Thoresby Hall is a 19th-century
country house
image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire
An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...
and
park
A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...
in
Budby, Nottinghamshire, some 2 miles (4 km) north of Ollerton. It is one of four neighbouring country houses and estates in
the Dukeries
The Dukeries is an area of the county of Nottinghamshire so called because it contained four ducal seats. It is south of Worksop, which has been called its "gateway". The area was included within the ancient Sherwood Forest
Sherwood Fo ...
in north Nottinghamshire all occupied by dukes at one time during their history. The hall is constructed of rock-faced
ashlar
Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones.
Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...
with ashlar dressings. It is built in four storeys with a square floor plan surrounding a central courtyard, nine
window bays wide and eight bays deep.
History
Robert Pierrepont, 1st Earl of Kingston-upon-Hull
Robert Pierrepont, 1st Earl of Kingston-upon-Hull (6 August 158425 July 1643) was an English nobleman who joined the Royalist side in the English Civil War after some delay and became lieutenant-general of the counties of Lincoln, Rutland, Hunt ...
acquired the Thoresby lands in 1633, but was killed in the
Civil War
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
in 1643.
His son Henry Pierrepont,
the 2nd Earl, built the first grand house, attributed to the architect Talman, about 1670.
[ The house was remodelled for William Pierrepont, the 4th Earl, during 1685–87, probably by Benjamin Jackson, after the earl had been granted the right in 1683 to create the park by ]enclosure
Enclosure or inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or "common land", enclosing it, and by doing so depriving commoners of their traditional rights of access and usage. Agreements to enc ...
from Sherwood Forest
Sherwood Forest is the remnants of an ancient royal forest, Royal Forest in Nottinghamshire, within the East Midlands region in England. It has association with the legend of Robin Hood. The forest was proclaimed by William the Conqueror and ...
.[ The house was the birthplace of Lady Mary Pierrepont, wife of Edward Wortley Montagu, in 1689.][
The estate passed to Evelyn Pierrepont, 2nd Duke of Kingston-upon-Hull (1711–1773), who fought at the ]Battle of Culloden
The Battle of Culloden took place on 16 April 1746, near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. A Jacobite army under Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force commanded by the Duke of Cumberland, thereby endi ...
in 1746 and during whose ownership the house was destroyed by fire that same year. Twenty years later the architect John Carr during 1767–1772 built a new house on the same site.[ ]Humphry Repton
Humphry Repton (21 April 1752 – 24 March 1818) was the last great designer of the classic phase of the English landscape garden, often regarded as the successor to Capability Brown. His style is thought of as the precursor of the more intric ...
landscaped the park at the same time.[
When the 2nd Duke died in 1773 he left the estate to his wife, Elizabeth Chudleigh, the former wife of the Earl of Bristol. After a very public court case, she was declared married bigamously to the duke and obliged to surrender the property on her death in 1786 to the duke's nephew, Charles Medows, a ]Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
officer. He adopted the name Pierrepont and later became the 1st Earl Manvers.Anthony Salvin
Anthony Salvin (17 October 1799 – 17 December 1881) was an English architect. He gained a reputation as an expert on Middle Ages, medieval buildings and applied this expertise to his new buildings and his restorations, such as those of the ...
to demolish the house after just a hundred years and replace it with the present house, erected to the north. Completed in 1871, it measures on its east and south fronts and on its west front. The impressive Great Hall, with minstrels' gallery at the west end, is long and high. The house descended to Gervas Pierrepont, 6th Earl Manvers who died in 1955 without a male heir and the title thereby became extinct. The house remained with his wife, Countess Manvers, and their daughter Lady Rozelle Raynes.
To minimise a perceived threat from coal mining subsidence
Subsidence is a general term for downward vertical movement of the Earth's surface, which can be caused by both natural processes and human activities. Subsidence involves little or no horizontal movement, which distinguishes it from slope mov ...
the buildings were sold to the National Coal Board
The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "ve ...
in 1979 and sold on the open market ten years later. In 2020 these fears came to light when abandoned mine workings subsided below the property, which required repairs from the Coal Authority. The core of the Thoresby furniture collection was retained by the family who built a new house on the other side of the lake, while the remainder was sold at auction by Sotheby's
Sotheby's ( ) is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine art, fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...
in 1989. After a number of owners it was acquired by Warner Leisure Hotels
Warner Hotels (formally Warner Leisure Hotels) is a hospitality company owning 14 country and coastal properties around the UK in North Wales, Somerset, Herefordshire, Berkshire, North Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Isle of Wight, Suffolk, Hampshir ...
.[ The Salvin house had a new bedroom wing added before opening as a 200-room country house hotel with spa facilities in 2000.][
]The Royal Lancers and Nottinghamshire Yeomanry Museum
The Royal Lancers & Nottinghamshire Yeomanry Museum traces the history of three old and famous cavalry regiments, the Royal Lancers, the Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry and the South Nottinghamshire Hussars. It is located at Thoresby Hall in Notting ...
occupies part of the courtyard which is now open to the public as a retail space.
Amenities
Thoresby Park is open to visitors. The courtyard has a cafe and there are several gift shops.
See also
* Grade I listed buildings in Nottinghamshire
* Listed buildings in Perlethorpe cum Budby
References
External links
*
History from Worksop Heritage Trail
The official Warner website about the hotel
The website for the Estate and Courtyard
{{Authority control
1871 establishments in England
Houses completed in 1871
The Dukeries
Hotels in Nottinghamshire
History of Nottinghamshire
Hotel spas
Anthony Salvin buildings
Tourist attractions in Nottinghamshire
Grade I listed houses
Grade I listed buildings in Nottinghamshire
Pierrepont family
Anthony Salvin
Country house hotels
John Carr (architect) buildings