Old and New London, A Narrative of its History, its People and its Places. Illustrated with Numerous Engravings from the Most Authentic Sources. vol 3
Thornbury, Walter
1872-78
Chapter XX: Northumberland House and its Associations.
Chapter XX: Northumberland House and its Associations.
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After having stood for nearly years, a most conspicuous feature of London, and the most notable house in the most characteristic of streets, [extra_illustrations.3.135.2] , in the autumn of the year of grace, , in order to form a new thoroughfare from to the . Thus more landmark of old London, more witness of the life of the past, has been effaced. | |
[extra_illustrations.3.135.3] , it is true, could not lay claim to much architectural beauty; and it had been so much altered and rebuilt at various times, that it had no very high pretensions to notice on account of its antiquity; yet few places were more familiar to the Londoner and his few fronts gave more character to their neighbourhood. It was a dull, plain building, full of a certain dignity, indeed, but of the unloveliest fashion of a period when men built houses more for living in than being looked at. says a writer in the , shortly before its demolition,
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The Percies, it is true, did not build the house, nor was it their abode in London. Stow mentions others occupied by this family, before they obtained possession of their Strand tenement, as of many other fair property, by marriage. The was in the parish of St. Anne's, close to Aldersgate, which in Strype's days had become degraded into a tavern. It was inhabited by Henry Percy (Hotspur) before it was forfeited to Henry IV., who bestowed it upon his wife, Queen Jane, as her Another was in the parish of St. Katherine Colman, on the south side of , the memory of which still survives in . This belonged to Henry, the Earl of Northumberland, in the reign of Henry VI.; and after his time it became converted into a gambling-house, and its gardens into bowling-alleys. A , occupied by Henry, the earl, was in the Blackfriars, in a house abutting on the property of William Shakespeare. | |
The which forms the subject of this chapter, was, at the time of its removal, at the close of , the very last relic of all the noble mansions and palaces which, in the century, adorned the river-front of the Strand. It may therefore be well to enter into a more elaborate description of it. | |
It stood, if the antiquary, Pennant, was rightly informed, on the site of a certain chapel, or hospital, of St. Mary, which had been founded in the reign of Henry III., by William, Earl of Pembroke, on a piece of ground which he had given to the priory of Rouncivalle, in Navarre. In the reign of Henry V. the hospital was suppressed, as belonging to an alien monastery, with all the other houses of the kind in the kingdom, but was again restored by Edward IV., to be finally dissolved at the Reformation. | |
By Henry VIII. the house was granted to a private individual, who is styled Sir Thomas Caverden, but of whom little or nothing is known. It afterwards belonged to Sir Robert Brett, and from his hands it appears to have passed into those of Henry Howard, Earl of Northampton, who, in the time of James I., built here a house, calling it after his own name. He left it to his kinsman, the Earl of Suffolk, known to history as Lord High Treasurer; and by the marriage of Algernon Percy, | |
p.136 | Earl of Northumberland, with Elizabeth, daughter and heiress of Thomas, Earl of Suffolk, it passed into the hands of the Percies, Earls, and afterwards Dukes, of Northumberland. |
From a paper privately printed by the Duke of Northumberland, in , we learn that the site of this house and garden was purchased, with other property, in the beginning of the century, from Sir Robert Brett, by Henry Howard, Earl of Northampton, the son of Henry, Earl of Surrey, On this site, the Earl of Northampton built a having for his architects Benard Jansen, a foreigner of some repute in the time of James I., and also Gerard Christmas. The house, which was of brick, was finished in the year , and was then called The initials of Gerard Christmas were preserved in the letters C. AE, (Christmas AEdificavit), which used to be in large capitals over the old stone gateway, which was pulled down and replaced by a new front towards the Strand, in the reign of George II. The house at that time consisted of sides of a quadrangle, the centre fronting the Strand, and open towards the garden and river. The Earl of Northampton died here in . By his will, dated the , he devised this house and garden, with the river-side property, to his nephew, Thomas Howard, Earl of Suffolk, the son of Thomas, Duke of Norfolk. This was the Earl of Suffolk who, as Lord Thomas Howard, He was created Earl of Suffolk, and appointed Lord High Treasurer by James I. He completed the quadrangle by building the front towards the garden and the river. It was then called and it may be mentioned as a proof of the ease with which names are changed in London, that Howell, in his speaks of it as To this house Suckling refers in his ballad on the marriage of Roger Boyle, Lord Broghill, with the Lady Margaret Howard, daughter of the Earl of Suffolk. The Earl of Suffolk died here in , when the property passed to his son Theophilus, Earl of Suffolk, and then to his grandson James, Earl of Suffolk, whose sister, the Lady Elizabeth Howard, married, in , Algernon Percy, Earl of Northumberland. On this marriage the property was, by an indenture dated a few days previously, conveyed by the Earl of Suffolk and his trustees to the trustees of the Earl of Northumberland. The principal apartments were then on the Strand side, but the Earl of Northimberland reconstructed the garden or river front, under the direction of Inigo Jones, and that front then comprised the principal apartments; it is mentioned by Evelyn as being when he visited the house in . The house was afterwards called
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This Earl of Northumberland was the earl who was so celebrated in the times of Charles I. and the Commonwealth, and to whom the care of the royal children was committed by the Parliament. It was in the spring of , after he had taken up his quarters at , that by Earl Algernon, and here (says Lord Clarendon),
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The of the noble family at about this time was curious, if we may judge from an entry in the Earl of Northumberland's Household Book, where we find allowed for
Surely, a deep draught of Canary or Malvoisie would be needed to wash down so dry a repast! | |
The Earl of Northumberland last-mentioned died in the year . Joceline, his son and successor, was the last of the old male line, and on his death, in , without sons, became the property of his only daughter, the Lady Elizabeth Percy, the celebrated heiress of that day, who married the Duke of Somerset, for, it is said, her husband. Her husband, whom she married when only years of age, was Henry Cavendish, Earl | |
p.137 | of Ogle (son and heir of Henry, Duke of Newcastle), who assumed the name of Percy. According to Sir Bernard Burke, her ladyship but she married, in , Charles Seymour, Duke of Somerset, who also assumed, by preliminary engagement, the surname and arms of Percy, At the Duke and Duchess lived
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With reference to this nobleman a story is told, which may bear repetition here, to the effect that he was in the habit of driving up to town from his residence at Petworth, in Sussex, in imitation of royalty, in a coach and . On occasion, when sitting in his easy chair, after his or marriage, the duchess entered the room, and was about to salute him with a kiss. This so wounded the dignity of his Grace, that he is reported to have severely reprimanded the duchess, telling her that even his wife, the noble heiress of the Percies, would not have thought of taking such liberties with him. | |
On the death of his Grace, in , the property passed to his son Algernon, who, on the death of hi mother, in , had been summoned to Parliament as Baron Percy. His Grace greatly improved the north, or Strand front, and built the gallery, or great room, forming the western wing to the south front. In the cornice or balustrading on the top of the south front he caused to be inserted the letters and date, As there was already a , the mansion, during the time it was the residence of the Dukes of Northumberland, was still called His Grace was created Baron Warkworth of Warkworth Castle, Northumberland, and Earl of Northumberland, in , with remainder, in default of male issue, to Sir Hugh Smithson, Bart., a country gentleman of Stanwick, in Yorkshire, who had married his only daughter, the Lady Elizabeth Seymour. | |
It was at , about this time, that Oliver Goldsmith, when waiting upon the Earl of Northumberland, mistook the earl's servant for the earl, and only discovered his error after the delivery of a neatlyordered address, after which the poor author precipitately fled. His Grace died in , when the property passed to his said daughter, whose husband was afterwards created Duke of Northumberland. This nobleman faced the quadrangle with stone, and added to the gallery wing, built by the Duke of Somerset. He also restored the Strand front and other parts which had been damaged by a great fire there in . From Hugh, Duke of Northumberland, the property passed to his son Hugh, duke, and then to his grandsons, Hugh, Algernon, and George, the , , and dukes successively. | |
says a writer in the ,
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Besides the principal quadrangle, which was to the north, and which the visitor entered at the porter's lodge from the Strand, the building had wings running down at right angles from the main body of the house towards the river; that on the eastern side being devoted to the accommodation of the domestics, with stabling beyond; whilst the western wing contained the Grand Ball Room, in which royalty must often have been present, at various dates, from the days of Horace Walpole to our own time. | |
Along the Strand front, as we learn from Evelyn's memoirs, instead of the customary ornamental railings, there ran and that this was the case is corroborated by an entry in the burial register of , where a young man named Appleyard was buried in ,
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According to a dawing by Hollar in the Pepysian Library at Cambridge, (of which we give a facsimile on page ), Northampton, or, as it was then called, Suffolk House, is represented as a square, dull, and heavy-looking building, with lofty towers at the angles, ending in domes of irregular shape. The house is apparently storeys high, and has a high pitched roof. Each side is pierced with heavy-looking windows. The print represents it as it appeared in the early part of the reign of Charles I. The gardens between the house and the Thames are filled with a grove of trees, and alongside the river is a dull, long wall, with stairs leading down to the water. | |
Evelyn thus records in his under date :-- (better known by its other name of the ),
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There is a fine picture of by Caneletti, showing the small houses and other tenements opposite to it, and the Strand with the sign-boards in front of the houses. A copy of the picture is given on page . | |
says Mr. Nightingale, in the
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From , when the house was finished by the Earl of Northampton, almost down to the time of its demolition, so many changes were made in the building at different periods, that, in fact, with the exception of the front, little of the old house remained. Great alterations were made at in the years -, which were begun by Algernon, Duke of Somerset, and completed by his son-in-law and daughter, the Earl and Countess of Northumberland. has more than once suffered severely from fire. The following is an account of that occurred on Saturday, :-- It was here that the poetical doctor, whilst residing as chaplain, was visited by his brother poet, Oliver Goldsmith. | |
In the year the whole building was repaired and altered, the blue lion (the crest of the Percies) being placed in the position in which he was to be | |
p.139 p.140 | seen for years. There is an apocryphal legend in connection with that noble brute, that he was at placed with his head towards Carlton House and , but afterwards, on the occasion of some slight received by of the Dukes of Northumberland, turned round with its face to the Corporation of London. The quarrel being made up after the accession of the Prince Regent as George IV., the lion returned to his original bearings. It was on this occasion, we believe, that remarked that Pennant, writing in , observes, He congratulates himself, however, on the probability of seeing, in a little time, these nuisances removed, and a terrace arising in their stead, rivalling that of . What would the zealous old antiquary have said had he lived to our day, and seen the materials of the palace of the proud house of Percy sold as old building materials under the auctioneer's hammer? |
As to its interior, it was a grand, but dull and gloomy house, containing a large number of rooms. Everything in it, pictures, furniture, &c., were massive and costly in the extreme; but the want of light caused it to lack that air of cheerfulness which is so characteristic of the modern Italian style. | |
The central part of the Strand front, which, in a tablet on the top, bore the date when some alterations in that part of the building were made about the year , might be considered as the most valuable remnant of the original pile. The lion, by which it was surmounted, was cast in lead, and was about feet in length. The vestibule of the interior was feet long, and more than in breadth, ornamented with Doric columns. Each end communicated with a staircase, leading to the principal apartments facing the garden and the Thames. They consisted of several spacious rooms fitted up in the most elegant manner, embellished with paintings, among which might be found the well-known by Titian, a work well worthy of its reputation, and for which Algernon, Earl of Northumberland, is stated to have given Vandyck guineas, and a wonderful vase, which now has a story of its own; by Guercino; by Bassano; and others by wellknown masters. The great feature of the house was the ball-room, or grand gallery, upwards of feet in length, in which were placed large and very fine copies by Mengs, after Raphael's in the Vatican, of the size of the originals; also the and the in the Farnesina; the from Caracci's picture in the Farnese Palace; and from Reni's fresco in the Villa Rospigliosi, at Rome. These celebrated works, and the decoration of the noble apartment, constituted it of the landmarks of high art in the metropolis. The grand staircase consisted of a centre flight of moulded vein marble steps, and flights of steps, with centre landing feet by feet, circular plinths, and a handsome and richly-gilt ormolu scroll balustrade, with moulded Spanish mahogany hand-rail. The mansion contained nearly rooms appropriated for the private uses of the family. | |
Previously to , those few who obtained admission to the fine apartments of this grand old mansion, did so with considerable difficulty, and few therefore had any idea of what was behind the familiar front; but in that year, when multitudes visited London and the Great Exhibition, the house was thrown open to the public, and thousands availed themselves of the privilege to walk across the courtyard and up the handsome marble staircase, into the noble ball-room and picture-gallery, and inspect the rich treasures which the house contained. | |
The gardens on the river-front occupied a larger space than might have been suspected, but had long been left unkempt and neglected, forming a little wilderness in close proximity to the busiest thoroughfare in London. Their aspect, when at last the light of publicity was thrown upon them, was somewhat sad and ghastly, the old hawthorns and hazels looking like Dryads of old suddenly exposed to the gaze of an irreverent troop of Satyrs. With their departure, under the ruthless decree of the Board of Works, has disappeared more green spot from the heart of London. | |
We may add, that in the privately-printed documents referred to above, the last owner of this noble mansion appeared to have given his sanction for its removal with great reluctance, if we may judge from the tenor of the concluding paragraph, which runs thus:-- Arrangements for its sale to the Metropolitan Board of Works, in order to open an entrance to the Thames , were completed in , the purchase-money agreed upon being . The sale was concluded definitely in . In the following month the lion, which had stood for a century and a quarter, keeping watch and ward over the great entrance, was taken down and removed to Sion House at Isleworth; and the work of demolition was soon afterwards commenced. | |
In , the fine old mansion underwent its final phase of degradation, its materials being brought under the hammer of the auctioneer. The lots consisted of bricks, the grand marble staircase, the elaborate ornamentation of the hall, dining, and reception rooms, the state decorations which adorned the hall and corridors, and a large quantity of lead stated to be of the weight of tons. In the following month the Strand front also was sold for building materials. The aggregate sum realised by the sale amounted to but little more than , and of this the grand staircase alone fetched £. | |
The destruction of the last of the noble mansions which once adorned the Strand was much regretted by many men of taste and judgment, who were of opinion that its removal was a needless act ot Vandalism, as an equally beautiful and suitable entrance could have been made by removing a few of the houses on the west of the mansion, and cutting off the south-west angle of the garden behind. | |
Footnotes: [extra_illustrations.3.135.2] the old town mansion of the Percies was levelled with the ground [extra_illustrations.3.135.3] Northumberland House [] This nobleman also built Audley End, in Essex, now the seat of Lord Braybrooke. Evelyn, in his description of this place ( the goodly palace built by Howard, Earl of Suffolk, once Lord Treasurer ), which he visited in 1654, refers to the pavilions, where, instead of railes and balusters, there is a bordure of capital letters, as was lately also at Suffolk House, near Charing Cross, built by the said Lord Treasurer. [] Lady Elizabeth Percy was, in her own right, Baroness Percy. On the death of her father, in 1670, the honours created by Queen Mary ceased. Charles II. created, in 1674, his natural son, by the Duchess of Cleveland, George Fitz Roy, Earl, and afterwards Duke of Northumberland; but that nobleman dying in 1716 those dignities expired. In the meantime one James Percy, a trunk-maker, claimed the honours of the Percy family, and so annoyed the House of Lords that their lordships at last sentenced him to wear a paper in Westminster Hall, declaring him a false and impudent pretender to the earldom of Northumberland. --Burke's Peerage. |
