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Sheffield Manor Lodge, also known as Sheffield Manor or locally as Manor Castle, is a lodge built about 1516 in what then was a large
deer A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...
park southeast of
Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...
,
South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the north, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north-east, Lincolnshire ...
, England, to provide a country retreat and further accommodate George Talbot, the 4th Earl of Shrewsbury, and his large family. The remnant of this estate is now known as Norfolk Park. The housing estate of Manor is named after Sheffield Manor Lodge.


Description

The remains of Sheffield Manor Lodge include parts of the kitchens,
long gallery In architecture, a long gallery is a long, narrow room, often with a high ceiling. In Britain, long galleries were popular in Elizabethan and Jacobean houses. They were normally placed on the highest reception floor of English country house ...
, and the
Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...
Turret House (also called "Queen Mary's Tower"), which contains fine sixteenth-century ceilings. Writing in the 17th century,
William Dugdale Sir William Dugdale (12 September 1605 – 10 February 1686) was an English antiquary and herald. As a scholar he was influential in the development of medieval history as an academic subject. Life Dugdale was born at Shustoke, near Colesh ...
noted that the heraldic decoration in the long gallery dating from around 1525 included the arms of
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...
and
Catherine of Aragon Catherine of Aragon (also spelt as Katherine, historical Spanish: , now: ; 16 December 1485 – 7 January 1536) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England as the Wives of Henry VIII, first wife of King Henry VIII from their marr ...
, and the George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury's second wife Elizabeth Walden. Some evidence points to the Turret House being built by 1574, when George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury's accounts record payments for masonry work on the "Tyrret" at Sheffield Manor. It has three storeys of two rooms. The stair at one corner rises above the building onto the roof. This seems to have been designed as a viewing platform and is comparable with the "Hunting Tower" at
Chatsworth House Chatsworth House is a stately home in the Derbyshire Dales, north-east of Bakewell and west of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, Chesterfield, England. The seat of the Duke of Devonshire, it has belonged to the House of Cavendish, Cavendish family si ...
. On 5 August 1577, the Earl of Shrewsbury wrote to William Cecil (who was at Buxton for his health). In a postscript he mentioned that he was sending him a "platt" (plan) of the front or facade of a lodge that he was building. This may have been a drawing for the lodge at Sheffield, or a similar building.


Mary, Queen of Scots

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...
, was held prisoner by the 6th Earl of Shrewsbury at both Sheffield Manor Lodge and Sheffield Castle (her
ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...
is said by some to haunt the Turret House building). Wolsey's Tower was built to accommodate
Cardinal Wolsey Thomas Wolsey ( ; – 29 November 1530) was an English statesman and Catholic cardinal. When Henry VIII became King of England in 1509, Wolsey became the king's almoner. Wolsey's affairs prospered and by 1514 he had become the controlling f ...
, who then died after travelling on to
Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...
. Mary came to England in 1568 after her defeat at the
battle of Langside The Battle of Langside was fought on 13 May 1568 between forces loyal to Mary, Queen of Scots, and forces acting in the name of her infant son James VI. Mary’s short period of personal rule ended in 1567 in recrimination, intrigue, and disast ...
seeking the support of the Catholic nobility. Mary's freedom was restricted after her cousin Elizabeth was advised of the threat that Mary posed to her own crown. She was handed over to the custody of George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury on 4 February 1569. Talbot had armed guards watching her constantly, however she was still able, with the help of the
Duke of Norfolk Duke of Norfolk is a title in the peerage of England. The premier non-royal peer, the Duke of Norfolk is additionally the premier duke and earl in the English peerage. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the t ...
and others of the Catholic nobility, to plot against Elizabeth. Several times Mary had to be moved to places of greater safety and stricter control. On 28 November 1570 she was taken to the
Earl of Shrewsbury Earl of Shrewsbury () is a hereditary title of nobility created twice in the Peerage of England. The second earldom dates to 1442. The holder of the Earldom of Shrewsbury also holds the title of Earl of Waterford (1446) in the Peerage of Ireland ...
's castle at Tutbury, where, apart from a few breaks at Chatsworth and
Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the High Peak, Derbyshire, Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, in the East Midlands region of England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.Alston, Cumbria also claims this, but lacks a regu ...
, and more regular visits to Sheffield and the Manor House, she remained for 14 years. Despite Mary's actions, Elizabeth still seemed to support her cousin's claim to the Scottish throne, and Mary wrote regularly to her supporters in Scotland asking them to be faithful and to await the help she believed Elizabeth would provide. Two of Mary's letters are preserved in the Sheffield Archives. The
Duke of Norfolk Duke of Norfolk is a title in the peerage of England. The premier non-royal peer, the Duke of Norfolk is additionally the premier duke and earl in the English peerage. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the t ...
, not long released from the
Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...
, was caught in collusion with the papal agent Roberto di Ridolfi plotting to bring about a Catholic uprising in England. Parliament demanded the execution of both Mary Stuart and Norfolk. At this stage no action was taken against Mary, but the Duke of Norfolk was beheaded in 1572.


Material culture of a queen and her household in captivity

Mary, Queen of Scots, wrote for turtle doves and Barbary doves to keep in a cage as companions in her captivity at Sheffield. A type of portrait showing her standing beside a table became known as the "Sheffield Portrait" because of two references to artists at work at Sheffield. In March 1577, Mary's secretary Claude Nau wrote that a painter was still working and had not yet perfected the Queen's image. Mary sat for a portrait painter at Sheffield in August 1577. She received a portrait of her son
James VI James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...
at Sheffield in October 1582, sent by the French ambassador Michel de Castelnau. Later collectors and historians thought Mary's embroiderer Pierre Oudry was a painter, and his name "P. Oudry Pinxit" was added Mary's portrait at
Hardwick Hall Hardwick Hall is an architecturally significant Elizabethan architecture, Elizabethan-era country house in Derbyshire, England. A leading example of the Elizabethan prodigy house, the Renaissance architecture, Renaissance style home was bu ...
. In 1582, while Mary was still being held at Sheffield, an inventory of all the household goods and furniture belonging to George, Earl of Shrewsbury was made. The inventory describes the castle and contents and gives an idea of the types of rooms in the castle at this date. These included a chapel, a
porch A porch (; , ) is a room or gallery located in front of an entrance to a building. A porch is placed in front of the façade of a building it commands, and forms a low front. Alternatively, it may be a vestibule (architecture), vestibule (a s ...
going into the
great hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages. It continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great cha ...
from the
great chamber The great chamber was the second most important room in a medieval or Tudor English castle, palace, mansion, or manor house after the great hall. Medieval great halls were the ceremonial centre of the household and were not private at all; the g ...
(which was probably the large dining room), a
wardrobe A wardrobe, also called armoire or almirah, is a standing closet used for storing clothes. The earliest wardrobe was a chest, and it was not until some degree of luxury was attained in regal palaces and the castles of powerful nobles that sep ...
, the Lord's chamber and outer chamber, the Lady's chamber, a
bakehouse A bakery is an establishment that produces and sells flour-based baked goods made in an oven such as bread, cookies, cakes, doughnuts, bagels, Pastry, pastries, and pies. Some retail bakeries are also categorized as Coffeehouse, cafés, servi ...
,
brewhouse A brewhouse is a building made for brewing beer and ale. This could be a part of a specialized brewery operation, but historically a brewhouse is a private building only meant for domestic production. Larger households, such as noble estates, o ...
,
pantry A pantry is a room or cupboard where beverages, food, (sometimes) dishes, household cleaning products, linens or provisions are stored within a home or office. Food and beverage pantries serve in an ancillary capacity to the kitchen. Etymol ...
, washhouse and low washhouse, a round tower, a square tower and a
turret Turret may refer to: * Turret (architecture), a small tower that projects above the wall of a building * Gun turret, a mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon * Optical microscope#Objective turret (revolver or revolving nose piece), Objective turre ...
, round towers on either side of the
gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the most ...
and walls running along the waterside, a porter's lodge, a
dungeon A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably derives more from the Renaissance period. An oubliette (fr ...
, a square room, little kitchen, old kitchen, a
kennel A kennel is a structure or shelter for dogs. Used in the plural, ''the kennels'', the term means any building, collection of buildings or a property in which dogs are housed, maintained, and (though not in all cases) bred. A kennel can be made o ...
and a range of
stables A stable is a building in which working animals are kept, especially horses or oxen. The building is usually divided into stalls, and may include storage for equipment and feed. Styles There are many different types of stables in use tod ...
. There was a still and a serpentine for making distilled waters used in contemporary medicine. A 1582 inventory made by John Dickonson and William Catterall included the "stuff" of the "Queen of Scots and her people". Mary had a large entourage, which varied over time, made up of Scots, French and English friends and servants. The list of rooms for "her people" furnished by the Earl of Shrewsbury includes those of the Master of the queen's "howsholde"; her secretary Claude Nau; Mademoiselle Rallay; Mary Seton; Mr Burgoing her doctor; Gilbert Curle; Mr Jarvys her "surgion";
Bastian Pagez Bastian Pagez was a French servant and musician at the court of Mary, Queen of Scots. He was born in Auvergne. He devised part of the entertainment at the baptism of Prince James at Stirling Castle in 1566. When Mary was exiled in England, Bastia ...
; the embroiderer Pierre Oudry (his name written as "Pyrawdrawe"); Dedier the pantryman; Hannibal; and Scottish servant Will Black. The 1582 survey also lists the furnishings "in the hawle at the Poandes", now known as the Old Queen's Head, which included painted canvas hangings. There was a slight earthquake on 16 February 1584. Mary wrote that her ladies were sitting on boxes and chairs working (on sewing and embroidery) on the Saturday evening when the tremor occurred.


Letters and the Throckmorton Plot

Mary kept up a secret correspondence with her allies. The letters, some encoded in
cipher In cryptography, a cipher (or cypher) is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption—a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is ''encipherment''. To encipher or encode i ...
, were carried by her supporters, including George More, a local man whose uncle had a house near Sheffield Manor. In 1583,
Francis Walsingham Sir Francis Walsingham ( – 6 April 1590) was principal secretary to Queen Elizabeth I of England from 20 December 1573 until his death and is popularly remembered as her " spymaster". Born to a well-connected family of gentry, Wa ...
investigated her letters and revealed the
Throckmorton Plot The 1583 Throckmorton Plot was one of a series of attempts by English Roman Catholics to depose Elizabeth I of England and replace her with Mary, Queen of Scots, then held under house arrest in England. The alleged objective was to facilitate a Sp ...
.


Mary leaves Sheffield

In August 1584 Queen Elizabeth finally agreed to Earl George's petition releasing him from his duty of Mary's care. The task which had broken his marriage, his health and his chances of further political advancement. After leaving Sheffield, Mary was taken to
Wingfield Manor Wingfield Manor is a Grade I listed ruined manor house left deserted since the 1770s, near the village of South Wingfield and some west of the town of Alfreton in the English county of Derbyshire. There is a working farm that forms part of t ...
in Derbyshire by her new gaolers, Sir Ralph Sadler and John Somers, and then to Tutbury. From there she went to Chartley Manor in Staffordshire, where she became involved in the
Babington Plot The Babington Plot was a plan in 1586 to assassinate Queen Elizabeth I, a Protestantism, Protestant, and put Mary, Queen of Scots, her Catholic Church, Catholic cousin, on the English throne. It led to Mary's execution, a result of a letter s ...
.


Earl of Shrewsbury

Gilbert Talbot, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury Gilbert Talbot, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury, 7th Earl of Waterford, 13th Baron Talbot, KG (20 November 1552 – 8 May 1616), styled Lord Talbot from 1582 to 1590, was a peer in the peerage of England. He also held the subsidiary titles of 16th Baro ...
and his wife Mary Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury stayed at Sheffield Lodge. He wrote in December 1604 that they had, "no other music this Christmas than the waits of the next town, besides a taber and a whistle". The Earl had gout and wrote in September 1607 that he was laid up on a couch at Sheffield Lodge, "neither fit for football nor tennis".


Duke of Norfolk

After Sheffield Manor fell into the hands of the Duke of Norfolk, it was neglected, sold to tenant farmers, and largely dismantled in 1706. Some remaining walls and a window were removed to the grounds of Queen's Tower in Norfolk Park by Robert Marnock in 1839. In 1953 the Duke of Norfolk Estate leased the site to Sheffield City Council for 999 years.


"Restoration" plan

In 2004, the building featured on the
BBC TV BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1 January 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios ...
programme '' Restoration'' and was the subject of a National Lottery funding bid to convert it to a
heritage centre A heritage centre, center, or museum, is a public facility – typically a museum, monument, visitor centre, or park – that is primarily dedicated to the presentation of Historical preservation, historical and Cultural heritage, cultural infor ...
and traditional farm. Green Estate, which was established by the Manor and Castle Development Trust and Sheffield Wildlife Trust, received £1.25 million from the
Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...
to restore the Turret House and develop the site as a visitor attraction.


Visitor attraction

The Sheffield Manor Lodge visitor attraction includes the Turret house, Tudor grounds, Discovery Centre, and Rhubarb Shed Cafe. The Turret House is open to the public every Sunday between April and September, in Sheffield school holidays and on special event days.


References


External links


Sheffield Manor Lodge website
{{coord, 53.374031, N, 1.436656, W, scale:2000_type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Houses completed in 1516 Grade II* listed buildings in Sheffield Country houses in South Yorkshire History of Sheffield Scheduled monuments in South Yorkshire Manor houses in England 1516 establishments in England