took the horses, and would have carried the same away but that by the grace of God and their help they made too good a defense. (Eng .: Pardon to William Broun von Norton von Welbeck in consequence of the royal peace for crimes, treason and other offenses and the following circumstances: Robert Veel, guardian of the roles of the royal bank and Robert Wynchecombe, commissioned by the king to look after the chariot to take care of the roles that were last performed on the Saturday before the feast of Saint Catherine by Walter Clopton, the chief judge, and other judges who were supposed to move the said roles from York to Nottingham, because of the damage to the roads by extraordinary rains Nottingham without additional horses, whereupon, by virtue of their commission and by order of the judges in Norton, they took the said two horses from John Levet and John Turnour from Norton, which were paid immediately. The said William Broun, John Northeryn, Robert Bocher, all of Norton, and Hugh Matt, servant of John Baukwell, Abbot of Welbeck, armed with various other evildoers et with bows and arrows, sticks and swords, in the twilight of the same day, incited all the men from Norton to revolt, pursued the said Robert and John to Warsop and seized them, instigated by Simon de Castleton, canon of Welbeck, and John Worsop , Vicar von Cuckney and Canon von Welbeck, shot at the books in the wagon and perforated them, took the horses and led them away, but this could be prevented with God's help and by too good a defense. )

The abbot of Welbeck was an influential man due to the wealth at his disposal and in 1512 all the houses of the order were placed under his suzerainty. In 1538 Abbot Richard Bentley received a pension of £ 50 a year (equivalent to £ 28,771 in 2015).

Welbeck Abbey 1829

After the dissolution of the English monasteries, King Henry VIII gave the estate to Richard Whalley from Screveton as a fief. After the abbey was owned by a London draper, it was bought by Gilbert Talbot, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury , in 1599 for £ 555 6 s 6 d (equivalent to £ 113,894 in 2015) and sold to Sir Charles in 1607 Cavendish , son of the Bess of Hardwick , continues. Then it fell to his son, William Cavendish , who later became the Duke of Newcastle . It became the seat of the dukes. Members of the Cavendish family had the abbey converted into an English country house and a riding house built in the 17th century according to the plans of Robert Smythson and his son John. Only the basement and the interior walls remain of the old abbey masonry. In the 19th century, Welbeck Abbey came into the Bentinck family through an heir and became the seat of the Earls and Dukes of Portland .

Modern history

Aerial view

The Oxford wing of the house, which contained some of the oldest parts of the building, burned down in October 1900, but most of the furnishings were saved. This wing was rebuilt in 1905 according to the plans of Ernest George .

Archduke Franz Ferdinand accepted an invitation from William Cavendish-Bentinck, 6th Duke of Portland , and arrived with his wife Sophie on November 22, 1913 by train in Worksop . This was almost a year before the assassination in Sarajevo that the First World War triggered. The Archduke was almost killed in a hunting accident during his stay when a rifle loader fell over and triggered a rifle a few meters away from the Archduke and his host.

During the First World War, from 1914 to 1918, the kitchen block served as an army hospital. After World War II , Welbeck Abbey was leased to the Department of Defense by the Dukes of Portland and operated as Welbeck College , a training school for the army, until 2005 .

Lady Anne Cavendish-Bentinck , the unmarried older daughter of the 7th Duke, lived in Welbeck Woodhouse and she owned most of the 69 km² estate until her death on December 29, 2008. William Henry Marcello Parente (born 1951), the son of her younger sister, Lady Victoria Margaret Cavendish-Bentinck (1918–1955), who was married to Gaetano Parente, Prince of Castel Viscardo , inherited the property from his aunt. He has lived in Welbeck Abbey since the Department of Defense moved out in 2005.

The family-owned Welbeck Estates Company and the not-for-profit Harley Foundation have repurposed various buildings on the property. They can be reached via the A60 road on the west side of the property. These are the Dukeries Garden Center in the property's greenhouses, the School of Artisan Food in the former fire department dungeons, the Harley Gallery and Foundation, and the Welbeck Farm Shop in the property's former gas station. There are also a number of craft shops designed by John Outram in a former kitchen garden. Pedestrian access through the Welbeck property is limited to footpaths as part of the Robin Hood Way .

The first No Direction Home Festival took place in Welbeck Abbey over the weekend of 8-10. Held June 2012. Richard Hawley , The Low Anthem and Andrew Bird have been announced for the End-of-the-Road Festival .

architecture

Welbeck Abbey in the 17th century

The estate

William Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 5th Duke of Portland , had the most extensive construction work carried out on Welbeck Abbey. The kitchen gardens covered 89,000 m² and were enclosed by high walls with recesses in which fire bowls could be placed to accelerate the ripening of the fruit. One of the walls, a peach wall, was over 300 meters in length. An immense riding arena was built, 119 meters long, 32 meters wide and 15 meters high. At that time it was the second largest riding arena in the world, only trumped by the huge manege at the Kremlin in Moscow . There was a 386 meter long bridle path nearby. It could be lit and heated by 4,000 gas lamps to enable training at night and in winter. This so-called "Tan Gallops" was named after the soft oak chips that covered its floor. They were a by-product of leather tanning and made a good surface for horses' hooves.

A tunnel more than 900 meters long led from the house to the riding arena. Several people could walk side by side through the tunnel. Another tunnel ran parallel to it, which was more simply constructed and used by the craftsmen. Another well-constructed, 2.25-kilometer-long tunnel, wide enough for two horse-drawn carts to pass each other, led to Worksop . This tunnel was demolished at the end of the 19th century because a section that partly served as a dam on a lake collapsed. The tunnel's skylights can still be seen today from Robin Hood Way , a walking trail that follows the tunnel's route and comes up against a brick driveway between two loggias on the northeast boundary of the park.

The 5th Duke had earth excavated to create a series of extensions to the manor house. Even if they are often referred to as “underground rooms”, these buildings are strictly speaking basement rooms as they are not covered with earth or turf. Their flat roofs and skylights can be seen in aerial photographs. On the ground they are found hidden on all sides by bushes. The largest building is a large hall, 48 meters long and 19 meters wide, which should have been a chapel, but was then used as a picture gallery and occasionally as a dance hall. There is also a suite of five adjacent rooms that house the Duke's library.

Welbeck Abbey - Picture Gallery by George Washington Wilson

The Duke had many changes made to the parts of the house above ground. Nicely designed bathrooms were installed. New loggias were built at the entrances to the park.

The work cost huge sums and provided work and bread to thousands of men - builders, bricklayers, plasterers, plumbers. There were discussions about wages and working hours from time to time, but the Duke got on well with the workers and earned the nickname "Friend of the Workers". He created jobs for skilled and unskilled workers.

In 1879 Welbeck Abbey was in a state of disrepair. The only habitable rooms were the four or five rooms in the west wing that the Duke lived in. They were all painted pink, had parquet floors, and were completely bare with no furniture. Almost every room had a toilet in the corner.

William Cavendish-Bentinck, 6th Duke of Portland , had the house repaired and it became known as a center of late Victorian and Edwardian society. The duke was an avid horse owner. The houses that he built on the estate are called The Winnings because they were financed by the prize money from seven high-value races in the years 1888–1890.

Welbeck Woodhouse

A smaller house called Welbeck Woodhouse was built in 1930-1931 on the north side of the property for the then Marquess of Titchfield . It was designed by Walter Brierley , but was executed by his partner James Hervey Rutherford after Brierley's death .