The Ham Nomads

23 Aug 2014. <GB-ENG> Bolsover, & Doe Lea, Chesterfield, Derby —

Happy Anniversary! 45 years and still counting!

Today we're exploring the Cavendish family — Bolsover Castle, erected on the site of an earlier castle by Charles Cavendish and his son William in the half century from 1612, and Hardwick Hall, erected by Charles' mother Bess of Hardwick, who had it built in the last decade of the 16th century. The hall at Hardwick doesn't open till noon, so we went to Bolsover Castle first.

Charles Cavendish began Bolsover as a retreat (his principal residence was in Welsbeck) in 1612, taking over the site of a ruined castle from the late 11th century. William inherited in 1617 and went on to complete the buildings.

He entertained King Charles I and Queen Henrietta Maria there in 1634, when the masque 'Love's Welcome', specially written for the occasion by Ben Johnson, was performed in the garden. During the Civil War, William fought for the Royalists and, after their defeat at the Battle of Marsdon Moor, went into exile. On his return in 1660 he repaired Bolsover, rebuilt the Riding House Range and rebuilt the state apartment. William was a keen horseman and an expert in the art of manège, which has since developed into the modern British form of dressage. The Riding House Range contained stables, a smithy and shoeing house, and an indoor riding house which is in full use today for weekly exhibitions.

The "Little Castle" was a retreat, and was set up to entertain royally. It is somewhat of a maze inside — intentional — and the rooms are exquisite. Those that still have their 17th century ceiling paintings and friezes simply have to be seen to be believed. The kitchens in the basement were suitable to cook up a king's feast — and were used for this purpose on occasion!

While we were exploring this mad folly, we were asking ourselves "Where did he get his money?" as he really had perfected the art of splashing it about. We found out at our next destination, Hardwick Hall. This was built by Bess of Hardwick, aka Elizabeth, the Countess of Shrewsbury, in the last two decades of her colourful life. She had started off as the daughter of a fairly comfortably-off sheep-farmer, and had gone into service in the household of Sir John Zouche of Condnor Castle in Derbyshire. In about 1543 she married her cousin Robert Barlow, who was somewhat better off than she. He died within a year, and his brother (who would have inherited but for her) tried to cut her off.

The 'Penelope' embroidery, freshly restored

She, however, took him to court and won — for her to do this at the age of only 18 indicates that she was an indomitable woman! Three years later she married Sir William Cavendish, who had made a fortune as one of the commissioners for the Dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII. She had 8 children by him, six of whom survived. When William died, he left her a life interest in Chatsworth and a substantial part of his property. Her third marriage, again upwards, was to Sir William Loe, who when he died left her most of his property. Then, in 1567, she married George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury, a widower with 6 children. At 40, he was head of one of the richest and grandest families in England. Bess set up this marriage in a way that ensured his wealth would remain in her family — as part of the deal, his second son married her daughter Mary, and his daughter married her eldest son Henry.

Within two years Lord Shrewsbury was saddled with an onerous task by Queen Elizabeth — he was put in charge of the captivity of Mary, Queen of Scots, a task that would remain with him for 15 years, and which would have grave effects on his peace of mind. When Lord Shrewsbury died in 1590, Bess (who had become estranged from him) recovered complete control of all her lands, and had a very large widow's jointure in addition. She become one of the richest people in England — the second-richest woman, second only to Queen Elizabeth herself. So she embarked on a program of conspicuous consumption. She built Hardwick Hall, a building with more glass than stone in its exterior — at a time when glass was one of the most expensive commodities around. She furnished it with extreme splendour — but at times she showed why she has become such a rich woman. As a case in point, she bought a huge number of tapestries, but talked the price down because they had worked into them the coat of arms of the previous owner, so she would have to have them covered over by her own coat of arms worked onto what might be called tapestry patches.

Oh, by the way, during all this to-ing and fro-ing, Bess had become lady in waiting to Queen Elizabeth, and had struck up a lasting friendship with her. Some of the furniture in Hardwick Hall was a direct gift from the queen. One piece in particular, a table set on four sea-dogs, is the absolute cream of the woodcarver's art, and is positively priceless!

We explored Hardwick Hall for a couple of hours — we could have spent longer, but the place was in the process of closing down for the day. Let it be said that this and Bolsover Castle are two of the most fascinating places we have had the privilege to visit!

As we left Hardwick Hall, we decided to overnight on a layby on a side road we had accidentally passed through during the day — so here we are, in the back of nowhere, expecting a ver-r-r-r-y quiet night!

Distance driven — today, 36 miles ( 58 km ); to date, 6,346 miles ( 10,213 km )