Have been to both houses. Both are stunning in very different ways. Hardwick Hall remained in the possessions of the Cavendishes (who had up to nine stately homes at one point) till the 50s, when it was handed over to the national trust in lieu of death duties.
Great post - I came originally for commentary on more recent events but am loving the deep dives into bits and pieces of the past. More like this please!
"Many others welcomed the change, out of both genuine belief and self-interest; church lands had comprised 30 per cent of England’s territory before Thomas Cromwell’s dissolution of the monasteries, and much of this confiscated real estate had been sold cheaply to the country’s leading families."
Many believe the Dissolution of the Monasteries is a major reason why there are relatively few surviving works in Old English. Most of them were possibly destroyed during this period.
I always wonder about the Elizabethan plots. They are obviously plausible in that you can see they might have happened, but the evidence seems to usually be confessions extracted under torture and written up by the torturers: and I'm not sure how far that can be persuasive after Stalin.
Which i suppose is Uncle Joe's great contribution to epistemology. My impression (i think I read something of Augustine on it) is that the idea that torture was unreliable took a very long time to percolate. The thing i recall is Augustine saying judicial torture was unjust because if someone was innocent they still got punished, but that he didn't seem to think they might falsely confess.
We visited Sudeley Castle recently, (well worth a visit btw) and revisited part of that history of England for real, (Catherine Parr was buried there).
My two comments to my wife were along the lines of yes life at the top was very dangerous at the time, one wrong move and you lost your head, (or bad luck through birth with Lady Jane Grey) and also why bother with fiction when history and especially that period was so complex - literally couldn't make it up!
Thomas Hobbes, the world's greatest political philosopher, was tutor to various of the great Lady's progeny: a testament to their wisdom.
The great man died at Hardwick and is buried at nearby at Ault Hucknall Church. As I am not a million miles away, I pop by occasionally to share passages from The Leviathan, as it happens, the world's greatest work of political philosophy. I hope he approves.
When I visited Hardwick Hall (more glass than wall) the Long Gallery's windows were draped, in an effort to protect the tapestries⎯with the inevitable consequence that the view too was obscured. A much better view is enjoyed from the quite similar (though more austere) Long Gallery at Montacute House near Yeovil. Chatsworth is altogether too OTT for my tastes.
Have been to both houses. Both are stunning in very different ways. Hardwick Hall remained in the possessions of the Cavendishes (who had up to nine stately homes at one point) till the 50s, when it was handed over to the national trust in lieu of death duties.
the cursed taxes that ruined so many country houses
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destruction_of_country_houses_in_20th-century_Britain
"Four husbands had already followed her to the grave ..."
Don't you mean that four husbands had already preceded her to the grave, or is there a joke here that went over my head?
no you're right!
Fascinating read....Thank You.
Great post - I came originally for commentary on more recent events but am loving the deep dives into bits and pieces of the past. More like this please!
Thank you very much!
"Many others welcomed the change, out of both genuine belief and self-interest; church lands had comprised 30 per cent of England’s territory before Thomas Cromwell’s dissolution of the monasteries, and much of this confiscated real estate had been sold cheaply to the country’s leading families."
Many believe the Dissolution of the Monasteries is a major reason why there are relatively few surviving works in Old English. Most of them were possibly destroyed during this period.
I always wonder about the Elizabethan plots. They are obviously plausible in that you can see they might have happened, but the evidence seems to usually be confessions extracted under torture and written up by the torturers: and I'm not sure how far that can be persuasive after Stalin.
I imagine that I would admit to anything under torture.
Which i suppose is Uncle Joe's great contribution to epistemology. My impression (i think I read something of Augustine on it) is that the idea that torture was unreliable took a very long time to percolate. The thing i recall is Augustine saying judicial torture was unjust because if someone was innocent they still got punished, but that he didn't seem to think they might falsely confess.
Thanks Ed, my brain is duly scrambled now :)
We visited Sudeley Castle recently, (well worth a visit btw) and revisited part of that history of England for real, (Catherine Parr was buried there).
My two comments to my wife were along the lines of yes life at the top was very dangerous at the time, one wrong move and you lost your head, (or bad luck through birth with Lady Jane Grey) and also why bother with fiction when history and especially that period was so complex - literally couldn't make it up!
Thanks again, great read
Thomas Hobbes, the world's greatest political philosopher, was tutor to various of the great Lady's progeny: a testament to their wisdom.
The great man died at Hardwick and is buried at nearby at Ault Hucknall Church. As I am not a million miles away, I pop by occasionally to share passages from The Leviathan, as it happens, the world's greatest work of political philosophy. I hope he approves.
When I visited Hardwick Hall (more glass than wall) the Long Gallery's windows were draped, in an effort to protect the tapestries⎯with the inevitable consequence that the view too was obscured. A much better view is enjoyed from the quite similar (though more austere) Long Gallery at Montacute House near Yeovil. Chatsworth is altogether too OTT for my tastes.