Thoresby Park, Nottinghamshire ; THE SEAT OF CHARLES HERBERT PIERREPONT, EARL MANVERS. THIS very extensive demesne is within one mile of Clumber, and in the parish of Edwinston. The park is computed to be thirteen miles in circumference, and is adorned with a variety of beautiful plantations on an enlarged scale, presenting a succession of sylvan scenery of the most interesting nature: Majestic woods of ever vigorous green, Stage above stage, high waving o'er the hills." Here are also several pieces of water, the largest of which faces the front given in our view, and represents an extensive river: between this lake and the mansion, verdant and sloping lawns contribute to produce the most beautiful effect imaginable. The first of this family who was seated here, was William, second son of Robert Pierrepoint, created, in 1627, Baron Pierrepoint, of Holme Pierrepoint, (a lordship which came into the family by a marriage with a sister and heir of Lionel de Manvers, temp. Henry III.) and Viscount Newark, and the year following was advanced to the dignity of Earl of Kingston. The grandson of William became the first Duke of Kingston in 1715, and resided here; but in the time of Evelyn, the second and last Duke of that title, this mansion was destroyed by fire on the 4th of March, 1745, when, among the MSS. of its first possessor, who had been one of the leading members of the House of Commons during the Civil War, was consumed the original minutes and papers relating to the treaties with King Charles the First, at Uxbridge and in the Isle of Wight; and only a small part of the furniture, the plate, and the family deeds were saved from the flames. Soon after this event, the present edifice was built by the Duke of Kingston, from whose sister the present noble proprietor is immediately descended, and has inherited the vast estates of the Dukedom. The mansion, which stands in a fine open situation on a gentle eminence, is constructed of brick: on the principal front is a pediment supported by columns of the Ionic order, of stone; the rustic basement is also of stone, from which is the entrance opening into the hall, adorned with a chiaro-scuro of the Trojan horse, some landscapes, and sea-pieces: from the hall we enter the Earl's dressing-room, containing the portraits of Henry, Earl of Pembroke, 1769, Pascal Paoli, the gallant General of Corsica, 1770; Colonel Sawyer; Admiral Meadows, father of Earl Manvers; and also some sea-pieces and medallions. The little drawing-room contains some paintings, and in the dining-room is a very fine Madonna and Infant Jesus. These apartments are upon the groundfloor. The ascent to the principal story is by a double staircase in the centre of the mansion, single at the commencement, but dividing at the top of the first flight, and opening into the dome, a circular room, the walls of which are of Scagliola marble; round it runs a gallery supported by fourteen columns, leading to the upper apartments: the light is admitted from a handsome circular skylight, and the floor is tessellated. The dining-room has a recess at the end, formed with curiously twisted columns; and contains a portrait of Earl Howe, and a well-executed landscape, a view of Ben Lomond and its beautiful Loch, so celebrated in Scottish scenery. -The octagonal drawing-room contains a portrait of Evelyn, Duke of Kingston, and a bust of Pascal Paoli.-The Admiral's gallery is hung with a variety of very interesting sea-pieces.-The Countess's dressing-room is covered with a profusion of drawings, and has also some elegant cabinets.-The apartments in the garden front command a view of the very fine cascade in the shrubbery. THE SEAT OF WILLIAM-HENRY CAVENDISH SCOTT BENTINCK, WELBECK ABBEY was founded in the reign of king Henry II., for Præmonstratensian Canons, by Thomas de Cuckney, who dedicated it to St. James, and gave it to the monks, with some extensive grants of land for its support; the whole of the Manor of Cuckney was also settled upon the Abbey, in 1329, by John Hotham, Bishop of Ely: at the dissolution, it was granted to trustees, for secular purposes; from Whalley, the original grantee, it came to Sir Charles Cavendish, a younger brother to William, first Earl of Devonshire, who converted the Abbey into a residence in 1604: some remains of the ancient Abbey are still to be traced in the arches of the cellar, and, it is said, the sepulchral monuments were not destroyed, but only hid by wainscot panels and hangings, in some of the chambers; the old Chapel was also a part of the Abbey. Sir Charles Cavendish dying in 1617, Welbeck next became the property and residence of his son, the celebrated and loyal William Cavendish, Duke of Newcastle, whose taste for horsemanship is well known; he built here a most magnificent riding-house in 1623, and finished the stables in 1625, under the direction of John Smithson, architect; they are 130 feet long by 40 feet broad, and contain forty stalls-still the finest in the kingdom, with the exception of the royal stables at Brighton. Margaret, grand-daughter and heiress of William, Duke of Newcastle, married John Holles, Earl of Clare, who was created Duke of Newcastle in 1694: his only daughter and heir, the Lady Henrietta, married Edward Harley, second Earl of Oxford; whose only daughter and heir, Lady Margaret Cavendish Harley, married, in 1734, William, second Duke of Portland: thus, the ancient seat, at Welbeck, together with large estates in this county and in Derbyshire, descended to the present noble possessor, who is the fourth Duke of Portland. This residence, though spacious, is not remarkable for any particular beauty of architecture, and has remained nearly in its original form; but the interior displays a high degree of modern elegance and convenience. A List of the principal Pictures. St. Jerome in the Desert...King William III., and his Queen Mary...Four candle-light pieces by Godfrey Skalcken, remarkably fine...A set of small paintings, in enamel, of Tarquin and Lucretia; Hercules and Omphale; Jupiter and Semele ; and Friar and Nun...Elizabeth of Hardwicke, Countess of Shrewsbury...Lady Jane Cavendish, eldest daughter of William, Duke of Newcastle... Lady Catherine Darnley, afterward Duchess of Buckingham...Henry Cavendish, Lord Ogle... The Duchess of Somerset...Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury...Charles Cavendish, Lord Mansfield ...Lady Harriet Cavendish, afterwards Countess of Oxford...Martin Luther...Some handsome enamels of the Resurrection, a Magdalen, Christ and the Woman of Samaria, &c...Henry, first Duke of Portland. William, second Duke of Portland, when young... The Library is 44 feet by 30, and its decorations are in our Tudor style of architecture.-The Vestibule contains a view of the race-ground at Newmarket, and favourite horses, dogs, and other animals.-The Park is about eight miles round, and is adorned with several noble woods of ancient and venerable oaks of remarkable size, some of which have been particularly noticed, as, the Greendale Oak, the Duke's Walking-stick, and the Two Porters. Near the mansion, the plantations are upon a very large scale, and are diversified with a fine piece of water, which, occupying a winding valley, produces the most picturesque prospects at every turn. |