Rowland Egerton-Warburton
Encyclopedia
Rowland Eyles Egerton-Warburton (14 September 1804 – 6 December 1891) was a landowner in Cheshire
, England. He was a devout Anglican
in the high church
tradition and a local benefactor. He paid for the restoration of his parish church
and for the building of two new churches in villages on his estates. He also built cottages and farm buildings in the villages.
Through his mother's line he inherited the Arley
and Warburton
estates in Cheshire. He is best remembered for rebuilding Arley Hall
and its chapel dedicated to St Mary
, and for helping to create the picturesque appearance of the village of Great Budworth
. He and his wife designed extensive new formal gardens to the southeast of the hall, which included one of the earliest herbaceous border
s in Britain. The hall and gardens are still owned by his family, but are open to the public.
Egerton-Warburton's main hobby was hunting
. He was a keen member, and later the president, of the nearby Tarporley Hunt Club
. He also wrote poetry, the subject matter of which reflected his interests in hunting and in the countryside. Some of his rhymes are to be found on signposts in the grounds of the hall.
, Cheshire, the eldest son of Rev. Rowland Egerton BA
and his wife, Emma. His father was the seventh son of Philip Egerton who became the 9th baronet of Egerton and Oulton
on the death of his elder brother in 1825. His maternal grandmother (also called Emma) was the youngest sister of Sir Peter Warburton, 5th baronet of Arley
, who had no children. Sir Peter died in 1813 and in his will he left the estates of Warburton and Arley to Rowland junior, who was at that time still a minor
. His father added the name "Warburton" by royal licence in the same year. Egerton-Warburton was educated at Eton College
, and although he was admitted to Corpus Christi College, Oxford
in 1823, there is no evidence that he was awarded a degree
. After his time in Oxford he went on a Grand Tour
, and returned to the life of a squire
at Arley Hall, having gained control of the estates on achieving his age of majority
in 1825.
Egerton-Warburton managed the Arley estate from 1825 until his death in 1891. During this time the estate was profitable and he was able to enjoy a larger income than his predecessors. He was a high church Anglican and a supporter of the Oxford Movement
, having been influenced by Keble
, Pusey
and Newman. He regularly attended choral
Matins
in the chapel at Arley Hall, and on hunt days he wore his hunting colours. He took little interest in politics, in which respect he is regarded as having been "passive".
In the 1850s he paid for the restoration of his local parish church
of St Mary and All Saints
at Great Budworth
, where he encouraged a more Anglo-Catholic
style of worship. He paid for the building of new churches in two villages on his estates. In the village of Warburton
he paid for the new church of St Werburgh
. This was built in 1883–85 to a design by John Douglas
of Chester, at which time Egerton-Warburton's nephew, Rev. Geoffrey Egerton-Warburton, was the incumbent
. This church replaced the old church in Warburton, also dedicated to St Werburgh, as the parish church. The old church still exists on another site in the village. In the village of Appleton Thorn, 3.3 miles (5 km) to the north of Arley Hall, he paid for St Cross
church, which was built in 1886–87 to a design by Edmund Kirby
of Liverpool
.
Egerton-Warburton also paid for the construction of secular buildings in villages on his estates, many of which were designed by John Douglas. In Great Budworth he had a "campaign to restore the village and render it picturesque
in Victorian
eyes". He restored many of the cottages in the village and built new ones to blend with them. In 1875 the George and Dragon
, a simple three-bay Georgian
inn in the village, was remodelled by adding ribbed chimneys, moulded brick mullion
s, an elliptical
-headed doorway and a steep pyramid-shaped turret
. The village has changed little since then and it remains "one of Cheshire's most charming villages". In 1873 he paid for the building of a cottage in Arley Green
and founded Arley School in the village. In Warburton, he paid for a school in 1871–72, a church hall in 1889, and a post office in 1893. Features in the style of Douglas were added to the timber-framed
Bent Farm, which stands opposite the new church, in 1880. He also built the public road from Arley Hall to Appleton Thorn.
and rode with the Tarporley Hunt Club
, of which he became a member in 1825 and its president in 1838. When he retired from hunting in 1873, he was made an honorary member of the club. His friend, the Bishop of Oxford
, Samuel Wilberforce
, described him as being "equally at home in the hunting field and the parish church". He was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant
of Cheshire in 1825, was an officer in the Royal Cheshire Militia
and in the Cheshire Yeomanry
, served as a Justice of the Peace
, and was igh Sheriff of Cheshire] for 1833.
His poetry, usually on the subjects of hunting and country life, was light-hearted and popular. In 1834 he published his Hunting Songs, which ran to eight editions. Titles of the songs include "A Good Merry Gallop for Me!" and "Farmer Dobbin". His nine-stanza
poem "Quaesitum meritis" is considered to be his best work. He created signposts on his estate with rhyming inscriptions, some of which are still present. He also published more serious documents about the cattle plague
of 1747–49. Lord Halifax
referred to him as "a perfect combination, a good churchman, a good landlord, a keen sportsman, and a man of literary tastes".
He also wrote a couplet as an epitaph for the headstone of Copenhagen, the war horse ridden at the Battle of Waterloo
by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
. The couplet, "God's humbler instrument, though meaner clay, should share the glory of that glorious day," was written at the request of the 2nd Duke
, when he erected a tombstone for his father's famous horse on his grave at Strathfield Saye
. The first Duke would have approved of the choice of poet, since he, like Egerton-Warburton, was a keen sportsman, and in fact, the Duke had often hunted on Copenhagen when the two of them were in the Peninsula
.
When Egerton-Warburton took over the estate, the hall was "dilapidated and swarming with rats", and so he decided to replace it completely. He took great interest in the design of the new house and chapel, and his ideas reflected respectively his artistic and his religious values. In respect of the house, he was influenced by the spirit of the Romantic
movement. He also wanted the new house to reflect his ancient lineage: "to suggest something of the pity of the Middle Ages
as well as the grandeur of Elizabethan
England". He therefore rejected the neoclassical
style of architecture, which was fashionable at the time, and chose instead to build a house in what is now known as Jacobethan
style. He also wanted it to incorporate modern technology and materials in its construction, and he did not want it to be too expensive. He commissioned a young local architect, George Latham
from Nantwich
, and worked closely with him in the design. Latham suggested that the final cost would be in the region of £5,000–6,000 (£–£ today). It was agreed that every architectural feature of the house should have an exact model in an existing Elizabethan building. Egerton-Warburton and Latham travelled together and visited such buildings to study these features.
The first phase of building started in 1832, and the east, north and west wings of the old house were demolished. Most of the new building in this phase consisted of servants' quarters and utility rooms. A drawing room, grand staircase and hall were built but they were left unfinished. Modern plumbing was fitted, the structure of the house was raised on arches to reduce the effect of damp, and the spaces under the arches were ventilated and warmed by a patent device. This phase was completed in 1835 at a cost of about £13,000 (£ today). Egerton-Warburton then took a break, partly to raise the money needed for the completion of the house, and also to work on the designs of the remaining rooms. The second and final phase was built between 1840 and 1845. The south front was demolished and the building, much of which is present today, was finished. The final cost of the house came to about £30,000 (£ today).
In designing the chapel, he again broke away from the classical style of architecture. Having been influenced by the Oxford Movement
, he decided that it should be designed in Gothic
style. He commissioned the nationally famous architect Anthony Salvin
to design a Gothic Revival
chapel, which was completed and consecrated
in 1845. In 1856–57, a north aisle and porch were added to a design by George Street
.
When Egerton-Warburton took over the estate, the gardens were mainly to the east of the hall, but with his wife, Mary, he designed new gardens. These were developed to the southwest of the hall between 1840 and 1860. They implemented their designs apparently without any professional help, and the present gardens are largely the result of their planning. The herbaceous border
was one of the first of its type to have been created in England. Items they planted which are still present include the yew
finials in the herbaceous border, which were planted in 1856, and the holly oak cylinders in the Ilex Walk, which were also planted in the 1850s.
in the 47th (Lancashire) Regiment of Foot. Peter
, born in 1813, worked with the East India Company
before moving to Australia, where he achieved some notoriety as an explorer. The youngest brother, George Edward was born in 1819. He also emigrated and established a farm in Western Australia. Egerton-Warburton's sisters were Emma (born 1805), Frances Mary (1809), Maria Sybilla (1812), Charlotte (1815), and Sophia (1816).
On 7 April 1831 Egerton-Warburton married Mary Brooke, the eldest daughter of Sir Richard Brooke, 6th baronet of Norton Priory. They had three children, Mary Alice, Piers
(later MP for Mid Cheshire), and Mary. His wife died in 1881 and his younger daughter and her family moved in to live with him. By 1874 he was suffering from glaucoma
, and soon afterwards became blind. He continued to take walks, led on a leather strap by his gardener. He had a path, Furlong Walk, constructed from the terrace at the hall with wire to guide him. His health began to fail from 1888 and he died in 1891 at the age of 87. He was buried in the family vault at Great Budworth church. His estate
amounted to a little over £51,670 (£ today).
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England. He was a devout Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
in the high church
High church
The term "High Church" refers to beliefs and practices of ecclesiology, liturgy and theology, generally with an emphasis on formality, and resistance to "modernization." Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term has traditionally been principally associated with the...
tradition and a local benefactor. He paid for the restoration of his parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
and for the building of two new churches in villages on his estates. He also built cottages and farm buildings in the villages.
Through his mother's line he inherited the Arley
Arley, Cheshire
Arley is a small village in the civil parish of Aston by Budworth, Cheshire, England adjacent to Arley Hall. 0.7 miles to the east is a small group of houses known as Arley Green. The village is 3.8 miles south of Lymm and 5 miles north of Northwich.The buildings now comprising Arley Green...
and Warburton
Warburton, Greater Manchester
Warburton is a village and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Cheshire, Warburton lies on the south bank of the River Mersey between the borough of Warrington and Greater Manchester. Today, the village remains...
estates in Cheshire. He is best remembered for rebuilding Arley Hall
Arley Hall
Arley Hall is a country house in the village of Arley, Cheshire, England, about south of Lymm and north of Northwich. It is home to the owner, Viscount Ashbrook and his family. The house is a Grade II* listed building, as is its adjacent chapel. Formal gardens to the southwest of the hall...
and its chapel dedicated to St Mary
St Mary's Chapel, Arley
St Mary's Chapel, Arley, is the private chapel to Arley Hall near the village of Arley, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building. The chapel is situated to the northeast of the hall.-History:...
, and for helping to create the picturesque appearance of the village of Great Budworth
Great Budworth
Great Budworth is a civil parish and village, approximately north of Northwich, England, within the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire. It lies off the A559 road, east of Comberbach, northwest of Higher Marston and southeast of Budworth Heath...
. He and his wife designed extensive new formal gardens to the southeast of the hall, which included one of the earliest herbaceous border
Herbaceous border
A herbaceous border is a collection of perennial herbaceous plants arranged closely together, usually to create a dramatic effect through colour, shape or large scale. The term herbaceous border is mostly in use in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth...
s in Britain. The hall and gardens are still owned by his family, but are open to the public.
Egerton-Warburton's main hobby was hunting
Fox hunting
Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase, and sometimes killing of a fox, traditionally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds, and a group of followers led by a master of foxhounds, who follow the hounds on foot or on horseback.Fox hunting originated in its current...
. He was a keen member, and later the president, of the nearby Tarporley Hunt Club
Tarporley Hunt Club
The Tarporley Hunt Club is a hunt club which meets at Tarporley in Cheshire, England. Founded in 1762, it is the oldest surviving such society in England, and possibly the oldest in the world. Its members' exploits were immortalised in the Hunting Songs of Rowland Egerton-Warburton. The club also...
. He also wrote poetry, the subject matter of which reflected his interests in hunting and in the countryside. Some of his rhymes are to be found on signposts in the grounds of the hall.
Early life
He was born Rowland Egerton in 1804 at Norley Bank, NorleyNorley
thumb|right|200px|Map of civil parish of Norley within the former borough of Vale RoyalNorley is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies to the north of Delamere Forest, near the village of Cuddington...
, Cheshire, the eldest son of Rev. Rowland Egerton BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
and his wife, Emma. His father was the seventh son of Philip Egerton who became the 9th baronet of Egerton and Oulton
Grey Egerton Baronets
The Egerton, later Grey Egerton Baronetcy, of Egerton and Oulton in the County of Chester, is a title in the Baronetage of England. It was created on 5 April 1617 for Roland Egerton. He later represented Wootton Bassett in Parliament...
on the death of his elder brother in 1825. His maternal grandmother (also called Emma) was the youngest sister of Sir Peter Warburton, 5th baronet of Arley
Warburton Baronets
The Warburton Baronetcy, of Arley in the County of Chester, was a title in the Baronetage of England. It was created on 27 June 1660 by Charles II for George Warburton, of Arley Hall, Cheshire, whose great-uncle had been Sergeant at Law and a Justice of Common Pleas in the time of Charles I. The...
, who had no children. Sir Peter died in 1813 and in his will he left the estates of Warburton and Arley to Rowland junior, who was at that time still a minor
Minor (law)
In law, a minor is a person under a certain age — the age of majority — which legally demarcates childhood from adulthood; the age depends upon jurisdiction and application, but is typically 18...
. His father added the name "Warburton" by royal licence in the same year. Egerton-Warburton was educated at Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
, and although he was admitted to Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...
in 1823, there is no evidence that he was awarded a degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
. After his time in Oxford he went on a Grand Tour
Grand Tour
The Grand Tour was the traditional trip of Europe undertaken by mainly upper-class European young men of means. The custom flourished from about 1660 until the advent of large-scale rail transit in the 1840s, and was associated with a standard itinerary. It served as an educational rite of passage...
, and returned to the life of a squire
Squire
The English word squire is a shortened version of the word Esquire, from the Old French , itself derived from the Late Latin , in medieval or Old English a scutifer. The Classical Latin equivalent was , "arms bearer"...
at Arley Hall, having gained control of the estates on achieving his age of majority
Age of majority
The age of majority is the threshold of adulthood as it is conceptualized in law. It is the chronological moment when minors cease to legally be considered children and assume control over their persons, actions, and decisions, thereby terminating the legal control and legal responsibilities of...
in 1825.
Landowner and benefactor
Oxford Movement
The Oxford Movement was a movement of High Church Anglicans, eventually developing into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose members were often associated with the University of Oxford, argued for the reinstatement of lost Christian traditions of faith and their inclusion into Anglican liturgy...
, having been influenced by Keble
John Keble
John Keble was an English churchman and poet, one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement, and gave his name to Keble College, Oxford.-Early life:...
, Pusey
Edward Bouverie Pusey
Edward Bouverie Pusey was an English churchman and Regius Professor of Hebrew at Christ Church, Oxford. He was one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement.-Early years:...
and Newman. He regularly attended choral
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
Matins
Matins
Matins is the early morning or night prayer service in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran and Eastern Orthodox liturgies of the canonical hours. The term is also used in some Protestant denominations to describe morning services.The name "Matins" originally referred to the morning office also...
in the chapel at Arley Hall, and on hunt days he wore his hunting colours. He took little interest in politics, in which respect he is regarded as having been "passive".
In the 1850s he paid for the restoration of his local parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
of St Mary and All Saints
St Mary and All Saints Church, Great Budworth
St Mary and All Saints Church, Great Budworth, is in the centre of the village of Great Budworth, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Chester and the...
at Great Budworth
Great Budworth
Great Budworth is a civil parish and village, approximately north of Northwich, England, within the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire. It lies off the A559 road, east of Comberbach, northwest of Higher Marston and southeast of Budworth Heath...
, where he encouraged a more Anglo-Catholic
Anglo-Catholicism
The terms Anglo-Catholic and Anglo-Catholicism describe people, beliefs and practices within Anglicanism that affirm the Catholic, rather than Protestant, heritage and identity of the Anglican churches....
style of worship. He paid for the building of new churches in two villages on his estates. In the village of Warburton
Warburton, Greater Manchester
Warburton is a village and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Cheshire, Warburton lies on the south bank of the River Mersey between the borough of Warrington and Greater Manchester. Today, the village remains...
he paid for the new church of St Werburgh
St Werburgh's Church, Warburton
St Werburgh's Church, Warburton is the name of two separate churches in the village of Warburton, Greater Manchester, England. The older church is located to the west of the village, and may date back as far as the middle of the 13th century. It is now a redundant church but services are held...
. This was built in 1883–85 to a design by John Douglas
John Douglas (architect)
John Douglas was an English architect who designed about 500 buildings in Cheshire, North Wales, and northwest England, in particular in the estate of Eaton Hall. He was trained in Lancaster and practised throughout his career from an office in Chester, Cheshire...
of Chester, at which time Egerton-Warburton's nephew, Rev. Geoffrey Egerton-Warburton, was the incumbent
Incumbent (ecclesiastical)
In Anglican canon law, the incumbent of a benefice, usually the parish priest, holds the temporalities or assets and income.Depending on the terms of governance of each parish an incumbent might be either:...
. This church replaced the old church in Warburton, also dedicated to St Werburgh, as the parish church. The old church still exists on another site in the village. In the village of Appleton Thorn, 3.3 miles (5 km) to the north of Arley Hall, he paid for St Cross
St Cross Church, Appleton Thorn
St Cross Church, Appleton Thorn is in the village of Appleton Thorn, Cheshire, England. The church has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Chester and the deanery of Great...
church, which was built in 1886–87 to a design by Edmund Kirby
Edmund Kirby
Edmund Kirby was an English architect. He was born in Liverpool, educated at Sedgeley Park School and Oscott College. He was articled to E. W. Pugin, then worked for Hardman & Co., and for John Douglas in Chester. By 1863 he was practising in Birkenhead and by 1866 his office was in Derby...
of Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
.
Picturesque
Picturesque is an aesthetic ideal introduced into English cultural debate in 1782 by William Gilpin in Observations on the River Wye, and Several Parts of South Wales, etc. Relative Chiefly to Picturesque Beauty; made in the Summer of the Year 1770, a practical book which instructed England's...
in Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
eyes". He restored many of the cottages in the village and built new ones to blend with them. In 1875 the George and Dragon
George and Dragon, Great Budworth
The George and Dragon is a public house in the village of Great Budworth, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II listed building.-History:Great Budworth is a village that was formerly in the estate of Arley Hall...
, a simple three-bay Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
inn in the village, was remodelled by adding ribbed chimneys, moulded brick mullion
Mullion
A mullion is a vertical structural element which divides adjacent window units. The primary purpose of the mullion is as a structural support to an arch or lintel above the window opening. Its secondary purpose may be as a rigid support to the glazing of the window...
s, an elliptical
Ellipse
In geometry, an ellipse is a plane curve that results from the intersection of a cone by a plane in a way that produces a closed curve. Circles are special cases of ellipses, obtained when the cutting plane is orthogonal to the cone's axis...
-headed doorway and a steep pyramid-shaped turret
Turret
In architecture, a turret is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall of a building such as a medieval castle. Turrets were used to provide a projecting defensive position allowing covering fire to the adjacent wall in the days of military fortification...
. The village has changed little since then and it remains "one of Cheshire's most charming villages". In 1873 he paid for the building of a cottage in Arley Green
Arley Green
Arley Green is a village in Cheshire, England....
and founded Arley School in the village. In Warburton, he paid for a school in 1871–72, a church hall in 1889, and a post office in 1893. Features in the style of Douglas were added to the timber-framed
Timber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
Bent Farm, which stands opposite the new church, in 1880. He also built the public road from Arley Hall to Appleton Thorn.
Fox hunter and poet
Egerton-Warburton was a keen fox hunterFox hunting
Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase, and sometimes killing of a fox, traditionally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds, and a group of followers led by a master of foxhounds, who follow the hounds on foot or on horseback.Fox hunting originated in its current...
and rode with the Tarporley Hunt Club
Tarporley Hunt Club
The Tarporley Hunt Club is a hunt club which meets at Tarporley in Cheshire, England. Founded in 1762, it is the oldest surviving such society in England, and possibly the oldest in the world. Its members' exploits were immortalised in the Hunting Songs of Rowland Egerton-Warburton. The club also...
, of which he became a member in 1825 and its president in 1838. When he retired from hunting in 1873, he was made an honorary member of the club. His friend, the Bishop of Oxford
Bishop of Oxford
The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...
, Samuel Wilberforce
Samuel Wilberforce
Samuel Wilberforce was an English bishop in the Church of England, third son of William Wilberforce. Known as "Soapy Sam", Wilberforce was one of the greatest public speakers of his time and place...
, described him as being "equally at home in the hunting field and the parish church". He was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
of Cheshire in 1825, was an officer in the Royal Cheshire Militia
Militia (United Kingdom)
The Militia of the United Kingdom were the military reserve forces of the United Kingdom after the Union in 1801 of the former Kingdom of Great Britain and Kingdom of Ireland....
and in the Cheshire Yeomanry
Cheshire Yeomanry
The Cheshire Yeomanry was a yeomanry regiment that can trace its history back to 1797 when Sir John Fleming Leicester of Tabley raised a county regiment of light cavalry in response to the growing fears of invasion from Napoleonic France....
, served as a Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
, and was igh Sheriff of Cheshire] for 1833.
His poetry, usually on the subjects of hunting and country life, was light-hearted and popular. In 1834 he published his Hunting Songs, which ran to eight editions. Titles of the songs include "A Good Merry Gallop for Me!" and "Farmer Dobbin". His nine-stanza
Stanza
In poetry, a stanza is a unit within a larger poem. In modern poetry, the term is often equivalent with strophe; in popular vocal music, a stanza is typically referred to as a "verse"...
poem "Quaesitum meritis" is considered to be his best work. He created signposts on his estate with rhyming inscriptions, some of which are still present. He also published more serious documents about the cattle plague
Rinderpest
Rinderpest was an infectious viral disease of cattle, domestic buffalo, and some other species of even-toed ungulates, including buffaloes, large antelopes and deer, giraffes, wildebeests and warthogs. After a global eradication campaign, the last confirmed case of rinderpest was diagnosed in 2001...
of 1747–49. Lord Halifax
Charles Wood, 1st Viscount Halifax
Charles Wood, 1st Viscount Halifax GCB PC , known as Sir Charles Wood, 3rd Bt between 1846 and 1866, was a British Whig politician and Member of Parliament. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1846 to 1852....
referred to him as "a perfect combination, a good churchman, a good landlord, a keen sportsman, and a man of literary tastes".
He also wrote a couplet as an epitaph for the headstone of Copenhagen, the war horse ridden at the Battle of Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
. The couplet, "God's humbler instrument, though meaner clay, should share the glory of that glorious day," was written at the request of the 2nd Duke
Arthur Wellesley, 2nd Duke of Wellington
Lieutenant-General Arthur Richard Wellesley, 2nd Duke of Wellington KG, PC , styled Lord Douro between 1812 and 1814 and Marquess of Douro between 1814 and 1852, was a British soldier and politician...
, when he erected a tombstone for his father's famous horse on his grave at Strathfield Saye
Stratfield Saye House
Stratfield Saye House is a large stately home at Stratfield Saye in the north-east of the English county of Hampshire. It has been the home of the Dukes of Wellington since 1817.-Early history:...
. The first Duke would have approved of the choice of poet, since he, like Egerton-Warburton, was a keen sportsman, and in fact, the Duke had often hunted on Copenhagen when the two of them were in the Peninsula
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
.
Rebuilding of Arley Hall
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
movement. He also wanted the new house to reflect his ancient lineage: "to suggest something of the pity of the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
as well as the grandeur of Elizabethan
Elizabethan era
The Elizabethan era was the epoch in English history of Queen Elizabeth I's reign . Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history...
England". He therefore rejected the neoclassical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
style of architecture, which was fashionable at the time, and chose instead to build a house in what is now known as Jacobethan
Jacobethan
Jacobethan is the style designation coined in 1933 by John Betjeman to describe the mixed national Renaissance revival style that was made popular in England from the late 1820s, which derived most of its inspiration and its repertory from the English Renaissance , with elements of Elizabethan and...
style. He also wanted it to incorporate modern technology and materials in its construction, and he did not want it to be too expensive. He commissioned a young local architect, George Latham
George Latham (architect)
George Latham was an English architect and surveyor, from the town of Nantwich in Cheshire.-Life:Latham married the daughter of the Wesleyan Methodist minister of Nantwich, the Reverend Thomas Gee...
from Nantwich
Nantwich
Nantwich is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The town gives its name to the parliamentary constituency of Crewe and Nantwich...
, and worked closely with him in the design. Latham suggested that the final cost would be in the region of £5,000–6,000 (£–£ today). It was agreed that every architectural feature of the house should have an exact model in an existing Elizabethan building. Egerton-Warburton and Latham travelled together and visited such buildings to study these features.
The first phase of building started in 1832, and the east, north and west wings of the old house were demolished. Most of the new building in this phase consisted of servants' quarters and utility rooms. A drawing room, grand staircase and hall were built but they were left unfinished. Modern plumbing was fitted, the structure of the house was raised on arches to reduce the effect of damp, and the spaces under the arches were ventilated and warmed by a patent device. This phase was completed in 1835 at a cost of about £13,000 (£ today). Egerton-Warburton then took a break, partly to raise the money needed for the completion of the house, and also to work on the designs of the remaining rooms. The second and final phase was built between 1840 and 1845. The south front was demolished and the building, much of which is present today, was finished. The final cost of the house came to about £30,000 (£ today).
Oxford Movement
The Oxford Movement was a movement of High Church Anglicans, eventually developing into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose members were often associated with the University of Oxford, argued for the reinstatement of lost Christian traditions of faith and their inclusion into Anglican liturgy...
, he decided that it should be designed in Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
style. He commissioned the nationally famous architect Anthony Salvin
Anthony Salvin
Anthony Salvin was an English architect. He gained a reputation as an expert on medieval buildings and applied this expertise to his new buildings and his restorations...
to design a Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
chapel, which was completed and consecrated
Consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, usually religious. The word "consecration" literally means "to associate with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups...
in 1845. In 1856–57, a north aisle and porch were added to a design by George Street
George Edmund Street
George Edmund Street was an English architect, born at Woodford in Essex.- Life :Street was the third son of Thomas Street, solicitor, by his second wife, Mary Anne Millington. George went to school at Mitcham in about 1830, and later to the Camberwell collegiate school, which he left in 1839...
.
When Egerton-Warburton took over the estate, the gardens were mainly to the east of the hall, but with his wife, Mary, he designed new gardens. These were developed to the southwest of the hall between 1840 and 1860. They implemented their designs apparently without any professional help, and the present gardens are largely the result of their planning. The herbaceous border
Herbaceous border
A herbaceous border is a collection of perennial herbaceous plants arranged closely together, usually to create a dramatic effect through colour, shape or large scale. The term herbaceous border is mostly in use in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth...
was one of the first of its type to have been created in England. Items they planted which are still present include the yew
Taxus baccata
Taxus baccata is a conifer native to western, central and southern Europe, northwest Africa, northern Iran and southwest Asia. It is the tree originally known as yew, though with other related trees becoming known, it may be now known as the English yew, or European yew.-Description:It is a small-...
finials in the herbaceous border, which were planted in 1856, and the holly oak cylinders in the Ilex Walk, which were also planted in the 1850s.
Family and later life
Egerton-Warburton was the eldest child of ten; he had four brothers and five sisters. His younger brother, James Francis, who was born in 1807, graduated MA and became the rector of Warburton. Henry William was born in 1808, and became a majorMajor
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in the 47th (Lancashire) Regiment of Foot. Peter
Peter Warburton
Colonel Peter Egerton Warburton CMG was an English explorer who made one particularly daring expedition from Adelaide to cross the centre of Australia to the coast of Western Australia via Alice Springs in 1872.The younger brother of Rowland Egerton-Warburton, Warburton was educated at home and...
, born in 1813, worked with the East India Company
East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
before moving to Australia, where he achieved some notoriety as an explorer. The youngest brother, George Edward was born in 1819. He also emigrated and established a farm in Western Australia. Egerton-Warburton's sisters were Emma (born 1805), Frances Mary (1809), Maria Sybilla (1812), Charlotte (1815), and Sophia (1816).
On 7 April 1831 Egerton-Warburton married Mary Brooke, the eldest daughter of Sir Richard Brooke, 6th baronet of Norton Priory. They had three children, Mary Alice, Piers
Piers Egerton-Warburton
Piers Egerton-Warburton was an English Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1876 to 1885....
(later MP for Mid Cheshire), and Mary. His wife died in 1881 and his younger daughter and her family moved in to live with him. By 1874 he was suffering from glaucoma
Glaucoma
Glaucoma is an eye disorder in which the optic nerve suffers damage, permanently damaging vision in the affected eye and progressing to complete blindness if untreated. It is often, but not always, associated with increased pressure of the fluid in the eye...
, and soon afterwards became blind. He continued to take walks, led on a leather strap by his gardener. He had a path, Furlong Walk, constructed from the terrace at the hall with wire to guide him. His health began to fail from 1888 and he died in 1891 at the age of 87. He was buried in the family vault at Great Budworth church. His estate
Estate (law)
An estate is the net worth of a person at any point in time. It is the sum of a person's assets - legal rights, interests and entitlements to property of any kind - less all liabilities at that time. The issue is of special legal significance on a question of bankruptcy and death of the person...
amounted to a little over £51,670 (£ today).
External links
- Hunting Songs, Ballads, &c., by Rowland Egerton-Warburton (1834) (includes "Quaesitum meritis")