Althorp
Althorp (popularly pronounced
Althorp is mentioned as a small hamlet in the
The house at Althorp was a "classically beautiful" red brick
In total, the grounds of Althorp estate contain 28 listed buildings and structures, including nine planting stones. The former falconry, now a Grade I listed building, was built in 1613. Gardener's House is listed as a Grade II* listed building in its own right, as are the Grade II listed West and East Lodges. The mustard-yellow Grade II listed stable block, designed by architect
Etymology
A manor existed at Althorp in medieval times. It was referred to in the Domesday Book as "Olletorp", meaning Olla's Thorp, believed to refer to a medieval lord named Olla.[7] Thorp is a word of Scandinavian origin, which would have been pronounced as "throop" or "thrupp", and in Danish probably meant "daughter's settlement". In the 13th and 15th centuries it was recorded as "Holtropp" and "Aldrop", although when the estate was bought by John Spencer in 1508 it began to be referred to as "Oldthorpe".[7]
The name today is properly pronounced as "Awltrupp", which is not officially recognised on paper and by the media. The current owner, Charles Spencer,[d] noted that none of his family refer to it as Althorp, and that his father insisted on pronouncing it "Awl-trupp". When he assumed ownership in 1992, the BBC Pronunciation Department contacted him and the current "Awl-thorp" was agreed upon.[8]
History
Early history
A hamlet named Althorp existed here in medieval times, believed to have been situated on the southwest side of the park, east of West Lodge. It was first mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as having a population of ten at the time, and being part of the parish of Brington. It was officially designated as an "extra parochial district" for centuries under the New Bottle Grove Hundred of Brington,[9] but by 1874 it was being cited as an independent civil parish.[e] 21 residents were documented in 1327, and in 1377 fifty people were reported to have paid Poll Tax over the age of 14.[11] During the 15th century the population of the village diminished, and in 1505 there were no longer any tenants living there. By 1577 most of the land was converted into four substantial sheep pastures.[11]
In 1469
When John Spencer died in 1522, he passed the estate to his youngest son, Sir
King Charles I is documented to have visited Althorp during his reign. The drawing room was built and the main hall enlarged for the occasion, with £1,300 spent on the banquet, an exorbitant sum for the period.[f] Upon Robert Spencer's death in 1627 Althorp devolved to William Spencer, 2nd Baron Spencer of Wormleighton who held it until his death in 1636. William's eldest son, Henry Spencer, 1st Earl of Sunderland, known as The Lord Spencer between 1636 and June 1643, fought in the Battle of Edgehill in 1642 and was rewarded for his services on 8 June 1643 when the title of Earl of Sunderland was bestowed upon him, although the title cost him £3,000. He then fought in the siege of Gloucester in August 1643 and the First Battle of Newbury on 20 September 1643, where he was killed, aged 23, by a cannonball.[18]
Following Henry's death, the estate passed to his eldest son
Social and cultural hub
John served as Member of Parliament for
John's son
The 3rd Earl became an active statesman, serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer under Lord Grey and Lord Melbourne from 1830 to 1834. Along with Lord John Russell, he led the fight to pass the Reform Bill of 1832, making more than twenty speeches, and is generally considered the architect of its victory.[37] Despite his debts, in respect for his father, John managed to retain the massive book collection, and also continue to run the other Spencer houses at Wimbledon and Spencer House in London, as well as his farm in Wiseton and shooting retreat in Norfolk. He achieved this mainly by far less extravagant living, spending much of the year at Wiseton where the running costs were £1,200 compared with the £5,000 needed to run Althorp and pay the staff of 40 in the house.[38] As a result, Althorp was largely abandoned during the late 1830s and early 1840s. John also leased out his lands and gardens and sold land in Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire, repaying all the debt by the time of his death in 1845, and beginning to run his properties at a profit. His son Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer, who owned Althorp from 1845 until his death in 1857, also retained the collection.[39]
Modern history
Times became more difficult for the Spencers by the late 19th century, and many of their assets had to be sold off.
The estate was first opened to the public in 1953 by Albert, to mitigate against taxation,
Edward left the estate to his son, the current owner Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, after his death in 1992. As a teenager, Charles served as a tour guide at the house and acquired a deep knowledge of Althorp.[53] At the time he inherited the estate it was losing some £400,000 annually, and the staff of 14 had to be significantly reduced.[54] Charles' older sister was Diana, Princess of Wales, who grew up with him at Althorp.[47]
Since the 1990s Charles Spencer has done much to increase the revenue earned by the estate to keep it running. The annual Althorp Literary Festival was founded in 2003.[55][56] The heir apparent is Charles' son Louis Frederick John Spencer (born 1994). Charles has expressed concerns about the future of the estate and whether Louis might be forced to sell it.[57] In 2005 Charles endorsed a furniture collection of replicas from the house, known as the Althorp Living History Collection.[53]
In 2009 a major restoration of the roof, stonework and the mathematical tiles that clad the building was undertaken. Approximately £10 million was spent on repairing the roof alone. In 2010 an auction of over 700 items from Althorp's attics and cellars, as well as a Rubens and other notable works, achieved £21 million.[58][59]
Architecture and collections
Althorp house is described as standing in a low situation, "approached by a handsome avenue, beautifully shaded with trees".
Interior
The interior of the palace is generally considered its strongest asset as the Spencer family has assembled an impressive collection of portrait art, including several pieces painted by the
Ground floor
Wootton Hall and saloon
Wootton Hall is the grand hall entrance on the central south side of Althorp house. "Perfectly proportioned" with a two-storey high ceiling, it was cited by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner as "the noblest Georgian room in the county".[68] It takes its name from the painter John Wootton who was commissioned by the family in 1733 to paint a number of massive paintings in his Marylebone studio to reflect the family's love of equestrian pursuits, particularly fox hunting. At the time, Wootton was considered to be the finest painter of horses in the country.[68] The paintings still hang on the walls. The hall has a substantial collection of artefacts collected over the years. Aside from the hall porter's chair, there is a dozen or so lavish-looking hall chairs, one of which is a sedan chair, rediscovered in the stable block in 1911, which had once been in Spencer House.[69]
A prominent feature of the Wootton Hall is its pair of Italian black and Beschia marble blackamoor
Beyond the Wootton Hall is the saloon, which was converted from an inner courtyard and roofed in 1650 by Dorothy Spencer, Countess of Sunderland.[73] The saloon was the first room at Althorp to have electricity installed, and it contains an imposing oak staircase, added in the 1660s.[74][61] Cosmo III noted Althorp's "spacious staircase of the wood of the walnut tree,[g] stained, constructed with great magnificence; this staircase, dividing itself into two equal branches, leads to the grand saloon, from which is the passage into the chambers, all of them regularly disposed after the Italian manner, to which country the Earl was indented for a model of the design."[20] Historically, the staircase was painted white. It is described as being "surprisingly shallow and delightfully uneven – a physical manifestation of the long history of the house".[74]
Sitting and drawing rooms
The south drawing room is at the front of the house on the West Wing. In earlier times the room had served as a dining room, despite it being about as far from the kitchen as possible.
The grandmother's sitting room is situated at the front of the eastern wing. It is noted for its deep blue hand-painted frescoes and formal furniture, and was the favourite room of Charles and Diana's grandmother, Cynthia Spencer, Countess Spencer.[81] Nearby was the Muniment room in which the Spencer family records were kept, described as a "musty apartment" which contained over 500 years of history, from medieval household accounts to letters from Jacobeans and accounts of Victorian house parties. The room was a favourite haunt of Spencer's grandfather, Albert Spencer, who would spend thousands of hours in it perusing over the family history. So guarded was he of the collection that when Winston Churchill once spent time in the room looking for information on his ancestor, John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough (1650–1722), Albert immediately doused out his cigar in fear of creating a fire.[82] The records were sold to the British Library in the 1980s, leaving the room empty, before it was converted to what is known as the "Steward's Room Flat".[83] This part of the house once had an extensive collection of 1830s bull paintings by Richard Ansdell.[84]
The Sutherland room lies at the rear east wing of the house and was once the bedroom of the Earl of Althorp in the first few centuries of the house when it was fashionable for the occupants to sleep on the ground floor and guests to sleep on the first floor. This was still the case during the Holland restoration, and as a result the room was ignored, so it retains many of the earlier mouldings not seen in many other parts of the house.[85] It contains two fireplaces made by John Vardy and James Stuart which were originally situated in Spencer House, and the room has the original 17th-century cornice. The paintings in the room were selected by the current owner Charles Spencer to honour John, Third Earl Spencer and his passion for foxhunting.[85] After it ceased usage as a bedroom, on special occasions the room would be full of life; on Christmas Day the room would be "transformed into a Christmas fairyland, with clockwork Santas, snowmen and angels all spinning and chiming in the candlelight". The children would have their places marked by a small cake with their names written on it in icing.[86]
The Marlborough room, which contains the great parlour, is named after Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough,[87] and is situated next to the Sunderland room and at left angles to the library.[88][89] The Marlborough room served as an "uncomfortable" drawing room until the 1990s when a Victorian rosewood dining table accommodating for up to 42 people was added, with 'squiggle-back' chairs attributed to George Seddon in 1800.[87] The new room was created after alterations were made to the large drawing room by the 6th Earl Spencer in 1911, including the removal of a dividing partition from the old billiard room.[90][91] Part of the restoration work attributed to the 7th Earl Spencer after 1957 includes a replacement of two Victorian chimney pieces in the Marlborough room with those from Spencer House, one which was crafted by Peter Scheemakers.[92] Portraits by Thomas Gainsborough, Joshua Reynolds, and George Romney, mostly of family members, adorn the walls, and accessions from the Spencer House are placed throughout.[90][93][94]
Examples of paintings at Althorp
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Portrait of Lavinia Bingham, Countess Spencer bySir Joshua Reynolds(1781–1782)
-
Shorthorn bull portrait by an unknown artist (before 1845)
-
Portrait of Lady Margaret Georgiana Poyntz by Pompeo Batoni (c.1764)
-
The Hon. John Spencer (1708–1746), his son the 1st Earl Spencer (1734–1783) and their servant, Caesar Shaw by George Knapton (c.1744)
Dining rooms
The great dining room is situated in the east wing extension of the house and was added in 1877 under J. MacVicar Anderson during the time of the Red Earl. The room was inspired by the ballroom of Buckingham Palace, with walls hung with faded, red damask silk.[95] The Spencers ate their regular meals in the tapestry dining room, an inner room of the east side to the east of the Wooton Hall. Aside from the two fine vividly constructed tapestries, one of gypsies and one of farming, the room is fairly bleak in design compared to other rooms in the house; the dining table is relatively small, with a drab grey floor and open brick fireplace dated in large letters to 1683.[96] The "sombre" oak panelling originally came from the family's other property of Wormleighton Manor in Warwickshire.[97] Charles Spencer recalled that three generations of Spencers would eat their lunch together and that dining conditions were "silent, apart from the noises of my grandfather eating with great gusto, a napkin tucked in around his neck, hanging down over his popping-out tummy, and it was all very sad and tense".[98]
Library
The ceiling of the original library at Althorp collapsed in 1773, and at the same time a new floor was put down in the Picture Gallery. [99] Ionic columns and an Adam style ceiling were added.[64] George John's fascination in literature began at a young age and there is a Reynolds portrait in the house of him at Trinity College, Cambridge holding a book By his later life, George John's collecting habit had become something of an obsession and he attempted to collect every volume ever published in Britain.[6]
The books were kept in five apartments in Althorp in the west wing, which, combined, formed the "Long Library" with books from the floor to the ceiling along much of its approximately 200 by 20 feet (61.0 m × 6.1 m) length. He not only collected British works but imported Greek and Latin classics, and in 1790, he acquired the collection of Count
In 1802, George hired Reverend Thomas Frognall Dibdin as an official librarian to look after the collection and the library contains his many catalogues entitled Aedes Althorpianæ, documenting the books of the library. The collection became so enormous that the massive library became inadequate to hold the contents, and books began being stored along the long picture gallery on the first floor above it.[6] By the time of George John's death in 1834, he had amassed one of the largest private collections in Europe of some 110,000 volumes.[6] Alcoves were added to the ends of the library during the Holland restoration, creating extra room for the growing collection.[101]
Billiard room
The
China museum and porcelain
The old "painter's passage", parallel to the south drawing room, was renovated after the Second World War when glass cases were installed along its length to showcase the Spencer crockery, with a range of porcelain including
The Garden Lobby of Althorp also contains a number of pieces of porcelain from reputable European manufacturers, but also several rare Oriental pieces.[109] Of note in the Garden Lobby aside from its many plates is a Sèvres tobacco jar with double strap handles, believed to be painted by Louis Jean Thévenet in 1765,[110] two Chelsea vases decorated with putti which metaphorically represent the four seasons, which the Red Earl had bought as a gift for his wife Charlotte,[111] an extremely finely carved Meissen flower bowl with hundreds of tiny gilded blooms which dates to around 1745,[112] a Meissen card box, and a blue and gold cherubic Meissen chocolate set-for-one which was believed to have been made for Marie Antoinette in 1781 as a present celebrating the birth of her son Dauphin.[113]
First floor
The picture gallery and chapel
The picture gallery stretches for 115 feet (35 m) on the first floor of the west wing, 21 feet (6.4 m) wide and 19 feet (5.8 m) high.[h][115] The room is one of the best remaining examples of the original Tudor woodwork and ambiance in the mansion, featuring oak panelling along its length. During the renovation of the 18th century, the oak panelling in the gallery was covered with white paint, and it was not until 1904 that it was restored to its former glory, the restoration funded by the sale of a Rubens painting in the housekeeper's room.[116] Due to its length, during Tudor times the ladies of the mansion used the gallery for exercise on rainy days to avoid dragging their long skirts and dresses through the mud in the grounds.[117] It was also used as a dining hall, and in 1695 the county nobility and gentry all met together and dined in the gallery to pay their respects to William III.[118]
The gallery has an extensive collection of about 60 portraits, including Van Dyck's War and Peace, a
The chapel on the upper floor became a store room in the early 1980s for pieces being sold off.[124] The stained glass window of the chapel, with the Spencer crest, dates to 1588, and was brought to Althorp from Wormleigton. The organ on the other hand is far more recent, acquired from the parish of Meriden in the 1990s.[125] A number of earlier occupants of Althorp, particularly George John and Frederick, were devout Christians and would preach in the chapel, and Robert, 6th Earl Spencer would hold a daily service here. It is still used for family christenings, and for services at Christmas, Easter and Harvest Thanksgiving.[126]
Notable paintings on the upper floor
-
War and Peace bySir Anthony van Dyck(1637)
-
Portrait of Claude de Lorrain, Prince of Chevreuse by Frans Pourbus the Younger (1610)
-
Portrait of Lady Jane Grey by Lucas de Heere before 1584)
Bedrooms
The oak bedroom is at the rear of the castle, on the western side between King William bedroom and the great room. The marriage of the first Earl Spencer and Margaret Georgiana took place in secret here on 20 December 1755, during a ball which was taking place at Althorp to celebrate John's 21st birthday.[127][28] Georgiana later recalled, "We both behaved very well, spoke distinctly and loudly but I trembled so much I could hardly stand".[28] As of 1998 it was furnished with deep red wall paper, rug and chairs, with oak floors, bed and chairs. There are several portraits on the wall, one of them very large above the fireplace. The Spencer "S" features on the blue velvet bed cover, and above the king-sized bed and by the fireplace.[127]
The room to the east of the oak bedroom is known as the great room. The room was established in the mid-17th century as part of a reception suite, and was used by George John, the Second Earl for important political conferences during his period as First Lord of the Admiralty and Home Secretary.
The Princess of Wales Bedroom is named after the wife of the future King Edward VII, Alexandra, Princess of Wales, who stayed at Althorp in 1863 on a visit to see the Red Earl. Although the fabric of the four-poster bed was designed in 1911, the room is largely Georgian, with deep red walls and furnishings, and contains a notable portrait of a young princess by the Spanish court painter, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo.[133] The Queen Mary Bedroom is named after Mary, the wife of King George V, who visited Althorp in 1913. It contains a bed with an extremely tall structure, dated to the 18th century, draped in pea green taffet. Of particular note in the Queen Mary Bedroom are two chairs covered with needlework created by Albert, who was once the chairman of the Royal School of Needlework.[134]
The upper floor also contains the India silk bedroom and the ante room, which measures 23 ft 4 inches by 32 ft 6 inches.[114] Formerly known as the patchwork bedroom, the ante room was established by Charlotte, Countess Spencer and her sister during the Victorian period, and today forms part of a suite of state chambers.[53]
Outer buildings
In total, Althorp estate contains 28 listed buildings and structures, of which nine are planting stones, dotted around the park. Two are Grade I listed, including the main house; two are Grade II* listed, including the stable block and Gardener's House, Althorp, and the remainder have a Grade II designation, mainly garden screens, gates and gateways aside from the planting stones.[135]
The mustard-yellow Grade II* listed stable block, designed by architect Roger Morris with a Palladian influence, was ordered by Charles, Fifth Earl of Sutherland in the early 1730s.[136] It replaced an earlier building which had long been in disrepair and could hold 30 to 40 horses. Morris designed the building with a clear Tuscan architectural design, drawing upon earlier inspiration from his stables at Inigo Jones's St Paul's Church in Covent Garden.[137] A fountain was installed in the courtyard to provide the horse's troughs with water, although this no longer survives. Several rooms were built within the stable block, including hot and cold baths for riders after hunting, a veterinarian's room with medicines for horses, and what was once a smoking room.[138] Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough remarked at how large the structure was when it was constructed, noting that it was rather an extravagance. [139] It was converted into an exhibition centre to celebrate the life of Princess Diana between 1998 and 2013, and the space now houses a yearly exhibition picking on a theme of the estate. 2019's was entitled 'Animals of Althorp' and explored the estate's relationship with animals throughout the centuries. .[140]
The Grade I listed Falconry was built in 1613 using the same local ironstone as the stables and is of similar Palladian appearance, featuring a "gabled roof with ashlar parapets, kneelers and obelisks".[141] It is a two-storey structure, but a single storey red-brick extension was added in the 19th century. The hall of the falconry contains 2 arcaded openings with keystones, and to the left of the hall is a fireplace with Delft tiles, dated to the 19th century.[141] Over the centuries at various times it has been the home of the park warden, the gamekeeper, and the kennelman who looked after the hounds, hosting puppy shows in the 20th century.[142] Both the stable block and Falconry became listed buildings in November 1954.[141][143] Nearby was the Lavender Cottage with a thatched roof and a wendy house which the Althorp children would play in, but was accidentally burned down by the son of the chauffeur of Albert, and never rebuilt.[137]
The Fifth Earl also built the Grade II* listed Gardener's House at the back of the park, in a similar Palladian style. The head gardener of Althorp resided at the villa in the 18th century. Princess Diana had been intent on living in the castle following her separation from Prince Charles, but due to security concerns it was considered unfeasible.[144] Of particular note is its Victorian three-quarter life-sized marble sculpture, The Shipwrecked Mariner, depicting a sailor reaching desperately from a raft. Charles Spencer has since moved it from the main portico of Gardener's House to the main house where it sits in the Painters Passage. [145]
Both of the North and South West Lodges of Althorp date to around 1730 under Roger Morris and are both built from lias ashlar with slate roofs. The North and South East Lodges date to around 1810 and are built from limestone ashlar with slate roofs. All four buildings became Grade II listed buildings in November 1954.[146][147][148][149] The Grade II listed Dairy Cottage, to the northwest of the lake, dates to the late 18th century under Henry Holland, and was listed in December 1986. It is a two-storey building with an attic and hipped roof. It has a 19th-century central door and a surrounding porch "flanked by casements under flat arch heads".[150]
Grounds
The estate of Althorp covers an area of at least 13,000 acres (50 km2), and not only includes the house grounds but areas of woodland, cottages, farms, and surrounding hamlets.
Robert Spencer hired the French landscape architect André Le Nôtre to lay out the park and grounds in the 1660s.[11] A map by Jan Kip which appeared in Britannia Illustrata (1709) showed the result of the changes, depicting the house with a wide rectangular courtyard on the main south front, a formal walled garden structured by rectangular-shaped flower-beds and lawns to the east, and tree-lined avenues to the north and south.[11] During the renovation under Holland in the 18th century, the lake was drained in the deer park, which the First Earl had used as a playground with full-sized Venetian gondolas, and remaining traces of the old moat were eradicated. From 1860 onwards the architect William Milford Teulon (1823–1900) updated the gardens at Althorp, and further additions and changes were made in the 1990s under Dan Pearson when the Diana memorial was established and many trees planted.[156] After Teulon's additions, the Spencers began growing its own fruit and vegetables and flowers.[157] In 1901 a variety of sweet pea, now known "Spencer type", with "flowers of exceptional size and of an exquisite shade of pink", was cultivated at Althorp by Silas Cole, the chief gardener to the Fifth Earl Spencer, and exhibited at horticultural shows.[156]
Diana grave, memorial, and exhibition
A
Following the death of Diana on 31 August 1997 and the subsequent decision to create a memorial and open the house and estate to the public, the garden designer
The estate stable block was converted into a public exhibition devoted to the memory of Diana, and open between 1998 and 2013, It was designed by Rasshied Ali Din, who had to seek approval from English Heritage due to it being a Grade II listed building. Din said of the result, "You have a contrast of the modern and the new with the old and the established, which is basically a metaphor for Diana. She was a very modern woman within an established environment."[166] He created six rooms out of the former carriage houses and stabling areas, and the old tea room was transformed into a restaurant, and toilets installed for visitors.[167]
The first room was called "Spencer Women", placing Diana in context to the women of her family, with paintings and jewellery of
A third room documented the Royal Wedding and its "glamour and excitement", with a display of the David Emanuel wedding dress she wore on 29 July 1981.[140] A fourth room documented her extensive charitable and humanitarian work through video footage edited by Tim Ashton, and a fifth, known as the "Tribute Room".
The sixth room was the Exhibition, which was a celebration of her life, and contained large glass cases at the sides with dummies of Diana wearing her notable suits and dresses, with the occasions documented on cards on the floor in front of them. A great glass case at the end underneath a stylish black and white photograph contained a selected few hundred of the thousands of condolence books the Spencers received from around the world, designed to give a "final sense of scale to the impact of Diana's life and of her death".[169] A sleek, silk-bound copy of the incendiary address that her brother Charles delivered at Diana's funeral was available for £25.[140]
The estate and house are open to the public during the summer months (1 July to 30 August), although the exhibition centre in the stable block was closed in August 2013. It was believed to be due to concern about the commercial exploitation of Diana's name, and the desire to "squash the cult of Diana".
Haunting
Although the current owner, Charles Spencer, professes to have never witnessed a ghost at Althorp or anywhere else, over the years numerous ghostly sightings have been reported in the mansion. In the mid-19th century the Dean of Lincoln was invited to stay at the property by Frederick, 4th Earl Spencer. He complained the following morning that during the night a figure dressed as a groom (believed to be the ghost of the deceased servant of the 3rd Earl) had entered his room holding candles and checking that they were snuffed out around the bed.[170] Lady Margaret Douglas-Home professed to being aware of a ghost of a girl with grey slippers in the gallery.[171]
See also
- List of historic houses in England
References
- Notes
- ^ Sources differ on the exact size of the estate, but most state 13,000 or 14,000 acres. The official website claims 13,000 acres,[1] but Paprocki and others mention 14,000.[2]
- ^ Various sources differ on how many volumes Althorp had at its peak, although most agree it was one of the most sizable private collections in Europe at the time. A number of sources conservatively state 33,000 to 40,000 volumes,[4][5] but Charles Spencer's Althorp: A Story of an English Country House (1998) estimates 110,000 upon John's death in 1834, sprawling across at least five rooms from floor to ceiling, and notes that the collection had grown so massive that books were also being stored in rooms like the Picture Gallery on the upper floor.[6]
- ^ The hall is also spelled Wooten or Wooton in various sources.
- ^ With the exception of the documenting of Charles Spencer, 3rd Duke of Marlborough and Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland in the history section in this article, unless otherwise stated, Charles Spencer will be used to refer to the current owner Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer.
- ^ In the History, Gazetteer, and Directory of Northamptonshire, William Whellan was still describing it as an extra parochial district in 1849, but in an 1874 edition, Francis Whellan mentions that it was "now an independent parish".[10]
- ^ The feast was extravagant, including 6 barrels of oysters, 140 apricots, over 50 fishes including pike, perch, bream and tench, 14 swans, 40 pheasants, 26 partridges, 39 turkeys, 46 rabbits, 26 pigs, 73 redshanks, 100 quails, 39 dozen larks, 500 wild pigeons and 300 tame pigeons, 26 young herons, 72 gulls, 3,350 eggs, 560 pounds of butter, 14 dozen artichokes, 20 cauliflowers, 2 firkins of cider, 2 hogsheads of sherry, 1 hogshead of white wine, and 40 hogsheads of beer, and more.[17]
- ^ A likely error as the Spencers and other sources state the staircase is oak rather than walnut.
- ^ According to the exact measurements of Althorp, the long gallery measures 114 feet 11 inches (35.03 m) by 21 feet (6.4 m).[114] Spencer states 20 ft for the width but the official website states 20 ft 12 inches, which is 21 ft.[115][114]
- ^ Lely was also responsible for painting ten of Charles' mistresses which are in the gallery, known as "The Windsor Beauties".[121]
- Citations
- ^ a b "The Estate". Spencerofalthorp.com. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
- ^ a b Paprocki 2009, p. 31.
- ^ a b c Google (20 May 2014). "Althorp" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
- ^ a b c Whellan 1849, p. 283.
- ^ Kemp 1992, p. 268.
- ^ a b c d e f g Spencer 1998, p. 72.
- ^ a b c d Spencer 1998, p. 18.
- ^ Spencer 1998, p. 19.
- ^ Spencer & Dibdin 1822, p. 3.
- ^ Whellan 1874, p. 293.
- ^ a b c d "'Althorp', An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in the County of Northamptonshire, Volume 3: Archaeological sites in North-West Northamptonshire". English Heritage, accessed via British History Online. 1981. pp. 1–3. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ^ "Spencer, John (c.1549–1600), of Newnham, Warws. and Althorp, Northants. in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1558–1603". Historyofparliamentonline.org. 1981. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ^ The Spectator 1864, p. 123.
- ^ Spencer 1998, p. 20.
- ^ Martin Butler, The Stuart Court Masque and Political Culture (Cambridge, 2008), p. 79.
- ^ Jessica L. Malay, Anne Clifford's Autobiographical Writing, 1590-1676 (Manchester, 2018), pp. 19-20.
- ^ Spencer 1998, p. 91.
- ^ Spencer 2000, p. 45.
- ^ Spencer 1998, p. 41.
- ^ a b c Spencer & Dibdin 1822, p. 34.
- ^ a b Jones 1829, p. 245.
- doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/26135. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ Evelyn 1819, p. 653.
- ^ Recusant History. Catholic Record Society. 2006. p. 317.
- ^ Nichols & Wray 1935, p. 351.
- ^ a b c Spencer 1998, p. 35.
- ^ Spencer 1998, p. 37.
- ^ a b c "The Oak Bedroom". Spencerofalthorp.com. Archived from the original on 6 April 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Spencer 1998, p. 38.
- ^ Debrett 1840, p. 681.
- ^ Smith 2013, p. 49.
- ^ Foreman 2001, p. xvi.
- ^ James 1993, p. 53.
- ^ Cooper 1833, p. 7.
- doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/51261. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ a b c Spencer 1998, p. 73.
- ^ "John Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl Spencer". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
- ^ Spencer 1998, p. 75.
- ^ Spencer 1998, p. 78.
- ^ "John Poyntz, Fifth Earl Spencer". Spencerofalthorp.com. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "George John, 2nd Earl Spencer". University of Manchester. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2014.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ The ... Volume of the Walpole Society. Vol. 45. Walpole Society. 1976. p. 9.
- ^ Spencer 1998, p. 6.
- ^ a b Spencer 1998, p. 111.
- ^ a b Palmer 2008, p. 152.
- ^ Electric Railway Society Journal. The Electric Railway Society. 1995. p. 21.
- ^ a b "Diana, Princess of Wales biography". Royal.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 25 May 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
- ^ Spencer 1998, p. 119.
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- Bibliography
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Further reading
- Battiscombe, Georgina (24 September 1984). The Spencers of Althorp. Constable. ISBN 9780094657007.
- McSwain, Eleanor Davis (1989). Sifting Through the Ashes for the Althorp, Alinthrop, Allentharp, Allentharpe, Tharp, Tharpe Family and Connections: Davis, Charnock, Sebastian, Pierson. E.D. McSwain.
- Neale, John Preston (1847). The Mansions of England: Or, Picturesque Delineations of the Seats of Noblemen and Gentlemen. M. A. Nattali.
- Timmius, Samuel (1870). Lord Spencer's library. A sketch of a visit to Althorp, Northamptonshire. Privately printed. Reprinted by Birmingham Daily Post.
External links
- Media related to Althorp House at Wikimedia Commons
- Official website
- Althorp entry from The DiCamillo Companion to British & Irish Country Houses
- BBC guide to Althorp
- Althorp's listed buildings
- Map sources for Althorp
- Althorp in the Domesday Book
52°16′49″N 1°00′07″W / 52.28028°N 1.00194°W