UNDERLEY HALLKIRKBY LONSDALE - WESTMORLAND

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A HISTORY OF HOUSEAND OCCUPANTS

Editor: John D. Battle

1969

Underley Hall 1830

A HISTORY OF UNDERLEY HALL AND OCCUPANTS

INTRODUCTION

This pamphlet sets out to sketch and reconstruct the history of Underley Hall, “one of Westmorland’s finest mansions in the Tudor style”.

The first section traces the site of Underley from the Norman Conquest, through the development of Underley Estate, and the two manor houses or large farm houses of Near and Far Underley in the Sixteenth century, up to the early Nineteenth century when Alexander Nowell bought the estate and established a mansion on the site of the present house. This mansion is still standing today in its basic form, although recent alterations, additions and modernisations may have changed parts of the building.

Then a second section traces the history of the occupants, from the Wilson Family of the Sixteenth century through the Ashton Family until Alexander Nowell bought the estate in 1807. In 1840 he sold the house to Alderman Thompson, through Thompson’s daughter it passed on to the Bective Family, and then to the daughter of Lord Bective who married Lord Henry Cavendish-Bentinck, who moved into Underley in 1901. The CavendishBentincks lived at Underley until early 1940, when Underley ceased to be a residential manor house as such, and an Evacuee Boys School “Hordle House” moved in. This was replaced by “Oakfleld” a girls school in 1945. In 1959 St. Michael’s College, the junior seminary for the R.C. Lancaster Diocese bought Underley.

This section is followed by a short tour of the house, describing the functions of the rooms in the periods of the Cavendish-Bentinck days, and the days of “Hordle House” and “Oakfield” school and of St. Michael’s College, with descriptions of recent additions and extensions. Then a short chapter deals with the grounds.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This pamphlet has required much research and could not have been achieved without the help of many people who have contributed information and helped in numerous other ways. Our grateful

acknowledgements are due to:

The Staff of St. Michael’s CollegeRev. P. D. Corbishley

Mr. R. FulfordSir Francis Pearson

Mr. T. HowarthMr. C. HowarthRev. T. Ledgard

Dr. R. G. MathewsKendal Archivists

Mr. F. EllisMr. E. Hill

Mr. S. MajorMr. A. Henery

Mr. R. J. ScrivenMr. Boumphrey

Miss M. McEwanMrs. M. HuttonMr. E. Willacy

and also many others for their assistance

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CHAPTER I - THE SITE

The Manor of Kirkby Lonsdale

In 1066, William I defeated King Harold at Hastings and established himself on the English throne. After the conquest he secured control by crushing rebellions and establishing Norman barons over the conquered lands. These barons were bound to William by a feudal oath, and although some English barons were retained, the Normans established and consolidated a feudal society.

Then came the final mark of complete control. The whole of England, owned by William was divided between his Norman followers and loyal Saxons, but now he decided to make a complete survey of his newly gained territory, including descriptions of districts and manors and their holders. All this information was written up in the famous Domesday Book, which was completed in 1086.

It is here that we find the first reference to the Manor of Kirkby Lonsdale, which was to form the basis of the Underley Estate. All manors and holders in the districts of Kendal and Lonsdale are found in this survey. These two districts were then part of "Euruicscuire", the northernmost English county. The Domesday Book records that Thane Torfln held most of these two districts at the time of the conquest. He was the lord of a group of twelve manors, the chief of which was Austwick, and for our purpose the most important of these is the Manor of Kirkby Lonsdale, "Cherchebi".

Thane Torfin, in fact, shared the area before the Conquest with Earl Tostig (brother to King Harold), lord of another group of local manors, including the manors of Barbon and Casterton.

However, during the reign of William I, Ivo de Taillebois, one of the great Normans who came with the Conqueror, became the first Baron of Kendal. Thane Torfin died soon after the Conquest, and Earl Tostig was killed at the Battle of Stamford Bridge, and so Ivo de Taillebois having received the vast area of Amounderness from William Rufus, took over all the lands that Thane Torfin and Earl Tostig had previously ruled.

Between 1090 and 1097, during the reign of William II, Ivo de Taillebois “for the souls of himself and of Lucy his wife granted to Stephen de Whitby the first Abbot of the newlyformed Abbey of St. Mary at York, and the brethren serving there, the church of Kirkby Lonsdale with the associated lands and common rights.” (Kendale ii 3063)

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At this time, the original manor of Kirkby Lonsdale was comparatively small in size, with relatively few inhabitants, though in the twelfth century its boundaries were extended to include the manor of Thirnby. This enlarged manor was held under the Baron of Kendal by members of the family of de Kirkby, one of whom, John de Kirkby, granted the manor to the Abbey of St. Mary of York, (which already held Kirkby Lonsdale Church and its immediate lands) between 1231 and 1240. The Abbey of St. Mary held this manor area until the dissolution of the monasteries, when it passed into the hands of the Crown.

Underlay

In 1260 it is believed that the Abbot of York granted to Ughtred de Underlay, son of the Earl of Northumberland, fifteen acres and one rood of land in the town of Kirkby Lonsdale; and the eminent local historian Alexander Pearson suggests that this possibly referred to land around Crow Wood Beck which later became Underley Park. ("Annals of Kirkby Lonsdale"). Here, perhaps, is the first reference to the site on which the present house stands.

It is interesting to note that the "Oxford Book of Place Names" records the earliest reference to an "Underlaj" in the district of "Kendaje" in 1282.

"Near and Far Underley"

However, a break of 240 years separates this from the next reference to this newly formed Underley Estate. The well-known local Wilson family appears to have bought the estate from a descendant of Ughtred in the early sixteenth century, and consolidated the property until 1732, when it was sold to the Ashton Family. To quote the Underley Estates "Title Deeds": "Hugh Ashton of Kirfitt Hall purchased Underley and lands and tenements at Kearswick from Thomas Wilson."

In 1593, Henry Wilson extended his small estate by buying lands in Kirkby Lonsdale. At this time there were two houses on the Underley Estate. One was named "Far Underley" and the other "Near Underley". The former was more a combination of manor and farm house, situated approximately where the present Underley stands. "Near Underley" was a combination of a mansion and farm on a site to the south-east of the present hall, a site formerly known as "Crow Wood".

The style of architecture which is called "Tudor" began in the reign of Henry VII. House fronts were given a greater amount ofdecoration and ornament, and houses both in town and country continued

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to be half timbered. In the country the houses of the wealthier peasant-farmers were becoming much more comfortable. Farm houses were often in storeys with plenty of windows and chimneys. Manor houses were increasingly comfortable and convenent. Whereas earlier most of the life of the house had gone on in the Great Hall, there were now separate parlours, dining rooms and bedrooms all especially designed to suit their purpose. The inside walls were richly decorated with plaster and wood panelling. Windows were much bigger with many small panes of glass set in lead frames. There were bay windows and also the older kind of projecting windows known as “oriels”. Windows opened outwards on hinges at the side, and window curtains of velvet and satin were a popular feature. Walls were covered by oak panelling called wainscoting. At first, these panels were small and were carved to imitate folded material; they were called “linen fold panelling”. Later the panels were either plain or painted with flower patterns, and in the seventeenth century oil paintings decorated the walls. The high ceilings were very ornamental, with designs of fruit and flowers placed in geometrical shapes of circles, octagons and squares.

The builders of the country mansions of Elizabethan times loved grand decoration of all kinds and they sometimes built them of brick or stone. These mansions had towers, battlements and parapets, carved stone porches held up by pillars and clusters of tall beautifully shaped chimneys.

From this general view of Tudor styles we can see what “Near” and “Far” Underley must have looked like, though, in fact, descriptory evidence and documentation is lacking.

Alexander Nowell

Though the Ashton Family owned the Underley Estate for seventy two years, the estate and buildings were hardly altered. It was when Alexander Nowell bought the Underley Estate that IJnderley Hall first took on its present form. Nowell bought the estate in 1807 for the sum of £10,560, though it was only a very small property with a rental of £170 a year. To quote the Underley Estate Title Deeds: “All that capital mansion called Underley Hall now used as a farm-house, at Underley in Kirkby Lonsdale Parish with barns, stables, and outbuildings, also several closes etc., called The Hall, barns, stables, gardens, and court containing 1 acre, 2 roods, 8 perches, the Pleasure Ground containing 2 roods 28 perches, the Orchard of 1 acre 37 perches and the surrounding land area amounting to 129 acres (giving a total acreage of 133 acres)”.

Nuwell's first intention was to build a residential country mansion

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on Underley Estate, but while building was in progress, Alexander Nowell required a residence close at hand from which he could supervise the work. A house, was erected in Kirkby Lonsdale for him which is known locally as “The Courtyard”. In 1819, Nowell moved into “The Courtyard” and work began on the new Underley Hall. “Far Underley” and “Near Underley” were both pulled down and the ground of the present site was prepared.

Architect

A local architect of repute, Francis Webster of Kendal, was commissioned to draw up plans for Underley Hall. He has been described as “an architect of great skill and imagination”. Buildings designed by him include the 1825 section of Kendal Town Hall, the Midland Bank, and Bridge House in Kendal. He also worked extensively in marble. He designed numerous country houses including Rigmaden Park, and Underley Hall.

He was born at Lindale (just inside the Lancashire border) in 1767 and he died in Kendal in 1827. An obituary in “Westmorland Gazette” of October 13th, 1827, refers to him being an Alderman of Kendal, as well as a notable architect; Quote: “At Eller Howe near Cartmel on Wednesday morning last, Mr. Francis Webster of this town, architect, and one of the Aldermen of the burgh, in the sixty-first year of his age. More than a common obituary may be looked for to notice the death of one who has for so many years, with credit to himself, moved as a public man. His numerous works in this and surrounding counties will long bear ample testimony of the estimation in which he was held as an architect. The perceptions of his mind were quick, extensive and correct. He was the sole inventor of machinery by which almost every description of mouldings can be wrought in marble or stone with greater accuracy than by manual labour. It is not too much to say that in private life his goodness of heart, the simplicity and kindness of his manners, will be generally acknowledged by none more than the numerous workmen in his employ. To his cottage, near which he was born, he had finally retired from the bustle of a town and active life to spend his closing years in domestic quiet and rural amusements.”

Underley Hall took six years to build, but in 1825 the foundation stone was laid by Mr. Nowell. A date-stone indicating when the Hall was built is positioned over the front door and there is also one inside the porch of the West Door.

Architectural Style

Before giving a description of the 1825 Underley Hall, it would perhaps

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be beneficial to make a summary of contemporary architecturaltraditions and trends. To start with the seventeenth and eighteenth century “Renaissance” in England, new ideas that quite changed the look of English buildings began to come over from the Continent early in the seventeenth century. They were ideas copied in the first place from Italy, where a designer named Palladio, had been planning houses to look like the classical buildings of Greece and Rome. The classical Greek columns, Doric, Ionic and Corinthian, and the Roman additions of composite and Tuscan columns were great favourites. The new houses were much plainer in general shape than the Elizabethan houses, with their pointed gables, bay windows, and tall chimneys stuck up at irregular intervals from the roof. However, they were not always plain as far as decoration went. Tall pillars and columns with ornamented tops ran up the fronts of houses, and some buildings had what is called a “pediment”. Pleasanter houses were simpler and smaller, but well shaped, and not adorned by columns and pediments. It was only in the doorway that decoration was used.

During the Georgian Period (1714-1830), the fashion for simpler but elegant houses continued. Brick was still being used but many of the new houses were built of large regular blocks of stone which gave them a dignified and not quite so homely appearance. Many old Tudor houses (Tudor being the style of both “Near” and “Far” Underleys) had new fronts of brick and stone put on them to make them look Georgian. Georgian architects designed buildings which were dignified and at the same time graceful. Houses were often built in a plain square or oblong shape. Sometimes large houses had corridors from each side of the main building leading to smaller buildings where the kitchens and stables were. Many of the great houses of this time have grand flights of steps leading to the main door, which is usually decorated with classical cclumns. Inside are large rooms with high ceilings. The walls were decorated with designs made in plaster and in paints.

During the reign of Queen Victoria there was really no completely new style in English houses. Instead, architects copied the houses of the past often adding various details of their own. Victorian architecture was an imitation or revival of older styles. Some copied Gothic architecture and others copied the Greek and Italian classical styles. Thus. the 1825 Underley Hall has been described as “a fine mansion in the Tudor Style”, and in Bulmer’s 1885 Directory it appears to have been “built in magnificent Gothic Style”! In the notes to Allom’s engravings of Westmorland countryseats and residences, “Underley Hall is built of the finest stone, principally in the old English Gothic architecture that prevailed in the reign of James 1, but with a rich and massive Grecian portico”.

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But essentially Underley Hall, built in the l820’s, or Georgian Period, is a perfect example of the contemporary architect’s skill in using different architectural traditions. The local architect, Webster, tended very much towards the Victorian imitation or revival architecture. The carved stone porches held up by pillars, and the large bay windows, uphold the Tudor style. The classical eclecticism is evident in the embelished pillar work and the East portico, with crnamented tops. The Georgian idea of a basic square plan still exists as do the Georgian doorways and long corridors. Thus, Underley Hall embodies a perfect blend of English architectural development of the past.

Underley Estates’ Development

The Hall, built in 1825, cost Alexander Nowell approximately £30,000, but in the years that followed he continued to enlarge his estate. An extensive park was developed for the large, new Hall, which reached to the top of “Abbot’s Brow” in Kirkby Lonsdale, where the corner of the graveyard and the rugby field are situated. A carriage drive which had its chief entrance opposite the Fairbank blacksmith's shop, and which ran from there along the edge of the park slope, over the beck, and straight across to a copse on the river bank formerly known as “Crow Wood”, was made through the Park to the Hall. A gate-keeper’s house was built at the drive entrance and a joiner's shop at the gate was enlarged and converted into an Estate Agent’s House and Office.

Nowell built up his estate by adding “Lowfields”, “Deansbiggin” (Under the will of John Batty of Deansbiggin, his children sold Deansbiggin to Alexander Nowell, and so brought this old house and lands into the Underley Estate); Mansergh Hall, and Belle Vue Estates and several smaller properties. These amounted to a total area of 25,000 acres in extent so that by 1840, when the estate was sold by private contract to Alderman William Thompson, it was valued at £120,000.

Thompson and the Bectives

By 1866, the Hall was considerably embellished by the wealth amassed by Alderman Thompson. In 1864, Thompson’s grandson the Earl of Bective took over the Underley Estate and lived at Underley Hall. He remained at Underley until his death in 1893, when his daughter, who had become Lady Henry Cavendish Bentinck came into the property.

Underley Improvements

The Earl of Bective effected various improvements on his property. Between 1860 and 1870 a new South Entrance was made, and the old

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drive from “Fairbank” was done away with. This entrance was half way along the road from Kirkby Lonsdale to Kearstwick. The large iron gate, and the picturesque gate house still stand though the first stretch of the drive itself is now overgrown.

Perhaps the actual figures will give us an accurate insight in.tb the wealth of the Bectives. In the years 1871-1878, £74,354 was spent on improvements on Underley Hall and Estate.

Between 1872-5, “Underley Bridge” which crosses the River Lune near the North Entrance was constructed. “Antiquary on Horseback” provides us with an excellent contemporary description of the construction: “The work of construction was commenced in 1872, and completed in 1875. Owing to the rapid rise and fall of the river, the strength of. its current, and the gravelly nature. of its bed, the erection presented some considerable engineering difficulties. The bridge is of Roman Gothic architecture and contains two ribbed arches of 70ft; span, being the largest ribbed arches in the kingdom forming a noble structure and constructed solely for private use, as making a near route to Barbon Station on the Ingleton Branch of the London and North Western Railway.” In fact, the bridge consists of three arches, embrasured with lookout towers and ornamented with shields bearing the armorial devices of the owner. The architects were the Partnership “Paley and Austin”, who also designed the Entrance Gates. They were also renowned church builders, and the nearby Barbon Church (1893), is one of theirs. The Underley Improvement Account records the exact amounts spent oil the construction. A temporary bridge was erected of timber (costing £26-0-10d.) and ironwork, (costing £26-1-0d.) and then work started on new, stone “Underley Bridge”, proper. Labour cost £5,957-13-10d., carting £1,234-3-8d., and materials £3,600-14-11d. There are tradesman’s bills, in the Underley Accounts, for sharpening tools, mending wheelbarrows, “waterproof leggings for men working in water”. Men, were paid £58-4-3d. “for recovering timber carried away by floods”.

Thus, a grand total of £13,098 was spent on the bridge, but money was also put into the Barbon Parks Improvements, for roads, and earthworks, and levelling; an engine was hired for breaking stones; and grass seeds were bought for embankments (which still border the north bank of the Lune alongside Underley Bridge). Beckfoot Bridge was built for £600 and a total of £584-6-6d. was spent on fences, walls, and iron-railings.

Gates were put up on Underley Bridge, and £865 was spent on approaches and this included a North Entrance and Gates, which is now used as the main entrance to Underley Hall. All the gates at the main entrances to

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Underley Hall Bridge from the north bank of the River Lune.

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the Hall were of wrought iron, beautifully decorated with iron twisted into leaf and flower patterns, and with stone pillars on either side. Also most of the gates have either single or double side gates, and though all the entrance gates still stand, these side gates are now overgrown, and, of course the South Entrance gates have been out of use since the south drive was abandoned.

Another improvement to the Hall between 1871-1878 was the construction of a conservatory as an extension to the newly developed Eastern section of the House, which had been developed with the addition of a tower in 1875. The Conservatory cost £2,829-12-10d. for iron, wood, glasswork, gratings, cement, and heating apparatus, but more notes on the conservatory will be given later.

A Gasometer was put up near the Home Farm at a cost of £2,512-4-2d. to supply the Hall with lighting. Gas lamps also provided external lighting on the immediate gates to the Hall and on the terrace wall, where evidence of the old gas-lamp brackets still remains.

The bridge and park improvements, the extensions to the actual building (such as the tower and the conservatory) and the gasometer were the main sources of expenditure but the list of everyday tradesman’s bills between 1871-1878 adds to the general picture of Bective wealth. £202-15-2d. was spent on horsehire, while stable bills for horses, hay, grass, bran, meal, harness repairs, shoeing and veterinary surgeon came to £347-14-4d. Quarry bills for stones for the Hall Building, the Bridge, the Barbon Park, gasworks, and Garden Extensions came to £6,629-15-10d.

The financial accounts for the period 1871-1878 came to the total of £74,354, a grand figure even by modern standards, and it was under the Bectives that the final additions to the interior of Underley were made, with the addition of a new wing and a tower. Again “Antiquary on Horseback” gives us a clear picture of internal improvements to the Hall: “The house is of yellow freestone and contains many elegant apartments. In the year 1872, very extensive improvements and additions were commenced by the then owner. The principal additions include a tower one hundred feet high, and the whole of the mansion from the two windows south of the tower is entirely new. At the East front is a ballroom in immediate communication with which a magnificent conservatory was constructed, the base of the front being of stone to the height of 5ft, surmounted by a globular roof composed of wrought iron framework and glass, and crowned with a glass dome twelve feet in diameter. There is a

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corridor leading from the tower to this conservatory, 75ft. long by l3ft. 6in. wide. The conservatory itself is 70ft. by 20ft."

Underley Hall in the Twentieth Century

As we have seen in detail, the Bectives extended Underley Hall and Estate to a form that was to remain practically unchanged as long as Underley Hall was a private house.

The Cavendish-Bentincks added more farms and lands to the Underley property, and perhaps paid closer attention to the immediate grounds and gardens, but internally the house remained structurally untouched. In fact, it was not until St. Michael’s College moved into Underley Hall in 1960 that any internal improvements began. In recent years a modern dining-room and a modern chapel have been added to the basic structure of the Hall. Thus, Underley Hall embodies not only a perfect blend of English mansion architectural development of the past; but also the skill of the modern architect has succeeded in blending the new and old, a nineteenth century hall, with twentieth century design. These recent changes will be discussed in detail in a Tour of the House. Having seen a history of the site and “Underley the Mansion”, we now turn to the story of the occupants of Underley.

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The Wilson Family Tree

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CHAPTER 2: THE OCCUPANTS

A. THE WILSON FAMILY

1. Introduction

The first known occupants of Underley were the renowned local Wilson Family, who are said to have bought Underley Estate from a descendant of Ughtred de Underley in the early sixteenth century.

The Wilson Family has an exceedingly complex family tree with intermarriage of cousins and second-cousins etc. and a multiplicity of names. However, a former vicar of Kirkby Lonsdale Parish Church, Rev. Percival Brown, has given the family ancestry full treatment in his excellent article “Edward Wilson of Nether Leveris”, published in the “Kirkby Lonsdale Studies”. But, here the main concern is only with those of the Wilson Family who actually owned Underley Estate, and how it passed down through the Kirkby Lonsdale Branch of the family.

2. The Early Family

Henry(l)* Wilson was born in 1490. He was the innkeeper of the “Hart Head” in Kendal. The name of his wife is unknown but they had nine children, and it was his second son, Edward(l), (born in 1512), who moved to Kirkby in 1532, to start the Kirkby Lonsdale branch of the Wilson Family. Henry(l) himself died in April 1581.

Edward apparently bought the Underley Estate and house known as “Near Underley”, and its immediate estate c.1530. He married a woman who is only handed down to us as “Mabel”, and they had three sons and a daughter. The eldest son, Henry(4), was born in 1533, and as a young man he became well-known as a “Tradesman in Kirkby Lonsdale”. His younger brother, Edward(2), was born in 1534, and by 1591, he had become reputed as: “of Kirkby Lonsdale, Gentleman.” Edward(2) had two sons and from the lineage of the elder (Edward(6) born in 1557), came the Wilson Family of Nether Levens, and eventually, through intermarriage, the line of the Carus-Wilsons devolved. The third son of Edward(l) was Thomas(2) who was born in 1537.

Thomas(2) was a tradesman in Kirkby Lonsdale. He and his brother, Henry(4)

were shopkeepers in different trades, and as such purchased a limited freedom of Kendal in 1575 to trade there. Thomas(2) was evidently a prosperous iron-monger, and presumably he took over Near Underley and its estate when his fatherdied. He married "Agnes" in January 1560 and

*Indices are used to

distinguish different

generations of the same

name.

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they had four children. He died, aged 55 years in August 1591, leaving three children under age.

3. Henry Wilson: The Clothier of Underley

The youngest son of Thomas(2), who was born in Kirkby Lonsdale in June 1578 was christened Henry(8). Henry(8) was 17 at his father’s death, and had probably only recently left Kirkby Lonsdale school. His career in the clothier business that linked Kendal with London certainly demanded character and courageous enterprise, but in fact, that career is impossible to trace. He evidently started with little or no capital and yet managed to amass a very large fortune, in true “Dick Whittington” fashion, and incidentally, (as will be explained later) was not the only “Dick Whittington” of Underley.

The Wilson Family was progressive and ambitious and Henry had the encouragement and example of his cousin, Edward of Nether Levens (18 years his senior). The cousins were closely allied in the family business of “clothiers”. At that time “big business” could not have been created without standardization of the product and highly organised distribution; and so, the term “clothier” obviously covered both the manufacturer and the merchant, and the production of the Kendal cloth employed a number of craftsmen, weavers, shearmen, dyers, fullers, etc. The woollen manufacturers of Kendal had been in business since 1331 when a Flemish weaver settled there basing his industry on local water and wool. Present borough motto “Pannus mihi panis” commonly translated “wool is my bread” recalls the former importance of the Kendal wool, and the coarse cloth made in Kendal was immortalised by Shakespeare in his reference to “misbegotten knaves in Kendal Green” (Henry IV Pt. 1). But to return to the woollen industry in the sixteenth century; the mere collection of untreated textiles and the subsequent processing for the market might make a living for a man, but hardly a fortune, thus the work of a “clothier” entailed much more. Edward(6) remained behind at Kendal to run the business at home, while his cousin Henry(8) traded at Blackwell Hall, the woollen cloth exchange in London. He was as much at home in the capital as in Westmorland, and was reputed to have bestowed legacies on favourite preachers both in “Lumbart St.”, and in “Ould Jewrie”.

In 1593, it is recorded that Henry Wilson of Underley bought lands in Kirkby Lonsdale, to build up his estate. He had succeeded his predecessor, Thomas Wilson, to Near Underley and its estates in 1591, and by 1593, Henry Wilson, yeoman, and owner of Underley, resided at “Near Underley” Manor.

Not only was Henry(8) a successful cloth merchant but he was also a great

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benefactor to the Kirkby Lonsdale Parish Church and school. In 1619, he refurnished the choir of the parish church and donated a carved pulpit with tester. In 1628, he rebuilt the Grammar School and before his death was supporting an usher to help the Master. Moreover, in relief of the spiritual destitution of the parish-the vicarage having been held by absentees from 1623he introduced, at his own cost Richard Leake, prebendary of York as Sunday lecturer.

His will dated 26th November 1638 witnesses in word and deed Henry Wilson of Underley's generosity. It appears in the lengthy document that he charged his estate with over £4,000 for public benefactions and personal legacies, the latter embracing a number of nieces, and god-children, business associates, public persons and personal friends. The larger benefactions include £500 to Queen's College, Oxford, and the like sum to Christ’s College, Cambridge, for acquiring ecclesiastical patronage, and £700 for apprenticing charities to send boys and girls from Kirkby Lonsdale and Kendal to serve indentures in London. He also endows exhibits at Queen’s College, Oxford, for boys’ education in the schools of the two towns. The whole distribution is on a large scale, including £100 to be doled to the poor of Kirkby Lonsdale on the day of his burial. He bequeathed the sum of £350, which he directed should be invested in land or otherwise, and out of the yearly profit £10 given to each of two poor boys belonging to this lordship for apprenticing them in London, and also to one poor maid, to be placed in London. He also bequeathed £50 upon trust that the same should be on a stock for ever, the profits thereof to be distributed in coals among the poor of the lordship of Kirkby Lonsdale on the feast of St. Andrew. He further left £100 upon trust to be invested in land or rent-charge, the income therefrom to be distributed in equal portions at Christmas and Easter among the poor of the town and lordship. This sample of items from Henry Wilson’s will is adequate to illustrate his generosity.

As regards the Underley Estate and property, we know practically nothing of how exactly Henry extended his estate and what acreage he owned but in his will all the real estate is devised to his nephew Thomas(11) and his sons in tail male. The “Antiquities of Kendal” (Vol. II) gives us a hint of what this property was, when it records that “Henry Wilson, Gent., held at his death (in 1639) a capital messuage in Underley and Keistwicke with horses and lands there in his own occupations, besides a messuage in Kirkby Lonsdale and three inessuages in Casterton all held of the king as of the Richmond fee. By his will made in 1638 he bequeathed all the premises to his nephew Thomas(11) Wilson of Underhelme, and to Henrv114, son and heir apparent of Thomas Wilson his nephew and his heirs male, with remainder successively to Thomas and William brothers of the said Henry”.

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Then the Civil War, which broke out in 1642, while paralyzing business threw on the market a large amount of real estate. Edward(6) at 85 years was on the Parliamentary side. The Underley family were on the other side, and eventually paid the penalty, but even though as an ardent royalist Henry(8) was divided from his cousin and the Hevershaw following this did not deter him from giving legacies to several of them. At the beginning, the north and west of the country were mostly on the side of the King, whose capital was Oxford, while the south and east mostly sided with parliament, whose capital was London. The Underley Family had to think of their property and so threw their lot in with general local tendencies, to the Royalist cause, while the idealist NetherLevens family looked to Cromwell. The first two big battles, Edgehill (Warwickshire) which took place in October 1642, and Brentford (Middlesex) in November 1642, left things very much as they were. In the campaign of 1643 the Royalists had the advantage and everything seemed to depend on whether the Roundheads would hold Hull and Gloucester. They managed to do this and, in addition, in the eastern counties the Earl of Manchester and Oliver Cromwell raised an army for Parliament which was well trained and able to stand against the Royalist cavalry, in whose ranks Thomas(11) Wilson of Underley was to be found.

4. Thomas(11) Wilson

When Henry(8) died in October 1639, in his will he passed on all his property to his legal heir, his nephew, Thomas(11) Wilson. Thomas(11) was born in March 100 and through his immediate descendants the Wilsons held Underley until 1732. He married in February 1620 before he was 20 to Margaret Fisher, the daughter of Henry and Agnes Fisher, and the granddaughter of Isabel Richardson (whose first husband was Edward(6)

Wilson of Nether Levens). Thomas was probably under his uncle's protection in business from early years, for the kinsman to whom Henry left his estate though in blood a nephew, in business was a much closer relation.

His early marriage must have been favoured and possibly had significance in business, as in many upper middle class families of the time. Thomas was a successful businessman and he invested his wealth in property. He owned in turn 4 small estates. In 1623 he bought Helme End property, which he added to in 1630 with Underbarrow estate. Then in 1638 he bought Underhelme property, at Stainton. As his uncle died in August 1639, the transition from Underhelme to Underley was almost immediate. In 1639, Thomas and Margaret and their children moved into Near Underley. Only two months later Thomas(11) appears in the Court Rolls as Steward of the Manor of Kirkby Lonsdale, in succession to Roger Otway.

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Thomas(11) and Margaret had 12 children, the second of which, Henry(14), was nominated as the heir. Henry(14) was born in June 1623, and after he had received elementary education at Halifax, in 1638 his father sent him to Christ's College, Cambridge, and the following year, doubtless with an eye to the bench, he entered him at Grays Inn.

In 1647, Thomas(11) Wilson was concerned in a boundary dispute with neighbours at Underley, because it must be remembered that the Wilson Family only held the manor house known as Near Underley. The tenants of Far Underley are for the most part unknown as far as records are concerned under 1732, when the Ashton Family bought both houses. On the outbreak of Civil War, Thomas Wilson flung himself into the royalist cause and was commissioned under Sir Philip Musgrave. In 1643, both the Royalists (”Cavaliers”) and the Roundheads tried to get help from outside England. The King appealed to France and Denmark and brought back some English troops from Ireland. Parliament made a treaty with the Scots, by which the Scots promised to invade England on the side of parliament. The result of these changes was seen at the Battle of Marston Moor, near York, in July 1644. The Roundheads under Sir Thomas Fairfax and the Earl of Manchester were besieging York and had been joined by the Scottish army: Prince Rupert, with all the troops the King could spare, dashed to relieve York and the two forces met at Marston Moor. For a long time the battle was undecided but it was at last won by Cromwell's cavalry charges. The King lost the north and his commander there, the Earl of Newcastle, fled to France. Parliament now held England from the Tweed to the Trent as well as the east and the counties near London.

In the south and west, however, the King had some successes in the summer of 1644. He won the Battle of Copredy Bridge (Oxfordshire) in June, trapped the Earl of Essex, commander-in-chief of the parliamentary army, in Cornwall, and forced his infantry to surrender in September. The Royalist march oil London, however, was stopped by the second Battle of Newbury (Berkshire) in October.

In 1645 Cromwell tightened up on Roundhead military standards and as a result in June 1645, they won a sweeping victory over the king’s forces at Naseby (Northamptonshire), which actually decided the war, though the struggle continued for some time in the west of England. In the spring of 1646 the King’s forces surrendered although his capital, Oxford, did not fall to the parliamentary army until June of that year.

Just before Oxford fell the King gave himself up to the Scotswho it will be remembered, had been fighting on the side of parliament.

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For the rest of that year there were attempts to reach agreement between the King, the Scots, parliament and the army, but nothing was settled and in January 1647 the Scots gave up the King to Parliament. He was moved from Newcastle in Northumberland to Hoimby House in Northamptonshire. By this time parliament said that the army ought to obey its orders. The army, which was very strong and therefore able to make itself heard, refused to disband until it was paid and said that parliament ought to be changed. In June 1647, the army kidnapped the King from his captivity in parliament's hands and held him at army headquarters at Newmarket, near Cambridge. For a time it seemed that he might be restored to his throne by Cromwell and Fairfax, the army leaders. However, there was a section of the army called the Levellers which was so opposed to the King that he became frightened of what its members might do if he was restored and made plans to escape from the army. He escaped in November 1647 to the Isle of Wight.

During these months the King had become more popular, especially in Kent and Essex; furthermore, he had been secretly in touch with the Scots, hoping to persuade them to fight once more, this time on his side.

What is sometimes called the Second Civil War broke out in April 1648. This was really a continuation of the previous fighting and was the last attempt of the Royalists to win the country for the King. Parliament and its army now forgot their quarrel and united to defeat the Royalists. Fairfax was victorious in Kent and Essex where, after a long siege, he took Colchester. Cromwell went first to Wales where he put down a rising of Royalists and then hurried north to meet the Scots who, under the Duke of Hamilton, had crossed the border again, this time fighting for the King. In August Cromwell defeated them and destroyed their army at Preston, in Lancashire, after a three days' battle. By September 1648, the Royalists could fight no more. The army forced parliament to appoint a court to try the King for his life. Charles was sentenced to death and in January 1649 he was executed. The Roundheads then punished their opponents and exacted types of indemnities. Thomas(I1) was forced to pay a fine of £229 (perhaps as a tenth of his estate) and some of his property tithes were sequestered. But, as we have seen, while the Civil War impoverished the Underley Family, it increased the wealth of the rival Nether Levens Family.

Thomas(11) died in November, 1646 aged only 45, and his obituary describes him as “generosus” in the tradition of Henry(8) “the clothier”, but even so, because he had supported the royalist cause in the Civil War,

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he died considerably poorer than when he had succeeded. He may havebeen wise enough to make settlements on his wife, but as Rev. PercivalBrown points out “the amount of his fine, and the security for hisadministration point the same way.”

The widow, left with a large family (including an infant of four months)lived for another 44 years, surviving all her sons, and all her daughtersbut one. She must have been a thrifty woman, for besides bringing up herchildren and portioning several daughters, she was able to acquire landsof her own at Underley (her husband’s inheritance being strictly entailed),and at Biggins, and disposed of a large estate for a widow.

5. Three Generations to Sale

Underley Hall next passed to the immediate heir, Henry(14)) Wilson, buthe did not immediately take up residence. In1649, the Underley freeholdsare entered in the Court Rolls in the name of the “heirs of Thomas Wilson,Gent.”, and it is only in 1651, that Henry(14) is enrolled by name as theowner. He had been serving in the war as a royalist (keeping up the familytradition), for which he also was made to pay the penalty-and possiblyhad thus been brought into contact with the Edmunds Family at Rotherhamand Worsborough. He married Ann, daughter of Thomas Edmunds ofWorsborough, who was secretary to the famous Earl of Strafford in 1649It appears from a letter from the girl’s father, quoted by Rev. PercivalBrown, that the Un.derley widow was unknown to Thomas Edmunds:“On 11th March 1649, he wrote to the bridegroom’s mother (still residentat Underley) asking for her, love and, usuage to a daughter who had neverdispleased nor disobeyed him. The letter begins, ‘Good sister, I may notlet my daughter (quit)! me without some expression of my respects untoyou, which by the bond of marriage you may justly challenge from me’.”

The issue of this marriage is difficult to recover exactly; as the childrenwere registered before the restoration, but they proably had eight children.The eldest son is without doubt Henry(18). He was born in 1652 and wasadmitted to Grays Inn in 1671, and was heir to the entailed estate ofUnderley. But Henry(18) died away from Kirkby, possibly in London, duringhis student days in 1684. The second son was Thomas(19), who was bornin 1658; and on Henry’s(18) death he naturally became the heir to hisfather’s estate.

The mother of this family died in December 1662, a month before herfather, and only a few months after the birth of her last child. A few yearslater the widower married a second wife of the same name, Ann, whohas not been identified – but there were no more children.

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Henry 14 died in May 1684, and his will is extant. His personalty is not very large. He provides for his widow with £20 per annum, some household furnishings, a miniature of his first fatherin-law and his first wife's receipt book. His son Edmund had passed out of knowledge, and John apparently had not yet finished his education.

The immediate heir, Henry(18), was already dead, so on his father's death the property was handed on to Thomas Eight months later in January 1685, he married Jane Pennington and they had nine children, of whom five predeceased him. He lived until December 1723, but he made no history and practically nothing about his life at Underley has been handed down.

His heir presumptive, Henry, married in 1716 and lived only till January 1721 when his widow Barbara passed to Casterton Hall as the second wife of Edward(19) Wilson.

The succession, therefore, devolved on Thomas(23), the third son of Thomas(19)), who was born in October 1691. In July 1714, he married “Mrs. Frances Tatham”. He was at that date “of Giggleswick”, and only one child is registered in Kirkby Lonsdale. Possibly he never resided at Underley Hall, which he put up for sale in 1732. Apparently in November, the sale was advertised in the “Kendal Weekly Courant” of October 21st, 1732. The rental was said to be £250 per anuum and Underhelme (90 acres) was part of the estate. At this time, Far Underley was also part of the Underley Estate of the Wilson Family, though the Family held Near Underley as their main residence. In 1732, Underley Estate left the hands of the Wilsons, and passed on to the Ashton Family.

Perhaps, Rev. Percival Brown gives us the best obituary tothe Wilsons of Underley whom he describes as “Men of public spirit, ready to undertake burdens and social service, keen in corporate interests, they made their way in popular esteem as in material prosperity. Their wills prove zeal for Church and Education, and contain bequests for charity and public works”– rightly were they known as ‘Gentlemen of Kirkby Lonsdale’.

THE ASHTON FAMILY

In 1732, according to the Underley Estate "Title Deeds": "Hugh Ashton of Kirfitt Hall bought Underley Hall and lands and tenements at Keswick (i.e. Kearswick) from Thomas Wilson". By this time, the Underley Estates included both Near and Far Underley which had been consolidated by the Wilson Family.

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However, apart from a few basic facts obtained from the titledeeds, very little is known about the Underley Ashton Family. Presumably, Hugh Ashton was of yeoman upbringing and was a merchant of some repute. He was born in 1712 and he married "Ellin". They had six children but their dates of birth are obscure. The eldest was called James, who became heir to his father's new property, and a second son was named Hugh. Then there were four daughters, Ann, Eleanor, Frances, and Elizabeth respectively.

The will of Hugh Ashton senior is dated December 22nd,1748, and bequests include: "(1) To trustees Edward Battersby of Biggins, John Atkinson of Old Town (yeoman), Tobias Croh (clerk), all of Kirkby Lonsdale parish, all lands and tenements in Egremont, Cumberland to be sold and money used to purchase estates nearer to other estates. (2) To son James Ashton, all lands and tenements including these purchased by above trustees and most of personal estate; on default all go to second son, Hugh and his heirs, then daughters Ann, Eleanor, Frances and Elizabeth. (3) Sundry pecuniary bequests to daughters and heirs. (4) To wife, Ellin, 40 guineas, horses, cows, barley, oats, etc. on condition all the family lives together at Underley Hall."

In 1749, Hugh Ashton died. There is a monument in theKirkby Lonsdale Parish Church (tower wall) to Hugh Ashton, his wife, and his son. On Hugh's death, James came into the Underley property. Evidently James did not marry, and on 6th August 1785 a family Quit-claim was drawn out. By this time, his brother and sister were married. Hugh married "Eleanor"; Ann married William Birdsworth of Kirkby Lonsdale; Eleanor, John Watkins; Frances was now a widow, her husband had been named Burrow, of Warrington. Elizabeth married Joseph Burrow "of Kirkby Lonsdale, Gent."

The Quitclaim tells us of "(1) Descent of Underley estate onthe death of James Ashton, and his mother, Ellin, to Ann, Eleanor, Frances and Elizabeth. (2) Death of Eleanor Ashton (widow of Hugh, junior) on 20th November 1782, leaving £105 by will to Joseph Burrow and appointing William Birdsworth and John Watkins executors. (3) Death of Elizabeth Burrow and admittance of Joseph Burrow of Kirkby Lonsdale, Gent., to premises at Keswick (Kearstwick)." This latter admittance is dated 29th March 1803, and is "to messuage and lands with appurtenances at Underley (as in the marriage settlement of 12th April 1733)-i.e. premises of Underley Hall, lands, and tenements of Keswick and two closer called 'Greyfields' in Kirkby Lonsdale".

This Quitclaim suggests that the brothers-in-law were co-partners to James Ashton, and played a big part in looking after the estates. Also it might be noted that the Ashton and Burrow Families were closely connected

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by an earlier marriage, which perhaps explains why they became "heirs apparent" to the Underley property.

This is supported by the Will of Frances Burrow (of Warrington) made on the 16th December 1803; as bequests include: "(1) To brother-in-law John Watkins of Dilton, Lancashire, and Edward Burrow of Bolton; her fourth share in the estate of Underley and also her personal estate. (2) To daughter Eleanor Roscoe,wife of John Roscoe of Liverpool, half revenues of her share in Underley Estate to be paid to her yearly by John Watkins and Edward Burrow, and on her daughter's death to her husband John Roscoe for life; at his death the fourth share and personal estate was to be divided amongst her children".

Thus, James Ashton owned Underley Estate until the late 1790's when it passed on to his sisters, who each had a share in the estates, but the actual date of his death remains unknown. In 1803, Frances gave her share to her brother-in-law on her death, and Elizabeth died leaving her fourth part in the estate to her husband. Consequently, daughters Ann and Eleanor Ashton, and their brothers-in-law held Underley Estates jointly until 1807, when Alexander Nowell negotiated terms of sale with Joseph Burrow (on behalf of the family). Nowell as we have examined earlier, bought Underley for £10,560, but it was only a comparatively small property at this time.

ALEXANDER NOWELL

Alexander Nowell was born in 1765. He was of an ancient Yorkshire Family who originally owned Read Hall near Padiham. He himself, as a young man, served as an officer in the Indian Army, and in 1793, he married the widow of the Chief Engineer of the East India Company, and they retired to Tirhoot, Bengal. But they did not enjoy a long married life. In 1805, his wife died and Nowell returned to England and took up residence in Baker Street, Portrnan Square, London.

In 1807, he bought Underley Estate with the wealth he had amassed as an officer, and built the present mansion house, Underley Hall. The year after the foundation stone was laid, 1826, he married Charlotte, the daughter of James Harrington of Shawe Hall, Lancashire.

Mr. Nowell was a great racing man, and from 1809 he had his own horses which he stabled at Middleharn, an estate of the family in the North Riding of Yorkshire. However, in 1829, he moved all his horses to stable and train them at Underley. In fact, these horses were stabled in the field on the right hand side of the drive just inside the north gates, and it is

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said that on a crisp morning the outlines of the stables are visible on the grass today. Alexander Pearson maintains that Nowell owned about £30,000 worth of horses, which were entered for, and occasionally won, the Derby, St. Leger, Oaks, and most of the important meetings of the day.In 1929, four of Nowell’s horses were entered for the St. Leger. The best racehorses were trained at Manton by Alec Taylor, known as the “Wizard of Manton”, who was born in 1824, at Kirkby Lonsdale. He was the son of one of Alexander Nowell’s stable assistants, and in his time his son, also called Alec, who succeeded him, became as famous as his father. The story is still told at Underley today, that when one race-horse, which stood as favourite, lost an important meeting, in a fit of despair, Nowell ordered all the horses then stabled at Underley to be shot. Whether this incident actually occurred is, of course, dubious, but certainly in recent years a “Horse-Graveyard” has been discovered underneath a fir-tree plantation, which is behind the college alongside the river. Due to the erosion of the river bank, causing a gradual collapse of this plantation, bones of about three horses have been unearthed, and more traces are visible in cross-sections of the bank, but these could easily have been buried at different times during Nowell’s stay at Underley.

With regard to Alexander Nowell’s career at Underley Hall, in 1826 he stood as a parliamentary candidate for Lancashire. In 1831, he stood as a candidate for Westmorland as a Whig favouring the Reform Bill, which did away with “rotten boroughs” and “pocket boroughs” and gave the new towns the right to have members of parliament, and the new middle class the vote, and this time he was elected. However, he did not stand again at the next election (1832).

G. Michaelangelo Maud in “Tour into Westmorland” (1831) tells us something about the character of the Nowell family in this incident which he describes: “Mr. Nowell, or rather I believe Mrs. Nowell, is very strict against allowing any one entering the grounds, as will appear by the following circumstance: a gentleman who was travelling, during his stay in Kirkby Lonsdale, took a walk down to see Underley. He had not been long in the grounds before a servant in livery stepped up to him, demanded his name, and informed him that no-one was allowed to walk in the grounds unless they had leave from Mr. Nowell and that he was ordered to request him to leave. The gentleman gave his name as Sir .... which, when the servant informed his mistress or master, he was sent back to inform the gentleman that Mr. Nowell would be glad if he would step back, view the grounds etc., and take breakfast, but the gentleman was gone.”

On November 17th, 1842, Alexander Nowell died and Underley Hall

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had already passed into the hands of William Thompson. But why Nowell sold Underley in 1840 and where he spent his last years remains a mystery.

WILLIAM THOMPSON

William Thompson was a member of an old Westmorland Family, and in many ways, he was the second “Dick Whittington of Underley”, as he went to London to learn how to make a fortune and eventually became Lord Mayor of London. Though his actual date of birth is not known, he was the second son of James Thompson of Grayrigg Parish, born in the early 1800’s. He was sent away to the famous public school, Charterhouse, to be educated. From there he took a post as iron master at Merthyr Tydfil.

By this time he had already embarked on a full political career. He was an M.P. from 1826 to his death in 1854. He became an Alderman of the City of London in 1821 and remained so until his death. He actually became Lord Mayor of London in 1828 and he was elected again in 1831, but he declined to serve. As regards public service, he was president of Christ’s Hospital from 1829 to his death; and a director of the Bank of England, and also treasurer of King’s College, London, for some years.

In 1840, he returned to Westmorland and spent some of his newly gained riches on purchasing a seat of residence in his home bounty, though as early as 1829 he had bought estates at Killington. He stood as a candidate for parliament for Westmorland and became an M.P. for Westmorland from 1840 to his death.

The date of Alderman Thompson’s marriage to “Amelia” has not survived, nor has the date of birth of their only child and heiress Amelia Thompson. But in 1842, Amelia married into the Taylour (Bective) family and Underley Hall remained the property of her descendants until 1940, and the Underley estate proper is still in their hands.

Alderman Thompson died in 1854, and his wife died in 1861. In the Kirkby Lonsdale Parish Church a monument to their memory is to be found in the south wall. Underley Hall was now firmly established as the seat of an upper class family, and it was Alderman Thompson who bridged the gap between middle and upper class by his successful career.

THE BECTIVES

When William Thompson’s only daughter and heir to Underley married Lord Bective, Underley Hall became linked with the Taylour Family. The

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pedigree chart of the Taylour Family, Marquesses of Headfort and Earls of Bective, (c.f. diagram) contains the details of Lord Bective's predecessors, which will prove to be of particular relevance to a later examination of the Underley Heraldry.

On July 20th 1842, Amelia Thompson married Lord Bective, 3rd Marquis of Headfort, and for some time M.P. for Westmorland, and so Underley remained the residence of a member of Parliament. On February 11th, 1844, they had a son who was christened Thomas. Under Lord Bective's intensive care, Underley became renowned for its cattle which roamed the extensive UnderIcy Parks, and Alexander Pearson maintains that "the shorthorns of the Earl of Bective formed the finest herd in England".

In 1864, Amelia, Countess of Bective died, and a monument was erected to her memory in the Kirkby Lonsdale Parish Church. On his mother’s death, Thomas Lord Kenlis legally came into the Underley property. He also was an M.P. for Westmorland for several years and as a young man lived in the great style of the "Lord of the Manor". Clement Jones ("Tours in Westmorland") comments that; "The splendour of his shooting parties and setting out from Underley in a coach and four, are symbols of his status. He was a great agriculturalist and a popular landlord". Through the generosity of Lord Kenlis, in 1866 a complete restoration of the Kirkby Lonsdale Church, costing over ten thousand pounds was effected. The old water trough and gargoyle at the bottom of Fairbank in Kirkby Lonsdale (outside the West Gate of the Churchyard) was erected by the people of Kirkby Lonsdale in gratitude.

In 1867, Lord Kenlis married Lady Alice Maria Hill, the only daughter of the 4th Marquis of Downshire, born in 1842. They had two daughters, Eveline Anne Estelle, who died young, and Olivia Caroline Amelia, who was born in 1869, and was to become the most well-known of all the owners of Underley Hall.

On his father's death in 1893, Lord Kenlis took over his father's title and became Lord Bective-his wife becoming the Countess of Bective. He held the title for less than a year, for late in 1893 he died. But as we have seen already it was during his lifetime that important structural improvements were made to Under.' ley Hall, which still remain. He supervised the building of Under-, ley Bridge, which to this day still bears his coat-of-arms on the minor north arch, and also enlarged the Underley parks and estates to leave behind him a securely established manor over which his daughter was to keep order and command respect for almost half a century.

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Olivia Caroline Amelia was now the legal heir in her own right to the Underley property. In 1892, she married Lord Henry Cavendish-Bentinck (born on 28th May, 1863), the halfbrother to the Duke of Portland. The newly married couple took up permanent residence at Underley Hall, while Lady Henry’s mother, the Countess of Bective, moved into “Lunefield” a local manor in Kirkby Lonsdale. “Lunefield” was bought by Lady Henry Cavendish-Bentinck for her mother from the local Harris family who were reputed industrialists and old-property dealers. Kelly’s 1925 Directory provides us with a good contemporary description: “Then ‘Lunefield’ was erected in 1870, and is a mansion of stone in the domestic Gothic style, from designs by Alfred Waterhouse, R.A. Architect, it stands in about 40 acres of parkland and pleasure grounds, finely timbered and containing various plantations; the gardens are very extensive, and are laid out with great taste; the River Lune skirts the property for more than a mile and affords many picturesque glimpses of local scenery.” Here the Countess of Bective lived in style until her death in February, l928 aged 85 years).

THE CAVENDISH-BENTINCKS

Introduction:

In 1893, Lady Henry Cavendish-Bentinck inherited Underley Hall with its 25,000 acres and rent roll of £90,000, and in 1901, she took up permanent residence with her husband, Lord Henry.

Lord Henry

In a recent letter, Mr. Harold Macmillan, who was well acquainted with Lord Henry, described him thus: “He was a man of outstanding character with a handsome presence and remarkable learning, especially of modern art. This he combined with a charm and simplicity of character which made him loved by all.” Alexander Pearson sums up Lord Henry as: “A magnificent specimen of an English country gentlemen,” and both these favourable opinions are certainly borne out by the expressed opinions of all who came into contact with him. He appears to have been a very popular landlord who was greatly respected.

He had a great sense of humour which is remembered by all who met him. The story is told of the young “long-haired” stablelad, who was coming to work one morning on a bike down the Dam Hill, when he hit a large stone and was knocked out by the fall. He had to have a spell in hospital with head injuries. When he returned to work he was in the stable-yard raking gravel when Lord Henry came up to him and asked: “Are you quite better?” “Yes, my Lord,” he answered. “By the way on which part of your head did you

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fall? Because if you had fallen on the back of your head your hair would have saved you,” commented Lord Henry. Or again when a visiting parson gave an excellent sermon, Lord Henry went up to him and asked him were he had got his inspiration. The parson answered, “Oh! it was a robin.” Upon which Lord Henry mumbled, “I wish a robin would inspire our parson.”

His kindly, generous, and chivalrous nature enabled him to get on extremely well with his tenants and employees on the Underley Estate. The fact ihat he was especially keen on everything connected with farming gave him something in common with his tenants. He was kind and understanding and on the friendliest terms with everyone connected with the Underley Estate, and especially those who were farmers or members of a farming family, and he would often, while passing, look in on their homes if only for a chat. He often lunched with farmers at their home and established a homely, pleasant informal relationship with his employees. On one occasion Lord Henry called on Mr. Robinson, one of his farmers. Mrs. Robinson answered the door and Lord Henry asked “Is Robinson in?" “No, my Lord” she replied. “Tell him Bentinck called” answered Lord Henry. This type of amusing remark whether giving orders or simply chatting made Lord Henry an endearing ideal type of squire.

The Home Farm

As Lord Henry was a keen farmer he owned Deansbiggin Farm as a personal pet venture. It was run by a farm bailiff, and although it was said to have been run at a loss, it was here that Lord Henry experimented with breeding cattle. Ultra violet glass was installed in the shippons and there was a progressive improvement in breeds until eventually Lord Henry’s farm became renowned for breeding prize winning shorthorns.

The farm near to the Hall, known as the “Home Farm”, was the personal property of Lady Henry, and connected with it was the saw-mill (run by water-power from the dam), blacksmith’s, painter’s shop, and the estate agent’s office.

Sportsman

As well as a keen farmer, and gardener, Lord Henry was a keen sportsman. He was a good shot, and a good horseman, but not a very good fisherman, despite many hours wading in the nearby Lune that ran through the Underley Estates. It is said that the only salmon he ever caught was when after fishing all day, he walked out of the river disgusted, dragging his line behind him through the water, and he pulled out his first catch.

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FAMILY CONNECTIONS

Lady Henry

She was the wife to be expected for such a man as Lord Henry. She was little seen in public unless accompanied by her husband, and apparently she had a rather reserved manner. Though quiet she organised the domestic side of life at Underley, and looked after the servants, often being engaged in supervising preparations for guests to the Hall. Like her husband she was a keen gardener, but she also liked pet dogs; her favourite being Elk-hounds which kept her company in the Hall. Her servants speak of her with the greatest respect, as if she had been a close personal friend, an ideal mistress.

The Staff

In the “Annals of Kirkby Lonsdale”, Alexander Pearson has left us the following figures of the size of the staff at Underley Hall in 1894, which was just before Lady Henry took over. It was considered a large one, consisting of about 150 members, but it was often augmented by casual staff when extra help was needed for visitors.

The Housestaff consisted of a housekeeper, a cook, a Lady’s maid, four housemaids and four kitchen maids. A Miss Jennie Howarth was Lady’s maid to Lady Bective, but when Lady Henry moved into Underley she became her Lady’s maid. Soon after she took up the post of Housekeeper, and Miss Maggie Howarth (previously a still-room maid) became Lady’s maid to Lady Henry. There were also two still-room maids, four laundry maids, and one charwoman. So much for the female staff. There was a butler, and an under-butler, a valet and two footmen. There was also a steward’s room boy, one indoor “odd-job man”, and one outdoor “odd job man”. A plumber and carpenter were on duty at the Hall every day.

The stables’ staff usually consisted of 4 men in livery; a headcoachman, a second headcoachman, a groom and a second groom; and 9 or 10 stablemen.

To look after the gardens, 1 headgardener and 25 undergardeners were employed, and they all lived in the row of cottages in the kitchen gardens, which are still standing.

The gamekeeper’s staff consisted of 1 headkeener and 8 underkeepers; the forestry staff of I headforester and 28-30 woodmen, and more casual staff were taken on during the planting season.

The Home Farm was run by a bailiff and 7 farm labourers. Next to the farm were the “Works” buildings. The works staff was made up of 1

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Clerk of the Works, 1 assistant clerk. 9 joiners, 2 plumbers, 4 blacksmiths, 12 masons, 7 painters, 3 sawyers, 1 engineman, 3 horsemen and carters.

The Estate Agent’s office was also attached to the group of “Works” and Farm buildings, and the Estate Agent had 3 clerks.

But it must be remembered that this list, compiled by Alexander Pearson, related to the staff in 1894, when as regards staff, the Hall was in its “hey-day” as a Manor House. Nevertheless, for the next half century, and in fact as long as. Underley remained a private manor house, the major posts such as, butler, valet, housekeeper, groom and head gardener were never left unfilled. Obviously, after 1914, the First World War meant a rapid decline in the number employed, and by 1940, once the Second World War had started, only an absolute minimum of staff were retained, especially since Lady Henry now lived alone at Underley.

Visitors and important guests at Underley required an increase in staff employed at the Hall, and often Ladies-maids, valets, coachmen, grooms, loaders and other attendants came with their masters and mistresses. Alexander Pearson records that, “There would sometimes be 24 people who were staying in the house and whose meals would be served in the diningroom, and on special occasions, as for instance the days of the principal cover shoot, there would be at the same time between 80 and 90 others who had their meals in the steward rooms.” A party of 8 guns meant 8 wives, 8 lady’s maids, and 8 valets, and often up to 100 slept at the Hall.

In 1894, ten horses were kept for hunting which were stabled at the Kearstwick yard, and 12, or 13 carriage horses were stabled at the Hall; perhaps this makes the stable staff figures appear more logical, but by 1918 the number of horses actually stabled was much smaller, 5 or 6 hunters, and the famous “Four Stepping Blacks” of Underley, and a post-cart horse were practically all that remained. By 1918, it was much cheaper to hire horses and coaches from the “Royal Hotel” than to stable horses and so this became the common practice at Underley; although a post-cart and horse was retained to take letters to Kirkby Lonsdale and to bring back groceries. This post-cart sometimes made 12 trips in a morning.

It was expensive to of for all the staff, at the Hall, and considerablequantities of food were required, but in fact most of the food was purchased from the shops in Kirkby Lonsdale. The gamekeepers provided pheasants, duck, and such like game, while the Home Farm provided turkey, chicken, geese, and mutton from the local fells. 6 "Herdwick" wethers a week were

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supplied to the Underley kitchens provided the requirements were normal, but the visitors often called for 7 or 8. Beef and other meats were obtained from Kirkby Lonsdale butchers. The nearby River Lune proved to be an adequate fish reserve.

With the advent of the motor car, came the Underley “chauffeur”, who was employed at the Hall from 1910 onwards. The Cavendish-Bentinck motor car is a bit of a mystery. Alexander Pearson maintains that they hired cars from Kirkby Lonsdale; some think that they had a Rolls-Royce and others a Bentley. Quite possibly they owned both at different times. The Rolls-Royce 1907 model of the “Silver Ghost” was in production for 19 years, and setting a new standard in mechanical refinement and quiet running, they were extremely popular. Probably Lord Henry owned one of these for a few years late in the 1920’s and during the early 1930’s. In 1927, the 3 Litre Bentley came onto the market, and as they won the “Le Mans” 24 Hour Race from 1928-1930 inclusive, they raced to the top of the popularity poll. In any case Rolls-Royce took over the Bentley Firm in 1931, which makes it more than likely that Lord Henry purchased one finally to replace coachtravel.

Routine

Having looked at the number of staff employed at the Hall, perhaps a brief glance at the daily routine would not be out of plane. The general routine was the same as that of any upper class household with morning prayers attended by the whole of the household staff followed by breakfast at 8 a.m. Lunch was at I p.m. A light tea was served at 4-30 p.m., with an evening dinner at 7-30 p.m. A bell on the south gable of the courtyard entrance (which has recently been restored) was used to ring out meal times to the people working in or immediately around the Hall, and it was also rung if someone was needed urgently. Most members of the Underley Household staff attended the Sunday services in Kirkby Lonsdale sitting in the Underley pew in the S.E. corner of the church. Lord Henry himself occasionally read the lesson during the service.

London House

The Cavendish-Bentincks also had a residence in Eaton Square, London. Lord and Lady Henry frequently staved at this London House, particularly during the holiday seasons of Christmas, Easter, and the Summer. In London Lord and Lady Henry could live a social life, and frequent parties and dinners. Whenever they travelthem to run the London residence.

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This staff always travelled to and from London on a special reserved train. But when Lord and Lady Henry were in London, Underley was by no means closed. A housekeeper and four housemaids and a minimum stable staff were always retained (and presumably the same applied to the London residence). Fruit and vegetables were sent to London from the Underley estates, and the laundry was packed in hampers and also sent to London. Painters did the decorating at the Hall every year between Christmas and Easter, and window cleaners moved in during the July holiday spell.

Lord and Lady Henry were frequently seen passing through Kirkby Lonsdale in a carriage and “four stepping blacks”.

Underley Guests

Because of their London connections, the Cavendish-Bentincks were always entertaining guests at Underley, and the Hall was often full of visitors. The fact that the estates were noted areas for shoot-ing provided an extra attraction. Many renowned personages came to the Hall, bringing with them their servants and attendants. The Hall has even welcomed royalty; perhaps the most famous occasion being when Queen Mary came to afternoon tea. She was of the same age as Lady Henry and they were good friends. The royal carriage passed over Kearstwick Bridge greeted by the cheers of the tenants of Kearstwick, to travel up to the Hall via the North Entrance. The South Entrance at Raygarth was the usual entrance used by shooting parties, but for all visitors, including the Queen Mother, the road up the Dam Hill was always used as the exit. In this case, the royal procession used an entrance that was generally regarded as the carriage entrance. However, the royal party did not remain overnight as the Queen Mother went on to visit friends near Heversham.

A humorous view of Lord and Lady Henry dining makes the general picture of life at the Hall complete. They had the table cloths and cutlery of their Thompson and Bective predecessors, and had candles at dinner. Lady Henry (as owner of the Hall) always sat at the head of the table, and Lord Henry sat at the side. Due to his active sporting life Lord Henry had a ravenous appetite and as he concentrated on eating often the stories and jolly chatter of Lady Henry passed over his head. On one occasion when conversation was at a low ebb, Lady Henry reported to him in detail a tale about one of her friends, and when Lady Henry enquired “I’m sure you remember Henry?” for the fourth time, he replied rather impatiently: “Oh yes, that old geyser! She should have been dead years ago”. Upon which Lady Henry let him finish his meal in peace!

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Political Career

Lord Henry was a Conservative M.P. for South Nottingham from 1895-1906 and from 1910-1929. He was not a brilliant speaker but extremely good to his constituents, generously supporting their village clubs, and parish enterprises and in parliament he appears to have been extremely enlightened. Here are Rt. Hon. Harold Macmillan’s words on the political career of Lord Henry Cavendiish-Bentinck: “Lord Henry sat for many years in the House of Commons, and was very kind to me in my youth. I got to know him well and my wife and I went almost every summer to Underley Hall. He was, in a sense, one of the last of the eccentrics-that is, one never quite knew what view he would take except that it would always be based upon sincerity and wisdom. He gave generous support to the young men in the progressive wing of the Conservative Party of which I was one.”

1914-1918

In 1914, Lord Henry went to war. He served in a cavalry regiment and fought in Gallipoli during the First World War. At the end of 1914; Turkey joined the Central Powers and attacked the Russians in the Caucasus Mountains. Great Britain and France decided to help Russia by landing troops on the Gallipoli Peninsula for an advance on Istanbul. This operation was a failure. After British warships had tried unsuccesfully to force their way through the Dardanelles, British, Australian, and New Zealand troops landed on the Peninsula on April 25th, 1915. By that time, however, the Turks were there in sufficient strength to prevent an advance. At the beginning of 1916, the Allied force was withdrawn.

As Lady Henry was by herself at Underley she opened the Hall to be used as a convalescent home for soldiers. Dr. R. G. Mathews was the medical officer, and Underley was staffed by local Red Cross and the V.A.D. (non-trained nurses). Lady Henry retired to her quarters in the N.E. of the Hall, and as the household staff and servants were considerably diminished the invalid and injured soldiers occupied what had been servants’ quarters, and also the numerous guest-rooms. At the end of the war, the soldiers moved out and Lord Henry returned to reinstate the servants though in smaller numbers.

Post-War Period

By 1919, the Hall was back in normal running order, though with less staff and, inevitably, less money. Nevertheless, the Cavendish-Bentincks were a long way from poverty and the grand scale dinner parties associated with upper class society continued as before. On July 1st 1927, Edward, Prince

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of Wales, made an official visit to Underley Hall, though only for dinner.The occasion brought the crowds to cheer in Kirkby Lonsdale as the Prince passed through in his Crossley car at about 5 p.m.; and it was a day never to be forgotten by those who witnessed the event. For those "on the inside" at Underley it was a dinner at which the mistakes stood out like sore thumbs; whether it was the fact of the Prince getting lost in the "long dark corridors" of Underley, or the fact that there was a cigar shortage for the Prince's "after dinner" smoke. A huge supper was laid on for the servants, and a policeman waiting to accompany the Prince's party back to Kirkby Lonsdale was invited to help himself to the feast, but as he would be unable to claim his dinner allowance of 7/6d., he politely turned down the offer: The Underley Staff and Servants lined the drive at 9 p.m. to salute the Prince's departure.

Gamekeeping

The gamekeeping at Underley proved to be an important attraction to Lord Henry's friends and associates, for Lord Henry himself was a keen huntsman, along with his dogs, "Bouncer" the spaniel, and "King", the retriever. The Underley Estate included a considerable area of moorland which was divided into 3 gamekeeping beats: Warren, with 1 keeper; Mansergh, with 1 keeper; and Lupton with 2 keepers. A total of 5 keepers were employed on the Underley Estates. The head-keeper had no beat, buthe generally supervised all the beats and ran the shoots from Tosca. Each of the other keepers reared the birds for their own beat. Deeside (near Dent) and Lamrigg were the main shooting moors. The keepers hatched the chickens and put them out in the field in coops in May, and as they were "free range" the keepers had to keep an eye on them all the time. The young birds were turned into the woods at 6 weeks old though the hen was left with them for some time. Around Terrybank Tarn about 15,000 pheasants and 5,000 duck were reared each year for shooting, though inevitably, a percentage were lost to sparrow-hawks, stoats, foxes, etc Incidentally, during the Cavendish-Bentinck days, Terrybank Tarn was used as a boating lake and Lord and Lady Henry sailed there often.

A November day was chosen for the shoot, as by then the leaves would have fallen, there would be no cover to beat, and thus it would be easier for the guns to see, but also as the birds' wings would be stronger they would be able to fly higher. The major shoots were called cover shoots and many well reputed peop!e came to the Underley cover shoot, notably Sir Raymond Green, Rt. Hon. Harold Macmillan, and Lord Fairfax; all friends of Lord Henry. These stayed at the Hall, bringing with them their wives and servants. Lady Henry usually took in a little extra casual staff to help out with housekeeping and gunkeeping. Men had to be employed to look after the gantries' dogs which were put in kennels at the Home Farm. Pheasant hanging rooms dating from 1871 were also available at

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the Home Farm, and these game larders still stand today, though they now serve different purposes. The shooting party usually set off early m the morning accompanied by wives, butlers, and valets who brought the lunches in picnic baskets, and the guns and ammunition. Approximately 250 brace of pheasant would be shot a day during a cover shoot.

Welfare

Lord and Lady Henry paid particular attention to the welfare of all their tenants and employees. Although even before the First World War tenants' wages were comparatively poor, if they fell on ill times they were always looked after and given extra comforts. In cases of sickness or injury a surgeon or doctor was provided and paid for, and a person in hospital had everything done for him.

Before he went to war, out of his own pocket, Lord Henry started a cottage hospital at Kearstwick, for the benefit of the workers and tenants and their families, in memory of Lord Henry’s brother, William. He built it and maintained it for 7 years before the war, and it was arranged for a medical expert, a Sister S. R. Brown from Guy’s Hospital London, to take up residence and run the hospital. However, after the First World War, due to heavy taxation, the good work at the cottage hospital had to end.

A workman on the Underley Estate was always provided with a cottage belonging to the estate, let to him at a reasonable rent. When unable to work any longer he was given a pension and for the rest of his life was allowed to remain at his cottage with no increase in rent.

Lord and Lady Henry also gave educational help to the children of their tenants and employees, to enable them to obtain good positions after leaving school or college, and sometimes they paid the whole cost of such children’s education.

As regards leisure and entertainment the Cavendish-Bentincks were equally generous. Thy erected a handsome and well-equipped Institute at Kearstwick, in memory of Lord Bective, which was opened in 1902. The foundation stone reads: “Thomas, Earl of Bective by Lord and Lady Cavendish-Bentinck for all the workers on the Underley Estate”. Here the Underley employees could read, and relax, and play billiards etc. Lectures and meetings were also held at this “Institute”.

According to Alexander Pearson, on the Whitsuntide Club Day, after the Procession and Church service, all assembled in Underley Park with the band, and all kinds of sports were arranged for boys and girls, with quoit

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matches on the lawns for those who were older. There was dancing on the green and a Maypole performance, along with many amusing competitions such as grinning through horse-collars, and bun races, and pipe-smoking matches for old women. The cricket pitch in Underley Park was the public pitch for Kirkby Lonsdale and here every year a local team took on the Yorkshire Gentlemen. Lord Henry himself often took part.

Lord Henry’s Death

But in 1931 Lord Henry died of pneumonia. He was buried on the 6th October, 1931, in Kirkby Lonsdale churchyard, and the very large attendance at his funeral and the masses of flowers bear witness to what the Kirkby Lonsdale people thought of the Underley Lord, and four seats were erected to his memory on the Brow looking out over “Ruskin’s View”.

Lady Henry and the Shoot

As Lord Henry had hurt his shoulder in 1930, he retired from shooting and the shoots were let to a syndicate, headed by Colonel Harrison and Mr. Headley. However, as Lady Henry was not particularly keen on shooting and a little fastidious, after Lord Henry’s death she took the shoot away from the syndicate. However, the shoot did not completely end after Lord Henry's death, the Underley Estate Agent, Mr. Garthwaite, successor to Mr. Punchard took charge, and Mr. Simms became headkeeper. It was said that when he whistled the pheasant came to him.

Lord Henry’s brother, Lord Charles, came up once a year for the shoot, and so Lady Henry, who occasionally had her own shooting parties, now arranged it. In 1932, Mr. Ellis became underkeeper to Mr. Simms. He lived at Belle Vue and Warren Cottage as a gamekeeper, but in fact Lupton was his beat. He was always on duty and earned about 2 guineas a week, excluding a house allowance. If, for example, Lady Henry arranged a shoot at Deeside, the keeper at Deeside would organise it and Mr. Ellis and the other keepers went along as gun-loaders.

However, in 1933, the gamekeepers were ordered to stop rearing pheasants. Two keepers, Mr. Ellis and Mr. Packam were retained to generally look after the estate, keeping down rabbits and moles etc. Mr. Ellis killed what pheasants there were and sold them. There were some partridge on the estates, but comparatively few nests. Mr. Packam now moved to Lamrigg Moor, and Mr. Ellis was left as headkeeper to look after the upkeep of the fields which were now used for agriculture and silage.

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Life in 1930’s

The eye-witness account of Mr. A. Henery fills in details of life at Underley in the 1930’s. He came to Kirkby Lonsdale in 1934, and states that by that time much of the external splendour of Underley had gone, though Lady Henry still used to go to London for the summer. Mr. Henery worked in the Clerk of the Works’ Office, which attended to the maintenance and building repairs at the Hall. After 1934, the Farm Buildings were let as a farm (for a few years previously they had been let as a private riding school). By 1935, electricity was established in the area. It was started on the battery system, but Underley Hall was wired up to the Grid system for lighting only; tenants’ cottages followed a little later. The water from the mill-dam operated the saw-mill attached to the Farm Buildings, and provided electrical power for Underley Hall. Prior to that gas was the source of light and heat. Underley had its own Gasometer near the Home Farm for the private production of gas. There were gas-lights on the gates and terrace wall of the Hall, and evidence of the gas-holders is still visible. The water supply came from Terrybank Tarn on the Estate.

As Lady Henry lived alone at Underley after her husband’s death, she decided to offer the Hall to the government to be used as a convalescent home, provided that she could remain at the Hall, living in her quarters in the N.E. corner, but the offer drew a blank.

Second World War

In September 1939, the Second World War broke out, and so Lady Henry offered the Hall to the County Council for any War purpose. The council decided to use it as a home for evacuee children who were taken sick. In fact, many evacuees from the N.E. industrial region of Newcastle and Middlesbrough were brought to Underley in September 1939. For minor complaints any evacuee child in the West went to Underley. The staff consisted chiefly of V.A.D. helpers and a few fully trained nurses, and there were about 60 or 70 beds in all.

Lady Henry continued to live at Underley until her death late in 1939. She also was buried in the Kirkby Lonsdale Parish Churchyard on the 29th November. Not very long after all the evacuees were sent back home. No more evacuees came as there was no longer any need for this type of hostel, and as it was not needed as an emergency hospital (being rather remote from emergency centres), by the end of 1940, Underley Hall was put up for sale by the estate agents.

Lord and Lady Cavendish-Bentinck were perhaps two of themost outstanding characters in the history and life of Kirkby Lonsdale,

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for with their deaths the small town’s feudal life came to a halt. Under a Lord and Lady of the manor, who were kind and generous and far from snobs, a very beneficial feudal society had existed, exhibiting an ideal relationship between master and servant.

The Sale

The Hall had now to be sold along with its interior furnishings to cover death-duties. An auction of the interior decorations was arranged on the East Lawn. Long tables were put out on which the pictures, ornaments, tapestries, carpets, furniture, and silverware were displayed. Men were employed to be on duty to watch the goods. Well-reputed auctioneers came from all over the country to buy furniture and silverware. Valuers were present to judge the gilt silver and jewellery, and all were sold for fabulous prices.

As Lord and Lady Henry were childless the Underley Estate itself passed to a niece of Lady Henry, Doris Madeline, who lived at Barnard Castle, and who married Philip Pease. It is their son Captain Nigel Pease who runs the Underley Estate today. The Hall itself was rented by a boys’ school.

HORDLE HOUSE

Late in September, 1940, a boys’ prep. school named “HordleHouse” moved into Underley Hall. The school was privately owned by a Mr. Whateley Smith, who was a Church of England clergyman. He started the school at New Milton, near Bournemouth, but when the war broke out he obviously preferred to evacuate to a site in the north, away from industrial centres. Whateley Smith arranged to rent Underley Hall from the Underley Estate, but he only rented the actual house and a small playing field area. The kitchen gardens were retained by the Pease Family, and all groceries and vegetable supplies came from Kirkby Lonsdale.

The school moved up to Underley “en bloc”, and a number of the pupils’ mothers moved with the school and came to live at various lodgings in Kirkby Lonsdale.

There were between 60 and 70 pupils ranging from the ages of 8 to 13 years. A trained nurse was employed as a matron to the boys, and in fact, she was the daughter of the vicar of Gressingham. Mrs. Hardy was the assistant matron. There were about 6 teaching staff in all. A minimum domestic staff of a cook and her husband (who acted as the general handyman) a butler and 3 other domestics were employed at first. It is rumoured that one of them believed that a bottle of disinfectant at the end of a corridor would stop germs from coming up the passage. But this

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staff was soon cut down to 3 domestic helps.

Mr. Whateley Smith himself was a very likeable character and he was soon a popular figure in Kirkby Lonsdale. He was a widower, and so after his wife’s death, a Mrs. Barwell did honours as housekeeper. He had 3 sons, one of whom was in the R.A.F. Special Service, and was killed by the Germans during the war. Another of the sons helped out at his father's school by teaching, part-time. Whateley Smith also had a brother who taught with him, and who acted as bursar for the school. The story is told that he always had stout with his lunch, which was brought from Kirkby Lonsdale by the boys, who invariably shook it up! Whateley Smith’s sister, Miss Annie, taught music at “Hordle House”, and so the school was definitely a family concern.

As regards curriculum the boys studied mathematics, English, Latin, Greek, Geography, History, Scripture and Carpentry during their years at “Hordle House” and then they took the entrance exam to the public schools. The fact that Whateley Smith was a high Churchman meant that there was an accent on Christian teaching in the school.

The boys had breakfast at 8 a.m. and then did the housework. There were five classes in the morning between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. with a break at 11 a.m. During the winter the boys took part in organised games on the playing field, or if they were not keen on sport, as there was no central heating in the house, the task of sawing wood for their form room fires provided the necessary exercise. This was followed by high-tea, after which came an evening study period.

“Hordle House” remained at Underley until the end of the war. In September 1945, they moved back to the previous school building in New Milton, and “Hordle House” is still a recognised prep. school now being run by Whateley Smith’s son.

"OAKFIELD"

Early Days

The school began with twelve pupils in the 1880s, at Horwich Bank, Whaley Bridge, under Mrs. Procter, where it was highly thought of as a Wesleyan school. In 1885, Mrs. Procter brought her school of 24 pupils known as “Earnseat” to Arnside, where it gained a very good reputation as a Methodist school, Mr. Procter took a singing class on Saturday mornings and prayers after tea but took no other part in school activities.

Mrs. Procter is remembered as charming in every way; she was never stern or cross and yet she set a very high standard.

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In 1890, the school moved over to Oakfield. The 2 Mistresses at this time were both daughters of Wesleyan ministers. One of the pupils of these days was Constance Holme (author of “The Lonely Plough” etc.), a weekly boarder who lived at Milnthorpe.

The Bamford Family took over the school of 18-20 girls in 1895. Rev. J. M. Bamford and his wife owned the school but took no active part in the running of it, this was left to their 3 daughters, Miss Bamford, Miss Katie, and Miss Millie. Mr. Bamford trimmed the oil lamps, and Mrs. Bamford presided over the domestic work. Miss Bamford taught music, Miss Katie was the head of the academic side of the school, and Miss Millie was “the daughter at home”. Each gave her own individual contribution, but even so there was a strong family atmosphere surrounding Oakfield. The Bamfords gave to the school fine ideals devotedly carried out in a quiet. religious atmosphere, a great stimulus to good-living.

In 1901, the school was housed in Oakfield, and Oakmount; and Haslemere was soon added, as the number of girls reached the 50 mark. In 1903, four or five extra staff were employed as the upkeep of the school involved more than simply class-teaching Ther were activities such as swimming (at Kendal Baths) bicycling, picnics; and domestic duties including attending to the various ailments of the girls.

One of the secrets of the success of Oakfield school lay in the gifts each of the 3 Miss Bamfords possessed of inspiring loyalty, self-sacrificing service and indeed affection in the members of their staff. But then the 2 elder Miss Bamfords married 2 brothers. In August 1904, Miss Bamford married Dr. Fred Gamble, a professor of Zoology at Manchester University, and Miss Katie married the Rev. Herbert Gamble, a Congregational Minister. After their marriage, Mrs. Fred went to live in Manchester and later in Birmingham, but Mr. and Mrs. Herbert stayed on at the school. Mr. Herbert was known as the “Head of the scholastic side” but by 1916, it was clear that Mr. Gamble preferred the pulpit or lecture room to the schoolroom, and he longed to get back to full-time churchwork, so he and his wife moved to Surbiton; and Oakfleld lost the second Bamford sister. Only Miss Millie was left to shoulder the burden of a now flourishing private school and she had, until then, been occupied almost entirely with the care of her parents and the domestic side of school life. Miss Margaret Eacott replaced Mrs. Gamble and the school won the admiration and respect of all under this dual control of excellent teachers.

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In 1912, the girls were housed at Oakfield, Oakmount, Haslemere, and Langholm; and a few girls were at a Miss Cook’s house. New Oakfield was being built and was opened shortly after. Heathcliffe was bought in 1914, and the girls moved in after an outbreak of scarlet fever at Oakfield.

The weekday uniform at this time consisted of navy coats and navy straw boaters. These were given up as impractical and blue serge caps followed. For Sundays it was white coats and hats in summer, saxe-blue coats and black velour hats trimmed with saxe ribbon for winter. Black cashmere stockings and black laced shoes were always worn.

The fees in 1912 were £21 7s. 4d. and £23 2s. 0d. in 1918 (plus a war charge of £2 2s. 0d.), The extras included such items as pccket money, 5/6d. to 7/- per term; pew rent, 2/6d.; collection, 5/-; shoe-repairs, 9d.; hockey excursions, 6/3d.; music, £2 2s. 0d.

The First World War made little difference to the routine of the school though there had to be food rations which included a term without potatoes and a term without tea at breakfast. All hockey matches had to be played at Kendal to save excessive travelling, and also the knitting of scarves, socks, helmets, etc., became a compulsory hobby, while there were Sunday collections for the National Relief Fund, the French Red Cross, and the War Emergency Fund.

Soon after the war, the number in the school rose to 97, but in the 1930’s they fell again to 45.

Miss Birnie Rhind

In 1935, Miss Bamford and Miss Eacott retired and handed over 45 pupils to Miss Noel Birnie Rhind, whose father was a sculptor. It was a comparatively small community but it grew steadily until the 100 mark was reached in 1945. In 1936, there was a change from the old navy blue to tweeds, and when Miss Bamford left Arnside, work was begun on a science laboratory and chapel. These extensions were finished in 1937. The war came and soon the school grew until senior girls and members of the staff were living out. In 1942, OakfIeld achieved the Board of Education recognition with a staff of 15. In 1944, from a school of 80 pupils, 5 open scholarships were won, a record which Miss Birnie Rhind described as “our greatest triumph”. Oakfield Old Girls distinguished themselves during the war. Joan Mortimer was the first and one of the few women to be awarded the Military Medal while serving with the W.A.A.F. Sybil Walton was seen in the film “The Gentle Sex”.

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The Move to Underley Hall

But the Arnside property was no longer suitable for growing numbers and common rooms were too small, and so in 1944, Miss Birnie Rhind decided to move the school, and began looking for a building large enough to house 100 pupils and teaching and domestic staffs; and capable of being converted. This was not easy but she finally decided to buy Underley Hall. The building was large and adaptable, and so a legal advisor, Mr. Greenwood, was hired to carry out the negotiations. Thus, in September 1945 Underley Hall became “Oakfield”.

Here is Miss Birnie Rhind’s description of moving in: “It was a great task to equip and modernise it. 5 miles of old electric wiring were taken out and many miles more put in. Some 20 baths were put in and many improvements were made. I also decided that I must try to achieve my last aim - to make Oakfield a Public School, with the headmistress a member of the Headmistresses’ conference”. This she achieved at Underley.

Curriculum

Of primary importance to reaching this aim was the taking up of the public school curriculum, and earning a reputation for success in public examinations. Biology, English Language, English Literature, History, Geography, French, Mathematics, Music, were studied up to School Certificate Level, with the additional subjects of Latin, German, Domestic Science, Greek, Physics, Art, Scripture, and Needlework. English, Botany, Zoology, Chemistry, Latin, French, German and Mathematics were studied up to Higher School Certificate Level.

As music played an important part in education at Oakfield the pupils sat the Royal School of Music Examinations for piano, cello, violin, and viola. High grades were attained especially in piano and violin and various scholarships and prizes were won. Good grades were also achieved in. the Royal Drawing Society Examinations. It was certainly a very rigorous academic life at Oakifield, and a high standard was achieved, rewarded by great examination success.

Activities

There were also many out-of-class activities. Music played a very large part in the life of the girls. They had a gramophone society and a recorder society within the school, and there was a large school orchestra and a choir, and concerts were a popular feature of internal activities. Outings to concerts at other Wes morland schools were arranged and many musicians visited Oakfield to give recitals.

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As regards sport, the major games were Lacrosse, Tennis, Netball, Rounders, Swimming, and Gymnastics. Lacrosse was played at inter-school level, and “Oakfield” even took part in the Northern Schools’ Lacrosse Tournament held at Liverpool. Visits to Kendal Baths stimulated an interest in swimming, and some got Life Saving, and Instructors’ Certificates.

Outings, picnics, and educational visits were a common featureand trips to the Lake District, Fountains Abbey, and Haworth etc. were arranged by the staff. Drama visits to theatres and various school productions were organised by the “Oakfield Dramatic Society”, who also put on a Nativity Play each year. There were also “Wild Flower” and “Photographic Societies”.

The girls organised collections amongst themselves for all the major public charities such as “Childrens Homes”, “Lifeboat Society”, “R.S.P.C.A.”, “Cancer Research”, and they once ran a Bazaar stall in Kirkby Lonsdale for the “National Schools’ Appeal”.

The Church Society

In 1949, Oakfield became officially recognised as a public school. Having achieved her aim Miss Birnie Rhind retired and handed “Oakfield” over to the National Church League designating her vice-headmistress, Miss Randle as her successor.

Miss Birnie Rhind retired to Crowborough, Sussex. On leaving “Oakfield” she was presented with a cheque of £100 as a token of appreciation. She gratefully accepted the gift and said it would go towards the erection of a greenhouse in which she would grow the best tomatoes. By 1951 she had established a small scale market garden selling vegetables and flowers and also eggs. She also did a great deal of driving for the hospital service. Her hobby was show-dogs, and her Sealyhams won championship shows all over the country. However, she will always be remembered as the Headmistress of Oakfield, a strict disciplinarian but a fine example to her staff and pupils.

Miss Ethel Randle had none of Miss Birnie Rhind’s finanical responsibility, as the Church Society actually owned the Hall, and so she was able to devote all her time and energies to simply running the school.

In 1951, much work was done on the inside of Underley. Music rooms, bathrooms, lavatories and dormitories were distempered and painted. The heating system was extended to heat all the music rooms, art-room, and staff flats. Externally, the kitchen gardens and “private gardens” were added to the property already owned by the Church Society.

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As far as the girls were concerned, the retirement of Miss Birnie Rhind did not bring any changes. In 1950, the Second Kirkby Lonsdale Guide Company was formed at Oakfield. Great use was made of the surrounding countryside for short camps, and in 1952, Lady Baden Powell came to Kirkby Lonsdale and met the Oakfield Guides. The “Oakfleld Folk Dance Club” was added to the other societies in 1951.

Here is a description of a winter evening at Oakfield, writtenby a fourth form pupil in 1951: “Our work for the day ends at 7.15 p.m. Usually, if not always, it has been a day of hard work and we are glad when this time come. It is dark by then, but the comforting electric-light enables us to carry on indoors as if it were daylight.”

“When preparation is finished we go down to the sitting room… we can always find something to keep us occupied. The most popular pastimes are knitting, sewing, reading or rug-making. Some people though, are not so quiet and prefer dancing, so the gramophone and records are brought out and we have a gay evening. Then we have prayers followed by supper. It is nice to have hot cocoa or soup on these cold winter nights followed by a bath and bed.”

The Jubilee Hall

As the school increased in numbers and the staff had to be increased to 16 in 1955 (including Miss McEwan who is now the piano tutor at St. Michael’s) Miss Randle decided that an Assembly Hall was now necessary. An architect was employed to draw up plans. A drawing of the proposed hall shows it to be an eastward extension from the N.E. corner of the Hall, where the old conservatory stood. The estimated cost was £6,000, and as the Church Society was not going to build it, money raising schemes were launched. At first the work was to start in June 1956, but by 1957, they had only raised £2,700. By 1958, they were still far short of the total cost, and so ideas of converting existing buildings rather than putting up a new building were put forward.

Move to Reading

Then in 1959, Miss Randle decided to amalgamate “Oakfield” with a school near Reading. In the 1958 School Magazine she wrote: “You will know of our removal to Wokingham in September; it offers opportunities which do not exist in Kirkby Lonsdale. It is only 30 miles from London and yet stands in 30 acres and so is as secluded as “Oakfield”. The first year we shall be somewhat tightly packed although 2 new classrooms and a new laboratory will be ready in September. The existing classrooms and laboratory are going to become dormitories. We hope to begin building

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the proposed “Oakfield Hall” in September, and by putting dormitories over it to free rooms in the house. We shall have too an attractive swimming pool, which was an addition to the school only last year. The proximity to London will make visits to art galleries, theatres, concerts, etc. a possibility, and I hope too that we shall have many visits from old girls. I am sure that you will realise that the welding of “Oakfield” and “Luckley” into “Oakfield-Luckley” is no light task and will call for much good will from both schools. Miss Drake, founder of Luckley died in May, she lived just long enough to complete the handing over of the school to the Church Society”.

Miss Randle accepted the post of headmistress and most of the Underley “Oakfield” girls went with her, but because of the strongly Christian atmosphere and high standard of teaching, by the time they left the girls were “particularly pleasant and well mannered”, as one outsider who knew them well put it. The “Oakfield” motto “palma non sine pulvere” had been carried out. The efforts (”pulves”) of the Bamfords, Miss Birnie Rhind, and Miss Randle had certainly resulted in prizes (”palma”) during their stay at Underley.

Underley was now put up for sale by the Church Society, and St. Michael’s College were the next buyers.

ST. MICHAEL’S COLLEGE

“Thistleton Lodge”

In 1959, after 11 years as a junior seminary, Thistleton Lodge near Kirkham was put up for sale. Before the Second World War, Thistleton Lodge, with 13 acres of garden and an 80 acre homefarm was the home of Mr. and Mrs. Cuthbert Pyke. It was requisitioned by the Admiralty early in the war and in 1948 was bought by the Roman Catholic authorities of the Lancaster Diocese to be used as a college for the training of ecclesiastical students. It was opened by the Bishop Rt. Rev. T. E. Flynn in September of that year and named St. Michael’s College. The Bishop’s idea initially was to provide a place where young boys who had expressed an interest in the Priesthood might continue their education, and gradually adapt from home to college life. There were then only 25 students but by July 1950, that number had doubled, and Thistleton Lodge was full. The boys aged between 10 and 13 were in 3 classes, and slight alterations to the buildings at Thistleton were not sufficient. Pressures inside and outside the Diocese were leading to a major expansion of the college into a full Junior Seminary giving a whole course of education up to Advanced Level.

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Underley Hall

Then in 1959, the Church Society put up for sale Underley Hall. This was brought to the notice of the Bishop as a possible new college. Underley Hall was ideally situated and a few minor alterations would soon have made it suitable and so Bishop Flynn drew up a contract with the Church Society, and also with the Estate Agents to extend the playing field area. Underley Hall was signed over to St. Michael’s College just before Christmas 1959.

By moving the seminary to Underley Hall, its capacity was increased to between 130 and 140 students. 50 boys moved there in the spring of 1960. These boys would eventually stay at Underley until they had completed their G.C.E. at Advanced Level. This relieved overcrowding in the 2 senior seminaries, Upholland near Wigan, and Ushaw College in County Durham.

The new St. Michael’s College was put under the charge of Canon B. Kershaw who was rector at Thistleton Lodge, with a staff of 6 priests.

By 1963, the college had 5 classes; first year (Underlow), second year (Low Figures), third year (High Figures), fourth year (Grammar), fifth year (Syntax); and in June of that year the fifth year students passed on to the two major seminaries. Two years later the first Lower VI form (Poetry) was introduced, followed in September 1965 by the first Upper VI. The staff was now doubled and there were 120 students. Extensive alterations and modernization work has been done to cater for this expansion, but this will be seen in detail in the “Tour of the House”.

Today the college has a staff of 15 priests, (though the bursar is non-teaching) and 129 students. The number of students has fluctuated between 100 and 170 in the last few years.

There is a wide curriculum in the college with English Language, English Literature, History, Geography, General Science, Biology, Latin, Greek, French, Mathematics, Environmenal Science, and “classics” studied up to ‘O’ Level and English, Mathematics, Latin, Greek, French, History, and Divinity up to Advanced Level.

The major college activities include a Literary and Debating Society, a Drama group, and an “Underley Folk Club”. There is a college choir and a new expanding college orchestra. Theatre and Cinema visits are popular, and visiting speakers often give interesting lectures. Sport at Underley today includes rugby, soccer, cricket and athletics played at inter-school

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and interhouse level, and also tennis, canoeing, swimming, hiking and caving. This is merely a brief outline of major college activities, more detailed information is to be found in the annual “College Magazine”.

In 1969, the college celebrated 2 events of importance: The Rector was granted the title “Right Reverend Monsignor” on his appointment as an Honorary Prelate to His Holiness Pope Paul VI, and secondly recommendation for recognition of St. Michael’s College was given by H.M. Inspectors to the Ministry of Education and Science, following their visit of November 1968, marks of tribute to St. Michael’s College.

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CHAPTER 3: “TOUR OF THE HOUSE”

West Entrance

For the purpose of this guided tour we will start at the West Entrance, the visitors’ reception room. This was the luggage entrance of the Cavendish-Bentinck days, and over the corridor doorway is Alexander Nowell’s date-stone indicating when the house was built.

Nuns’ Chapel

To the left of the porch is the entrance to a small chapel which used to be the Servants’ Hall. At Christmas time, the Cavendish-Bentincks put a large Christmas tree in this hall for the benefit of all the Underley employees. In the days of Oakfleld this room remained the Servants’ Hall, but today it is used as the private chapel of the 3 Franciscan Nuns who cook, and look after the domestic side of life at St. Michael’s which also includes nursing. Above the Servants’ Hall were the footman’s rooms. These were masters’ quarters for Hordle House, and were used as the sick bay when Underley was a girls’ school, but they are now the nuns’ rooms.

Daily Domestics’ Room

As we move down the corridor, again on the left is the old still room used for jam-making while Underley was a private house. Oakfleld used this room as the domestic science room. Today it is the daily domestics’ room.

Office

On the right is the office. This room was used by the head gardener of the Cavendish-Bentinck days as the room for dressing flowers. Oakfield used it as a staff cloakroom.

Nuns’ Dining Room

On the left is the old Housekeeper’s room, the matron’s room in Oakfield days.

Staff Dining Room

This was the senior classroom of Hordle House and the staffroom of the Oakfield school, but in the Cavendish-Bentinck times this and the adjoining room were the Butler's rooms. The staff coffee room was used by the Mistress of Discipline in Oakfleld days.

Kitchen Quarters

Opposite this are the kitchens, larder and refrigeration room;

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rooms which have retained the same purpose since Underley was built, though of course, modern alterations have been necessary. The huge fire-place and spit were removed but the meat hooks are still to be seen in the ceiling. Also the original refrigeration room was below ground level and was very damp and so a new one was constructed along with a larder when the new dining room was built.

The small room as we turn right at the bottom of the corridor was the Butler’s Pantry. Then it became the doctor’s surgery of Oakfleld. It is now the domestics’ cloakroom.

The Lift Shaft

Opposite the Butler’s Pantry is the lift shaft. The lift was installed in the early 1900’s and was used for taking laundry baskets up and down to the Servants Quarters. This lift was never used by Oakfleld as it broke down, and when St. Michael’s moved in and attempted to have it taken away, the makers had no use for it even as scrap.

The Library

The present library is perhaps one of the most well preserved of the old rooms. The oak panelling is still around the walls, and the original window shutters are still in position. There is also a very interesting fireplace, the best preserved old fireplace in the house. Beautiful cherub figures and the family coat of arms are carved upon it.

The ceiling also exhibits an excellent display of coloured heraldry. Armorial bearings began as the designs which knights placed on their shields from the 12th Century onwards. For a knight in armour, shields were the means of indentification, and therefore they put distinctive designs, often called “cognizances” or “devices” on their shields. Each knight chose a device that was different and they always retained the same one, and often put their arms on their seals. At first arms were plain and bold, because they had to be seen clearly at a distance on the battlefield, some men merely divided their shields into sections or took a cross or some other simple shape, and painted the design in two different colours.

Sons usually bore the same arms as their father, except for some small change or addition. This was called a “difference”. In the case of the eldest son, the difference was usually a “label”; the second son’s was a crescent.

The arms and crest were used only by members of the family to whom they belonged. In the 15th Century some nobles began to show on

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their shields and elsewhere, their shields between 2 animals or birds which looked as though they were supporting them. They are now only used by the royal family, by peers, by knights of the Garter, and some important baronets. The Underley heraldry has supporters. Towards the end of the 15th century heraldry ceased to be used in war, but people still valued the armorial bearings that had come down from their ancestors and they were often used in the decoration of their houses. Heraldry thus became a record of family history. A man often commemorated his marriage by placing his wife's arms beside his own. The wife’s arms are shown on the left (N.B. the right if facing the shield) “sinister” side and the husband’s on the right “dexter”. When the wife had no brothers and her father’s estates descended through her to her children, the children showed this by dividing their shields into quarters and placing the arms of their mother and father in opposite quarters. If this happened several times in the same family it resulted in the elaborate shields of many “quarterings” which are sometimes seen.

The early heralds described arms in the Norman French of their day and many of the words they used are still found in the heraldic “language” of today. Here are a few explanations of terms used in the description of the Underley heraldry.

The coloured surfaces are called “tinctures” and these can be of metal, colour, or fur, or a combination of two of these. The two metals are gold (“Or”) and Silver (“Argent”); the five colours are Red (“Gules”), Blue (“Azure”), Green (“Vert”), Black (“Sable”) and purple (“Purpure”); and the two furs Ermine and Vair. Ermine has black spots on a white background.

A shield of arms may consist of a combination of two of these tinctures, by means of partition lines. In an effort to vary still further the early heraldic design a new group of charges was created such as the Cross and the Saltire. Other forms were probably accidental, taking their shape from the constructional segments and framework of the war shield itself. The "chief" is a bar across the top of the shield. It must be borne in mind that heraldic language is always very exact in its blazoning, omitting all unnecessary words yet retaining at the same time all the details in the correct order.

There are six coats-of-arms on the Library ceiling, and as the designs are linked to a particular person reference should be made to the “Taylor, Thompson, Cavendish-Bentinck Family Connections” table. (c. f. Diagram) The first shield is “Quarterly, 1 & 4 (i.e. quarters), Ermine on a chief

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Gules, a fleur-de-lis between 2 boar’s heads couped (i.e. clean cut) anderect Or”– this is the Taylor coat-Of-arms. Quarter 2 is “Vert a pegasus courant(a ‘winging horse in a running position’) wings addorsed ermine a chief Or with a crescent for difference”. This is the Quin quarter of the shield, as the daughter and heir of George Quin married into the Taylor Family. Quarter 3 is “Gules a lion passant (side view) guardant (when the lion’s head is turned to face the spectator as in the Royal Coat of Arms), Or within a bordure Argent”. This is the Thompson quarter. The crest consists of a “naked arm couped at the shoulder embowed holding an arrow proper”. The supporters of the shield are “Dexter a lion guardant Or; Sinister a leopard guardant Proper, both collared and chained Argent”, and the motto is “Consequitur Quodcumque Petit”. This first coat of arms was that of Amelia Thompson and Lord Bective.

The second coat of arms is similar to the first in that it is quarterly and has the same crest, supporters and motto. Quarters I and 4 are Taylor; 2 is Quin but 3 is that of John Stevenson the father of Lord Bective’s mother, and so this shield is that of Thomas Taylor 2nd Marquis of Headfort. The 3rd shield is predominantly Taylor, but with the addition of the Rowley insigna. This is an old coat of arms of the Taylor Family dating back to the 18th century, and likewise the 4th shield is an old Taylor coat-of-arms, illustrating the introduction of the Grahams in the late 17th century.

The 5th coat-of-arms is Taylor but with a Quin “inescutcheon of pretence”, which is a smaller shield “superimposed” on the centre of the Taylor shield. Likewise the 6th example has a Thompson “inescutcheon of pretence” on a quarterly background. Quarters 1 and 3 are Taylor and 2 and 4 are Quin. The crest, supporters, and mottos are the same for all 6 coats-of-arms.

However, there is also a small carved coat-of-arms on the library fireplace. This is “Quarterly, 1 and 4, Azure a cross moline Argenit” the Bentinck Arms, and ‘2 and 3 sable three stags’ heads caboshed Argent attired Or, a crescent for difference” the Cavendish shield. This was Lord Henry’s personal heraldry but the Taylor “inescutoheon of pretence” indicates it to be the coat-of-arms of Lord and Lady Henry Cavendish-Bentinck.

The Library used to be the Cavendish-Bentinck dining room and indeed remained a dining room until 1965. It was then converted into the College library, and improved with fluorescent lighting facilities. In many ways it is the room most reminiscent of the old house and so perhaps more fittingly serves its purpose as a library today.

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Butler’s Pantry

On the left in the library corridor is the Butler’s Pantry of other days. A small room linked to it was used as the plate room. Also from a trapdoor in the Butler's Pantry steps led down to the old vault behind iron gates in which the family jewels and treasures were stored.

Entrance Hall

The main entrance Hall was used by Oakfield as a music room and a temporary gymnasium. The oak panelling on the walls has also been preserved and college photographs dating from Thistleton Days to the present day hang around the walls.

Fifth Form Classroom

The room to the east of the Entrance Hall was the Cavendish-Bentinck drawing room. The oak panelling, however, has been removed. Expensive white silks decorated the walls in those days and in the centre of the room hung a brightly coloured Queen Victoria Jubilee Chandelier, which came from Venice. Hordle House used this room as a guest room. The Oakfield School used it as a senior girls’ sitting room and until the new chapel was built it served as a chapel for some years.

Dining Room

Returning to the corridor via the Entrance Hall we now face the entrance to the new dining room, but before this was built a smaller octagonal room occupied some of this area linked to the house by the south door. The remaining area was a small open courtyard. In the days of Nowell and Thompson and well into the 20th century this was a billiard room with silks decorating the walls, but then Lord and Lady Henry decided to convert it into a small art gallery; all the oak panelling was pickled and the walls and ceiling were bleached. The story goes that two of the decorators washing the ceiling who were fond of ale, went out and got a bucket full. When they returned they sprinkled flour over the beer in the bucket to make it look like the whitening, thus they had one bucket for ceiling washing and one bucket to drink. Of course the job was not finished when they packed up for the night!

Before looking at a few of the Cavendish-Bentjnck gallery pictures, perhaps a mention of Alexander Nowell’s collection would not be out of place. To quote the document of the auction of this collection: “A catalogue of a genuine and valuable collection of pictures-the property of Alexander Nowell of Underley Park, collected by him with much taste and judgment, and at considerable expense and brought from his residence for the purpose

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of sale; which will be sold by auction by Messrs. T. Winstanley and Sons, at their rooms in Church St., Liverpool, on Tuesday, 12th July 1842.

"The following catalogue is made from the pictures in the rooms in which they hung at Underley Hall, the residence of the proprietor.

Billiard Room:

1 “A Portrait of the celebrated horse”, Gimcrack.11 “The Angel appearing to the shepherds”. F. Bol.15 “Portrait of Sancho, a Pointer”, Stubbs.16 “Brood Mares”, Stubbs.17 “Sheep”, George Morland.21 “Fighting cocks and poultry”, Hondekoeter.24 “The Sybil consulted”, Spagnoletto.

Mr. Nowell’s Morning Room:

26 “St. John with a Lamb”.28 “The Rape of Europa”, Romanelli.29 “A Satyr and Bacchante playing with Leopards”, Rubens.30 “The Murder of the Innocents”, Rubens.31 “The Interior of a Guard Room”, Palamed.35 “The Crucifixion”. Rubens

(From the Bernadine Convent at Antwerp).36 “Dead Game”, Teniers.39 “Holy Family with St. Elizabeth”, Fra Bartolomeo.41 “St. John preaching in the Wilderness”, Verkolle.42 “A Cavern Scene, with Figures”, Van Troyen.44 “A Landscape”, Poussin.46 “A Magdalen”, Caracci.51 “The Punishment of Pan by Diana”, Bordone.52 “A Cottage on a Canal, with fishermen”, Ruisdael.54 “The Virgin and Child in the Clouds”, Murillo.

Drawing Room:

57 “Esther before Ahasuerus, with her attendants”, Tintoretto.65 “Democratics”, Spagnoletto.66 “The Head of St. John brought to Herod”, Caravaggio.

This is just a selection as the catalogue numbers indicate. TheCavendish-Bentinck collection included “The Fighting Temeraire” of Turner which used to hang in the Drawing Room. There were etchings by Rembrandt, Reynold’s “Snake in the Grass” and works of Picasso in the art gallery. “The Falconer” by Pickersgill hung on the main staircase.

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But when Hordle House moved into Underley Hall, the billiard room was converted into a classroom. Oakfield used it as a girls’ cloakroom.When St. Michael’s bought Underley the billiard room was knocked down and a shower and toilet block was put up in this small courtyard space. However, as an improved shower block was built, work began on converting the whole of this area into a large dining hall. Clearing work began in 1963, and by 1965 the dining ball was finished. “Building Design Partnership” were the architects in the persons of W. White and L. J. Sheridon, both A.R.I.B.A. The following description of the dining hall is taken from the “Builder” an architectural review: “The hall has been constructed within an irregularly shaped inner courtyard. The accomodation is for 12 priests and 180 boys. This is arranged in groups of three tables. The whole layout is of three such groups each side of a centre aisle. Each table seats ten boys on benches whilst the priests have individual chairs.

“The roof is at two levels, the lower roof embracing the existing courtyard profile, whilst a rectangle within this shape sets the dimension of the upper level. The structure is of twin member timber columns in pairs centred around the "rectangle" supporting the trussed beams of the lower roof and the primary joints of the lower. Natural lighting is from above. A perimeter clerestory at the change in roof level is supplemented by a pitched light in the upper roof and by a monopitch light against the walls on either side of the lower level.

“A perimeter beam internally acts as a ‘pelmet’ for the fluorescent lighting. This is augmented by tungsten fittings which at the lower level are fixed at variable heights and located over the tables. The internal timber structure and beams in the lower ceiling are in clear columbian pine wall panelling and vertical louvred screens in West African mahogany. The necessary sound absorption is gained at high level where the ceiling finish is of shiplap perforated acoustic long boards”. The sub-contractors and suppliers were: for rooflight, Heywood-Helliwell Ltd., electrical, Simpsons (Lancaster) Ltd.; heating, Gabriel Fabian, and for furniture, Owen Owen Ltd.

There are also long velvet curtains which can be drawn across one end of the dining hall to convert it into a temporary Assembly Hall, and a fixed screen for film shows has also been added.

Courtyard Block

From the present dining room we go through the porch into the courtyard. This was the stable yard of the old house with a gravelled and yellow tiled surface which has now been replaced by tarmac.

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Next to the porch is the “Bootroom” this was a small stable. There is still a rung on the outside wall and a horse name-plaque was discovered when St. Michael’s moved in. To the left of the Bootroom is the College Shop. This was the old gun room, where the guns of Lord Henry and his guests were cleaned and prepared for the shoot.

Laundry Rooms

Beside the shop a passage leads through to the small kitchen courtyard. The small rooms facing the kitchens were brushrooms, but these are now laundry rooms. Against this wall the old wood piles for the house fires were stacked.

Art Room

At the end of the opposite wing is the present art room. This used to be the brew house until Lord Henry's death. Then it became the workshop of the painters and house carpenters. Oakfield used it as an art and craft room.

Workshops

The present maintenance workshops were the laundry of the Cavendish-Bentinck days, the paintshop of Hordle House and the “garden tool store” for Oakfield.

Coachhouse

Where the showers are now used to be the old coach-house with two entrances from the courtyard. The arches of these entrances are still plainly visible, though a new flight of stairs has been put in.

In the NW. corner of the courtyard was a 7 stall stable now converted into toilets. Next to this is the present gymnasium which was an 8 stall stable. Some of the wall rungs still remain, though a new wood floor was put in by St. Michael’s to convert it into a suitable gymnasium. Apparently the entrance hall served this purpose for Oakfield.

The Laboratory

The room in the N.E. corner of the courtyard now used as a laboratory was formerly divided into 2 rooms in CavendishBentinck days; a cleaning room and a Harness (or “Tack”) Room; harness brackets were still on the walls when St. Michael’s moved in.

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Next to the Laboratory is a Hobbies Room which used to contain 5 more stalls. An upper floor has been put in to form a Billiard and Table Tennis Room.

Recording Room

Coming in through the old back door from the courtyard, on the left is a room that used to be a bathroom and is now used as a Recording Room.

Ward Wing

Turning left we come into one of the main corridors and “Ward Wing”. At the courtyard end of the corridor is a suite of rooms which comprised a bathroom and dressing room in the Cavendish-Bentinck days and later became the headmistress’s dining room and the school secretary’s office, in Oakfield times. This suite was Whateley-Smith’s study. Today it is a priest’s suite and a music room.

The fourth form classroom used to be Lady Henry’s boudoir and later Miss Randle’s study and sitting room.

The small room adjoining this is the 6th Form Common Room. This used to be Lord Henry’s study and the library of Oakfield but the new chapel corridor has meant putting in a false wall to divide this room in half.

The Chapel

While the business of providing enough space for everyone in the college to work, eat, and sleep was going on, the need for a really suitable Chapel became each month more apparent. The death of the founder of the college in 1961 and the desire of the new Bishop to have a suitable memorial erected to his predecessor provided the impetus for the opening of the Bishop Flynn Memorial Chapel Fund on 4th November 1962, the first anniversary of the death of Bishop Flynn.

Discussions about the sort of chapel which would be suitable for the college had been going on for some time prior to November 1962. Building Design Partnership of Preston had been asked to prepare draft plans. In his message to the diocese at the outset of the project, Bishop Foley said “such a chapel must be a worthy edifice; it ought to possess beauty and spaciousness to inspire the students and for the ideal performance of the Church’s ceremonial; it must contain more side chapels and cloisters and larger sacristies than a Parish Church; it must harmonize with the existing buildings”. Finally a plan made by Mr. William White, assisted by Mr. John Sheridan, was accepted by the Diocesan Sites Committee. With this plan as the basis an appeal for funds was launched in November 1962.

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The generosity of the people of the Diocese indicated that work on the chapel could begin quite soon. Detailed working drawings were made and bills of quantity drawn up which set the overall target of £50,000. The chapel project was put out to tender and Arthur 0. Thorns Ltd. of Lancaster undertook the contract.

Work started on the Chapel site at the east side of the college on 3rd March, 1964. After the dreary business of laying the foundations the walls began to rise and significant sections of the building could be seen by 21st June, 1964, on which day Bishop Foley came to bless and lay the foundation stone attended by 3,000 people from every part of the diocese. This stone may be seen outside the main south door of the Chapel. The Latin inscription says that the chapel is built in memory of Bishop Flynn.

The chapel was sufficiently finished by September 1965 for the college to move in when we reassembled at the beginning of the school year. The evening we arrived the Rector performed the rite of simple blessing. The first public prayers offered in the chapel were for the repose of the soul of Bishop Flynn.

On March 24th, 1966, the High Altar was consecrated by Bishop Pearson and on March 26th the solemn Blessings were performed by 5 bishops and 10 priests. The preacher, Dr. George Beck, Archbishop of Liverpool said that the modern characteristics of the building reflected the forward movement of the church.

The chapel, contemporary in design, with a free standing altar firm which the priest faces the congregation from a large sanctuary, is built in concrete, with a texture to resemble stone. The unity of the assembly is assured by the use of one single enclosed volume allowing space and flexibility for the developing liturgy; by a theme of repeating shafts of walls surrounding the nave, lit from above through deeply coffered lights in the roof and leading up to the main concentration of light from the tower onto the free-standing altar.

Nave and sanctuary, with the choir of 20 identified on a step intermediate between the two and in a partition to lead the congregation in the singing and responses to the liturgy, are clearly formed in a plan and section. The Nave seats 180 boys and 16 priests (in 36 benches seating 5), with the rear gallery for 20 visitors easily reached by stairs near the main doors. The sanctuary is large enough to allow for all ceremony such as would take place in a parish church serving many more than the numbers provided for here. Behind the freestanding altar for the action of the

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Mass and raised on a further step is an altar bearing the Tabernacle forthe reservation of the Eucharist. There is no pulpit, the liturgy of the Word and the Eucharistic Liturgy being closely related in the sanctuary: there is no communion rail barrier: no baptistery is necessary. Confessionals are integrated into the form from below the visitors’ gallery at the entries to the Chapel for traditional and symbolic reasons.

Celebrant and servers can move from Vesting Sacristies directly on to the sanctuary or can approach more formally via the Narthex and central aisle: they can reach any of the seven side chapels – separate from the main Chapel and separate from one another – without disturbing the main Chapel.

The Vesting Sacristy allows eight priests to robe at the same time and provides storage for vestments. Adjacent boys’ and working sacristies provide for the retention of lamps, candles, vases, and lecterns.

A Lady Shrine is situated on the glazed cloister connection between the Old Hall building and the Narthex.

Concrete blocks, split to reveal the colour and texture of the natural aggregate, are in sympathy with the stone of the existing Hall which was too costly to match. Considerations of contraction in this material suggested the theme of the repeating shafts of wall with windows forming the interspaces, the same block being used for both inside and outside. These shafts enclose the “Stations of the Cross” lit from above, and support simple steel trusses carrying roof and ceiling.

The top-lit slate-hung tower above the Sanctuary defines the altar from outside as well as from within, and the cut-off angle of vision to the glazing in the roof – as well as in the walls – serve to reduce glare. It was for this reason, as well as for the appropriate sense of enclosure, that no window is placed in the east wall at the back of the sanctuary.

Selection and use of timber for the ceiling, and blue quarries for the floor throughout in addition to the split block walls underline the simple approach to unify sanctuary and Nave. The lighting solution contributes its pattern to this general theme: embedded hot water coils in the floor slab produce overall heating. The wooden furniture has been made in iroko, an African hardwood. The High Altar and Blessed Sacrament altar are of green slate, while the Tabernacle, sanctuary lamp, and aumbry, designed by R. C. McGhie, and other metal fittings are of bronze. The organ came from the former Kirkby Lonsdale Congregational Church which was taken over recently by the diocese.

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To end this section on the Chapel, its importance in College life must be stressed; in the words of Archbishop Beck: “Much will depend on what is done in this chapel”.

Sixth Form Classroom

Next to the Chapel entrance is the large 6th Form Classroom. This room was formerly divided into a morning room and a library. Hordle House knocked down the partition and used it as a chapel, and for Oakfleld it served as the junior sitting room.

Main Staircase

This completes our tour of the ground floor, so we now move up the main staircase (where the portraits of Bishops Foley, Flynn, and Pearson are hung) to Haydock Wing.

Haydock Wing

Here are the junior (first to third year) classrooms, though this wing used to be the Guest Wing. The present classrooms used to be 3 suites for ladies visiting the Hall. The large room was a bedroom linked by a door to the smaller dressing room. In the case of two of the classrooms new doors directly onto the corridor have replaced the link doors. In the S.E. corner classroom is a firestone of Dent marble containing shell fossils. Oakfield also used these rooms as classrooms.

The present infirmary and surgery was also a Cavendish-Bentinck bedroom suite. In Oakfield days the infirmary was a dormitory, but since 1960 a small surgery room has been developed. The room to the left of the main stairs is a priest’s room. This was another guest room, and then the Oakfleld Matron’s bedroom.

Mayne Wing

Turning left ,at the end of Haydock Wing brings us on to Mayne Wing. This wing shows evidence of extensions during the Bective days, as the lower half of the wing and the Tower were added in 1875. In Cavendish-Bentinck days the Mayne Wing rooms as far as the tower were all visiting gentlemen’s rooms. Oakfleld used the present priests’ common room as a classroom but the 3 remaining rooms were occupied by the headmistress and are today the Rector’s rooms.

The Tower, 82ft. high, was an addition to the Hall in 1875, and in fact an original drawing of the architect puts it in a much more central position. The bottom tower room, at first floor level, was unoccupied in Cavendish-Bentinck days but from Hordle House days it has always been a dormitory.

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The tower rooms consist of second and third storeys. These were not used by the Cavendish-Bentincks nor by Oakfield but today they are both priest’s rooms.

The large dormitory next to the Tower was Lady Henry’s bedroom and an Oakfleld and Hordle House dormitory. The adjoining wash room and priest’s room were Lady Henry’s bathroom and dressing room, and traces of a sunken copper bath were to be seen until the recent renovations.

The room in the N.E. corner of the Hall, which is now a priest’s room was Lord Henry's bedroom. It was Whateley-Smith’s bedroom and also a staff bedroom in Oakfield days.

Bamber Wing

We then come onto Bamber which is a wing of dormitory cubicles for the sixth form. This wing over the gymnasium (which used to be a stable), was the stable boys’ quarters. These were converted into 9 staff bedrooms during the Oakfleld days and then when St. Michael’s moved in a modern cubicle type of dormitory was constructed.

Turning left at the bottom of Bamber we come into the Senior Reading Room, which used to be a hay loft with an approach from underneath. Oakfield used this room as a piano practising room.

Boste and Plessington

The small wing above the workshop and art room has been considerably improved in recent years, to make two small cubicle blocks and a wing of study rooms. Apparently this wing was the groom’s quarters of former days, and then they provided Oakfield with extra piano practising rooms.

Duckett Wing

Crossing the bridge that was built by St. Michael’s we come onto Duckett Wing. This is a wing of junior dormitories, which used to be the rooms of family retainers in the Cavendish-Bentinck days and Oakfleld also used them as dormitories. The corridor then leads us round to the old servants’ quarters.

Southworth Wing

Above Southworth Wing is a second floor on an identical pattern (Arrowsmith Wing) and these two wings used to be the servants’ quarters, the female servants including the housemaid and housemistress had the upper floor rooms and the male servants the first floor. Both these wings

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are now dormitories but during the days of Oakfield, apart from the fewservants who lived in, the majority of these rooms were left empty.

A small staircase up to Haydock Wing completes the circular tour of thefirst floor, and also the house tour, having examined most of the roomsin the house. Perhaps a glance at the house plans will clarify any directiondifficulties!

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CHAPTER 4: THE GARDENS

It would be incomplete to end this pamphlet without a mention of the beautiful Underley Gardens and their history.

The earliest data as regards the Underley Gardens is found in the “Underley Improvements Accounts” which record that between 1871-8 the following amounts were spent on garden extensions; labour, £1,125 12s. 6d.; seeds and plants £798 16s. 3d.; and £425 15s. 8d. on materials such as stone, iron-fencing, piping and laths for a summer house. These figures certainly indicate that during the Bective days, a definite attempt was made to beautify the grounds, including the setting out of a rose garden and the putting up of a summer house in the woods to the East of the College.

But also in 1875, a conservatory was added to the Hall. The overall cost was approximately £2,830, spent on iron, wood, glasswork, gratings, cement and heating appliances. In “Antiquity on Horseback” is found the following contemporary description of this conservatory: “A magnificent conservatory was constructed on the East Wing, the base of the front being of stone to the height of 5ft., surmounted by a globular roof composed of wrought iron framework and glass, and crowned with a glass dome 12ft. in diameter. There is a corridor leading from the Tower to this conservatory 75ft. long by 13ft. 6ins. wide. The conservatory itself is 70ft. by 20ft”.

The Bective attempts to improve the immediate gardens set the foundations on which Lord and Lady Henry Cavendish-Bentinck were to build a magnificent horticultural show-piece. Lord Henry himself was a keen botanist with a wonderful knowledge of flowers, and the Underley Gardens still do him credit today. Reginald Farrer of Clapham, a famous botanical expert had travelled a good deal in the Far East collecting plants for Kew Gardens and bringing home to those who had financed him (Lord Henry being one) the seeds of many shrubs and plants which would flourish in British rock gardens, but which had not until he imported them been successfully grown in this country. Lord Henry raised a number of plants from such seeds, especially eastern plants. These were put in a rock garden which was made near the immediate entrance gate on the present drive, and a few of them have survived despite lack of attention. Today this rock garden is being restored. Along the drive between the fork to the “Home Farm” and the entrance gate many other interesting plant and bush samples from the East are to be seen.

Every spring the grassy bank to the west of the Hall blooms with daffodils. A former gardener recalls that Lord Henry paid £1 each for these daffodil

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bulbs but instead of planting them in orderly rows, they were deliberately scattered on this bank and on the small “island” to create a wild, natural effect which is quite picturesque.

To the east of Underley Hall, beyond the present tennis courts, a footpath leads into the Cavendish-Bentinek “Rose Gardens”. Though these are now overgrown Lord Henry converted the area into a picturesque garden. Again many rare and foreign plants have survived the undergrowth as a hint of the former splendour of these gardens. The summer house was situated in a rhododendron and rose bower. A few yards from the summer house, and beside the river, is a dog’s grave. The tiny rough gravestone reads “Brenda” January 18th, 1886, and perhaps it is in memory of one of the young Lady Henry’s pets.

A set of stone steps leads down to the river where a catamaran crossing was constructed. Two cables stretched across the river, anchored by concrete and chains and these cables were used to manouvre a small flat-bottomed catamaran across the river. The catamaran seated 6-8 people, but whenever the cable system broke down a boat was used for the crossing. The attraction of the other side of the river was Lord Henry's “Wild Garden”. This was a large rocky area in which Lord Henry planted alpine plants and heather among the shrubs, but the finished product was a beautiful landscape garden. Also on the other side of the river was a supply of gravel that was used for the paths around the Hall and so the catamaran became a useful transport ferry all the year round. But the useful catamaran was unfortunately involved in a tragic incident; one winter during heavy flooding, a boy, swept downstream got caught in the catamaran cable and drowned, to be found the next day by servants. However, the river has now destroyed the “Wild Gardens” and all that remains is a mound of rocks and sand, decorated with a few withered shrubs; and of the catamaran rusted chains linked to the cracked concrete slab bear the only witness.

Lord Henry also developed the Underley vegetable gardens situated to the NW. of the Hall. Heated greenhouses were built for flowers and tomatoes, and vegetable plots were marked out. An apple and pear orchard was planted, and an enclosed "soft fruit" orchard was built. The walls around it were hollow so that a flue of hot air could pass around the full length of the orchard. A fire at one end supplied the heating and this system kept the orchard of peaches, quinces, and grapes free from frost.

The care and attention of the Cavendish-Bentjnck gardeners meant that the Underley Gardens were perfectly kept, even up to Lady Henry's death. When the House was sold, the Underley Estate retained the vegetable and rose gardens and employed men to look after them.

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Thus, in 1951, when Oakfleld bought the vegetable gardens and rose gardens (or “private gardens” as Miss Randle called them) the beauty of Lord Henry’s day had little changed. Here is an Oakfield pupil’s description of the rose garden written in 1951: “In these gardens there are the most beautiful trees and shrubs. There is also a very lovely little summer-house within a few yards of the river. In the spring the banks are covered with primroses and violets, later they turn blue. with bluebells. When the rhododendrons and azaleas are out, the garden is a mass of colour ranging from the palest shades of pink and white to the darkest of reds and mauves. Every corner is aglow with different blooms. Here many birds live in the overgrown grounds which have been left for many years, and have at last become a bird sanctuary. Even herons and kingfishers nest nearby. In the evenings, when the sun sets and lights up the red cliffs on the other side of the river, and one sits and watches the rabbits play in the long grass, one is very happy that this sanctuary belongs to the school”.

However, when St. Michael’s bought the property these gardens were reclaimed by the Underley Estate, though the college owns the kitchen gardens and more playing field space. Three gardeners now look after the gardens and immediate grounds, and beautiful flower beds are to be seen around the house and chapel.

Between the Chapel and the House is a small area which the Rector, who is a keen gardener, has converted into a delightful patio garden in which there is a pond and fountain. The tiled walk around this patio, which used to be the Cavendish-Bentinck conservatory, has been restored and on the North Wall in the patio is a beautiful large white Camelia which used to be in the old conservatory. The statue on the fountain and the paving stones create an overall classical impression. From a building site “waste” area this patio has been converted into a most attractive garden, a sight not to be missed by any visitor to the college.

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B I B L I O G R A P H Y

Alexander Pearson:“Annals of Kirkby Lonsdale”

Alexander Pearson:“Doings of a Country Solicitor”

Clement Jones:“Tour of Westmoriand”

(Kendal Archives):“Bulmer’s Directory 1885”

(Kendal Archives):“Kelly’s 1925 Directory”

(Kendal Archives):Volumes of “Kendale”

(Kendal Archives):“Antiquary on Horseback”

Nicholas Pevsner:“Westmorland”

Peter Sedgfleld:“Place Names in Cumberland and Westmorland”

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