Description:
The Seat of Charles Herbert Pierrepont, Earl Manvers. This very extensive demesne is within one mile of Clumber, and in the parish of Edwinstowe. The park is computed to be thirteen miles in circumference, and is adorned with a variety of beautiful plantations on an enlarged scale, presenting a succession of sylvan scenery of the most interesting nature :- ' Majestic woods of ever vigorous green, Stage above stage, high waving o'er the hills.' Here are also several pieces of water, the largest of which faces the front given in our view, and represents an extensive river: between this lake and the mansion, verdant and sloping lawns contribute to produce the most beautiful effect imaginable. The first of this family who was seated here, was William, second son of Robert Pierrepoint, created, in 1627, Baron Pierrepoint, of Holme Pierrepoint, (a lordship which came into the family by a marriage with a sister and heir of Lionel de Manvel's, temp. Henry III.) and Viscount Newark, and the year following was advanced to the dignity of Earl of Kingston. The grandson of William became the first Duke of Kingston in 1715, and resided here; but in the time of Evelyn, the second and last Duke of that title, this mansion was destroyed by fire on the 4th of March, 1745, when, among the MSS. of its first possessor, who had been one of the leading members of the House of Commons during the Civil War, was consumed the original minutes and papers relating to the treaties with King Charles the First, at Uxbridge and in the Isle of Wight; and only a small part of the furniture, the plate, and the family deeds were saved from the flames. Soon after this event, the present edifice was built by the Duke of Kingston, from whose sister the present noble proprietor is immediately descended, and has inherited the vast estates of the Dukedom. The mansion, which stands in a fine open situation on a gentle eminence, is constructed of brick: on the principal front is a pediment supported by columns of the Ionic order, of stone; the rustic basement is also of stone, from which is the entrance opening into the hall, adorned with a chiaroscuro of the Trojan horse, some landscapes, and sea- pieces: from the hall we enter the Earl's dressing-room, containing the portraits of Henry, Earl of Pembroke, 1769, Pascal Paoli, the gallant General of Corsica, 1770; Colonel Sawyer; Admiral Meadows, father of Earl Manvers; and also some sea-pieces and medallions. The little drawing-room contains some paintings, and in the dining-room is a very fine Madonna and Infant Jesus. These apartments are upon the ground-floor. The ascent to the principal storey is by a double staircase in the centre of the mansion, single at the commencement, but dividing at the top of the first flight, and opening into the dome, a circular room, the walls of which are of Scagliola marble; round it runs a gallery supported by fourteen columns, leading to the upper apartments: the light is admitted from a handsome circular skylight, and the floor is tessellated. The dining-room has a recess at the end, formed with curiously twisted columns; and contains a portrait of Earl Howe, and a well-executed landscape, a view of Ben Lomond and its beautiful Loch, so celebrated in Scottish scenery. The octagonal drawing-room contains a portrait of Evelyn, Duke of Kingston, and a bust of Pascal Paoli. The Admiral's gallery is hung with a variety of very interesting sea-pieces. The Countess's dressing-room is covered with a profusion of drawings, and has also some elegant cabinets. The apartments in the garden front command a view of the very fine cascade in the shrubbery. This is a view of the second mansion, built c 1770 and demolished 1868. It appeared in Jones' Views of Seats, Mansions and Castles of England, 1829. By the late 20th century, the hall had stood in a delapidated state for many years, and has since been converted to a hotel.