Tea at Trianon: A Historic Manor House in County Durham

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, March 1, 2024

A Historic Manor House in County Durham

On sale for the first time in 400 years. From Country Life:

Known as ‘one of the oldest unaltered L-shaped Manor houses in Northern England,’ Unthank Hall packs a weighty historic punch. After going 400 years without going up for sale, you’d think that a property would be snapped up pretty quickly — but even ancient properties with outstanding provenance, history and charm aren’t immune to the ups and downs of the housing and mortgage markets. And so it is that Unthank Hall, a handsome stone property on the market for £625,000, is still looking for a new owner almost two years after it came up for sale. With mortgage rates easing, agents Strutt & Parker are giving it a fresh push, and you’d think it won’t be long before Unthank Hall is sold this time around. Architectural delights abound — there are Tudor arched fireplaces, mullioned windows and panelled walls — while it’s set in the pretty village of Stanhope in County Durham, lying just south of the River Wear.

Although the current structure dates from the 17th century — with ‘older fabric and walled gardens,’ according to Pevsner — a house existed on the site long before, with references dating back to 1200. If the name origin is to be believed, a squatter may once have lived here, but, as the history of ‘the manor of Unthank’ dates back to at least 1395, this would be hard to verify. Hints as to the time period in which certain parts of the house were constructed are evident throughout the property, with beautiful features including a Tudor-arched fireplace, mullioned windows, exposed beams, flagstone floors and wall panelling, all indicative of 16th, 17th and 18th century influences. (Read more.)