5th November 1819, Diary ended and dated.

Friday 5th November 1819

Novb 5th 1819

Gunnersbury

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Lucy’s feelings on returning home

thus had ended a tour which has afforded to us all the greatest source of amusement pleasure and instruction we have travelled 3280 miles occupying the space of five months, and although the respective beauties of each country we have visited have certainly surpassed any imagination I had previously formed of them yet I greatly prefer England to live in constantly and feel most happy that I am arrived there.

The purpose of the Tour

amusement pleasure and instruction: Lucy’s father, Alexander, held the firm belief that his children should be given the very best experiences to equip them for their future, and we know that in 1820-2 he sent his eldest son, Alex, on an unusually comprehensive European tour for that purpose. The 1819 family tour broadened Lucy’s experiences beyond the fabulously wealthy but limited Ealing Society in which she grew up. The tour gave her the very best of introductions to aristocracy and persons of wealth, broadening her network of influential people and honing her social skills for the future, but she was also brought into contact with a great range of people from all walks of life, albeit from a suitably protected distance.

This was a time when the wealthier classes would go on “Grand Tours” in search of the “picturesque” and “romantic”. Guide books had been readily available since the first of a series written by Rev William Gilpin Observations on the River Wye, and Several Parts of South Wales, &c, Relative Chiefly to Picturesque Beauty that was published in 1783. The family would strike up friendships on the way, such as during their Welsh tour when the ubiquitous Mr Grimes would appear from time to time to advise them from his experience on the best places to visit.

Having been brought up in a fashionable society where the mistress of the house might well be an accomplished musician, like her own mother, Lucy was introduced to the Welsh harp, Scottish music and dancing and in Edinburgh to concerts during the city’s second ever musical Festival. I never heard music go off better was her comment on music she heard at the city’s Parliament House.

She was able to witness the dirt and labours of the Welsh iron works yet was given the opportunity to visit “Mr Owen’s manufactory” at Lanark where the social experiment that led to the formation of the British Co-operative movement was being developed. She experienced the filth of industrial towns, and comments on these when encountered, as well as on a wide variety of coaching inns where horses were changed every 10 miles or so and where they would stop for breakfast or refreshment before advancing to dinner and a place to sleep. These she might rate as “Good”, “Bad”, “Excellent”, “Comfortable” or, the more damning “Tolerable” and I suspect that the nature of the society that frequented these establishments might have influenced her opinion.

Lucy treasured her experience. She writes the respective beauties of each country we have visited have certainly surpassed any imagination I had previously formed of them. Her scrap books are filled with mementos of her journey in the form of small scenic prints from many of the historic or picturesque places they visited, roughly trimmed and pasted, sometimes haphazardly, within their pages.

Endurance, monotony and exhaustion

We have travelled 3280 miles writes Lucy in her final entry. This was quite some feat and the carriage would have been maintained to the highest standards, perhaps on a daily basis. They did experience the need for repairs, which held them back in Newcastle, but this was the only occasion during their long journey that took them over a number of very poor roads. Lucy often comments on the surrounding scenery, as on the journey back home with the country over which we passed was very flat, but she revels in recording the dramatic scenery of mountains, valleys and lakes.

I get the feeling that she experiences a sense of monotony when travelling along the less picturesque landscapes. Maybe this is because, rightly or wrongly, I have put myself in her position - one of being inundated with new, dramatic views on an almost daily basis. Trapped within a virtual journey of daily researching and learning about the places she visits I experienced a sense of withdrawal when faced with more mundane days, and a feeling of being denied a new fix after such a long, indulgent surfeit of experience occupying the space of five months.

However, at the opposite end of the scale, there was a sense of relief at the end of it all. When she writes I ….. feel most happy that I am arrived there I believe she is not just expressing her love of England over Wales and Scotland but deep down she is really expressing her relief at being home at last after a sometimes relentless and gruelling five months. She can return to a more leisurely, easy life filled with memories that not many of her contemporaries would have experienced as she embarks on a return to society, no longer as a teenage girl, but as a young woman bearing the confidence born of her travels.

There were times when I feel the family needed to stop and recharge. The Lake District, though filled with wonderful scenery which they visited on a daily basis, allowed them to return to the same Keswick hotel at the end of each day for a longer sleep, without the pressure of having to set out early in the morning for breakfast at the next posting house. Days spent in Edinburgh provided that same opportunity. Sometimes Lucy and her mother would just stay at the inn and take things easy. On one occasion they did little when Lucy’s mother had a bad headache and they took time out when brother Frank was unwell. When travelling their clothes would often have been wet or damp for hours on end. There was surprisingly little sickness in these five months, considering the extremes of wind, rain and storm that they often faced and the plates of food eaten at the posting inns at which they stopped in an age when the principles of safe food preparation that we take for granted were unknown. The germ theory of disease did not appear until the latter half of Lucy’s century with Louis Pasteur. Even Lucy’s father, whose personal notes record frequent scourges of the Gout, was only afflicted on one occasion. They were an incredibly healthy family during this time of their lives, even though Lucy’s three brothers and her father were later to die at ages we might now consider to be quite young.

And Lucy’s attitude towards others?

I sometime wonder why there was only one mention of her family’s companions on the journey. In the second sentence of her first entry she tells us Our party consisted of my Father and mother my three brothers myself and a man and maid. The man and maid are mentioned no more. What did they do? If they travelled with the six family members inside the family coach, sometimes through the vilest of weathers, would not the carriage have been somewhat crowded - or did they sit on the top in the open air, as did two of Lucy’s brothers on day one? Perhaps they did stay inside in the worst of weathers, as on the laboriously slow and treacherous road to Devils Bridge, whilst my brothers who rode on before us on horseback very cleverly ordered four horses to our relief. Possibly for simple journeys they could have been sent on in advance on public transport, a Stagecoach, but this would not have worked in the more remote areas where inns could be full and they would have to travel on to one, two or more stages until finally they found accommodation - on one occasion at 3 o’clock in the morning securing beds in a private home. Was the 16 year old Lucy insensitive to the family servants or am I applying modern day morality to the social behaviour of her age? To gain greater enlightenment I do need to locate and study the diaries kept by other members of the family on this epic journey that will probably have passed through her brother Alex and down the family line.

MY OWN JOURNEY AS A RESEARCHER

I set out to recreate a virtual journey following Lucy's diary two hundred years to the day and to write up and publish my discoveries without fail on that day. My first challenge was one of transcription. What started as clearly written lettering, well-spaced over several pages at the outset of her diary, soon became more of a challenge as Lucy found she was running out of space in this one tiny book. She began progressively to cramp and contract her writing as the weeks passed by. The spills, scratches and blobs accompanying a Regency pen, fresh from an inkwell, would often appear on the page. Omissions in a sentence would be squeezed between already narrowing lines in a way that she might have been able to read but which have challenged an inexperienced document reader like her great-great grandson. Place names were particularly difficult and would often elude me until, poring over an ancient coaching map, I might recognise the name of a long-gone posting inn that no longer finds a place in a modern map. Sometimes I was helped by the distances she recorded between each stop and, after plotting her route, would find a lone listed building revealing within its citation its past life as a coaching inn. Nevertheless within several weeks I became accustomed to her hand and it all began to fall into place. With a little bit of guesswork at times through applying context, I feel I have transcribed her writing fairly accurately.

Never having operated a website before I took advice from a friend, Steve Adams, who advised me that Squarespace was one of the easiest and most versatile template websites to work from. My first attempt started on a trial basis four weeks before Lucy set out on 21st June. I messed up template after template, giving up time and time again in exasperation until, in a desperate “Do or Die”, I found and stuck with the present site three days before setting out. There are many things I could have done better in retrospect but, determined to record Lucy's diary on a day to day basis and resolving not to miss even one day, I launched my somewhat rickety machine on the evening of 21 June 2019, exactly 200 years after great-great grandmother Lucy set pen to paper in her little diary. Mistakes were made in naming tags and headings, in one instance leaving the template title as “New Page” which I am still too fearful to change in case I lose the lot. Nevertheless this machine, my far from perfect website, has served its purpose and I have arrived at the 5th of November with every day faithfully recorded and researched.

It is more than 55 years since I gained a distinction in my History A-level but since then, although retaining a passion for history, I have not subjected myself to the rigours of historic research. Perhaps my four years of full-time study from the ages of 26 to 30 in a new career as a chiropractor forced me to question and research my new profession. Those 42 years that followed in practice have been accompanied by the need to research, question and review the challenges presented by patients who do not fit into the normal diagnostic mould. I do hope that my approach has been a professional one although, I am ashamed to admit, there may be times when pressed by the scourge of fleeting time, night leading into early morning, I may have skipped or missed important facts or nuances to get the diary published before the onset of dawn and my setting off to work for a busy day of patients.

When I set out on 21st of June 2019 all I had to go on was Google. Suffering a mistrust of Wikipedia I would often gain information from other sources, some of which, by lacking citations, may well have been less reliable. Wikipedia does indeed attempt to review and moderate its sources. Sadly checking sources has often been denied me by the ever-fast passage of time and much of what I have copied and pasted has been done by accepting what appeared on the screen at face value. This is not good research.

As I launched into this journey I did so without knowing where I could find contemporaneous prints and drawings that might illustrate the life and places Lucy visited through her own young eyes. Within a few days my brother-in-law Stephen Lang referred me to a site that sold old prints and engravings from Georgian, Regency and Victorian eras. Anxious not to infringe copyright I started out in fear and trepidation but soon learned that the age of these old gems often put them into the public domain. Finding more up to date photographs of the places Lucy visited proved more challenging at the beginning. At first I relied on images from Wikipedia and learned from there about the various stages of copyright and attribution. On a few occasions I have appropriated pictures from websites owned by inns and hotels in the hope that they will not begrudge me their pictures in return for quoting the source and perhaps, on the odd instance, gaining new business for them. It was all too late in the day when I discovered the treasure trove of Geograph. It had been there right from the outset, hidden in almost all of Wikipedia's images. If only I had explored and discovered this wonderful resource at the outset of my journey instead of finding it when I was well on the road south towards Edinburgh! From that time on my entries have been populated by more and more Geograph pictures, although the downside has been ever more late nights and early mornings, searching for better and better - and ever more appropriate - photographs, in some instances uncovering inns and taverns that had not appeared in earlier web searches.

These 4½ months, from 21st June to 5th November, have been challenging not only for me but, more seriously, for my family. My poor wife Larysa feels that I have deserted her and care more for Lucy than I do for her. My 8 and 12-year-old children have had help with homework neglected and they have been met by a half-hearted, sometimes grudging, response when their father was called to break away and take them to weekend cricket and football matches, tennis, gymnastic or swimming events and children's parties. Their patience and tolerance has been remarkable and I feel truly blessed for having gained their acceptance of what has become my self-indulgent and selfish passion for Lucy and her times.

AND NOW WHAT?

Most of what I have done over the last four to five months has been done for friends and family. However I do passionately believe that there is a potential for a wider appeal. A lot has happened over the last two centuries, much of it good, but some of it catastrophically bad. The Industrial Revolution that began in the Georgian era, and accelerated on at full pelt during Lucy's lifetime, has brought changes to the environment that now seriously challenge our future as human beings. Lucy's diary gives us a 200 year window which, by comparing her times with ours, enables us to witness and question those changes. I am often fascinated by Lucy's contemporaneous prints showing streams, trees, fields and animals encircling what we would now consider large villages but which, in modern times, are now towns and cities populated by tarmac and concrete. There has been a little redress as some of the more hideous examples of Regency industry, with horrendous pollution, grime and worker abuse, have been nicely preserved and manicured as museums of industrial history. Most of us have grown to expect and take for granted the benefits of dry clothing, insulated damp free homes, an amazing choice of foods from all over the world, gutters free of typhoid, a free health service and education for all, credit cards in our pocket and an almost too overwhelming choice of passive entertainment from television and other forms of media. Too few of us get to experience for ourselves the joys of travelling as a family, experiencing the highs and lows of living together over several months, as Lucy and her family would have done during what was, for Lucy and her brothers, the journey of a lifetime. We have also become dulled in a false sense of security to what will lie ahead if we fail as a civilization to learn from the lessons of the past.

Radio, Book or TV Documentary?

My virtual journey following in the footsteps of my great-great grandmother Lucy has provided a golden opportunity for a fascinating book and radio or TV documentary series. Much of the research work has already been done and invites the intervention of a documentary maker and investor to turn a Regency teenager's diary into a compelling radio or TV series that would reveal what we have lost during the last two centuries and contrast that with the ever accelerating path toward destruction that we are now locked into.

Homework

I am due to join Gunnersbury Museum on Sunday 21st June 2020 in a celebration of the Copland family’s contribution to the history of Gunnersbury Park on the anniversary date of their epic family journey. More must be done to learn about Lucy’s brothers who grew up in their father’s new mansion.

Ongoing Research

To keep the website alive and maintain it as a useful resource Lucy’s diary needs more work. It is necessary, especially in its early stages, to find contemporaneous Regency prints and modern Geograph images to compare then with now and to add these to each entry whenever they are uncovered. Local history societies and researchers will be invited to contribute more knowledge to the areas Lucy visited and perhaps to correct errors and omissions wherever they may be found. My goal is to continue to research and improve on the work that has been done to secure its ongoing relevance into the future but at a more measured, less frantic pace than that of the last five months.

Michael Copland-Griffiths

4th November 1819, Welwyn, Barnet, Gunnersbury

Thursday 4th November 1819

Thursday Nov 4th After breakfast we proceeded to Wellyn 15 miles thence to Barnett here changing horses and taking a cross road 16 miles leaving London on our left reached at ½ past four o’clock our happy home Gunnersbury thus had ended a tour which has afforded to us all the greatest source of amusement pleasure and instruction we have travelled 3280 miles occupying the space of five months, and although the respective beauties of

each country we have visited have certainly surpassed any imagination I had previously formed of them yet I greatly prefer England to live in constantly and feel most happy that I am arrived there.

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Welwyn is sometimes called Old Welwyn to distinguish it from the much newer settlement of Welwyn Garden City, about a mile to the south, though some residents dislike the suggestion of inferiority or irrelevance that tends to be implied by the moniker "Old" and prefer Welwyn Village. In the 17th century, as it lies on the old Great North Road, it became an important staging post and a number of coaching inns remain as public houses. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welwyn . The Wellington is described as a beautiful 700 year old former coaching inn, steeped in history: the diarist Samuel Pepys stayed here in the 1600's.

Welwyn: Wellington Inn by Nigel Cox. The front gable of this Grade II Listed Building has A.D. 1352 prominently shown, but the English Heritage website is a little more circumspect about the current structure, describing it thus:- "Public House. Probably early C17 timberframed. Plastered jettied gabled centre with c1725 3 and 4 window fronts N and S. Red brick. Machine tile roof. Moulded and painted brick modillioned cornice. Semicircular mullioned sash window to jetty and segmental-headed flush sash windows either side. Left hand side has triple-hung sash windows to ground floor and 3 box dormers. Half timber and brick nogging to N gable end. Doorway has reused window lintel showing slots for shutters and holes for diamond mullions." © Copyright Nigel Cox and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4752966

The Copland’s were great admirers of Wellington, as shown by the many illustrations pasted in Lucy’s massive scrap book, and they would have chosen to stop here if they had the option. http://www.english-inns.co.uk/wellington-at-welwyn/

Barnet Hill is a major hill on the historic Great North Road. In coaching days, 150 stagecoaches passed through Barnet daily. Nearby was the site of the Battle of Barnet in 1471 (more accurately, Hadley), where Yorkist troops led by King Edward IV killed the rebellious "Kingmaker" Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick and Warwick's brother, John Neville, 1st Marquess of Montagu. This was one of the most important battles of the Wars of the Roses. Barnet Hill is said to be the hill mentioned in the nursery rhyme "The Grand Old Duke of York" (Later Lucy married, Charles Griffiths, whose grandmother had been wetnurse to Frederick, Duke of York, son of George III, the subject of the political rhyme). Barnet is also the site of an ancient and well-known horse fair, whence comes the rhyming slang of Barnet Fair or barnet for 'hair'. The fair dates back to 1588 when Queen Elizabeth I granted a charter to the Lord of the Manor of Barnet to hold a twice yearly fair. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chipping_Barnet The Mitre Inn was established by 1633 and is probably the oldest remaining of the town's once numerous coaching inns.

2015: Old Mitre Inn, Chipping Barnet , by Philafrenzy, the copyright holder of this work, published under the (CC BY-SA 4.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Mitre_Inn,_Chipping_Barnet.JPG

In 1774, Samuel Johnson called at the Mitre, accompanied by Mrs Thrale, when the innkeeper was James O'Connor. In 1785, the inn was described as "new built" with "stabling for upwards of one hundred horses", and in 1790 as having "roomy conveniences for carriages".

By 1817, 150 coaches a day were passing through Chipping Barnet. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitre_Inn,_Chipping_Barnet

Our Happy Home, circa 1819, The entrance

and in 2019….. (the entrance was moved to Pope’s Lane by the Rothschilds)

Our Happy Home, circa 1819, The Home

and, as Gunnersbury Park Museum, today

Photograph courtesy of the Gunnersbury Park Museum website, http://www.visitgunnersbury.org/visit/

For more about Gunnersbury Museum, present and future, follow this link

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

3rd November 1819, Breakfast Grantham, St Wulfram’s church, Witham Common, Stamford, dined Stilton, Buckden, Biggleswade, Baldock

Wednesday 3rd November 1819

Wednesday Novb 3rd We went to Grantham 14 miles to Breakfast here is a church well worth seeing thence to Witham Common 10 miles to Stamford 11 miles Stilton 15 miles where we dined it is a small of town Bugden 14 miles and Biggleswade 16 miles here we did intend remaining for the night but the Inn being preoccupied we were obliged to proceed 8 miles further to Baldock a

comfortable Inn. the country over which we passed was very flat but well cultivated the posting very good.

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Grantham is bounded to the west by the A1 north–south road. Isaac Newton was educated at its King's School, while Thomas Paine worked there as an excise officer in the 1790s. The main local landmark is the parish church of St Wulfram's, which has the sixth highest spire among English churches at 282.5 feet and is the second tallest church in Lincolnshire.

1833: Grantham. Engraving by J. Rogers after W. Bartlett. Published June, 1833. Later coloured by hand. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEGrantham14.jpg

It is also home to England's first public library, dating from 1598, when Francis Trigge, rector of Welbourn, gave £100 for a small chained library of books for the clergy and literate laity of Grantham. Two hundred and fifty of the original volumes remain and are kept in a small room above the South Porch. The Angel and Royal, situated in the High Street, is widely regarded as the oldest surviving English inn.

The Angel and Royal High Street by Jo Turner. Grade I Listed and widely regarded as the oldest surviving English Inn, the main façade of the building that stands today was built approximately 600 years ago. The site then had already been an Inn for 200 years and was built as a hostel for the chivalrous Brotherhood of the Knights Templar. It was then that the building caught the eye of King John who decided it would make a suitable location for a visit of his Royal Court in 1213. An Angel was a common medieval sign that reflected the early connection between religious establishments and a travellers hostel. The Inn was extended in the mid 14th Century and again in the 15th Century. Due to the prime position on the Great North Way (formerly the Ermine Roman Way) the Angel slowly developed to accommodate ever-increasing numbers of wagons and stagecoaches. It was this that most certainly gave the Inn in the last few hundred years its characteristic layout, with its very long courtyard, old stables and entrances to the front and rear. In the Georgian and Victorian period at the Angel they were permitted to remain open as long as they liked until every bed was filled. Up until the middle of the 1800’s the hotel was still classed as an Inn known as The Angel, then following much Royal patronage over the years in 1866 a visit to Grantham by the then Prince of Wales lead to the property getting the second part of its name. It was universally agreed that the visit should be commemorated by the incorporation of “Royal” in the Inn’s name; thus The Angel & Royal came into being but it was not until the early 1920’s that the word Inn was dropped and the building became a hotel. The hotel had a number owners between the second world war and 2002 when it was purchased by a local consortia of business professionals whose intention it was to bring this historic and much loved property back to its former glory. It is now (2013) owned by Ashdale Hotels and a member of the BEST WESTERN brand. © Copyright Jo Turner and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3629492

The façade of the main building as it appears today was built about 600 years ago, but the site had already been an inn for 200 years. It was originally built as a hostel for the Knights Templar. King John is reputed to have visited with his Royal Court in 1213. The inn was extended in the mid-14th century and again in the 15th century. visit by Richard III was the origin of the gold emblem angel holding the King's crown over the original archway. In 1483 Richard held court and it was from the "Chambre de' Roi", that he dispatched a letter bidding for the Great Seal to proclaim the treachery of his cousin, the Duke of Buckingham, leading to the signature of Buckingham's death warrant. King Charles I made use of the King's Room during his visit in 1633 and Oliver Cromwell also stayed at the Angel after his successful battle near Grantham in 1643. The cellars and foundations of the inn are reputed to date from the 9th century, and are rumoured to be linked by tunnels to both St Wulfram's Church and the town's Market Square. In 1707 the then landlord Michael Solomon died, but left a legacy of 40 shillings a year to pay for the preaching of a sermon, against the evils of drunkenness, for every Mayor. The prime position of the inn on the Great North Road led to its long history as a coaching inn, which accounts for its characteristic layout, with long courtyard, old stables and entrances to front and rear. In 1800 six inns were listed in Grantham, together with 21 alehouses, and it remained popular with the patronage of King George IV, 1762-1830. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grantham

2008: Grantham town centre as seen from the top of the hills and hollows with St. Wulfram's Church as the focal point by David Johnson, the copyright holder of this work, and published under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International, 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grantham_Town.jpg

St Wulfram's Church, Grantham was complimented by Simon Jenkins in his “England's Thousand Best Churches” with: "Here is the finest steeple in England", which was probably influenced by Salisbury Cathedral.

1797: Grantham Church by J M W Turner, Engraver & Publisher Batholomew Howlett. http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/20437

St Wulfram, Grantham by John Salmon. © Copyright John Salmon and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5659039

Of interest are window frames from different periods, the use of ballflower ornament and the crypt chapel. The present organ by John Harris and John Byfield dates from 1735. It was rebuilt by George Pike England in 1809 and 1833. The north porch was built to house relics of St Wulfram (possibly an arm bone), and the chained library occupies a room over the south porch which was once a priests' living room. The books were most probably obtained from Cambridge. More than 80 volumes are kept secured by chains. The earliest book, printed in Naples in 1476, is found in no other library. There are 356 separate items and the collection has recently been examined, repaired and catalogued. The library is housed above the south porch, where a squint window allows viewers in the library to see all parts of the church, but to remain almost invisible from the body of the church. The crypt chapel was probably dedicated to the Holy Trinity and was originally entered from outside. A staircase was built in the 15th century allowing access from the church interior. The crypt door and chests are the only remaining examples of medieval woodwork in the church. The crypt has been used as a depository for the relic of St Wulfram, as a charnel house when the graveyard became full, and a store-room for church valuables and corporation records. In 1808 the church silver was stolen from the crypt and never recovered. So many pilgrims have visited the crypt that the stone steps have worn down and been inverted. The stone in front of the altar has also been worn away by the knees of pilgrims. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Wulfram%27s_Church,_Grantham

Interior, St Wulfram's church, Grantham by J.Hannan-Briggs. The parish church of St Wulfram is one of the largest medieval churches in the country, seating around 700 people. Constructed in the early 1300s, at 282 ft. the spire is one of the highest in the country on a parish church, dominating the views of the town. The church is built of Lincolnshire limestone, probably from around the Ancaster area. The spacious interior has fine vistas across the broad nave and aisles. Inside and outside is a whole gallery of carved stone heads, most of them medieval, some no doubt portraits of local people of the time, some grotesques, some animals. The chancel is dominated by the Victorian reredos, incorporating Italian paintings. It was designed by Sir Arthur Blomfield and extended by Sir Walter Tapper (who also designed the organ case and font cover) © Copyright J.Hannan-Briggs and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3216261 (more information on the interior at this link)

Witham Common: The Old Black Bull, formerly listed as Bull Farmhouse, was a former coaching inn, now house. c.1731 with late C18 alterations and c.1800 extension. https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/101168232-the-old-black-bull-north-witham#.XD4XAVz7Q5s . In a map of Witham Common dated 1887 it is shown as “Black Bull” https://www.francisfrith.com/witham-common/maps

The mast by the Black Bull by Bob Harvey. A long-closed coaching inn on the A1 is remembered by the name of Black Bull Lane, and this mast (seen here from Old Post Lane) is at Black Bull © Copyright Bob Harvey and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5405855

Stamford lies on the main north-south route (Ermine Street, the Great North Road and now the A1) from London to York and Edinburgh.

1833: Stamford. Engraving by W. Watkins. Published by John Saunders in 1833. Later coloured by hand. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEStamford14.jpg

The George, the Bull and Swan, the Crown and the London Inn were well-known coaching inns. (The George is shown, below:)

2006: The George Hotel. The famous George at Stamford, one of England's greatest coaching Inns http://www.georgehotelofstamford.com/. The Great North Road used to pass through Stamford. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Richard Croft and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_George_Hotel_-_geograph.org.uk_-_160244.jpg

Stamford has been hosting an annual fair since the Middle Ages. Stamford fair is mentioned in Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 2 (Act 3, Scene 2). The mid-Lent fair is the largest street fair in Lincolnshire and one of the largest in the country.

Shopping in Stamford by Anthony O'Neil. © Copyright Anthony O'Neil and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4837933

On 7 March 1190, crusaders at the fair led a pogrom; many Jews in the town were massacred. For over 600 years Stamford was the site of the Stamford Bull Run festival, held annually on 13 November, St Brice's day, until 1839. According to local tradition, the custom was started by William de Warenne, 5th Earl of Surrey, after he saw two bulls fighting in the meadow beneath his castle viewpoint. Some butchers came to part the combatants and one of the bulls ran into the town. The earl mounted his horse and rode after the animal; he enjoyed the sport so much that he gave the meadow in which the fight began to the butchers of Stamford on condition that they should provide a bull, to be run in the town every 13 November, for ever after. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stamford,_Lincolnshire

Stilton: It's reliance on its position on the Great North Road has twice led to problems when use of the road reduced, first with the arrival of the railway and later with the 1958 bypass, the first from London to Newcastle when the A1 was completely improved in the late 1950s and early 1960s. As a result the Bell Inn closed and fell into disrepair and the village as a whole lost many businesses. To try to revive interest, on Easter Monday 1962 Tom McDonald of The Talbot and Malcolm Moyer of the Bell Inn organised the first cheese-rolling race along a course near the post office. Held every May Day holiday, it became a popular annual event.

2005: The Bell at Stilton by Toby Speight. One of the many great coaching inns that lined the Great North Road. No longer a traveller's stopping place, as Stilton is now bypassed by the A1 motorway, leaving it a peaceful, sleepy village once again. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Toby Speight and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Bell_at_Stilton_-_geograph.org.uk_-_58448.jpg

The first known written reference to Stilton cheese appeared in William Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiosum, Letter V, dated October 1722. Daniel Defoe in his 1724 work: “A tour thro' the whole island of Great Britain” notes, "We pass'd Stilton, a town famous for cheese, which is call'd our English Parmesan, and is brought to table with the mites, or maggots round it, so thick, that they bring a spoon with them for you to eat the mites with, as you do the cheese." Traditionally it was thought that supplies were obtained from the housekeeper at Quenby Hall, Hungarton, and were sold via her brother-in-law to travellers in Stilton's coaching inns, namely the Bell Inn or the Angel Inn.

1745: Mr Cowper Thornhill Master of the Bell Inn at Stilton in Huntingdon-Shire. Publisher: Robert Wilkinson. Cowper or Cooper Thornhill is credited as the inventor of Stilton cheese and was certainly its first promoter, selling the cheeses from the Bell Inn. http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/10258

Subsequent research has led to claims that the cheese did originate in the village in the late 17th or early 18th centuries, before any contemporary references to its production in Leicestershire. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stilton

Buckden: It's location on the Great North Road meant that it was used as a coaching stop during the 18th century. There were four coaching inns in the village. The Lion dates back to the 15th century and was extended in the 18th century.

The Lion Hotel, Buckden, Cambridgeshire by Robert Edwards.The Lion Hotel, or as it has been known, 'The Lion and the Lamb' or 'Lamb and Flag' was built in 1492 and is believed to have been a guest house for the Bishop of Lincoln's Palace. © Copyright Robert Edwards and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/108061

The George Inn which had its own courtyard and forge was remodelled in the 18th century.

Buckden: High Street and The George by John Sutton. To the left is the former coaching inn, The George. The High Street was once part of The Great North Road, which now bypasses the village. The George is Grade II listed © Copyright John Sutton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3913740

The Vine dated back to the first half of the 17th century and was rebuilt in the 18th century when it included stables and its own brewery.

The Vine - Buckden by Mick Lobb. © Copyright Mick Lobb and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1891191

The Spread Eagle originally built in the 17th century was altered in the 18th century; it had stabling and paddocks.

Buckden: the former Spread Eagle Inn by John Sutton. An eighteenth-century coaching inn on Buckden High Street, originally The Great North Road. © Copyright John Sutton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4495322

A schedule from 1839 showed that there were six express coaches heading north daily to Boston, Leeds, Lincoln, and York and as many heading south to London. The presence of elegant Georgian houses on Church Street and the High Street (formerly the Great North Road) reflects the prosperity that was brought to Buckden by its strategic position on the coaching route north from London. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckden,_Cambridgeshire

Biggleswade is mentioned twice in the diaries of Samuel Pepys. On 22 July 1661, Pepys stopped off at "Bigglesworth" to buy a pair of warm woollen stockings. On 5 August 1664, Pepys's wife, on a visit to relations in Huntingdonshire, sent him a message saying she had arrived in "Bigglesworth" on the coach from York and would be home next day. The diarist John Byng, 5th Viscount Torrington (1743-1813) often refers to the town and its Sun Inn. On 16 June 1785 there was a large fire in the town that started at the Crown Inn and spread rapidly through the neighbouring streets, leaving nearly one-third of the town destroyed, including 103 houses with 332 people homeless. Biggleswade once had numerous inns and public houses due to its location on the Great North Road. All of 52 were trading in 1876. By July 2019, just nine remained, plus an additional new-build.

Biggleswade: Crown Hotel by Chris Downer. An inn right in the centre of town, in whose yard the great fire of Biggleswade started in 1785. © Copyright Chris Downer and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/884567

Of historical importance are The Crown Hotel, rebuilt in 1793 after the Great Fire of 1785, was reopened by J D Wetherspoon in August 2017 after standing empty for four years and the 17th-century, Grade II listed White Hart, which is thought to be the town's second oldest building after St Andrew's Church. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biggleswade

Victoria Place, Biggleswade, Beds by Rodney Burton. View of the centre of Biggleswade with memorial, civic building and White Hart pub. © Copyright Rodney Burton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/53051

Baldock thrived where the old Great North Road and the Icknield Way crossed.

1787: A View of Baldock in Hertfordshire , “The Man of the Mill had a Daughter so fair With so pleasing a and so winning an air That once on the Hayfields' green Bank as I stood I thought she was Venus just sprung from the Flood.” Artist Robert Pollard, Engraver Francis Jukes, Drawn October 20th 1786. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/3311

Thanks to its location, the town was a major staging post between London and the north: many old coaching inns still operate as pubs and hotels, and Baldock has a surprising number of pubs for its size. It's position has made it a stopping point for a number of illustrious visitors, including Charles I, who passed through Baldock en route for London after his arrest in 1648, and supposedly Dick Turpin. Preacher John Wesley came to the town in 1747. From the 1770s until 2008 the high street was very wide, a typical feature of medieval market places where more than one row of buildings used to stand. In the case of Baldock, the bottom of the High Street had three such rows, until Butcher's Row was demolished by the Turnpike authorities in the 1770s.

Baldock High Street by Robin Hall. Taken at 4:30 p.m. the traffic is beginning to build. By 6 p.m. this will be a nightmare. This is a lovely old town with an old coaching inn where you can bang your head on the ceiling. © Copyright Robin Hall and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/30975

The Wynn alms houses, in the High Street, were founded in 1621 and were endowed "To the World's End" by John Wynne, a cloth merchant from London who left £1000 in his will of 1614 for their upkeep. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baldock

Inn: The George coaching inn dates back to the 15th century. http://www.thegeorgeatbaldock.co.uk/#the-george

Baldock: the corner of High Street by John Sutton. The centre of the town, where High Street, Hitchin Street, Church Street and Whitehorse Street meet. The George (once The George and Dragon) is Grade II listed. The parish church tower is topped with a Hertfordshire spike of a rather grander sort than those found in nearby villages. © Copyright John Sutton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4822745

Up to the 1880’s the Old White Horse on Whitehorse Street was a meeting place for Victorian artistic and literary people such as the painter Millais and the cartoonist Leech. The Rose and Crown public house can be seen in the foreground of the postcard of White Horse Street which was a noted stopping place for the Baldock Cycling Touring Club. http://www.hertsmemories.org.uk/content/herts-history/towns-and-villages/baldock/baldock

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

2nd November 1819, Breakfast Tadcaster, Ferrybridge, Doncaster, Minster, Racecourse, Barnby Moor, Scarthingmoor, Newark

Tuesday 2nd November 1819

Novb 2nd Tuesday. We left York early & breakfasted at Tadcaster 10 miles it is a good Inn; thence to Ferrybridge 12 miles to Doncaster 15 miles the entrance to this town by an avenue of trees is very pretty; the town is very clean & well built, there is also a handsome Gothic Church & a very excellent race ground kept in excellent order; we continued

to Barnby Moor 14 miles, Scarthing Moor 13 miles & Newark where we slept 11 miles the excellent roads & horses we had during the day enabled us to arrive at Newark to dinner, the country was very flat & uninteresting.

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Tadcaster is a market town 3 miles east of the Great North Road, 12 miles north-east of Leeds, and 10 miles south-west of York. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tadcaster

Tadcaster - High Street (A659) , Looking south-westward from Bridge Street. © Copyright Peter Wood and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6185545

Inn: In the eighteenth century mail coaches en-route to York, London, Newcastle and most other places worth travelling to passed through the town. Many of them would make use of the two fine Georgian coaching inns that graced the main street : the Angel and the White Horse.

The Angel and White Horse. Bridge Street, Tadcaster. An unusual name for a pub, with the angel being represented by a statue and the horse on a painted inn sign. The 18th century inn is listed grade 2. © Copyright Stephen Craven and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5729862

In 1758 a modern brewery was built on the land behind the White Horse. The brewery - which is now known as Samuel Smith's Old Brewery - is still in production today and is Yorkshire's oldest brewery.

Tadcaster: the two breweries . The chimneys of Samuel Smith's and John Smith's breweries (left and right in this photo) dominate the town centre. John's is the more ornate, listed grade 2, although it is the later, dating from 1883, while Sam's older but plainer 18th century brewery is unlisted except for the office block. © Copyright Stephen Craven and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5729932

In the 19th century the Angel was closed down and eventually the White Horse went up-market and became the Londesborough Hotel. http://greatyorkshirepubs.blogspot.com/2009/08/27-angel-and-white-horse-tadcaster.html It is probable the Coplands would have breakfasted at potentially more up-market White Horse Inn, but there may have been others in the town.

Ferrybridge is a village that lies at a historically important crossing of the River Aire which borders the North Yorkshire village of Brotherton. It is linked to other communities by the A1, which follows the route of the Great North Road. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrybridge

2010: The Golden Lion Public house, Ferrybridge, by Richard Kay. “I believe that the pub was used as a staging post for horse-drawn carriages using the Great North Road, when the only means of crossing the River Aire was by ferry. Yes, that is a traffic signal in the foreground; it is used by the coal barges entering and leaving the lock on the far left.” This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Richard Kay and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Golden_Lion_Public_house,_Ferrybridge_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1748012.jpg

Doncaster grew up at the site of a Roman fort constructed in the 1st century at a crossing of the River Don. The main route between Lincoln and York was Ermine Street, which required parties to break into smaller units to cross the Humber in boats. As this was not always practical, the Romans considered Doncaster to be an important staging post. The Roman road through Doncaster appears on two routes recorded in the Antonine Itinerary. The itinerary entitles Routes 7 and 8 as "the route from York to London". Doncaster sat on the Great North Road or A1, due to its strategic geographical importance and essentially Roman inheritance. This was the primary route for all traffic from London to Edinburgh and Doncaster benefited from its location. In 1248, a charter was granted for Doncaster's market to be held around the Church of St Mary Magdalene, built in Norman times. In the 16th century, the church was adapted for use as the town hall. It was finally demolished in 1846.

The remains of St Mary Magdalene parish church, Doncaster, Yorkshire, during demolition in 1846, author unknown, scanned from David Hey, Medieval South Yorkshire. Public Domain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doncaster#/media/File:St_Mary_Magdalene_Doncaster.jpg

Some 750 years on, the market continues to operate.

Market stalls by Jonathan Wilkins. Vegetable stalls outside the market hall. Doncaster market is an absolute gem, and well up the league of food provision. © Copyright Jonathan Wilkins and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1724671

By 1334, Doncaster was the wealthiest town in southern Yorkshire and the sixth most important town in Yorkshire as a whole, even boasting its own banker. The borough was known for its rich landowners with vast estates and huge stately homes such as Brodsworth Hall, Cantley Hall, Cusworth Hall, Hickleton Hall, Nether Hall and Wheatley Hall (demolished 1934).

1829: Mansion House and New Betting Room, Doncaster, Nathaniel Whittock & John Rogers, published by I.T. Hinton, London, 1829. Public Domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mansion_House_and_New_Betting_Room,_Doncaster,_Nathaniel_Whittock_%26_John_Rogers,_published_by_I.T._Hinton,_London,_1829.jpg

Doncaster Mansion House , by Jonathan Thacker. Built for the Mayor of Doncaster as a residence and place where he could entertain visitors. Work began on it in 1745. © Copyright Jonathan Thacker and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2224331

This wealth is evidenced in the luxurious and historic gilded 18th-century Mansion House on High Street. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doncaster

Church of St George, Doncaster, also known as Doncaster Minster, occupies the same site as the Roman fort of Danum and an 18 metre stretch of the fort wall can be seen at the north east end of the Minster site. A Norman fortification is also known to have occupied the site, and it is probable that the materials from that building were used, in part, to build the early church. Jackson’s history of the Church suggests a progression from Early English to Perpendicular styles.

1805: Church of St. George, Doncaster. Sketched and engraved by B. Howlett. Published April 1st, 1805 with later hand colouring. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEChurchOfStGeorge18.jpg

The destruction of the mediaeval church, by fire on the night of 28th February 1853, was seen as a great calamity for the town and the neighbourhood. This fire resulted in the loss of the medieval library which was above the south porch. Also lost was its fine Harris organ of 1739–40, which was praised by John Stanley, who declared “every pipe in the reed stops to be worth its weight in silver”. The replacement building, to the designs of George Gilbert Scott, has been described as the “proudest and most Cathedral-like of Gilbert Scott’s Parish Churches. http://www.doncasterminster.co.uk/origin-of-st-georges-church-and-its-importance-to-the-town/ Lucy would have seen the old church, shown in the 1805 Print, above, with George Gilbert Scott’s later church below.

2010: St George's Minster, Doncaster, UK , by Frees, the copyright holder of this work, who has dedicated the work to the public domain by waiving all of their rights to the work worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law. You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_Georges_Doncaster_3.jpg

Doncaster Racecourse (also known as the Town Moor course) is one of the oldest (and in terms of physical capacity – largest) established centres for horse racing in Britain, with records of regular race meetings going back to the 16th century. A map of 1595 already shows a racecourse at Town Moor. In 1600 the corporation tried to put an end to the races because of the number of ruffians they attracted, but by 1614 it acknowledged failure and instead marked out a racecourse.

1832: Doncaster Races... the Start of the Great St Leger Stakes , Artist James Pollard, Engraver R W Smart, C Hunt, Publisher S & J Fuller http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/10925

Doncaster is home to two of the World's oldest horse races: –The earliest important race in Doncaster's history was the Doncaster Gold Cup, first run over Cantley Common in 1766. The Doncaster Cup is the oldest continuing regulated horse race in the world. Ten years later the Racecourse moved to its present location and in 1776 Colonel Anthony St. Leger founded a race in which five horses ran. This race, The St Leger Stakes, has remained in existence and become the world's oldest classic horse race. Today the St. Leger Stakes remains the world's oldest Classic Horse Race and features in the Horse Racing calendar as the fifth and final Classic of the British Flat racing season. This takes place every September.

2013: The Grandstand and racecourse at Doncaster. Home of the St. Leger, by www.badobadop.co.uk, the copyright holder of this work, published under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Doncaster_Racecourse_2.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doncaster_Racecourse

Barnby Moor is a village about three miles north of East Retford. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barnby_Moor

Ye Olde Bell Hotel & Restaurant, Barnby Moor , by G Laird. The Ye Olde Bell Hotel is a 17th-century coaching inn in the Nottinghamshire village of Barnby Moor north-west of Retford. © Copyright G Laird and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4705746

Scarthingmoor House is an 18th century farmhouse with large early C19 addition. It was formerly the Black Lion Inn. https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1045943 It lies 15 miles south of Barnby Moor and 4.3 miles from Newark. An image dated 18 June 2002 is available on this historic England link

Newark-on-Trent or Newark stands on the River Trent and on the route of the ancient Great North Road. Around 1770 the Great North Road around Newark (now the A1) was raised on a long series of arches to ensure it remained clear of the regular floods it experienced. A special Act of Parliament in 1773 allowed the creation of a town hall next to the Market Place. Designed by John Carr of York and completed in 1776, Newark Town Hall is now a Grade I listed building. In 1775 the Duke of Newcastle, at the time the Lord of the Manor and a major landowner of the area, built a new brick bridge with stone facing to replace the dilapidated one next to the castle.

Entrance to the Town of Newark-upon-Trent. Artist & Engraver Edward H. Buckler, Publisher: J.Bridges, Newark http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/1406

1827: Newark, Watercolour. View from the west, looking across the river Trent. The castle is on the left and the spire of St Mary Magdalen's church on the right. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/13373

This is still one of the major thoroughfares in the town today. A noted advocate of reform in the late 18th century at Newark was the local-born printer and newspaper owner Daniel Holt (1766–1799). He was imprisoned for printing a leaflet advocating parliamentary reform and selling a Thomas Paine pamphlet. The Market Place is the focal point of the town. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newark-on-Trent .

Newark Market place by Bob Danylec. View of the market place & town hall, taken from the tower of Newark parish church. © Copyright Bob Danylec and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/73956

Newark Market Place by David Dixon. The soaring 236-feet high tower of The Church of St Mary Magdalene, Newark-on-Trent dominates the view of the northern side of Newark's Market Square. © Copyright David Dixon and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3654739

In the south corner of Market Square stands what is, after the Castle and Church, the oldest building in the town, and one of the oldest domestic houses in this part of England. It was formerly the White Hart Inn, and now adjoins the modern inn of that name.

1970: Ye Olde White Hart Newark on Trent . © Copyright John Firth and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1997122

The White Hart 1970, above, prior to its restoration, below.

Former White Hart by Bob Harvey. Designated as a grade II* listed building the timber framed building with the characteristic arch of a Coaching Inn was known as the White Hart. The frontage here dates from 1470, though some of the rear parts of the building are up to a century older. © Copyright Bob Harvey and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4722241

Along its top storey has run a continuous open gallery or cloister, now glazed in; while on the front of the first floor is a rich series of canopied niches of plaster work, those over the cart-way still retaining their figures, holding emblems, their feet supported upon hogs' masks. This house, by the character of its details, may be assigned to the middle of the fourteenth century. It is illustrated in Parker's Domestic Architecture 1859, part ii., p. 225. The visitor should step into the spacious inn yard in the rear to view the gallery, &c., from that side. Next to this building stands the Saracen's Head, where has been an inn under that name from at least the year 1341. From 1590 to 1720 it belonged to the Twentyman family, and was then the principal inn in the town.

The Saracen's Head by Richard Croft. With a history dating back to 1341, the Saracen's Head Inn was once the principal coaching inn on the Great North Road at Newark. The current building dates from 1721 and like the adjacent Clinton Arms Link has a piazza of Tuscan columns facing the Market Square. King Charles reputedly stayed here on a visit to Newark and Jean Deans stayed here on her journey to London in Sir Walter Scott's novel 'The Heart of Midlothian'. It is now shops and a bank. © Copyright Richard Croft and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/761610

King Charles I. is said to have slept here during one of his visits to Newark, and the "blind" window in the yard, decorated with a fine example of "pargetting," or ornamental plaster work, is traditionally said to mark the bed-chamber used by the monarch. If this is so, the commemoration was executed some seventy years later, for the design of the panel is French in feeling, and of the time of Queen Anne. The "Saracen's Head " is mentioned by Sir Walter Scott in "The Heart of Midlothian" as the inn where Jeanie Deans stayed when on her journey to London. Next to the Saracen's Head comes the Clinton Arms, formerly the Kingston Arms, where Lord Byron used to stay during his visits to the town in 1806-8, when his first slender volumes of poems were printed for him by Messrs. S. and J. Ridge, who occupied the premises at the Bridge Street corner of the Market Place, now used as a grocer's shop, with the Masonic Hall above. If the visitor walks up the passage marked "Hardy's Yard" at the end of this house, he will be pleased with the long wing running out at the back, with its steep-pitched gable.

The Queen's Head by Richard Croft. Historic hostelry known as the Queen's Head until relatively recently, now owned by Wychwood Brewery and called Hobgoblin © Copyright Richard Croft and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/732499

The old white-washed yard is a favourite subject with local artists, as is also that under the Queen's Head, the other timbered building, near the northwest corner of the square—a quaint courtyard, which should not be missed. http://www.nottshistory.org.uk/blagg1910/marketplace.htm

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

1st November 1819, York: minster, ancient graves, organ, Assembly Rooms, Ballroom, Castle, Gaol-Session House, river Ouse, bridge, Castle Howard, pictures, mausoleum; York

Monday 1st November 1819

Monday Novb 1st We arose early in order to see a few of the houses of York the Minster first drew our attention which is the largest richest & most magnificent building of the kind I ever witnessed nothing can exceed the beauty of the carving the windows are also particularly fine; after seeing the cathedral from which we could scarcely draw our attention our guide showed us some ancient relicts which had been found

in the graves of several archbishops also two curious stone graves supposed to have belonged to the ancient Britons they were discovered in a field near the town; after breakfast we again visited the Minster to hear the sound of the organ which has a most noble effect we then walked to the Assembly Rooms the ball room is very handsome having corinthian Pillars all round it next to the Castle very little of the old part remains, the new building is converted into a gaol & Session house; there are also some pretty public walks by the river Ouse over which is a new bridge; the streets in York are all very narrow & the buildings are very irregular; we then returned to the Inn and started for Castle Howard the seat of Ld Carlisle sixteen miles from York the country was very flat & uninteresting

it is a most noble estate and the house which is nearly two hundred years old on a very grand scale the entrance hall is particularly fine endowed with beautiful paintings & 70 feet high all the rooms are hung with fine old paintings the furniture is not very handsome; in the Park is a nice Mausoleum where some of the ancestors of the family are interred; we returned to York in the evening

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

York Minster: The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York. It is the second largest Gothic cathedral of Northern Europe and clearly charts the development of English Gothic architecture from Early English through to the Perpendicular Period.

1829: York Cathedral, South View, from Coney's Abbeys & Cathedrals, Artist & Engraver John Coney http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/23246

2003: View on York Minster from 2nd floor of Marks & Spencer building by MatzeTrier, the copyright holder of this work, published under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:York_Minster_from_M%26S.JPG

The present building was begun in about 1230 and completed in 1472. York is the largest cathedral completed during the Gothic period of architecture, Cologne Cathedral only being completed in 1880, after being left uncompleted for 350 years. The nave was built between 1291 and c. 1350 and is also in the decorated Gothic style. It is the widest Gothic nave in England and has a wooden roof (painted so as to appear like stone) and the aisles have vaulted stone roofs.

1824: To Jonathan Gray, Esqr. this View is Inscribed by his obediant Servant, Artist: J Browne. Engraver: E Finden. Publisher: J.Wolstenholme, Minster Gates, York. http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/2602

View from the stage . Looking towards the West face of York Minster after the final Mystery Play for 2016. The raked seating for the audience is straight ahead, seating around 1000 people. © Copyright DS Pugh and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5019751

At its west end is the Great West Window, known as the 'Heart of Yorkshire' which features flowing tracery of the later decorated gothic period. Some of the stained glass in York Minster dates back to the 12th century. The 77-foot tall and 32-foot wide Great East Window was created by John Thornton in the early 15th century; it is the largest expanse of medieval stained glass in the country, according to the Minster.

1824: To John Lampleigh Raper, Esqr. this View is Inscribed by his obediant Servant . Artist: J Browne. Engraver: E Finden. Publisher: J.Wolstenholme, Minster Gates, York http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/2842

The nave, York Minster. © Copyright Julian P Guffogg and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3455912

The fire of 1829 destroyed the organ and the basis of the present organ dates from 1832. The English Reformation led to the looting of much of the cathedral's treasures and the loss of much of the church lands. Under Elizabeth I there was a concerted effort to remove all traces of Roman Catholicism from the cathedral; there was much destruction of tombs, windows and altars. In the English Civil War the city was besieged and fell to the forces of Cromwell in 1644, but Thomas Fairfax prevented any further damage to the cathedral.

1829: York Cathedral. The Choir, from Coney's Abbeys & Cathedrals, Artist & Engraver John Coney. http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/23248

The choir of York Minster looking west toward the nave in North Yorkshire, England by David Iliff and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York_Minster#/media/File:York_Minster_Choir,_Nth_Yorkshire,_UK_-_Diliff.jpg

Following the easing of religious tensions there was some work to restore the cathedral. From 1730 to 1736 the whole floor of the minster was re-laid in patterned marble and from 1802 there was a major restoration. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York_Minster

c 1830: Crypt, York Minster, 'Engraved and Printed by Fenner Sears & Co. after N. Whittock. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SECryptYorkMinster18.jpg

2016: Crypt of York Minster, York, England , by SUM1, the copyright holder of this work, published under the (CC BY-SA 4.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:YorkMCrypt.jpg

Archbishop Graves: Twenty-two Archbishops are listed as buried in York Minster, between Eanbald I died 796 and Richard Neile, died 1640, who was involved in the last burning at the stake for heresy in England, that of the Arian Edward Wightman in 1612. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York_Minster#Burials and see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Neile

Ancient Britons?:Unable to locate records of pre1819 burial stones relating to Ancient British, Brigantes, Romano British ore Saxon burial stones but report on the Brigantes is at http://www.thetimetravellers.org.uk/brigantes-group.html

Organ: The fire of 1829 destroyed the organ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York_Minster (organ)

The Assembly Rooms, Blake Street, were built to provide accommodation for dancing and other social activities. The building was begun in 1730, first used in August 1732, but not entirely completed until 1735. After a fire in 1773, alterations designed by Sir John O’Corall were made in the Lesser Assembly Room. The steps in front of the portico were replaced by an internal set in 1791. Probably the earliest neo-classical building in Europe, The Assembly Rooms proved to be one of the most influential pieces of architecture of the early 18th century. The design is based on Palladio’s interpretation of Roman architecture, rather than the Italian architect’s own buildings.

http://www.historyofyork.org.uk/zoom-image.php?img=2YORAG_R1482-1.jpg

http://www.yorkconservationtrust.org/blakestreet-assemblyrooms.html

The Great Assembly Room is based on his reconstruction of an ‘Egyptian Hall’, and the suite of rooms around it, as well as the façade, on those of Roman houses and baths. The Great Assembly Room has a peristyle of Corinthian columns with entablature above which rises a clerestorey with composite pilasters defining bays containing windows and festoons. The columns are of stone with a plaster skim and moulded plaster capitals. http://www.yorkconservationtrust.org/blakestreet-assemblyrooms.html and http://www.historyofyork.org.uk/themes/georgian-architecture/the-assembly-rooms

Ball room: the ball rooms were within the Assembly Rooms

York Castle is a fortified complex comprising, over the last nine centuries, a sequence of castles, prisons, law courts and other buildings on the south side of the River Foss. The now-ruinous keep of the medieval Norman castle is commonly referred to as Clifford's Tower.

1828: Interior of Clifford's Tower. York., from Britton's Antiquities of Cities. Artist: William Henry Bartlett, Engraver: J C Varrall, Publisher: J. Britton, Burton Street http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/20500

Clifford's Tower, York © Copyright PAUL FARMER and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5322937

1866: Clifford's Tower & Governor's House, York from (30) Views of York. Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/17629

Clifford's Tower . Part of the site of the Norman castle originally built in 1068. © Copyright David Dixon and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1790608

Built originally on the orders of William I to dominate the former Viking city of York, the castle suffered a tumultuous early history before developing into a major fortification with extensive water defences. After a major explosion in 1684 rendered the remaining military defences uninhabitable, York Castle continued to be used as a jail and prison until 1929.

1866: Courtyard, York Castle from (30) Views of York. Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/17630

Castle Green - A panoramic shot taken from Clifford's Tower. The buildings left and centre form York Castle Museum and to the right is York Crown Court. © Copyright Graham Hogg and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5330939

The site is notorious for the pogrom in 1190 when 150 local Jews were killed in in the castle keep; most of them committed suicide in order not to fall into the hands of the mob. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York_Castle

River Ouse is formed at the confluence of the River Ure and the much smaller Ouse Gill Beck at Cuddy Shaw Reach near Linton-on-Ouse, about six miles downstream of the confluence of the River Swale with the River Ure.

2007: The River Ouse in the city of York, viewed from Skeldergate Bridge with Ouse Bridge in the background. Photograph taken by chris_j_wood at en.wikipedia. Copyright (c) 2007 Chris Wood. This file is licensed under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:River_Ouse_in_York.JPG

It then flows through the city of York and the towns of Selby and Goole before joining with the River Trent at Trent Falls, near the village of Faxfleet, to form the Humber Estuary. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Ouse,_Yorkshire

New bridge: Lucy is probably referring to The Foss Bridge, a single Georgian gritstone arch with balusters, linking the streets Fossgate and Walmgate, designed by Peter Atkinson the younger and erected in 1811–12, to replace a wooden bridge. The bridge was once the site of a fish market.

2008: Foss Bridge by Gordon Hatton. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Gordon Hatton and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:York,_Foss_Bridge.jpg

The famous Ouse Bridge was dismantled between 1810 and 1818 to make way for the New Ouse Bridge, designed by Peter Atkinson the younger and completed in 1821 but it would not have been ready for Lucy in 1819. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridges_of_York

Castle Howard is a stately home 15 miles north of York and has been the home of the Carlisle branch of the Howard family for more than 300 years. It is not a true castle, but this term is also used for English country houses erected on the site of a former military castle, in this case the ruined Henderskelfe Castle.

1819: Castle Howard from Jones' Views - north west view. Drawing probably by John Preston Neale (1771–1847); engraved by Miss Byrne, E. Roberts, W. R. Smith, T. Matthews, J. C. Varrall, S. Lacey, H. S. Storer, or T. Barber. This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Castle_Howard_from_Jones%27_Views_(1819)_-_north_west_view.JPG

2008: Castle Howard by Pwojdacz at en.wikipedia and released into the public domain (by the author). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:England1_144.jpg

Building of Castle Howard began in 1699 and took over 100 years to complete to a design by Sir John Vanbrugh for the 3rd Earl of Carlisle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castle_Howard

Frederick Howard, 5th Earl of Carlisle KG PC (1748 – 1825)

1769: Portrait of Frederick Howard, 5th Earl of Carlisle (1748–1825) by Sir Joshua Reynolds, Castle Howard Collection. This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:England1_144.jpg

During his youth Carlisle was mentored by George Selwyn and was chiefly known as a man of pleasure and fashion. He was created a Knight of the Thistle in 1767, and entered the House of Lords in 1770. After he had reached thirty years of age, his appointment on a Commission sent out by Frederick North, Lord North, to attempt a reconciliation with the Thirteen Colonies during the American War of Independence was received with sneers by the opposition. The failure of the embassy was not due to any incapacity on the part of the earl, but to the unpopularity of the government from which it received its authority. He was, indeed, considered to have displayed so much ability that he was entrusted with the viceroyalty of Ireland in 1780. The time was one of the greatest difficulty; for while the calm of the country was disturbed by the American War of Independence, it was drained of regular troops, and large bands of volunteers not under the control of the government had been formed. Nevertheless, the two years of Carlisle's rule passed in quietness and prosperity, and the institution of a national bank and other measures which he effected left permanently beneficial results upon the commerce of the island. In 1789, in the discussions as to the regency, Carlisle took a prominent part on the side of the prince of Wales. In 1791 he opposed William Pitt the Younger's policy of resistance to the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire by the Russian Empire; but on the outbreak of the French Revolution he left the opposition and vigorously maintained the cause of war. He resigned from the Order of the Thistle and was created a Knight of the Garter in 1793. In 1815 he opposed the enactment of the Corn Laws; but from this time till his death, he took no important part in public life. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Howard,_5th_Earl_of_Carlisle

Fire: A large part of the house was destroyed by a fire which broke out on 9 November 1940. The dome, the central hall, the dining room and the state rooms on the east side were entirely destroyed. Antonio Pellegrini's ceiling decoration the Fall of Phaeton was lost when the dome collapsed. In total, twenty pictures (including two Tintoretto’s and several valuable mirrors) were lost. The fire took the Malton and York Fire Brigades eight hours to bring under control. Some of the devastated rooms have been restored over the following decades. In 1960–61 the dome was rebuilt and in the following couple of years, Pellegrini's Fall of Phaeton was recreated on the underside of the dome. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castle_Howard

Mausoleum: In the 1720s the 3rd Earl of Carlisle announced his decision to build a grand funeral monument for himself and his family. Initially he consulted Vanbrugh, but following his death in 1726, the Earl turned to Nicholas Hawksmoor to realise his dream. The result is one of the finest, free-standing mausolea in northern Europe.

2009: The Mausoleum, Castle Howard, by Gordon Hatton . Only the upper part of the building is seen here over the trees, with 20 columns supporting the drum and dome roof. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Gordon Hatton and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Mausoleum,_Castle_Howard_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1135349.jpg

Begun in 1729, the Mausoleum took just over twelve years to build and was incomplete when the Earl died. He was temporarily buried in St Martin's Church, Bulmer, three miles away, before being interred in the Mausoleum in 1741. Beneath the chapel is the crypt, which contains 63 loculi, or niches, for receiving coffins. The Mausoleum is still the burial place of the Howard family. http://www.bbc.co.uk/northyorkshire/content/articles/2008/02/04/castle_howard_feature.shtml

Can you help us?

Transcription problems: As untrained transcribers we sometimes experience problems interpreting some of Lucy’s writing. We have a problem deciphering one section today:

to see a few of the ?lions? of York the lions can’t be right - help please! Many thanks to David Cant who solved this The query on 'lions' - it begins with an 'h' and looks like she meant to write houses but only managed the first 4 letters. So its 'hous' which fits in with the rest.

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

31st October 1819, Harrogate Christchurch, promenade, Ballroom, Knaresborough, river Nidd, Castle, Dropping Well, St Roberts Chapel, Green Hammerton, York

Sunday 31st October 1819

Sunday Oct 31st we went to church

this morning at Harrogate the church is very small & poor & I must say I am greatly disappointed with this well known place the houses are scattered about very irregularly & the situation & views not to be compared to those at Cheltenham; there is a good Promenade & Ball room but no pretty walks or anything of the kind; after Church we left it for Knaresborough 4 miles this place is pleasantly situated on a cliff above the river Nidd here are the remains of an old Castle which appears to have been a fortress of great extent here Richard the 2nd was confined till he was murdered in Pontefract Castle it was founded by Serlo de Burgh who entered England with Wilm the conqueror: the dropping well which consists of a stream trickling rapidly through a porous rock which in a short time incrusts every thing it falls on is

well worth seeing. half way up a steep cliff is Saint Roberts Chapel neatly cut out of solid rock with a gothic door & window there still remains a small altar this appears to have been done by the hermit himself; changing horses at Green Hammerton 8 miles we proceeded to York 18 miles this is a fine old city the Minster appears a very grand on entering the city Clarks Hotel is an excellent Inn,

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Christ Church, High Harrogate was the first permanent church building in Harrogate. Originally a chapel of ease to St John's, Knaresborough, the bulk of the present building was erected in 1831. Lucy would have attended the chapel of ease, whose vicar at the time was Robert Mitton. Perhaps Lucy’s feelings about its size and poor condition was shared by the community leading to the rebuilding in 1831. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ_Church,_High_Harrogate

1853: Christ Church, High Harrogate . Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/3830

2010: Christ Church parish church, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, seen from the southeast by Rachael Meyer (Frnjh at en.wikipedia) This file is licensed under the (CC-BY-SA-3.0. ) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Christ_Church_Harrogate_-_17.9.10.jpg

Harrogate: In the early 19th century Low Harrogate overtook High Harrogate in popularity.

1796: Low Harrogate . Artist: Francis Nicholson. Engraver & Publisher: J Walker http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/14418

The sulphur well was improved with the erection of a covered well head in 1803 and three years later the first Assembly Rooms, with a promenade room for visitors resorting to the Spa, were built to provide a promenade for visitors. http://www.friendsofvalleygardens.co.uk/page17/page5/page5.html

1857: Queen's Parade & Villas, High Harrogate . Engraver: Rock & Co. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/3835

The Assembly rooms would probably be where balls were held, although many of the grand hotels of the day had their own ballrooms.

Royal Baths Assembly Rooms, Harrogate, Yorkshire. This splendid building is one of Yorkshire's premier venues, and is used for a variety of events - here, for an international Youth Music festival. © Copyright Dr Neil Clifton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0. ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/412552

Knaresborough is a market and spa town on the River Nidd 4 miles east of Harrogate.

1828: Knaresborough, from the Bridge. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/19803

Knaresborough Riverside The River Nidd flows below the town and St John the Baptist's Church © Copyright Graham Hogg and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0. ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3633016

Sights in the town include the remains of Knaresborough Castle, the Courthouse Museum in the castle grounds, Mother Shipton's Cave, the House in the Rock, St Robert's Cave (dating from the Middle Ages).

Perspective View of the Dripping Well, & Ruins of Knaresbrough-Castle, in Yorkshire. From Mod Universal British Traveller (1779-1790c). http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/16642

The Chapel of Our Lady of the Crag on Abbey Road was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and built in 1408 by John the Mason after his son, who was presumed dead in a rockfall in a local quarry, was found alive, with the son's escape having been attributed to the mason's frequent prayers to Mary. Knaresborough is the site of Ye Oldest Chymist Shoppe in England, opened in 1720. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knaresborough

River Nidd is a tributary of the River Ouse that meanders through Knaresborough, overlooking the castle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Nidd

River Nidd, Knaresborough . Looking down the River Nidd, near Knaresborough Viaduct. © Copyright Wayland Smith and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0. ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4489242

Knaresborough Castle was first built by a Norman baron in c. 1100 on a cliff above the River Nidd. There is documentary evidence dating from 1130 referring to works carried out at the castle by Henry I. In the 1170s Hugh de Moreville and his followers took refuge there after assassinating Thomas Becket. In 1205 King John took control of Knaresborough Castle and spent £1,290 on improvements. It was later rebuilt at a cost of £2,174 between 1307 and 1312 by Edward I and later completed by Edward II, including the great keep. Philippa of Hainault took possession of the castle in 1331, at which point it became a royal residence. The queen often spent summers there with her family. Her son, John of Gaunt acquired the castle in 1372, adding it to the vast holdings of the Duchy of Lancaster. Katherine Swynford, Gaunt's third wife, obtained the castle upon his death. It was taken by Parliamentarian troops in 1644 during the Civil War, and largely destroyed in 1648 not as the result of warfare, but because of an order from Parliament to dismantle all Royalist castles.

Knaresborough Castle. Album 1, Castles: Knaresborough. Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/2396

Knaresborough Castle © Copyright habiloid and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0. ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6194873

Many town centre buildings are built of 'castle stone'. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knaresborough_Castle

Serlo de Burgh was granted the Manor of Knaresborough by William the Conqueror as a reward for his part in the invasion. http://knaresborough.co.uk/history/

"Old Mother Shipton's Cave" is at Knaresborough, near to a petrifying well which is the oldest entrance-charging tourist attraction in England, open since 1630.

1855: Dropping Well, Knaresbo'. Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/2399

The water of the well is rich in sulphate and carbonate[1] which is deposited as a ramp and screen below, and in which artefacts are "petrified" (encrusted) as a tourist attraction. The place is associated with the legendary soothsayer and prophetess Mother Shipton (c. 1488 - 1561), who, according to legend, was born in the cave.

2010: The entrance to the cave in Knaresborough in which according to legend Mother Shipton was born. By chris, the copyright holder of this work, published under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MotherShipton%27sCave.jpg

The cave and dropping well, together with other attractions, remain open to visitors and are run by Mother Shipton's Cave Ltd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_Shipton%27s_Cave

Saint Roberts Chapel: Known for his charity to the poor and destitute, St Robert of Knaresborough (c. 1160 – 1218) attracted followers wherever he settled but ran into trouble with the Constable of Knaresborough Castle, William de Stuteville. As a result, Robert came to live in a cave by the river Nidd. His reputation as a holy man and miracle worker attracted many pilgrims to this hermitage. Giving in to public opinion, the Constable of the castle granted Robert a piece of land and he lived in the cave for the rest of his life, with a chapel built nearby. https://www.harrogate.gov.uk/info/20153/knaresborough_castle_and_museum/715/st_roberts_cave_knaresborough

St Robert's Chapel, Knaresborough . This is the remains of a cave between the riverside lane and the River Nidd. St Robert was the son of a mayor of York, and was born c.1160 and died in 1218. He spent most of his life as a hermit in the cave, most of which has been eroded and washed away by the river. What remains are the access steps, altar and stone bed - too small for him to be able to lie straight. © Copyright Humphrey Bolton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0. ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/85311

Green Hammerton Inn: They would probably have changed horses at The Bay Horse Inn, Green Hammerton, “a traditional English Inn that dates back to the 17th century”, equidistant between Harrogate and York. https://www.bayhorsegreenhammerton.co.uk/

The Bay Horse, Green Hammerton. Village pub with accommodation in a separate building to the rear. © Copyright Stephen McKay and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0. ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/936460

York, founded in 71 AD, was proclaimed capital of the province of Britannia Inferior by Emperor Severus. In 866 the Vikings raided and captured York. Under Viking rule the city became a major river port, part of the extensive Viking trading routes throughout northern Europe. In 1068, two years after the Norman conquest of England, the people of York rebelled. Initially they were successful, but upon the arrival of William the Conqueror the rebellion was put down. Early castles were destroyed in 1069 and rebuilt by William about the time of his ravaging Northumbria in his "Harrying of the North" where he destroyed everything from York to Durham. The remains of the rebuilt castles, now in stone, are visible on either side of the River Ouse. The first stone minster church was badly damaged by fire in the uprising, and the Normans built a minster on a new site. Around the year 1080, Archbishop Thomas started building the cathedral that in time became the current Minster. In the 12th century York started to prosper. In 1190, York Castle was the site of an infamous massacre of its Jewish inhabitants, in which at least 150 Jews died (although some authorities put the figure as high as 500). Guy Fawkes, who was born and educated in York, was a member of a group of Roman Catholic restorationists that planned the Gunpowder Plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament while King James I, the entire Protestant, and even most of the Catholic aristocracy and nobility were inside. In 1644, during the Civil War, the Parliamentarians besieged York, and many medieval houses outside the city walls were lost. The barbican at Walmgate Bar was undermined and explosives laid, but, the plot was discovered. After the restoration of the monarchy the city's role as the social and cultural centre for wealthy northerners was on the rise.

1866: York, from the City Walls. Engraving by Rock & Co. London. Published 20th March, 1866 with later hand colouring. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEYorkFromCityWalls.jpgb

York's many elegant townhouses, such as the Lord Mayor's Mansion House and Fairfax House date from this period, as do the Assembly Rooms, the Theatre Royal, and the racecourse. The Assize of Ale is an annual event in the city where people in medieval costume take part in a pub crawl to raise money for local charities. It has its origins in the 13th century, when an Assize of Bread and Ale was used to regulate the quality of goods. The oldest Inns include the Golden Fleece, Ye Olde Starre Inne, noted for its sign which has spanned the street since 1733, and The Kings Arms, often photographed during floods. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York

York City Walls and Lendal Bridge . © Copyright Steve Daniels and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0. ) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1261120

Clarks Hotel: There is no mention of a Clarks Hotel in the comprehensive Visit York publication, Historic Inns and Pubs of York http://mediafiles.thedms.co.uk/Publication/YK/cms/pdf/12-media-culture-Historic%20Inns%20and%20Pubs%20of%20York%202013.pdf and none appear in searches of Georgian hotels.

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

30th October 1819, Thirsk, Sowerby, father’s school, Rippon, Minster, Studley Park, grounds, Fountains Abbey ruins, Ripley, Harrogate

Saturday 30th October 1819

Saturday Oct 30th we left Northallerton & went to Thirsk to breakfast 9 miles the town is pretty & the Inn good we then rode two miles to a very pretty village called Sorby where we saw the house where my father went to school nearly 40 years ago. We then proceeded to Rippon 11 miles Rippon Minster standing on an eminence close to the town is a fine building; changing horses we went a mile & a half to Studley Park the seat of Miss Lawrence the house is not shown but after riding through a most beautiful park we arrived at the pleasure grounds they are (Dunkeld excepted) the most beautiful I have ever witnessed they certainly cannot boast of the fine views

rocks &c. of that place but the fine order they are kept in added to the tasteful manner in which they are laid out & the noble trees which shade them render them in my opinion nearly on an equality After enjoying these beautiful walks for some time the noble view of Fountains Abbey situated in the grounds formed a fine climax this superb old structure which for extent exceeds any ruin I have seen (covering two acres of land) is 6 hundred years old & was formerly inhabited by monks of the Cistercian order some parts of the ruin are still very complete it is not much commented but the whole is on a most grand & elegant style thence passing through the small village of Ripley we arrived late at Harrogate 11 miles the Inn is good

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Thirsk is built around a large medieval market square, which still hosts an open-air market.

Thirsk Market .Thriving Saturday market. © Copyright John M and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2010361

The market was established in 1145 and is the focal point for local farmers, traders and visitors. The town was once known for its leather tanning and saddlery trade, but this was replaced in the 19th century by the production of farming implements. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirsk

Inn: The Golden Fleece Hotel retains structures dating from the 1500s, including a large, oak-beamed, inglenook fireplace.

The Golden Fleece, Thirsk . © Copyright Bill Boaden and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2697769

It is thought to have originated as a private house. It came to prominence as an inn in 1810 when new owners George and Mary Blythe established it as one of the north’s most important coaching inns. https://www.goldenfleecehotel.com/the-hotel/history/ Another Inn at the time was the Three Tuns: Around 1740, the Dower House, in the Market Place, was adapted for use as a coaching inn.

Ye Olde Three Tuns, Finkle Street . A 13th Century Coaching Inn, & the oldest pub in Thirsk. It is rumoured that Dick Turpin was sighted here. © Copyright Stephen Armstrong and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2590850

At that time, it was Thirsk’s only coaching inn and had the monopoly for many years. The London, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Leeds and Darlington coaches all used the Three Tuns Hotel for bed and breakfast. The original mangers, stalls and hay lofts for the horses may still be seen at the yard, behind the pub. https://www.jdwetherspoon.com/pub-histories/england/north-yorkshire/the-three-tuns-thirsk

Sowerby is a small village, situated immediately south of Thirsk.

Sowerby Main Street © Copyright Paul Buckingham and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1468243

The educationalist, John Rowntree, father of York-based cocoa and chocolate manufacturer Joseph Rowntree, was educated at a Quaker school in the village. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sowerby,_North_Yorkshire

School: Although John Rowntree was educated at Sowerby, it was a Quaker school and the Copland’s were avowedly Church of England. No other school can be found for Alexander Copland, born 1774, who attended a school there “nearly 40 years ago” i.e. before 1779, and would have been around 4 years old at the time. However, he may have remained there until he was bound to Richard Holland “surveyor” in November 1784 aged 10, about 35 years earlier http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-49436

Ripon: It's proximity to Fountains Abbey, where the Cistercians had a long tradition of sheep farming and owned much grazing land, was a considerable advantage. After English people were forbidden from wearing foreign cloth in 1326, Ripon developed a cloth industry which was third in size in Yorkshire after York and Halifax.

1821: Ripon, Yorkshire by Francis Nicholson. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/6975

Ripon replaced its old textiles industry with one for the manufacture of spurs during the 16th century. They were so widely known that they gave rise to the proverb "as true steel as Ripon Rowels". At the time, spurs did not just serve as functional riding accessories, they were also fashionable; an expensive pair was made for King James I when he stayed at Ripon in 1617. The Ripon Obelisk was designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor it was erected by the town council in 1702 to commemorate the Ripon Hornblowers who date back to the reign of King Alfred in 886.

1860: Market Place, Ripon , from Book: (24) Views of Ripon & Neighbourhood, Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/7578

Ripon Market and Obelisk, Market Place, Ripon . Ripon Market takes place every Thursday in the city's Market Place, with stalls opening from about 9.00am to 4.00pm. © Copyright G Laird and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5568729

During the Georgian era Ripon, unlike several other cities, was not significantly affected by the Industrial Revolution despite the existence of various guilds. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ripon

The Unicorn reborn. © Copyright Stephen Craven and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. The Unicorn Hotel on Ripon Market Square was closed in 2010. It has now been reopened by J D Wetherspoon. Listed grade 2, it is described as a former coaching inn or "posting house", dating from the 18th century with an early 19th century top floor. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4953138

Rippon Minster, the Church of St Peter and St Wilfrid was founded as a monastery by Scottish monks in the 660s, and refounded as a Benedictine monastery by St Wilfrid in 672. The crypt dates from this period. The present church is the fourth, and was built between the 13th and 16th centuries.

1790: South View of Ripon Minster. Artist: W H Wood, Engraver: F Birnie, Publisher: W H Wood, Ripon http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/6969

Ripon Cathedral © Copyright Peter Moore and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5138795

The east window was built as part of a reconstruction of the choir between 1286-8 and 1330, and was described by architecture critic Pevsner as a 'splendid' example of the series of large Decorated gothic windows constructed in Northern England. The church's thirty-five misericords were carved between 1489 and 1494.

Choir, Ripon Cathedral, Yorkshire, from Book: (24) Views of Ripon & Neighbourhood, Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/7572

Ripon Cathedral . View west in Ripon Cathedral Quire © Copyright Richard Croft and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5377219

In 1836 the church became the cathedral for the Diocese of Ripon https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ripon_Cathedral

Studley Royal Park including the ruins of Fountains Abbey is a designated World Heritage Site that features an 18th-century landscaped garden, some of the largest Cistercian ruins in Europe, a Jacobean mansion and a Victorian church designed by William Burges. It was developed around the ruins of the Cistercian Fountains Abbey. John Aislabie, the Tory Member of Parliament for Ripon in 1695 and in 1718 Chancellor of the Exchequer, was a principal sponsor of the South Sea Company scheme, the bill for which was promoted by him personally.

1852: Temple of Fame, Studley Park. Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/2234

1866: Studley Royal, Yorkshire. From the Octagon Tower. From Book: (24) Views of Ripon & Neighbourhood Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/7580

1861: Avenue, Studley Park, with Ripon Minster & the Wolds. From Book: (24) Views of Ripon & Neighbourhood Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/7589

1866: Avenue in the Deer Park, Studley Park, Yorkshire. From Book: (24) Views of Ripon & Neighbourhood Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/7592

In 1720 when this vast financial operation collapsed, he was expelled from Parliament and disqualified for life from public office. Aislabie returned to Yorkshire and devoted himself to the creation of the garden he had begun in 1718. After his death in 1742, his son William extended his scheme by purchasing the remains of the Abbey and Fountains Hall. He extended the landscaped area in the picturesque romantic style, contrasting with the formality of his father's work.

The Surprise View, Studley Royal. The so called Surprise View at Studley Royal, with Fountains Abbey in the background. It was called the Surprise View because visitors would have been led along the High Ride (north from here) among trees, with the view of the Abbey suddenly opening up in front of them from this point. In the foreground is Half Moon Pond, formed from the deepening and widening of the River Skell. © Copyright Ian Capper and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2835933

Studley Royal . Wonderful autumn colours. © Copyright Anna and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4742670

Studley Royal . The stepping stones and walkway reset and open for business. © Copyright Simon Huguet and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/844713

Half Moon Pond . A Weeping Willow on the bank of the Half Moon Pond in the Water Garden at Studley Royal. The water garden at Studley Royal is one of the best surviving examples of a Georgian water garden in England. The garden was created by John Aislabie in 1718. The estate of Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal is a UNESCO heritage site. © Copyright Ian Capper and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5472323

Between them, the two created what is arguably England's most important 18th century Water Garden. and erected the obelisk (designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studley_Royal_Park

Miss Lawrence: After William Aislabie's death, the estate passed to his daughter Elizabeth Allanson and then to her niece, Mrs Elizabeth Sophie Lawrence, who lived there from 1808 until her death in 1845.

Fountains Abbey is one of the largest and best preserved ruined Cistercian monasteries in England. It is located approximately 3 miles (5 kilometres) south-west of Ripon in North Yorkshire, near to the village of Aldfield. Founded in 1132, the abbey operated for 407 years becoming one of the wealthiest monasteries in England. In the second half of the 13th century the abbey was in more straitened circumstances. It was presided over by eleven abbots, and became financially unstable largely due to forward selling its wool crop, and the abbey was criticised for its dire material and physical state when it was visited by Archbishop John le Romeyn in 1294. The run of disasters that befell the community continued into the early 14th century when northern England was invaded by the Scots and there were further demands for taxes. The culmination of these misfortunes was the Black Death of 1348–1349. The loss of manpower and income due to the ravages of the plague was almost ruinous.

1809: Fountains - Abbey in Yorkshire, from John Buckler's Cathedrals. Artist: John Buckler. Engraver: Richard Reeve. Publisher: J.Buckler, Bermondsey, Surrey http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/2526

Fountains Abbey © Copyright David Dixon and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) CreativeCommons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2538024

1825: Fountains Abbey, Yorkshire. Drawn by J. Smith Esqr. Publisher: R Bowyer, Pall Mall From: A Selection of Fac-Similes of Water-Colour Drawings, from the Works of the Most Distinguished British Artists 1825 http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/14824

Fountains Abbey . © Copyright Alexander P Kapp and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2657090

It was dissolved in 1539 under the order of Henry VIII and the Abbey buildings and over 500 acres (200 ha) of land were sold by the Crown, on 1 October 1540, to Sir Richard Gresham who had supplied Cardinal Wolsey with the tapestries for his new house of Hampton Court and who paid for the Cardinal's funeral. Gresham sold some of the fabric of the site, stone, timber, lead, as building materials to help to defray the cost of purchase. The site was acquired in 1597 by Sir Stephen Proctor, who used stone from the monastic complex to build Fountains Hall. Between 1627 and 1767 the estate was owned by the Messenger family who sold it to William Aislaby who was responsible for combining it with the Studley Royal Estate. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fountains_Abbey

Ripley is a village a few miles north of Harrogate. A castle dating from the 15th century, Ripley Castle, has been the home of the Ingilby family for 700 years. The castle, which has a priest hole, is open for public tours.

circa 1880: Ripley Castle Baxter print, Source http://www.digitalengravings.com/ Author Rev. Francis Orpen Morris. This image is in the public domain due to its age. Rev Morris died in 1893 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ripley_CastleDE.jpg

Ripley Castle . Ripley Castle is a large country house in Ripley about 3 miles north of Harrogate. It dates from the 14th century with later additions mainly in the 16th and 18th centuries. The house was built using coursed squared gritstone and ashlar. Ripley Castle is a Grade I listed building. This view is looking across Ripley Lake. © Copyright G Laird and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5754027

The landscaped castle grounds and ornamental lakes are also open to the public. A 19th century Ingilby tore down the old village and modelled it after an Alsatian village with an "hôtel de ville" style town hall.

Main Street, Ripley . The view from the Harrogate-bound bus stop. Both terraces, part of the estate village for Sir William Amcotts Ingilby, are listed. © Copyright Derek Harper and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4118851

The castle and the parish church were not affected by the reconstruction. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ripley,_North_Yorkshire

Harrogate: It's development is owed to the discovery of its chalybeate and sulphur rich spring water from the 16th century. The first mineral spring was discovered in 1571 by William Slingsby who found that water from the Tewit Well in High Harrogate possessed similar properties to that from springs in the Belgian town of Spa, which gave its name to spa towns. The medicinal properties of the waters were publicised by Edmund Deane.

1855: High Harrogate . Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/3831

His book, Spadacrene Anglica, or the English Spa Fountain was published in 1626. In the 17th and 18th centuries further chalybeate springs were discovered in High Harrogate, and both chalybeate and sulphur springs were found in Low Harrogate.

1853: Low Harrogate. Engraver: Rock & Co http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/3834

The two communities attracted many visitors.

Central Harrogate, North Yorkshire © Copyright Steven Haslington and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2869556

A number of inns were opened for visitors in High Harrogate in the 17th century (the Queen's Head, the Granby, the Dragon and the World's End.) In Low Harrogate the Crown was open by the mid-18th century, and possibly earlier. To provide entertainment for the increasing numbers of visitors the Georgian Theatre was built in 1788. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrogate

Inns in 1819: The Crown Hotel’s history dates back over 300 years, alongside an enviable location just moments from many of Harrogate’s most popular sites. https://www.bespokehotels.com/thecrownhotel The present hotel is a rebuild from 1847.

The Crown Hotel, Harrogate . The has been a Crown Hotel here since shortly after the Restoration, but this building only started in 1847, and the tower on the right only dates to 1900. © Copyright Keith Edkins and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1197656

The Granby: Situated on the edge of The Stray, Harrogate’s historic parkland, The Granby Care Home is based within easy reach of the town’s shops, tearooms, restaurants and amenities. This impressive, eighteenth-century former hotel – which offers en suite bedrooms, a library, a cinema and a beautiful Crystal Ballroom. https://www.brighterkind.com/care-homes/the-granby

The Granby, Harrogate . The Granby was once one of Harrogate's premier hotels, particularly in the late 18th and 19th centuries when the wells of High Harrogate were popular. The first inn on this site was the 'Sinking Ship' in the 17th century. This was rebuilt and renamed as the Granby in 1795, being named after the Marquis of Granby who had distinguished himself during the seven years war. The hotel was always popular with the nobility [see also the nearby Cedar Court hotel], and amongst those who stayed here was Clive of India. The hotel went into a gradual decline after WW2 as it was at the wrong end of town. After recent refurbishment it became apartments for the retired and a care home. © Copyright Gordon Hatton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/656791

THE DRAGON HOTEL was demolished in the late Victorian/ Edwardian period. The unveiling of W P Frith’s commemorative plaque “began with a short stroll to nearby Christ Church, where Frith’s father, Thomas, was one of the first church wardens and there resides another plaque dedicated to the Frith family.” THIS IS LIKELY TO HAVE BEEN WHERE LUCY STAYED, close to the church they attended the next morning. Read more at: https://www.harrogateadvertiser.co.uk/news/frith-s-birthplace-marked-with-plaque-1-2720460 .

The Old Swan Hotel, Harrogate © Copyright Keith Edkins and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1197866

One possibility was The Swan Inn https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Swan_Hotel and another the White Hart Hotel https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Hart_Hotel,_Harrogate

The White Hart Hotel . One of Harrogate's oldest hotels, dating back at least as far as the 18th century when it was a coaching inn. The hotel was in just the right place when Low Harrogate developed as a spa, being barely a minutes walk from the sulphur well. In 1815 there was a spectacular 'Waterloo Ball' as which there was 'an unusual assemblage of beauty and fashion'. The present building dates from an 1847 rebuild and has been described by Pevsner as 'the best building in Harrogate'. For many years during the 20th century it was used as a hospital, but has now been returned to its former status as a top class hotel. © Copyright Gordon Hatton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/657894

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

29th October 1819, Breakfast Durham, Cathedral, St Cuthbert’s Grave, castle, Walks along River Wear, handsome bridges, Rushyford, Darlington, Northallerton

Friday 29th October 1819

Friday Oct 29th We breakfasted at Durham 15 miles from Newcastle; the cathedral here is a magnificent building of Saxon architecture it stands on an eminence overlooking the town here we saw the grave of St Cuthbert near the Cathedral stands the Castle a very old building part of it is inhabited, on the side of the river Wear which divides the town are some very pretty public walks there are two handsome bridges over the river; the town is nothing very striking we then proceeded to Rushyford 9 miles thence to Darlington 9 miles which appears a nice town; the country

about here is not at all interesting from Darlington to Northallerton 16 miles where we slept the Inn is very good

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Durham: Local legend states that the city was founded in A.D. 995 by divine intervention. Durham's geographical position has always given it an important place in the defence of England against the Scots. The city played an important part in the defence of the north, and Durham Castle is the only Norman castle keep never to have suffered a breach. The Battle of Neville's Cross, which took place near the city on 17 October 1346 between the English and Scots, is the most famous battle of the age.

1610: A map of Durham, England from 1610, by the famous cartographer John Speed. The cathedral and castle are shown, as is the River Wear which surrounds the city on three sides. This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Durham_1610.jpg

1749: The South-West Prospect of the City of Durham, the Universal Magazine Series, Artist S & N Buck, Publisher: J. Hinton at the Kings Arms in St Pauls Church Yard London http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/18341

Durham from Pelaw Wood , Artist: W R Robinson, Engraver: George Hawkins (1809-1852), Publisher: Andrews, Durham, Printed by Day & Haghe. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/6892

1850: City of Durham, from the Observatory Fields. Artist: J W Carmichael, Engraver: J T Willmore, Publisher: George Andrews, Durham and S & J Fuller, 34 Rathbone Place London http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/23323

Charles I came to Durham towards the end of the civil war, escaping from the city as Oliver Cromwell's forces got closer. Local legend has it that Cromwell stayed in a room in the present Royal County Hotel that is reputed to be haunted by his ghost. Durham suffered greatly during the civil war and Commonwealth. due to the closure of religious institutions. pertaining to it. The city has always relied upon the Dean and Chapter and cathedral as an economic force. In 1720 it was proposed that Durham could become a sea port by digging a canal north to join the River Team, a tributary of the River Tyne near Gateshead. Nothing came of the plan, but the statue of Neptune in the Market Place was a constant reminder of Durham's maritime possibilities. The 18th century also saw the rise of the trade union movement in the city. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durham,_England

Durham roofscape . © Copyright Mike Quinn and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/897766

Framwelgate Bridge crossing the River Wear, Overlooked by Durham Castle. The castle was originally built in the 11th century. It has been occupied since 1840 by the University College, and is home to over 100 students. It is open to the general public to visit, but only through guided tours. Durham Castle is jointly designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site with Durham Cathedral. © Copyright Mat Fascione and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5640690

Durham cathedral: The 12th century chronicler Symeon of Durham recounts that in AD 995 after wandering in the north, Saint Cuthbert's bier miraculously came to a halt at the hill of Warden Law and, despite the effort of the congregation, would not move. According to this legend, by chance later that day, the monks came across a milkmaid who stated that she was seeking her lost dun cow, which she had last seen at Dun Holm. The monks, realising that this was a sign from the saint, followed her and settled at a high wooded rock surrounded on three sides by the River Wear where they erected a shelter for the relics, on the spot where the Durham Cathedral would later stand.

1998: Depiction of the dun cow that helped in the founding of Durham. (Much more information about this legend available in British Museum file showing a copy of this artwork: Dun-Cow--Durham-Cathedral-British-Museum.png) . Photograph by Rebecca Kennison, the copyright holder of this work, and published under the following licenses: the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled GNU Free Documentation License. This file is licensed under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:UK_Durham_Dun-Cow.jpg

Durham Cathedral holds the relics of Saint Cuthbert, transported to Durham by Lindisfarne monks in the ninth century, the head of Saint Oswald of Northumbria, and the remains of the Venerable Bede. In addition, its library contains one of the most complete sets of early printed books in England, the pre-Dissolution monastic accounts, and three copies of the Magna Carta. Cuthbert's tomb was destroyed on the orders of King Henry VIII in 1538, and the monastery's wealth handed over to the king. The body of the saint was exhumed, and according to the Rites of Durham, was discovered to be uncorrupted. It was reburied under a plain stone slab worn by the knees of pilgrims, but the ancient paving around it remains intact. Two years later, on 31 December 1540, the Benedictine monastery at Durham was dissolved. After the Battle of Dunbar on 3 September 1650, Durham Cathedral was used by Oliver Cromwell as a makeshift prison to hold Scottish prisoners of war. It is estimated that as many as 3,000 were imprisoned of whom 1,700 died in the cathedral itself, where they were kept in inhumane conditions, largely without food, water or heat. The prisoners destroyed much of the cathedral woodwork for firewood but Prior Castell's Clock, which featured the Scottish thistle, was spared. It is reputed that the prisoners' bodies were buried in unmarked graves. The survivors were shipped as slave labour to North America. In 1777 the architect George Nicholson, having completed Prebends' Bridge across the Wear, persuaded the dean and chapter to let him smooth off much of the outer stonework of the cathedral, thereby considerably altering its character. His successor William Morpeth demolished most of the Chapter House. Later restoration followed after 1819. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durham_Cathedral

1847: Durham Cathedral and Castle, from the Friends' Bridge. Artist:J W Carmichael, Engraver: Hawkins. Publisher: Day & Haghe Lithrs to the Queen http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/16823

Durham Cathedral , by Domstu, the copyright holder of this work, published under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:10_04_09_011_edited-1.jpg

1809: Durham Cathedral. (South West View, from the Cloister Yard) Engraving by R. Roffe after J.R. Thompson. Published October 1st, 1809. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEDurhamCathedralBeau19.jpg

Durham Cathedral and the Cloisters. © Copyright Chris Thomas-Atkin and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5819169

IN LUCY’S SCRAPBOOK is a copy reputed to be of a Durham Cathedral Stained Glass Window showing Sir John Copland apprehending King David II at The Battle of Neville's Cross (see p 338, George Ridpath’s The Border History of England & Scotland: Deduced from the Earliest Times to the Union of the Two Crowns, 1810, p338) https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=6BZIAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA338&lpg=PA338&dq=Sir+John+Copland+King+of+Scotland+teeth&source=bl&ots=iKZUPefWSP&sig=ACfU3U3QIRMoyUMXvHZ7NmCQwwcOHKAAWw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjTtamT_PnfAhWToXEKHUSICbwQ6AEwC3oECAAQAQ#v=snippet&q=John%20Copland&f=false Some Copland family members have claimed descent from Sir John, but there is no evidence and Lucy makes no note of seeing it in her diary.

St Cuthbert’s shrine was destroyed in the Dissolution of the Monasteries, but, unusually, his relics survived and are still interred at the site, although they were also disinterred in the 19th century, when his wooden coffin and various relics were removed. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuthbert

Cuthbert of Lindisfarne fresco in Durham Cathedral. Public Domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Durham_St_Cuthbert.jpg

Cuthbert died on 20 March 687 in his hermit's cell on Inner Farne Island, two miles from Bamburgh, Northumberland, and was taken back to the main monastery at Lindisfarne to be buried. Eleven years later the coffin was re-opened, and according to his biographies (including prose and verse ones by Bede from about 720) his remains were found to be "incorrupt" or undecayed. This was a traditional attribute of sainthood and helped greatly in his subsequent cult. He was reburied in a new coffin, apparently over the original one, which is described in his biographies, and matches the surviving coffin closely; this is called a levis theca ("light chest" in Latin) in Bede's biography. This was placed above ground at the altar, and apparently covered with a linen cloth, an indication that Cuthbert was already regarded as a saint. In 875 the monks evacuated the abbey with the coffin, in anticipation of the Great Heathen Army moving into the area. For seven years they carried it with them to various places in modern Scotland and Northumbria before settling it in the still existing St Cuthbert's church in Chester-le-Street until 995, when another Danish invasion led to its removal to Ripon. It was at Chester-le-Street that King Athelstan visited it, and the textiles were placed inside. Travelling once again, the cart with the coffin became stuck at Durham, which was taken as a sign that the saint wished to remain there. A new stone church—the so-called 'White Church'—was built, the predecessor of the present grand cathedral. The body was moved within the cathedral at various points; perhaps in 1041, in 1069 to escape the Harrying of the North by William the Conqueror, in 1104 when the Norman cathedral was constructed, and in 1541 when the medieval shrine which was one of the principal English pilgrimage sites was destroyed during the Reformation. The coffin was opened at various times during this period: a mid-11th century priest named Alfred Westou was in the habit of often combing the hair of the saint, and is also traditionally considered to have been responsible for placing the purloined bones of Bede in the coffin.

2010: St Cuthbert's Tomb, in Durham Cathedral. Also showing a (headless) statue of St Cuthbert - holding the head of the king St Oswald - whose head is reputed to have been buried with St Cuthbert's remains. Photo taken by J B A Hamilton, the copyright holder of this work, and released into the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_Cuthberts_Tomb.jpg

In 1827 the coffin was once again removed, having been found in a walled space at the site of the shrine. By then there were up to four layers of coffin in fragmentary condition, taken to date from 1541, 1041, 698 and 687, housing a complete skeleton, and other human remains, though many of the contents had been removed earlier. The textiles were removed in 1827. The human remains were reburied in a new coffin under a plain inscribed slab, with the remains of the old coffins, which were removed in yet another opening of the burial in 1899. These totalled some 6,000, of which 169 showed signs of having been carved or engraved. The art-historian Ernst Kitzinger, then with the British Museum, made a reconstruction of the carved oak sections in 1939, which has subsequently been slightly re-arranged. The reconstructed coffin and most of the contents are on now view in the Cathedral Museum; the St Cuthbert Gospel has been often on display in London since the 1970s. The fragments of St Cuthbert's coffin have been exhibited at Durham Cathedral since 2017. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Cuthbert%27s_coffin

Durham Castle: The Castle’s construction began in 1072 under the orders of William the Conqueror, six years after the Norman Conquest of England, and soon after the Normans first came to the North, as a projection of the Norman kings' power in the north of England, as the population of England in the north remained "wild and fickle". The construction took place under the supervision of the Earl of Northumberland, Waltheof, until he rebelled against William and was executed in 1076. It is an example of the early motte and bailey castles favoured by the Normans. The holder of the office of the Bishop of Durham was appointed by the King to exercise royal authority on his behalf, with the castle being his seat. It remained the bishop's palace for the bishops of Durham until the bishops made Auckland Castle their primary residence and the castle was converted into a college.

The South view of Durham Castle, being the Bishop's Palace. Engraving after Samuel and Nathaniel Buck. Printed in London by Newbery and Carnan, between 1765-1770 from ‘A Description of England and Wales. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/BuckSDurhamCastle19.jpg

The castle has a large Great Hall, created by Bishop Antony Bek in the early 14th century. It was the largest Great Hall in Britain until Bishop Richard Foxe shortened it at the end of the 15th century. However, it is still 14 metres (46 ft) high and over 30 metres (98 ft) long. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durham_Castle

2017: Durham Castle, by Carla Brain. Source. This file is licensed under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Durham_Castle,_April_2017_(14)_(33459522640).jpg

2004: Durham castle and the cathedral, from Millburngate bridge by Neitram. This file is licensed under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Durham_castle.jpg

River Wear rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At 60 mi (97 km) long, it is one of the region's longest rivers and wends in a steep valley through the cathedral city of Durham. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Wear

2007: River Wear at Durham, by Stevekeiretsu, the copyright holder of this work, published under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:River_wear_at_durham.jpg

Bridges: Prebends' Bridge was built in 1777 from designs by Richard Nicholson.

Prebends Bridge , Taken from Mill House on a misty November morning. © Copyright Andrew Greiff and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1092516

Elvet Bridge was built by Bishop Pudsey (1153–95), and with the exception of the two centre arches, which have been rebuilt, the old bridge is intact.

Elvet Bridge - Durham © Copyright Anthony Parkes and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6180502

Framwellgate Bridge, or the Old Bridge, as it was called in mediaeval times to distinguish it from the later Elvet Bridge was originally built by Flambard in 1120, but it was swept away by a flood in 1400. For a time a crossing was maintained by a ferry boat, but the present bridge was built in the 15th century by Bishop Langley (1406–37) and was widened in the early part of the 19th century. It consists of two arches, each of 90 ft. span, and was formerly fortified by towers and gates at each end.

Durham Castle overlooking Framwellgate Bridge. © Copyright David Newton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1593941

In 1316 a fight took place between Richard Fitz Marmaduke, the bishop's steward, and Robert Neville, 'the peacock of the north,' 'for dispute who might rule the most.' Fitz Marmaduke was defeated and killed. https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/durham/vol3/pp62-64

Rushyford is a village situated between Darlington and Durham, close to Newton Aycliffe and Chilton. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rushyford The Coplands may have changed horses at the Eden Arms, “A former Coaching House” https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2479162

The Eden Arms Hotel, Rushyford , A former coaching house. © Copyright David Dixon and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2479162

Darlington: Visiting during the 18th century, Daniel Defoe noted that the town was eminent for "good bleaching of linen, so that I have known cloth brought from Scotland to be bleached here". However he also disparaged the town, writing that it had "nothing remarkable but dirt" (the roads would typically be unpaved at the time). During the early 19th century, Darlington started to benefit from industry.

1875: General View of Darlington. Engraving published in "The Illustrated London News" on October 9th, 1875. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/ILNGenViewDarlington.jpg

As the century progressed, powerful Quaker families such as the Pease and Backhouse families were prominent employers and philanthropists in the area and the town thrived economically. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darlington

Darlington Market Hall © Copyright David Seale and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/577478

Northallerton is a market town that drew traders from afield to its four annual fairs (now reduced to two).

Northallerton High Street , With traffic restrictions in place for the Northallerton 10 km run. © Copyright DS Pugh and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4975862

Cattle drovers bringing cattle, horses and sheep from Northumbria and Scotland regularly came. In the golden age of coaching, Northallerton had four coaching inns along High Street serving passengers and horses using several routes to the north. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northallerton

Inn: Probably The Golden Lion, being the grandest in Lucy’s day. However: Historic inns survive in the town centre, including the Fleece Inn, built on the site of a 14th-century friary. Parts of the Fleece date to the medieval period and the inn once welcomed Charles Dickens. Another historic inn is the Black Bull, on the High Street. The Bull was Northallerton's very first coaching inn and dates to the 17th century. Even older is Porch House, opposite the church. Porch House was built in 1584 and is one of the oldest buildings in town. Charles I stayed here twice; once as a welcomed guest in 1641, and again as a prisoner in 1647. https://www.britainexpress.com/attractions.htm?attraction=2765 The Black Bull and the Golden Lion are cited as the two Northallerton Coaching Inns in: https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/a-tour-of-britain-via-its-historic-coaching-inns-1-8686637 See also http://www.blackbullnorthallerton.co.uk/

The Golden Lion Hotel, Northallerton , The main hotel in the town. One of the North's major coaching and posting inns during the Stage Coach era. Stabling existed for seventy five horses and famous coaches arrived daily. It was reconstructed in the 1730's, but medieval stone, an old well and Tudor brickwork found in the subsequent alterations suggest a much older inn on the site. © Copyright Bob Embleton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/478794

The Golden Lion (above): The present early Georgian building has graced the market place since it was reconstructed in the 1730's, medieval stone, an old well and Tudor brickwork found in the subsequent alterations evidence a much older inn on the site. Situated on the broad attractive high street on the Great North Road almost equidistant between London and Edinburgh, it was one of the Norths major coaching and posting inns during the exciting and colourful Stage Coach era. Stabling existed for seventy five horses and famous coaches arrived daily with bustle and thrill including the "Queen Charlotte", "Wellington" and "Royal Mail". Amongst the countless succession of guests who enjoyed its hospitality and compelling North Yorkshire atmosphere were the future Czar of Russia Grand Duke Nicholas and his considerable entourage in 1816, Queen Victoria's third son, the Duke of Connaught (1876) and Andrew Carnegie the Scottish born American made philanthropist (1888). http://www.golden-lion-hotel.co.uk/history.php

The Black Bull on Northallerton's High Street began life as the towns very first coaching inn and dates back to the 17th century. © Copyright David Rogers and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1265426

The Fleece, High Street , Northallerton's oldest inn situated to the east side of the town hall. Parts of the building date back to medieval times. © Copyright Gordon Hatton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/678240

Porch House, Northallerton. The oldest house in the town. The plaque reveals that King Charles I stayed here in 1640 and again in 1647 - the second time as a prisoner. © Copyright Neil Theasby and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6220685

1800: Daniel Paterson - The Road from Durham to Newcastle continuing on the verso to Morpeth and Whittingham. Published in 'Paterson' s BRITISH ITINERARY being a new and accurate Delineation and Description of the Direct and Principal Cross Roads of Great Britain in two volumes by DANIEL PATERSON Esq.' Published by Bowles & Carver in 1800. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/MapPR213.jpg

1759: John Senex - Northallerton Darlington Durham Newcastle upon Tyne . This Plate 8 from Senex's "Actual Survey of all the Principal Roads of England and Wales" published in 1759 with later hand colouring. Plate 9 on verso shows the route from Morpeth to Alnwickto Barwick. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/MapJSenex8a.jpg

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

28th October 1819, Breakfast Morpeth, Newcastle

Thursday 28th October 1819

Thursday Oct 28th we went to Morpeth 10 miles to breakfast it is a good Inn and rather a large town. thence to Newcastle 11 miles a fine large town we then did intend proceeding to Durham & the carriage wanting repairing we remained there the Inn is good my father & brothers went to ??Inncholand?? to see an iron bridge returned in the evening

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Morpeth was described by the royal antiquary John Leland in 1540 as "long and metely well-builded, with low houses" and "a far fairer town than Alnwick". During the 1543–50 war of the Rough Wooing, Morpeth was occupied by a garrison of Italian mercenaries, who "pestered such a little street standing in the highway" by killing deer and withholding payment for food.

1785: Morpeth Castle, Northumd. from Grose's Antiquities, Engraver: Morris, Publisher: S. Hooper http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/15676

1815: Morpeth. Engraving by F. Stevens after J. Varley. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEMorpethFS12.jpg

Morpeth received its first charter of incorporation from Charles II. The corporation it created was controlled by seven companies or trade guilds: the Merchant Tailors, the Tanners, the Fullers and Dyers, the Smiths, the Cordwainers, the Weavers and the Butchers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morpeth,_Northumberland

Bridge Street, Morpeth . Bridge Street is the main shopping street in Morpeth. The road is also a busy thoroughfare for traffic so a pedestrian crossing is necessary for crossing the road at busy times. © Copyright Graham Robson and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3996681

Inns in 1819: We are spoiled for choice. The Queens Head dates back to 1972 (sic) and was originally known as the Golden Fleece. The name of the pub changed to the Queens Head in 1837 to commemorate the accession of Queen Victoria to the throne.

The Queens Head Hotel, Morpeth . An old Tudor faced Coaching Inn on Bridge Street, which dates back to 1656. © Copyright JThomas and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4437709

In 1877, the then proprietor, Mrs Temple, bought the old building next door and rebuilt it to extend The Queens Head into a hotel – and the ground floor today still has the original leaded windows! https://ourlocal.pub/pubs/the-queens-head-rothbury/about/ The Geograph Photograph by J Thomas, above, dates thje Inn to 1656. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4437709

Another is the Waterford Lodge. Its website claims: “ This beautiful 18th century coaching inn has masses of character and charm. The Waterford Lodge Hotel is the perfect venue to celebrate your special occasion. Situated in the delightful market town of Morpeth, the Waterford Lodge really is a great location, moments from the centre of town. http://www.waterford-lodge.co.uk/

The Waterford Lodge Bar & Restaurant . © Copyright Nicholas Mutton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/943723

A third is the Old Red Bull Inn. An article in The North East News dated 7 November 2011, updated 25 June 1913 reports that: “Morpeth’s Old Red Bull – which dates back to 1780 – has survived being closed by the worst flooding in the town’s history, and a severe blaze which required its rebuilding at the turn of the century.

Old Red Bull Inn, Morpeth. © Copyright Willie Duffin and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1942951

But now it is set to disappear to make way for a £24m supermarket development in the Low Stanners area, where it has been a popular watering hole for more than two centuries.” http://www.thejournal.co.uk/news/north-east-news/old-red-bull-pub-morpeth-4419471

A Sun Inn was found on Geograph but its website makes no historic claims to suggest it might have been arounf in Regency times

Newcastle was England's northern fortress throughout the middle ages. Incorporated first by Henry II, the city had a new charter granted by Elizabeth in 1589. A 25-foot (7.6 m) high stone wall was built around the town in the 13th century, to defend it from invaders during the Border war against Scotland. The Scots king William the Lion was imprisoned in Newcastle in 1174, and Edward I brought the Stone of Scone and William Wallace south through the town. Newcastle was successfully defended against the Scots three times during the 14th century, and was created a county corporate with its own sheriff by Henry IV in 1400. From 1530, a royal act restricted all shipments of coal from Tyneside to Newcastle Quayside, giving a monopoly in the coal trade to a cartel of Newcastle burgesses known as the Hostmen, helping Newcastle prosper and develop into a major town. The phrase taking coals to Newcastle was first recorded contextually in 1538. The phrase itself means a pointless pursuit but in the 18th century, the American entrepreneur Timothy Dexter, regarded as an eccentric, defied this idiom. He was persuaded to sail a shipment of coal to Newcastle by merchants plotting to ruin him; however, his shipment arrived on the Tyne during a strike that had crippled local production, allowing him to turn a considerable profit.

circa 1810: South East View of Newcastle upon Tyne. Engraving drawn and engraved by J. Ryland. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SESEViewNewcastleRyland12.jpg

Newcastle, from the South-West. Artist W Harvey, Engraver T A Prior http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/18575

In the Sandgate area, to the east of the city, and beside the river, resided the close-knit community of keelmen and their families. They were so called because they worked on the keels, boats that were used to transfer coal from the river banks to the waiting colliers, for export to London and elsewhere. In the 1630s, about 7,000 out of 20,000 inhabitants of Newcastle died of plague, more than one-third of the population. Specifically within the year 1636, it is roughly estimated with evidence held by the Society of Antiquaries that 47% of the then population of Newcastle died from the epidemic; this may also have been the most devastating loss in any British city in this period. In the 18th century, Newcastle was the country's fourth largest print centre after London, Oxford and Cambridge, and the Literary and Philosophical Society of 1793, with its erudite debates and large stock of books in several languages, predated the London Library by half a century. Newcastle also became a glass producer with a reputation for brilliant flint glass. A permanent military presence was established in the city with the completion of Fenham Barracks in 1806. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcastle_upon_Tyne

St James Park Newcastle as seen from south of the River Tyne by Phil Brown from Gateshead. This file is licensed under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_James_Park_Newcastle_as_seen_from_south_of_the_River_Tyne.jpg

Inn: As a subtitle to the Geograph photo below, the author Andrew Curtis tells us: “A C17 merchant's house, built around 1670, and one of the oldest preserved buildings in Newcastle. Alderman Fenwick was Mayor of Newcastle in 1720. It was later a coaching inn, The Queen's Head, and, more recently, the Liberal Club. The building was restored in 1997, and is now offices. Newcastle, Pilgrim Street, No. 98, Alderman Fenwick's House” https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1680905

Alderman Fenwick's House, Pilgrim Street . © Copyright Andrew Curtis and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1680905

Hunting for Coaching Inns in the North East: The team at Beamish, an open air museum that tells the story of life in the North East from the 1820s until the 1940s, has expanded into the Georgian area. Their article entitled “Hunting for Coaching Inns,” 20 August 2015, tells us about former coaching inn The Queen’s Head (above). “The oldest parts of Alderman’s Fenwick’s house are medieval, but the majority of house as it stands today was largely developed during the 1700s. It became prominent locally as the home of the merchant family, the Fenwicks, including Alderman Nicholas Fenwick who lived there between 1747 and 1750. By 1782 the house had been bought by Charles Turner, a local innkeeper, who began converting the building into a hotel. In 1783, Turner publicly advertised that the inn was now ‘fitted in a genteel manner’ and that it had been considerably enlarged to accommodate a dinning room, stables and coach house. Many of the features in the building date from this period of refurbishment. The inn became famous as the most fashionable in the city, holding balls and exclusive auctions and won a contract to become a posting house. Amongst its many illustrious guests was Charles Dickens.” They add: “While we were in the city, we also visited the Old George, the oldest still operating pub in Newcastle and another former coaching inn. It’s small yard still provides clues as to its former use, blocked up arches are visible in what must have been the coach house and stables.” https://beamishbuildings.wordpress.com/tag/coaching-inn/

From the website of the Old George Inn, https://www.craft-pubs.co.uk/oldgeorgeinnnewcastle

??Inncholand?? iron bridge – not found

Road Maps:

19/20 Darlington, Durham Chester le Street / Newcastle, Morpeth from Britannia Depicta Road Engraver: Emanuel Bowen (1694?–1767) http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/6997

1800: Daniel Paterson - The Road from Dalkeith to Edinburgh and the road from Morpeth to Felton continuing on the verso to Alnwick, Belford and Berwick. Published in 'Paterson' s BRITISH ITINERARY being a new and accurate Delineation and Description of the Direct and Principal Cross Roads of Great Britain in two volumes by DANIEL PATERSON Esq.' Published by Bowles & Carver in 1800. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/MapPR221.jpg

Can you help us?

Transcription problems: As untrained transcribers we sometimes experience problems interpreting some of Lucy’s writing. We have a problem deciphering one section today:

to ??Inncholand?? to see an iron bridge - returned in the evening We have been unable to locate the iron bridge and therefore cannot confirm the name we have suggested from the transcript.

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

27th October 1819, Breakfast Wooler, Whittingham, view Flodden Field, Alnwick, Nelson Monument, Castle and Grounds, river Aln, bridges, Felton Bridge

Wednesday 27th October 1819

Wednesday Oct 27th We went 13 miles to Wooler where we breakfasted passing in our way a very pretty country, & Flodden Field

memorable for the battle fought in 1514 on one side the Cheviots now constantly form our horizon covered with snow the Inn at Woolen is good; went to Whittingham 13 miles changing horses advanced to Alnwick 8 miles a mile from the town we had a fine view of the magnificent castle belonging to the Duke of Northumberland also a fine monument erected to the memory of Nelson Alnwick is situated near the sea arriving at the Inn we were informed the Castle was not shown but very early in the morning the family however having fortunately come out we were admitted part of the building was built by the Saxon’s the tops of the turrets are ornamented with figures the whole is very is irregularly built but has a most noble appearance the interior has lately been most elegantly fitted up - the whole although very large has the appearance of much comfort the park is very extensive & the river Aln winds beautifully through the grounds over which are thrown two handsome bridges. leaving Alnwick we arrived at Felton bridge to dinner 10 miles where there is a small but

comfortable Inn

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Wooler lies on the edge of the Northumberland National Park, near the Cheviot Hills and is referred to as the "Gateway to the Cheviots". It lies on the St. Cuthbert's Way long-distance footpath between Melrose Abbey and Lindisfarne. Wooler was not recorded in the Domesday Book, because when the book was written in 1086, northern Northumbria was not under Norman control. However, by 1107, at the time of the creation of the 1st Baron of Wooler, the settlement was described as "situated in an ill-cultivated country under the influence of vast mountains, from whence it is subject to impetuous rains". Wooler subsequently enjoyed a period of prosperity and with its expansion it was granted a licence in 1199 to hold a market every Thursday. The St. Mary Magdalene Hospital was established around 1288.

High Street, Wooler View northward from near the bus station. Wooler is far to pleasant a town to be dismissed as a mere "gateway" as its self-deprecating mission statement proclaims on signs. © Copyright Richard Webb and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2611058

Wooler is close to Humbleton Hill, the site of a severe Scottish defeat at the hands of Harry Hotspur in 1402. This battle is referred to at the beginning of William Shakespeare's play Henry IV, Part 1 – of which Hotspur is the dashing hero. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wooler

Wooler Inn: The Coplands would probably have breakfasted at the The Black Bull Hotel, at 2 High Street, “a 17th Century Coaching Inn standing in the main street of Wooler. It is a wonderful base for sightseeing, walking, riding, golf and fishing.” https://www.britainexpress.com/counties/northumbria/stay/BE2980.htm

Black Bull Hotel, Wooler A 17th Century coaching inn. © Copyright Tim Heaton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3129955

It is possible that they called at The Tankerville Arms, built by “Lord of the Manor” the Earl of Tankerville in the 1700’s. The first Earl of Tankerville, Charles Bennet, built The Tankerville Arms to accommodate ‘spare’ guests when their then home, Chillingham castle was full, it is thought that the building was originally used for hunting parties. In 1827, the Tankerville incorporated the local excise office, and in 1841 it became a posting house on the chartered run between London & Edinburgh, a journey which took (including stops) 44 hours! This ended in 1847, 4 days after the opening of the rail line.

Tankerville Arms Hotel, © Copyright Stanley Howe and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/644089

The Tankerville was known to locals through the 19th Century as “The Wooler cottage” and infact changed its name to “The Cottage” for a time, however, the deeds and official paperwork have always been The Tankerville Arms. https://tankervillehotel.co.uk/

Flodden Field: Lucy’s date is wrong. The battle was 1513. It was a military combat in the War of the League of Cambrai between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, resulting in an English victory. The battle was fought in Branxton in the county of Northumberland in northern England on 9 September 1513, between an invading Scots army under King James IV and an English army commanded by the Earl of Surrey. In terms of troop numbers, it was the largest battle fought between the two kingdoms. See Wednesday 13th October 1819 where Lucy has already commented. James IV was killed in the battle, becoming the last monarch from the British Isles to die in battle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Flodden

The Cheviots: See 7th August 1819

Whittingham is a village situated on the banks of the River Aln, roughly 4.5 miles (7 km) east of its source at Alnham and 7.3 miles (12 km) west of Alnwick.

Whittingham village nestling in the valley of the River Aln. Cheviot hills beyond. © Copyright Oliver Dixon and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1332832

The thirteenth/fourteenth century pele tower, Whittingham Tower, was converted into alms houses in 1845 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whittingham,_Northumberland

2009: Whittingham Tower This tower in the village of Whittingham was built in the 13th/14th centuries. In 1845, it was converted into almshouses by Lady Ravensworth. By Oliver Dixon. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Oliver Dixon and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Whittingham_Tower_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1332545.jpg

Alnwick dates to about ad 600, and thrived as an agricultural centre. Alnwick Castle was the home of the most powerful medieval northern baronial family, the Earls of Northumberland. It was a staging post on the Great North Road between Edinburgh and London.

circa 1800: A view of Alnwick, Northumberland, from the River Aln. Engraving by Pote after I. F. Nichol. Later coloured by hand. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEViewAlnwick12.jpg

At various points in the town are memorials of the constant wars between Percys and Scots, in which so many Percys spent the greater part of their lives. A cross near Broomhouse Hill across the river from the castle marks the spot where Malcolm III of Scotland was killed during the first Battle of Alnwick. At the side of the broad shady road called Ratten Row, leading from the West Lodge to Bailiffgate, a stone tablet marks the spot where William the Lion of Scotland was captured during the second Battle of Alnwick (1174) by a party of about 400 mounted knights, led by Ranulf de Glanvill. Hulne Priory, outside the town walls in Hulne Park, the Duke of Northumberland's walled estate, was a monastery founded in the 13th century by the Carmelites; it is said that the site was chosen for some slight resemblance to Mount Carmel where the order originated. Substantial ruins remain. In 1314, Sir John Felton was governor of Alnwick. In winter 1424, much of the town was burnt by a Scottish raiding party. Again in 1448 the town was burnt by a Scottish army led by William Douglas, 8th Earl of Douglas and George Douglas, 4th Earl of Angus. Thomas Malory mentions Alnwick as a possible location for Lancelot's castle Joyous Garde https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alnwick

Alnwick Market Place . The focus of the town for many years. The town hall faces the market place with the buttercross to the right. Markets are still held here. © Copyright Graham Horn and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1521772

Alnwick Castle was founded in the late 11th century by Ivo de Vesci, a Norman nobleman from Vassy, Calvados in Normandy. The family's property and estates had been put into the guardianship of Antony Bek, who sold them to the Percys. From this time the fortunes of the Percys, though they still held their Yorkshire lands and titles, were linked permanently with Alnwick and its castle and have been owned by the Percy family, the Earls and later Dukes of Northumberland since. The Percy family were powerful lords in northern England. Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland (1341–1408), rebelled against King Richard II and helped dethrone him. The earl later rebelled against King Henry IV and after defeating the earl in the Battle of Shrewsbury, the king chased him north to Alnwick. The castle surrendered under the threat of bombardment in 1403. During the Wars of the Roses, castles were infrequently engaged in battle and conflict was generally based around combat in the field. Alnwick was one of three castles held by Lancastrian forces in 1461 and 1462, and it was there that the "only practical defence of a private castle" was made according to military historian D. J. Cathcart King. After the execution of Thomas Percy, 7th Earl of Northumberland, in 1572 Alnwick castle was uninhabited. In the second half of the 18th century Robert Adam carried out many alterations. The interiors were largely in a Strawberry Hill gothic style not at all typical of his work, which was usually neoclassical.

1783: Alnwick Castle, Seat of the Duke of Northumberland from Watts's Seats . Artist: Lord Duncannon. Engraver and Publisher William Watts. http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/12123

Alnwick Castle. A chromo-lithograph from Morris's Seats http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/22222

However, in the 19th century Algernon, 4th Duke of Northumberland replaced much of Adam's architecture( probably post 1818). According to the official website a large amount of Adam's work survives, but little or none of it remains in the principal rooms shown to the public. Alnwick Castle was painted by J.M.W. Turner.

Alnwick Castle . Looking across Bowburn Park to the grade I listed Alnwick Castle. © Copyright Ian Capper and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6298563

battlements are surmounted by carved figures dating from around 1300. Alnwick Castle has two parks. Immediately to the north of the castle is a relatively small park straddling the River Aln which was landscaped by Lancelot Brown ("Capability Brown") and Thomas Call in the 18th century; it is known locally as The Pastures. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alnwick_Castle View from the Pastures, below:

Alnwick Castle from the pastures . © Copyright Mark Evans and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1181496

Duke of Northumberland: When the Coplands passed through Alnwick, Hugh Percy, 3rd Duke of Northumberland, a British aristocrat and Tory politician, was in residence. In 1812, when he was called to the House of Lords through a writ of acceleration by the title Baron Percy. In 1817 he succeeded his father as Duke of Northumberland. He served as Ambassador Extraordinary at the coronation of Charles X of France in 1825, defraying the expenses thereof himself, and he "astonished the continental nobility of the magnitude of his retinue, the gorgeousness of his equippage, and the profuseness of his liberality". In March 1829 he was appointed Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland under the Duke of Wellington, a post he held until the following year. He was thus in office when the Catholic Emancipation Act was passed, and was pronounced by Robert Peel "the best chief governor that ever presided over the affairs of Ireland."who served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Percy,_3rd_Duke_of_Northumberland

3rd Duke of Northumberland by William Holl Sr, or by William Holl Jr, after George Ward. This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or fewer. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:3rd_Duke_of_Northumberland_cropped.jpg

The Nelson Memorial, Swarland is a white freestone obelisk erected in 1807, two years after Nelson's death, by his friend and sometime agent, Alexander Davison, who owned an estate centred on the now demolished Swarland Hall. Davison made his fortune in the late 18th century after travelling to Quebec, where he met and became friends with the 24-year-old Nelson, who was commanding HMS Albemarle, which was docked at Quebec City during the War of American Independence. Later in life, Nelson engaged Davison as an agent to represent him at naval tribunals dealing with the distribution of the spoils of battle.

Davison's Obelisk . 'The Nelson Memorial, Swarland is a white freestone obelisk erected in 1807, two years after Nelson's death, by his friend and sometime agent, Alexander Davison, who owned an estate centred on the now demolished Swarland Hall. © Copyright Russel Wills and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4948496

The obelisk is not the only Nelson memorial extant at Swarland. A line of trees on the estate represents the Nile delta, whilst other groups of trees represent the positions of French and British ships engaged in the Battle of the Nile. The Nile Clumps near Amesbury were also planted to commemorate the Battle of the Nile. There are three inscriptions on the monument; from top to bottom: England expects every man to do his duty-Victory 21 October 1805-Not to Commemorate the Public Virtues and Heroic Achievements of Nelson, which is the duty of England; But to the Memory of Private Friendship, this erection is dedicated by Alexander Davison, Swarland Hall. The erection of the memorial arguably represented the zenith of Davison's social standing; he was imprisoned for a year for fraud in 1808, and never recovered his position. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Memorial,_Swarland HOWEVER Lucy writes: a mile from the town we had a fine view of the magnificent castle belonging to the Duke of Northumberland also a fine monument erected to the memory of Nelson. As Swarland is 7 miles South of Alnwick it is possible Lucy is referring to The Camphill Column, a stone column erected in 1814, celebrating a number of British victories over the French and others, and the restoration of peace to Europe.

2011: Camphill Column, Alnwick, Northumberland, England by Tagishsimon, the copyright holder of this work, and published under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Camphill_Column,_Alnwick_-_2011-09-12.jpg

It carries inscriptions to Pitt, Wellington, Nelson and its progenitor, Henry Collingwood Selby and is 0.6 miles from the Castle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camphill_Column,_Alnwick

The Inn: arriving at the Inn we were informed the Castle was not shown but very early in the morning the family however having fortunately come out we were admitted . This is a little confusing. The Coplands have already breakfasted in Wooler and changed horses in Whittingham. They arrived in Alnwick after 34 miles. They are to go on to Felton Bridge to Dinner and, presumably to spend the night. Does very early in the morning the family however having fortunately come out mean that the Duke of Northumberland and his family had left early in the morning, leaving the Coplands free to enter the building, or less likely, were the Coplands there early in the morning and able to meed the Duke’s family to gain admittance? The White Swan Hotel is recorded by the Universal British Directory as one of two existing in Alnwick in 1791.

The White Swan Hotel, Alnwick . On Bondgate Within. © Copyright JThomas and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5022435

The Gentleman's Magazine noted in 1797 that it was "occupied by a man named Wilson, who at one time had lived as footman in the Hervey family." W. Davison, writing in 1822, stated that the White Swan was "the principal inn ... at which the mail and union coaches stop, and all the posting on the great north road." It is .3 mile on foot from the Castle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Swan_Hotel,_Alnwick The other, less grand, is likely to have been The Black Swan, which has been standing since the 18th Century - believed by many historians to be the oldest pub in Alnwick and which may have been slept at by Robbie Burns in 1787.

The Black Swan, Alnwick , on Narrowgate. © Copyright JThomas and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5022425

It is 0.1 miles from the Castle. https://www.theblackswan-alnwick.co.uk/ Being so close to the Castle it is more likely that they were at The Black Swan and learned from there that they could gain entrance.

River Aln is a relatively small river but has been important through history as one of the boundaries along which English and Scottish troops marching to war had to cross; for that reason, it was at times heavily defended.

2006: The River Aln near Alnmouth, Northumberland, UK by James F. Carter. This file is licensed under the (CC-By-SA-2.5 ) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.

For example, the river flows past Learchild Roman Fort and, more significantly, Alnwick Castle which was built for this purpose. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Aln

The Lion Bridge over the River Aln at Alnwick was built in 1775 by John Adam. The bridge is built in a castle-style with the lead cast Percy lion at its centre and is overlooked by Alnwick Castle. https://co-curate.ncl.ac.uk/the-lion-bridge/

The Lion on Lion Bridge . Lion Bridge takes The Peth across the River Aln. © Copyright Russel Wills and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3044361

The Lion on Lion Bridge, Alnwick . © Copyright Les Hull and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1685312

Denwick Bridge: Capability Brown’s scheme for Alnwick also included a causeway to cross the valley from the east of the castle, linking it with Barniside. This gravel walk, overhung by trees, gave views down river towards two eye-catchers, the Gothic-style mill (formerly New Mill) and Denwick Bridge. http://www.capabilitybrown.org/garden/alnwick-castle Built 1776 http://www.bridgesonthetyne.co.uk/alnhulne.html

Denwick Bridge where the B1340 crosses the River Aln . A handsome 18th century bridge built for Hugh, 1st Duke of Northumberland it was widened in 1924 with a concrete arch. The span is 56 feet and it has a height of 18 feet. There are two refuges for pedestrians on the upstream side with smaller ones on the other side. The image is taken from one upstream pedestrian refuge looking across to the other. © Copyright Russel Wills and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3017343

Felton bridge has no definite date of construction, but it or an even older bridge may have existed here since the 13th century, though Pevsner says probably 15th century.

Old Felton Bridge over River Coquet . Once important on the Great North Road, then replaced by nearby bridge and now the A1 bypasses Felton completely. The bridge is now for pedestrians only. © Copyright Russel Wills and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3381757

Whatever the date, it is a fine old bridge of three arches, Grade 2 listed, and widened at some time on the upstream side, probably in the 1800s. https://www.bridgesonthetyne.co.uk/feltonold.html

Inn: According to A Brief History of Felton, by Eleanor George in Felton Parish Council History : “In 1712 the first stage coach service between Edinburgh and London began. The journey took 13 days. It stopped at one of the Felton inns to change horses and allow the passengers to refresh themselves. Over the years traffic steadily increased and in the early 1780s, the Turnpike Trust built a toll road, which followed the route of the old road through Felton, to accommodate it. This allowed faster transport from London to Edinburgh. In 1786 an express coach began travelling the route, taking only 60 hours for the whole journey, and soon after a daily mail coach was introduced. In 1788 the old bridge was widened to allow traffic going in opposite directions to cross at the same time. The increase in traffic also stimulated the growth of the village. There was a rapid rise in the number of houses, shops, inns and other services. There were blacksmiths, harness and saddle makers, boot and shoemakers, cabinet makers, carpenters and joiners, fishing tackle makers, tailors, dressmakers, hat-makers, clockmakers, butchers, bakers, brewers and grocers as well as a host of other tradespeople. The small thatched cottages, which lined the route of the road, began to be replaced by large stone houses with tiled roofs. The long burgage plots behind the cottages had workshops, and living accommodation for servants and apprentices, built on them. A new coaching inn, the Widdrington Inn, was built. It competed with the two older coaching inns, the Red Lion and the Coach & Horses. Other inns included the Angel Inn, the Rose & Crown, the Fox & Hounds and the North Briton. The Red Lion had the added attraction of a theatre, which staged frequent performances by travelling players, and it hosted Felton Races, a popular annual event, which attracted large crowds. The Widdrington Inn also had an added attraction, a cockpit, where regular cock-fighting tournaments were held. Men came from all over the county to gamble on the fights. https://northumberlandparishes.uk/felton/history None of these inns appear to exist now.

M.J. Armstrong - Wooler, Akeld, Kirknewton, Mindrum, Plate 40 from "An Actual Survey of the Great Post-Roads between London and Edinburgh" by Mostyn John Armstrong, published in 1776. Each map shows a section of the road from London to Edinburgh drawn on the scale of half an inch to the mile. These maps are not strip road maps, but take the form of a conventional map covering an area of approximately 12 miles from south to north and 7 miles east to west.https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/MapMJA40a.jpg

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

26th October 1819, Breakfast Melrose, Abbey, Kelso, Floors, Abbey, Roxburgh Castle, rivers Tweed and Teviot, bridges, cathedral, Cornhill and England

Tuesday 26th October 1819

Tuesday Oct 26th We breakfasted at Melrose 12 miles here is a most beautiful & magnificent ruin of an abbey founded by David 1st thence to Kelso 13 miles over a most beautiful country the river Tweed winds by the road on whose banks are seen so romantically situated Fleurs the magnificent seat of the Roxburghs ?***** Park Part of a fine abbey built by David xxx the views of the ruined famous castle of Roxburgh where James the 2nd lost his life by the bursting of a cannon over the rivers Tweed & Teviot which latter joins the Tweed entering Kelso are thrown two magnificent bridges at Kelso there are the ruins of a fine cathedral founded 1128 we then advanced to Cornhill 11 miles crossing a bridge near the Inn we bid adieu to Scotland & its numerous beauties which have afforded us so much amusement & delight & welcomed ourselves to old England. The Inn at Cornhill is very good.

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Melrose is a small town that grew up around the Cistercian monastery now known as Melrose Abbey that was founded in 1136. Its name was represented by a mell (a mason's hammer) and a rose (for the Virgin Mary, to whom all Cistercian abbeys were dedicated).

Mel and Rose: This photo is a copy from the Abbey guidebook and features the Mel and Rose from which the town gets its name. The illustration is specifically needed to support the origin of the town's name. To the uploader: Please add a detailed fair use rationale for each article the image is used in, which must also declare compliance with the other parts of the non-free content criteria, as well as the source of the work and copyright information. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Photo_of_stonework_at_Melrose_Abbey.jpg

Town & Abbey of Melrose. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/16878

2007: Melrose Town Centre from Quarry Hill, by Walter Baxter. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Walter Baxter and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Melrose_Town_Centre_from_Quarry_Hill_-_geograph.org.uk_-_609004.jpg

A casket was found, believed to contain the heart of King Robert the Bruce, and was been re-buried in the Abbey. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melrose,_Scottish_Borders

Abbey: Melrose was the first Cistercian abbey in Scotland. In the 12th century, around Melrose, the Cistercians implemented new farming techniques and marketed Melrose wool throughout the great trading ports across northern Europe. During a time of famine four thousand starving people were fed by the monastery for three months. The monastery had 100 monks, exclusive of the abbot and dignitaries. One of the earliest accounts of the settlement reached at Runnymede is found in the Chronicle of Melrose Abbey.

1801: Melrose Abbey . Aquatint. Artist: John Claude Nattes, Engraver: J Merigot Publisher: W.Miller, Old Bond St http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/718

Melrose was located on one of the main roads running from Edinburgh to the south making it particularly vulnerable to attack. In 1544, as English armies raged across Scotland in an effort to force the Scots to allow the infant Mary, Queen of Scots to marry the son of Henry VIII, the abbey was again badly damaged and was never fully repaired. This led to its decline as a working monastery. The last abbot was James Stuart (the illegitimate son of James V), who died in 1559. In 1590, Melrose's last monk died. The abbey withstood one final assault—some of its walls still show the marks of cannon fire after having been bombarded by Oliver Cromwell during the English Civil War. In 1610, a portion of the abbey's church was converted into a parish church for the surrounding town.

1814: South Front of Melrose Abbey Church. Engraving by J. Greig from a painting by A. Nasmyth for the Border Antiquities of England and Scotland. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEMelroseAbbChSF.JPG

A plain vault was inserted into the crossing, obscuring the original ribbed vaulting. It was used until 1810 when a new church was erected in the town. In 1812, a stone coffin was found buried in an aisle in the abbey's south chancel. Some speculated the remains were those of Michael Scot, the philosopher and "wizard." At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Sir Walter Scott was appointed Sheriff-Depute of Roxburghshire. In 1822, with the financial assistance of the Duke of Buccleuch, Sir Walter supervised the extensive repair work that was to preserve the ruins. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melrose_Abbey

1780: The Transept of Melrose Abbey. To Her Grace Elizabeth Duchess of Buccleugh this view of the inside of The Transept of Melrose Abbey is inscribed by Her Grace's Most obedient Servants Thomas Hearne & Willm Byrne, Etched by S.Middiman and finished by W.Byrne. Plate XXXVII Hearne & Byrne's Antiquities . http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/4161

Melrose Abbey , Artist B Foster, Engraver A Willmore, Publisher Cassell, Petter & Galpin http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/10833

Melrose Abbey . This ruined abbey in the centre of Melrose is a spectacular ruin. © Copyright Malcolm Neal and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5337944

Kelso: Kelso’s main tourist draws are the ruined Kelso Abbey and Floors Castle, a William Adam designed house completed in 1726.

Kelso From Mellendean, Artist J Mickie, Engraver J Bowes, Publisher Rutherfurd Market Place. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/16857

The Kelso Bridge was designed by John Rennie who later built London Bridge. Sir Walter Scott attended Kelso Grammar School in 1783 and he said of the town, "it is the most beautiful if not the most romantic village in Scotland".

Floors Castle Park, view to River Tweed and Kelso . Cattle and trees in the park, church spire in the town. © Copyright David Hawgood and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5790645

For some period of time the Kelso parish was able to levy a tax of 2 pence (2d) on every Scottish pint of ale, beer or porter sold within the town. The power to do this was extended for 21 years in 1802 under the Kelso Two Pennies Scots Act when the money was being used to replace a bridge across the River Tweed that had been destroyed by floods. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelso,_Scottish_Borders

River Tweed flows primarily through the scenic Borders region of Scotland, and eastwards from the settlements on opposing banks of Birgham and Carham and forms the historic boundary between Scotland and England. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Tweed

Kelso, seen across River Tweed, 1991. © Copyright Ben Brooksbank and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4336847

Floors Castle: Although the present Castle lacks all defensive capabilities, and was built in a period when private fortresses were redundant in lowland Scotland, there was possibly a tower house on the site. Tower houses, or pele towers, were typical of the Scottish Borders. Until the early seventeenth century, the Anglo-Scottish border lands, or "Marches", were a lawless place where reprisal attacks were common, and which often took the form of cattle rustling or murders, carried on by gangs of Reivers.

1870: Floors Castle, near Kelso. A chromolithograph published by the Rev. Francis Orpen Morris in Morris's Seats. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/22212

Junction Pool and Floors Castle , Seen from Kelso Bridge. Junction Pool is at the confluence of the Rivers Teviot (to the left) and Tweed. The imposing edifice of Floors Castle stands in the background. © Copyright Oliver Dixon and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4075220

Floors also stands opposite the site of Roxburgh Castle, an important medieval fortress where King James II was killed during a siege in 1460. The 1st Duke of Roxburghe commissioned the Scottish architect William Adam (1689–1748), father of Robert Adam, to design a new mansion incorporating the earlier tower house.

2006: Panorama of Floors Castle, Scotland by Mihael Grmek, the copyright holder of this work, and published under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Floors_Castle1.jpg

It was built between 1721 and 1726, and comprised a plain block, with towers at each corner. Pavilions on either side housed stables and kitchens. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floors_Castle

The Roxburghe family has its seat at Floors Castle near Kelso. The grounds contain the ruins of Roxburgh Castle on a promontory between the rivers Tweed and Teviot. The traditional burial place of the Dukes of Roxburghe is the Roxburghe Memorial Cloister (also known as "Roxburghe Aisle"), a 20th century addition to the ruins of Kelso Abbey. James Innes-Ker, 5th Duke of Roxburghe (1736–1823), would have been in residence. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_of_Roxburghe

James Innes-Ker, 5th Duke of Roxburghe, was the eldest surviving son of Sir Henry Innes, 5th Baronet (c. 1711–1762), and Anne Drummonda Grant (1711–1771). His grandfathers were Sir Harry Innes, 4th Baronet, who represented the Parliament of Scotland constituency of Elginshire from 1704 to 1707, and Sir James Grant, 6th Baronet, a Member of Parliament for Inverness-shire and Elgin Burghs. Upon his father's death in 1762, he succeeded to the Innes Baronetcy. James Innes-Ker’s claim to Dukedom of Roxburghe was heavily contested. Through the Innes family, he was a descendant of Robert Ker, 1st Earl of Roxburghe, and in 1812 established his claim to the vacant Dukedom of Roxburghe. The fight for the succession of the title encompassed seven years of constant litigation; according to one biography, "seldom have the lawyers met with a richer harvest. The courts of Edinburgh and London have revelled in conflicting claims, and the House of Lords has been disturbed by never-ending appeals." On the demise of the 3rd Duke, who had never married, his principal titles, and large and productive estates, devolved on William Bellenden-Ker, 4th Duke of Roxburghe, who died shortly thereafter, without heirs. The succession was contested by Major-General Walter Ker and the Right Honorable William Drummond; and only at vast cost decided, on 11 May 1812, in favour of Sir James, as descended from Lady Innes, the third daughter of Hary, Lord Ker, son of the first Earl of Roxburghe. The issue turned on the construction of an entail, which gave the right to the female line. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Innes-Ker,_5th_Duke_of_Roxburghe

Kelso Abbey was founded at Roxburgh in 1128 by a community of monks of the Tironesian order, from France dedicated to The Blessed Virgin and Saint John. In 1460, James II was killed within sight of the abbey as the result of a fatal accident during the campaign which secured repossession of Roxburgh castle that same year. Kelso Abbey was the venue for the hasty coronation of the infant king, James III, which quickly followed. Kelso Abbey effectively ceased to function due to a combination of events in the mid-sixteenth century. First, in the 1540s, the building sustained major damage in attacks perpetrated under the orders of the English king, Henry VIII and, around ten years later, in 1560, by monastic disestablishment under the Scottish Reformation, from which time the Tironesian community at Kelso was no longer officially recognised. A small remaining contingent of monks may have continued at the site for a number of years following the 1560 dissolution, but after further attacks and damage the abbey was declared officially derelict in 1587.

1834: Kelso Abbey, Roxburgshire. Engraving by Le Petit from an original drawing by D. Roberts. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEKelsoAbbLePetit.JPG

2004: Kelso Abbey by Mick Knapton at English Wikipedia. This file is licensed under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kelso_Abbey1.jpg

In 1647 and 1771, part of the abbey ruins were occupied by a parish kirk, with other parts of the structure being dismantled and used as a source of stone by locals for buildings in the town of Kelso. The post-reformation kirk appears to have been a compact vaulted structure intruded within the west transepts in about 1748. This adapted structure included a vaulted gaol. In 1805, huge parts of the ruins were cleared away, including the parish church and the gaol, leaving only the abbey's west tower and transept remaining to this day. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelso_Abbey

2004: Kelso Abbey by Mick Knapton at English Wikipedia. This file is licensed under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kelso_Abbey_2.jpg

Roxburgh Castle: Tradition states that King David I founded the castle; it is first recorded in c.1128 during his reign. In 1174 it was surrendered to England after the capture of William I at Alnwick, and was often in English hands thereafter. On 19 February 1314 it was retaken by Sir James Douglas (the "Black Douglas"), who supposedly disguised his men as cows, but was later lost again. After capturing it in 1460 the Scots set about demolishing it, and in the words of the Lanercost Chronicle "all that beautiful castle the Scots pulled down to the ground, like the other castles that they had succeeded in capturing, lest the English should ever again rule the land by holding the castles."

1790: Roxburgh Castle. Engraving by J.N. published by S. Hooper. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SERoxburghCastle.jpg

Remains of Roxburgh Castle, Strategically located between the River Tweed and the River Teviot, above Kelso. © Copyright Russel Wills and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5751049

Today the ruins stand in the grounds of Floors Castle, the seat of the Duke of Roxburghe, across the river from Kelso. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roxburgh_Castle

Death of James II: In 1460, James II was killed within sight of the abbey as the result of a fatal accident during the campaign which secured repossession of Roxburgh castle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelso_Abbey

River Teviot, or Teviot Water, is a river of the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, and a tributary of the River Tweed. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Teviot

2004: The River Teviot in the Scottish Borders, by Robmods, the copyright holder of this work, and published under the (CC-BY-SA-2.5 ) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:River_Teviot.JPG

Kelso’s first bridge at the site was opened in 1754, funded by public subscription, with six arches, and it replaced a ferry which was dangerous during times of bad weather and limited the volume of traffic that could pass through the town. An arch collapsed in 1756, killing 6 people and although the bridge was repaired, a storm on 25 October 1797 caused damage to the foundations of the centre arches, and the weakened structure collapsed into the river the following day. The first bridge is depicted, below.

circa 1800: Kelso Bridge, in Roxburgshire, engraving by Eastgate, published by Alex. Hogg. https://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/44502

John Rennie engineered the replacement bridge (below), which was built between 1800 and 1803 and it was his first major road bridge, and he gave exacting instructions for its construction.

1810: Kelso from Maxwell Heugh. Engraving by R. Scott after H. W. Williams. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEKelso18.jpg

It was was funded by a government loan which was repaid by collecting tolls, which were meant to be collected only until the cost of construction had been repaid, but in 1825 the right to collect tolls was let at GB£900 per year, making the bridge extremely profitable and the collection of tolls continued until 1854, when there were riots. Soldiers were called from Edinburgh to restore order, but no ringleaders were caught and the collection of tolls was abandoned later that year. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelso_Bridge

Cathedral?: There was no Cathedral and because Lucy records its foundation in 1128 she must be referring to the Abbey.

Cornhill-on-Tweed is a small village and civil parish in Northumberland, England about 1 mile (1.6 km) to the east of Coldstream.

2008: Cornhill Castle Mound From the south bank of the River Tweed by Norman MacKillop . This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Norman MacKillop and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cornhill_Castle_Mound_-_geograph.org.uk_-_779449.jpg

A mile north-west of the village, on a spur above the River Tweed are the earthwork remains of Cornhill Castle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornhill-on-Tweed . More information on the history of the mound can be found at https://www.northofthetyne.co.uk/Motte%26Baileytraces.html

Coldstream Bridge, linking Coldstream, Scottish Borders with Cornhill-on-Tweed, Northumberland, is an 18th-century bridge across the River Tweed. The architect for the bridge was John Smeaton (responsible for the third Eddystone Lighthouse), working for the Tweed Bridges Trust. Construction lasted from 1763 to 1767, when it opened.

Coldstream from the South. http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/16888

The cost of the bridge was £6,000, with government grants available for the project and the shortfall covered by a mixture of local subscription and loans from Edinburgh's banks, which were to be paid back by the tolling system. There was controversy when the project's resident engineer, Robert Reid of Haddington, used some of the funds to build accommodation for himself, but the trustees were assuaged when Smeaton argued that the house would actually help support the bridge. It seems that Smeaton was sympathetic to Reid, believing him to be underpaid for his work.

River Tweed at Coldstream . The bridge is the at the Border of Scotland and England. The river Tweed is famous for salmon fishing. © Copyright Adam D Hope and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1363903

The bridge underwent subsequent work, including the 1784 construction of a downstream weir as an anti-erosion measure. A plaque on the bridge commemorates the 1787 visit of the poet Robert Burns to the Coldstream. Of historical note is the toll house on the Scottish side of the bridge, which became infamous for the runaway marriages that took place there, as at Gretna Green, hence its name, the 'Wedding House' or 'Marriage House'.

Coldstream Bridge Toll House. This was one of the locations for the performing of irregular Border marriages. © Copyright Phil Thirkell and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/93195

It ceased to be a toll bridge in 1826. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coldstream_Bridge

The Collingwood Arms takes its name from the local merchant family which owned it up until 1955. There are strong ties with Northumberland’s 19th Century naval hero, Vice Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, who served under Nelson around the time the hotel was built.

From the website of the Collingwood Arms https://collingwoodarms.com/heritage/history-of-the-collingwood/

The 15 bedrooms take their names from the 15 ships in Collingwood’s division at the Battle of Trafalgar: HMS Royal Sovereign (Flagship), Bellisle, Mars, Tonnant, Bellerophon, Colossus, Achilles, Polyphemus, Revenge, Swiftsure, Defiance, Thunderer, Prince of Wales, Dreadnought and Defence. https://collingwoodarms.com/heritage/history-of-the-collingwood/

M. J. Armstrong - Cornhill, Coldstream, Greenla, Plate 38 from "An Actual Survey of the Great Post-Roads between London and Edinburgh" by Mostyn John Armstrong, published in 1776. Each map shows a section of the road from London to Edinburgh drawn on the scale of half an inch to the mile. These maps are not strip road maps, but take the form of a conventional map covering an area of approximately 12 miles from south to north and 7 miles east to west. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/MapMJA38a.jpg

Can you help us?

Transcription problems: As untrained transcribers we sometimes experience problems interpreting some of Lucy’s writing. We have a problem deciphering one section today:

the magnificent seat of the Roxburghs ?***** Park Part of a fine -Problems reading the one or two words between Roxburghs and Park - help please

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

25th October 1819, Dalkeith and Dalkeith Palace, Fusay Bridge, Torsonce

Monday 25th October 1819

Monday Oct 25th At 12 o’clock we took our farewell of Edinburgh & proceeded to Dalkeith 7 miles, where we visited the Duke of Buccleuch’s a beautiful seat where there are

are some fine pictures thence to Fusay bridge 6 miles over a most dreary country changing horses to Torsants 14 miles here we slept the Inn is good.

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Great North Road: They are now on the important Great North Road from Edinburgh to London: https://britishheritage.com/travel-through-time-at-englands-coaching-inns

M. J. Armstrong - Tranent, Musselburgh, Edinburgh. This is Plate 34 from "An Actual Survey of the Great Post-Roads between London and Edinburgh" by Mostyn John Armstrong, published in 1776. Each map shows a section of the road from London to Edinburgh drawn on the scale of half an inch to the mile. These maps are not strip road maps, but take the form of a conventional map covering an area of approximately 12 miles from south to north and 7 miles east to west. https://www.antique-prints-maps.com/cgi-bin/sh000001.pl?WD=north%20great%20road&PN=M_J_Armstrong%2ehtml#a781

Daniel Paterson - The Road from Dalkeith to Edinburgh and the road from Morpeth to Felton continuing on the verso to Alnwick, Belford and Berwick. Published in 'Paterson' s BRITISH ITINERARY being a new and accurate Delineation and Description of the Direct and Principal Cross Roads of Great Britain in two volumes by DANIEL PATERSON Esq.' Published by Bowles & Carver in 1800. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/MapPR221.jpg

Dalkeith: One of the earliest historical references to Dalkeith is found in the Chronicles of Jean Froissart who stayed at Dalkeith Castle for fifteen days and writes of the Battle of Otterburn in 1388. In 1650, Oliver Cromwell's army came to Dalkeith. His officer General George Monck was Commander in Scotland, and the government of the country was based out of Dalkeith castle.

circa 1860: Dalkeith Church. Lithograph after James Gordon. Junr.. Published by A. & J. Macpherson, Edinburgh. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEDalkeithChurch11.jpg

In the 17th century, Dalkeith had one of Scotland's largest markets in its exceptionally broad High Street. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

2011: Now known as the St Nicholas Buccleuch Church, by Kim Traynor, the copyright holder of this work, published under the (CC SA-BY 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dalkeith_Parish_Kirk.jpg

Dalkeith Palace was originally in the hands of the Clan Graham in the 12th century and given to the Clan Douglas in the early 14th century. In 1642, Dalkeith Castle was sold by the Douglas family to Francis Scott, 2nd Earl of Buccleuch, whose daughter married the Duke of Monmouth, eldest illegitimate son of King Charles II. They became the Duke and Duchess of Monmouth & Buccleuch. After the Duke of Monmouth had been executed for treason, Anne Scott, his widow, who held the Scottish title in her own right, asked architect James Smith to use William of Orange's Palace of Het Loo in the Netherlands as a model for the new Dalkeith Palace.

1788: Dalkeith Palace in Scotland, the Seat of the Duke of Duke of Buccleugh, from the Angus's Seats Series. Artist J Barret , Engraver William Angus, Publisher W. Angus, No. 4 Gwynne's Buildings, Islington http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/12160

Construction of Dalkeith Palace began in 1702 and a portion of the tower house of the old castle was incorporated into the western side of the new structure and is still visible in the western facade of the palace today. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalkeith_Palace

1828: Dalkeith Palace. Engraving by T. Barber after J.P. Neale. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEDalkeithPalace.jpg

1880: Dalkeith Palace in Scotland from Morris's Country Seats. This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DalkeithPalace_Morris_edited.jpg

Fusay bridge does not appear to exist, but Gorebridge lies 5.8 miles from Dalkeith on the A7 and is 15 miles to Torsonce, so is probably the village Lucy passed through. The village gets its name from the bridge across the River Gore, a tributary of the South Esk. It was the home of Scotland's first gunpowder mill, at the Gore Water, that started operating in 1794. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorebridge * We have been contacted by Charles Gibb who has provided the following information: Fusay Bridge is now known as Fushiebridge and was about 1 km South East of Gorebridge on the A7 road. The original settlement no longer exists but it was at the junction of the A7 and the road to Catcune Mills, a corn mill powered by the Gore Water. Thank you Charles.

The Torsonce Coaching Inn: Old Manorhead is a large and distinctive building, prominently located beside the Galashiels Road. Built in 1819 as the Torsonce Coaching Inn, it was converted to a commodious house in 1852. Its large windows, restrained detailing and contrasting dark whinstone and light sandstone masonry all add to its interest. Of particular note are the very rare survival of fitted timber panel box-beds including a continuous run of three within the eaves of one attic room.The New Statistical Account of 1843 describes Torsonce Inn, located roughly half-way between Edinburgh and Selkirk, as being "much admired by travellers and perhaps unequalled by any country inn in Scotland". Today it is a listed building, Manorhead House, 168 Galashiels Road. https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/200353395-168-galashiels-road-manorhead-house-including-stables-cottage-boundary-walls-gatepiers-and-railings-galashiels-and-district-ward#.XDqVmVz7TIU

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

24th October 1819, Mama bad headache, did not go to church, but Alex and Lucy to St Georges in afternoon

Sunday 24th October 1819

Sunday Oct 21st My Mother having a bad headache we did not go to church in the morning, but Alex & I went to St Georges in the afternoon which is an uncommon handsome Church.

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Headaches: Geri Walton’s blog “Curing Headaches in Georgian Times” at https://www.geriwalton.com/curing-headaches-in-georgian-times/ lists some of the more popular remedies for headaches, which were often attributed to “atmospheric changes, bile in the blood, too much iron, bowel issues, thunderstorms, and indigestion.”

The head ache by G. Cruikshank. Attribution CC BY . from the Wellcome Collection. https://wellcomecollection.org/works/b47fq7qr

Animal magnetism, or mesmerism, was largely discredited by the late 1810,s but it was based on the theories of Franz Mesmer and the body’s ‘magnetic fluid’ that could be influenced by mesmerism. “Mesmer made numerous ‘passes’ with his hands down the length of the patient’s body. Sometimes, he would press just below the diaphragm to effect a cure and his pressing could last for hours.”

“Antispasmodics were thought to help spasms in the head and quiet nervous headaches and attending irritations. Many antispasmodics were herbal remedies. Some of the more popular antispasmodics used were valerian, camphor, and, of course, opium.”

“Ointments rubbed on the scalp that created blisters were thought to bring the blood to the surface and thereby lessen irritation within the head. To help alleviate headaches, blistering ointments were also applied to areas behind the ears, at the temples, the nape of the neck, between the shoulders, or on the back.”

“Bloodletting was said to help headaches when ‘the head contained a quantity of blood greater than usual.’ It was also employed in cases where pain in the head developed because of a fever.” Arteriotomy was “was used to lessen the amount of blood that was flowing to the brain. It involved opening the temporal artery or the arteries behind the ears.” Phlebotomy “involved an incision in a vein and was used on certain types of headaches or for certain people. A person was bled at the arms or near the temples. Physicians also prescribed this procedure for women with menstrual problems, who where then bled, cupped, or had leeches attached near their uterus. In dire cases, if a headache was long standing or severe, doctors suggested opening and bleeding a jugular vein.”

“Cold water was applied to the head. As sweat was thought to be a disease, those with headaches who also sweated were said to be helped by having cold water poured over their heads or applied with a sponge.”

“One cure was nothing more than a handkerchief tightly bound around the head so as to to create ‘a contraction of the dilated vessels.’”

Cucufa “was an odoriferous cap, called either a cucpha or cucufa. The cap covered the head and had quilted into it certain chephalic spices, such as lavender, rosemary, etc. Supposedly, the spices helped alleviate the headache.

“ Cutting off the hair” was considered effective. “ The weight of a person’s hair was thought to sometimes cause headaches, and to relieve them, sometimes the person’s hair was cut.”

“ Hot water in the stomach was said to increase the action in the cerebral arteries and the lower extremities, which then supposedly relieved the headache” and drinking hot water was encouraged.

“ In cases of nervous headaches, electrization was used. This involved ‘electric fluid … thrown with a wooden, and sometimes with a metal point, all round the head successively.’ However, this was dangerous as there were some instances where people experienced convulsions because of the treatment.”

“Oleum Succini oil is now “called oil of amber. It was a volatile, colorless or pale yellow oil that functioned as a stimulant and antispasmodic. Supposedly rubbing this oil along the spine so as to create friction cured a headache.”

“Bathing the feet, or pediluvium as it was called, was said to cause the circulation in the veins to accelerate, which then alleviated the headache. To accomplish this, the water needed to be hot enough to redden the skin and pediluvium was usually done after bleeding because it was said to be ‘most efficacious’ at that time.”

Purgatives were often used. “Doctors believed that a person’s bowels could cause headaches. Therefore, doctors gave patients purgatives to help patients evacuate their bowels. Purging, along with bloodletting, was frequently prescribed for pregnant women suffering from headaches because purging could be continued for a long time. Purging was also thought to be effective because it supposedly contracted dilated blood vessels in the brain.”

Snuff “was recommended because it caused people to sneeze and sneezing was thought to be one cure for a headache. In fact, one writer stated sneezing because of snuff promoted ‘mucous discharge from the nostrils, and thence it [was] … occasionally of service in headachs, and complaints in the eyes.’ ”

Tonics or tinctures were often employed, such as “cichona (bark) or sulphate of quinine. Cichona worked as a muscle relaxer and a quinine had anti-inflammatory properties. Later, quinine would become the medicine of choice for malaria, but during Georgian times quinine was believed to quiet nervous headaches.”

“Vomiting was thought to cure certain types of headaches because it balanced the circulation, promoted perspiration, and awakened torpid secretions. However, it was also considered dangerous when practiced on elderly people.” https://www.geriwalton.com/curing-headaches-in-georgian-times/

St Georges Church, on the west side of Charlotte Square, was begun in 1811, with Robert Reid adapting Adam's design from 1791. The original estimate of £18,000 rose to over £23,600 by the time the church was opened in 1814.

St George's Church, and West Side of Charlotte Square, Edinburgh from page 087 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.087_-_St_George%27s_Church,_and_West_Side_of_Charlotte_Square,_Edinburgh_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

Severe structural defects, caused by the use of wood and stone underneath the dome, led to its closure in the 1960s when it was taken over by the Ministry of Public Building and Works and converted for use as archives (now part of the National Records of Scotland). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Andrew%27s_and_St_George%27s_West_Church

2008: Register House, Charlotte Square , the former St George's Church, by R Sones. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by R Sones and is licensed for reuse under the (CC SA-BY 2.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Register_House,_Charlotte_Square_-_geograph.org.uk_-_739849.jpg

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

23rd October 1819, Sacred Music at Parliament House

Saturday 23rd October 1819

Saturday Oct 23rd At 9 o’clock we attended the sacred music which is held in the Parliament house; it was excessively crowded & I never heard music go off better

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Parliament House: The oldest part of Parliament House is Parliament Hall, which the Town Council of Edinburgh, at its expense, had built as a permanent home for the Parliament of Scotland, and as such is the oldest extant purpose-built parliamentary building in the British Isles.

1829: The Parliament House, Edinburgh from page 128 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.128_-_The_Parliament_House,_Edinburgh_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

It was completed in 1639 to the design of James Murray. It has a dramatic hammer-beam roof constructed of oak from the Balgonie and Culross forests of Fife, thought to be the hardest and most durable in Scotland during that period.

Parliament Hall. © Copyright N Chadwick and licensed for reuse under the (CC SA-BY 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2312698

The roof of the new Scottish Parliament Building continues this tradition, and is supported by large laminated oak beams.

Scottish Parliament Building . © Copyright Richard Dear and licensed for reuse under the (CC SA-BY 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/428432

After the Act of Union 1707, the Parliament of Scotland was adjourned, and the building ceased to be used for its original function. The Hall was used for the sitting of courts, but in recent times has been subject to restoration work and now remains open as a meeting place for lawyers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliament_House,_Edinburgh

Parliament Hall . © Copyright Anne Burgess and licensed for reuse under the (CC SA-BY 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3677940

Photographer Anne Burgess in a subscript to her photograph above adds: “Until the Union of Parliaments in 1707, this was where the Parliament of Scotland met. The building was designed by Sir James Murray and dates from 1632-1640, and the great hammer-beam ceiling was built in 1637-9 by John Scott, master wright to the Town of Edinburgh. This is the view looking south towards the great stained-glass window, which is looking rather washed-out in this shot because of the sunlight.” https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3677940 It was probably this room that Lucy found excessively crowded but she enjoyed it - I never heard music go off better

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

22nd October 1819, Remained in doors all day

Friday 22nd October 1819

Oct 22nd Remained in doors all the day.

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

See 11 July blog where we looked at how people passed the time in doors. Common activities were reading, drawing, painting, playing music, cards, board games, conversation. We know from 11 July that Lucy went outside and sketched whilst she and her mother stayed at the Inn. It is possible she used the time to catch up on her diary.

Playing music

A young girl plays the piano as a young woman accompanies her on the violin. Chromolithograph. CC BY Wellcome Collection https://wellcomecollection.org/works/gvwxdqdr

Sketching, drawing or painting

Emma Smith sketching. Mezzotint by A. Probyn, 1801, after J.R Smith. (CC BY) Credit: Wellcome Collection. https://wellcomecollection.org/works/f4xtxxze

Gentlemen conversing, playing board games, reading and drinking

Men are sitting at tables in a club room in which the tables are lit by candles: some of the men are playing board games, others are drinking and reading. (CC BY) Etching. Credit: Wellcome Collection. https://wellcomecollection.org/works/pspdkrqr

Playing Cards

While Lady Buckingham is gambling with her cronies, her husband enters to report the theft of the bank. Etching by James Gillray, 1797. (CC BY) Credit: Wellcome Collection. https://wellcomecollection.org/works/n9xsyxma

Family reading

A father reading a novel with an affecting plot to his wife and daughters. Drawing, ca. 1810 (?). (CC BY) Credit: Wellcome Collection. https://wellcomecollection.org/works/snxu6h5m

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

21st October 1819, Walked Carlton Hill to Camera Obscura, attended Ball in the evening

Thursday 21st October 1819

Thursday 21st Oct In the morning we walked up Calton Hill to see the Camera Obscura which is well worth seeing in the evening attended the ball the room is very large and the company genteel

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Camera Obscura: In the early 18th century, the Edinburgh instrument maker Thomas Short leased some land on Calton Hill to display his instruments to the public. As his lease stipulated female relatives of Thomas could not inherit the building and its contents, his wife and children did not inherit it when he died in 1788.

An email from Andrew Johnson, General Manager of today's Camera Obscura: Here is a picture of the partially finished building that our founder’s father commenced on Calton Hill. The new observatory, its replacement, opened in 1818. I think that around 1818 there was a camera obscura also in the Nelson monument, though it may have been in the observatory.

In 1827, Maria Theresa Short returned to Edinburgh from the West Indies claiming to be Thomas Short’s daughter and attempted to claim his "Great Telescope" for her inheritance. Despite strong competition from other parties, she received the telescope and set up "Short's Popular Observatory" in 1835, housed in a wooden and stone building next to the National Monument on Calton Hill.

Andrew adds to his email: Here is a picture of the telescope that was in Thomas Short’s observatory on Calton Hill, perhaps seen by Lucy

Contemporary technical description of Maria Short’s telescope, also from Andrew

She exhibited many scientific instruments and kept her Observatory open till 9pm each evening. The daguerrotype of 1840, also provided by Andrew Johnson, General Manager of today's Camera Obscura, shows the hill at the time Maria Short was operating the camera obscura and exhibiting the telescope and scientific instruments

After this very popular observatory was pulled down by authorities against her protests in 1851, she moved to Castlehill and created Short's Observatory, Museum of Science and Art, the main attraction being the camera obscura.

2013: Outlook Tower, Castlehill, Edinburgh by Kim Traynor, the copyright holder of this work, and published under the (CC BY-SA 0.3) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Outlook_Tower,_Castlehill,_Edinburgh.JPG

In 1892, Patrick Geddes, a pioneering Scottish urban planner, sociologist, and ecologist, assumed management of the site, renamed it the "Outlook Tower," and organized it as a museum and urban study centre demonstrating his philosophy of planning, which was based on comprehensive surveys of the site, city, and region. He installed a series of exhibits on progressively broader geographic themes as one ascended the tower — first the world on the ground floor, then Europe, the English-speaking countries, Scotland, and Edinburgh — with the camera obscura itself continuing to project a real-time image of the city at the very top. People from all walks of life were invited to come to the tower to study and learn about their city. The museum closed after Geddes' death in 1932. It was purchased by the University of Edinburgh in 1966 as the home for a proposed Patrick Geddes Centre and archive, but the project was greatly scaled back and in 1982 the building was sold to a private owner, though a one-room Geddes exhibit remained on the fourth floor. The tower is now known as the Camera Obscura and World of Illusions and, with its six floors of interactive exhibitions, is still open to the public, making it the oldest purpose-built attraction in the city, and one of the oldest in the United Kingdom. Nowadays there are passing references to Maria Short and Patrick Geddes in the presentation on the top floor where the Camera Obscura is still in use to project a "virtual" tour of the city for visitors, and also on the rooftop terrace with its views of Edinburgh and telescopes.

Above, today’s camera obscura at the top of the outlook tower. Below, Edinburgh scenes from the tower

The floors beneath the Camera Obscura hold the "World of Illusions", which offers interactive exhibits demonstrating aspects of optical illusions, light, colour. There are also puzzles, a mirror maze, and a vortex tunnel. Although the project is primarily a tourist attraction, it also serves as a learning centre about optical illusions, holograms, the origins of photography and about Edinburgh itself. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera_Obscura_(Edinburgh)

Below, a hologram of Andrew Johnson, General Manager of today's Camera Obscura, extracted from a staff hologram of 1991 - Andrew very kindly welcomed us and sent us information and images from the Calton Hill days https://www.camera-obscura.co.uk/

Hologram of Andrew Johnson, General Manager of today's Camera Obscura, extracted from a staff hologram of 1991 - Andrew very kindly welcomed us and sent us information and images from the Calton Hill days https://www.camera-obscura.co.uk/

The day after our blog on the Camera Obscura we read the BBC’s report: “Breast cancer detected by thermal imaging scan in Edinburgh” - “A tourist has told of her ‘life-changing’ visit to the Camera Obscura in Edinburgh after one of its thermal cameras detected she had breast cancer…… she discovered that thermal imaging cameras can be used as a tool by oncologists” . On returning home to Berkshire her doctor confirmed the diagnosis and she was immediately referred for appropriate care. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-50139540

The Assembly Rooms, where balls were held, is at the centre of George Street, in the centre of the recently established New Town. It was opened on 11 January 1787 for the Caledonian Hunt Ball and was funded by public subscription. John Henderson was selected as architect having won a competition in 1781 for the design of the new Assembly Rooms.

1829: Assembly Rooms, George Street, Edinburgh from page 111 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.111_-_Assembly_Rooms,_George_Street,_Edinburgh_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

The original design went through three revisions before construction eventually began in 1783 but Henderson died on 16 February 1786, before the building was completed. The building was extended several times during the nineteenth century and in 1818 the grand portico was added by architect William Burn. In August 1822, a Peers Ball was held in the Assembly Rooms on the occasion of a visit by King George IV to Edinburgh. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assembly_Rooms_(Edinburgh)

The Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh . Each year part of George Street is given over to the Festival Fringe with temporary cafes and stages on the street with only limited access for traffic. The Assembly Rooms are a perennial Fringe venue. © Copyright Jim Barton and licensed for reuse the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5090191

Each year part of George Street is given over to the Festival Fringe with temporary cafes and stages on the street with only limited access for traffic. The Assembly Rooms, above, are a perennial Fringe venue. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5090191

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

20th October 1819, Rosslyn Chapel and Castle, Edinburgh. Papa and 2 brothers to concert

Wednesday 20th October 1819

Wednesday Oct 20th After breakfast we went to Roslin Chapel & Castle 7 miles from Edinburgh the chapel though small is the most rich ancient florid Gothic I ever saw in anything of the kind before it was founded in 1446 by William St Clair it stands of ??gruesome ness??

a little above the Castle which is an inferior ruin but the situation is pretty it was built about the 11 century; in the evening my father & two of my brothers went to evening concert.

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Rosslyn Chapel, formally known as the Collegiate Chapel of St Matthew, is a 15th-century chapel located in the village of Roslin. The chapel was founded by William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness, to celebrate the Divine Office throughout the day and night, and also to celebrate Masses for all the faithful departed, including the deceased members of the Sinclair family. During this period, the rich heritage of plainsong (a single melodic line) or polyphony (vocal harmony) were used to enrich the singing of the liturgy. Sinclair provided an endowment to pay for the support of the priests and choristers in perpetuity. The priests also had parochial responsibilities.

Roslyn Chapel , Publisher: J Menzies 61 Prices St Edinbr. http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/20144

1835: An interior view of Roslyn Chapel with the Apprentice Pillar, etc. Dalkeith, Scotland, Roger Griffith - Heaths Picturesque Annual. Public Domain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosslyn_Chapel#/media/File:Roslyn_Chapel,_Dalkeith.jpg

After the Scottish Reformation (1560), Roman Catholic worship in the chapel was ended. The Sinclair family continued to be Roman Catholics until the early 18th century. From that time, the chapel was closed to public worship until 1861. It was re-opened as a place of worship according to the rites of the Scottish Episcopal Church, a member church of the Anglican Communion.

Rosslyn Chapel . Looking south to the main entrance to the chapel with the sun sneaking through the parapets. © Copyright Andy Farrington and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3738475

East Entrance to Rosslyn Chapel - The chapel inside has some of the finest stone masonry I've ever seen and well worth a visit. © Copyright Andy Farrington and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3738498

Rosslyn Chapel Gargoyle - There are carvings on all of the Chapel’s outside walls although some are hard to distinguish due to the effects of the weather. - © Copyright David Dixon and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5425670

David Dixon tells us in the subscript of his photograph, above, that what makes Rosslyn unique is the exuberance of its carvings which are unlike any other church in Britain. Interior photography is not allowed, so to see these carvings he suggests you visit the chapel's website (linkhere) - or indeed visit the chapel itself. There are also a few interior photos on this site. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5425670

Since the late 1980s, the chapel has been the subject of speculative theories concerning a connection with the Knights Templar and the Holy Grail, and Freemasonry. It was prominently featured in this role in Dan Brown's bestselling novel The Da Vinci Code (2003) and its 2006 film adaptation. Medieval historians say these accounts have no basis in fact. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosslyn_Chapel ‘When I decided to write The Da Vinci Code, I knew that its finale would have to take place at the most mysterious and magical chapel on earth — Rosslyn.’ (Dan Brown) & ‘Rosslyn Chapel was all one could imagine or hope for.’ Tom Hanks https://www.rosslynchapel.com/about/the-da-vinci-code/

Roslin Castle, sometimes spelt Rosslyn, is a partially ruined castle near the village of Roslin, located around 9 miles south of Edinburgh. There has been a castle on the site since the early 14th century, when the Sinclair family fortified the site. The castle contained a scriptorium during the 15th century, and five St Clair manuscripts, dating back to 1488, are in the National Library of Scotland. These include the Rosslyn-Hay manuscript, believed to be the earliest extant work in Scots prose. When the castle was damaged by a domestic fire in 1452 legend has it that during the domestic fire the Earl was in consternation because of his valuable manuscripts but they were lowered to safety from a window by his chaplain. Following destruction during the War of the Rough Wooing of 1544, the castle was rebuilt.

A view of Rosslyn Castle, by Julius Caesar Ibbetson (1759-1817) Photographer John Mitchell Fine Paintings. This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rosslyn_Castle,_by_Julius_Caesar_Ibbetson.jpg

Ruins of Roslyn Castle, near Edinburgh from page 176 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.176_-_Ruins_of_Roslyn_Castle,_near_Edinburgh_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

This structure, built into the cliffs of Roslin Glen, has remained at least partially habitable ever since. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roslin_Castle

Rosslyn Castle from below . The castle is built on sandstone outcrops above the River North Esk. © Copyright Jim Barton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2897230

Rosslyn Castle, Bridge and Lantern Tower © Copyright David Dixon and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5425794

As a subscript to his photograph, above, David Dixon tells us that: The castle is accessed via a high bridge, which replaced an earlier drawbridge. The oldest part of the Castle is the remains of the ‘lantern’ or ‘lamp tower’ by the bridge and this was probably built around 1304, after the Battle of Roslin. The 16th century house which still in good repair and available to rent as holiday accommodation can be seen behind the tower in the castle courtyard.

Evening Concert: It is possible that Lucy’s father and two brothers took advantage of Edinburgh’s Second Music Festival (see blog 13th October) . The second Music Festival learned from the restrictions of the first and acquired a larger venue, the newer Theatre Royal (see blog 16 October for Theatre Royal). We know that the Copland’s were in Edinburgh during the festival, the musical Festival is now crowded to an excess (13 October, the date of their arrival), but the week long event may have finished by the 20th. If so, they may have attended the concert at the Assembly Rooms (see tomorrow’s blog) or other venues.- See Pages 23 - 30, John Leonard Cranmer’s Thesis CONCERT LIFE AND THE MUSIC TRADE IN EDINBURGH c.1780-c.1830 https://www.era.lib.ed.ac.uk/bitstream/1842/7380/2/Cranmer1991_redact.pdf Wherever they went it is likely that the venue would have been very much like that reproduced below at The Concert Room, St Cecilia's Hall, Edinburgh.

The Concert Room, St Cecilia's Hall, Edinburgh, restored and is an integral part of the music museum run by the University of Edinburgh. It is open to the public, free of charge. © Copyright Jim Barton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5881200

Jim Barton, the photographer, explains in a subscript that The Concert Room, St Cecilia's Hall, Edinburgh “was completed in 1762 for the Musical Society. This was Scotland's first purpose-built concert hall. Audiences came to hear works by contemporary composers such as Handel in the 1760s and 70s. When fashionable society gravitated to the New Town and with the opening of the George Street Assembly Rooms in 1787, the hall fell into disuse and the Musical Society was wound up in 1801. (Source - 'The Making of Classical Edinburgh', A.J.Youngson (Edinburgh University Press 1966)) Today the hall has been restored and is an integral part of the music museum run by the University of Edinburgh. It is open to the public, free of charge.” See External link for more details. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5881200

Can you help us?

Transcription problems: As untrained transcribers we sometimes experience problems interpreting some of Lucy’s writing. We have a problem deciphering one section today:

before it was founded in 1446 by William St Clair it stands of ??gruesome ness?? …….gruesome-ness can’t be right…. Help please!

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

19th October 1819, Register Office, Union Records, Writers Library, Royal Signet, Blind Asylum, College, St Georges Sq, Heriots Hospital, Castle, Honours, Regalia, Holyrood Palace

Tuesday 19th October 1819

Tuesday Oct 19th After breakfast Dr Hope accompanied us to the principal buildings in old & new Edinburgh consisting of the Register Office where we saw the ancient records of the union of Scotland the will by which the Stewarts claimed the throne & several other valuable documents the advocates &

Writers Library the blind asylum the college a very fine building but not finished St George’s Square & public walks Heriots Hospital built by Inigo Jones all these are in the old town the Castle whence we had a fine view of the town the regalia of Scotland which has lately been discovered for an 100 years it had been deposited in an old chest Holyrood Palace a fine old building there we were interested by seeing Mary Stewarts suite of Apartments the old furniture remains the staircase where the conspirators came up to murder Rizzio is also shown & his blood on the floor a gallery of 150 feet long is filled with portraits of the Kings of Scotland here is also a nice view of a Chapel

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

General Register House, designed and built between 1774 and 1789 by Robert and James Adam, was the first purpose-built public record repository in the British Isles, pre-dating both Public Record Office of Ireland (1830s) in Dublin and the Public Record Office (completed 1858) in Chancery Lane, London, it should be seen as a major achievement of the Scottish Enlightenment.

1829: The Register Office, Princes Street, Edinburgh from page 111 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.111_-_The_Register_Office,_Princes_Street,_Edinburgh_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

General Register House was arguably the most important public building to be erected in Great Britain between William Kent’s Horse Guards (1751-53) and Sir William Chambers’ Somerset House (1776-96), both in London. It was also the first public building in Edinburgh’s New Town, occupying a pivotal position at the south end of the North Bridge, which, before the creation of the Mound, formed the principal link between the Old and New Towns.

HM General Register House, Edinburgh - home to the National Records of Scotland. In front of it stands a statue of the Duke of Wellington on horseback. © Copyright Richard Rogerson and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2869117

General Register House still continues to serve its original purpose. https://www.edinburghguide.com/venue/generalregisterhouse

Writers Library: The Signet was the private seal of the early Scottish Kings, and the Writers to the Signet were those authorised to supervise its use and, later, to act as clerks to the Courts. The Signet Library building, begun in 1810 to a design by Robert Reid, with principal interiors by William Stark, originally comprised a Lower Library for the Society, completed in 1815, and an Upper Library for the Faculty of Advocates, completed in 1822, in time for the famous visit of King George IV to Edinburgh. http://www.wssociety.co.uk/about/origins-and-building/

Signet Library, West Parliament Square. © Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3452379

The upper library, below

Signet Library, West Parliament Square. Part of the interior of the Upper Signet Library, designed by William Stark (1812-18) and completed by Robert Reid. The Corinthian-columned screen was added by William Playfair in 1819. © Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3452373

Blind Asylum: In 1793, Royal Blind was founded by the Reverend Dr David Johnston, Dr Thomas Blacklock and Mr David Miller. Established during a time of progressive societal attitudes towards the provision of care and support to disabled people in Europe, it became the third foundation dedicated to improving the welfare of blind people in the world. As a result of increasing public support, Royal Blind purchased permanent premises at No. 58 Nicolson Street in 1806. Male trainees from Shakespeare Square continued to learn handcrafts producing mattresses, mats, brushes and baskets which could be purchased by the public visiting the showroom. An educational unit was established by Royal Blind in 1793 providing rudimentary mental arithmetic and recitation of scripture lessons to compliment instruction in handcrafts. https://www.royalblind.org/our-organisation/our-history https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Blind_School The 1793 school was formed from an amalgam of different Edinburgh institutions and it evolved over a number of premises to a modern school with two campuses. The No. 58 Nicolson Street building has long gone and is now the site of a Lidl store. The picture below is of the Craigmillar Park campus was for pupils who are blind and partially sighted. the Canaan Lane campus catered for students with multiple disabilities. In August 2014, the two campuses combined into one and all of the children now attend the Canaan Lane campus. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Blind_School

2011: Royal Blind School, Edinburgh, Craigmillar Park campus. © Copyright Lokal_Profil and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Blind_School#/media/File:Royal_Blind_School,_Edinburgh,_Craigmillar_Park_campus.jpg

St George’s Square was laid out by the builder James Brown, and comprised modest, typically Georgian, terraced houses. Away from the overcrowded Old Town, George Square became popular with lawyers and nobles. Well-known residents included Sir Walter Scott, the judge Lord Braxfield, and the politician Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville. The square was named after James Brown's elder brother, George Brown. In June 1792 the square was the starting point of the infamous Dundas Riots, aimed at the house of the Lord advocate, Robert Dundas of Arniston, who lived on the square. Redevelopment of the square began in the late 19th century when numbers 4 to 7 were redeveloped as George Watson's Ladies College. In the 1920s the college expanded to absorb 8 to 10. These minor interventions were mild in comparison with the changes of the 1960s: the whole south side was demolished, together with half the east side, to provide new facilities for Edinburgh University.

2010: Gardens in George Square by Graeme Smith . In summer packed with students - in winter, on a Sunday morning, deserted. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Graeme Smith and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence.. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gardens_in_George_Square_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1762015.jpg

Combined with the redevelopments on Potterow to the north-east and acquisition of the McEwan Hall, this made George Square the new focal hub of the whole university. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Square,_Edinburgh

Heriots Hospital (George Heriot's School) is a Scottish independent primary and secondary school on Lauriston Place in the Old Town of Edinburgh. On his death in 1624, George Heriot left around 25,000 Pound Scots – equivalent to several tens of millions today – to found a "hospital" (then the name for this kind of charitable school) to care for the "puir, faitherless bairns" (Scots: poor, fatherless children) of Edinburgh. The construction of Heriot's Hospital (as it was first called) was begun in 1628, just outside the city walls of Edinburgh. It was completed just in time to be occupied by Oliver Cromwell's English forces during the invasion of Scotland during the Third English Civil War; the building was used as a barracks, with horses stabled in the chapel. The hospital opened in 1659, with thirty sickly children in residence; its finances grew, and it took in other pupils in addition to the orphans for whom it was intended.

Heriot's Hospital, from the Castle hill, Edinburgh from page 139 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.139_-_Heriot%27s_Hospital,_from_the_Castle_hill,_Edinburgh_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

In 1837 the school founded ten "free schools" in Edinburgh, educating several thousand pupils across the city; these were closed in 1885. The main building of the school is notable for its renaissance architecture, the work of William Wallace, until his death in 1631. He was succeeded as master mason by William Aytoun, who was succeeded in turn by John Mylne. In 1676, Sir William Bruce drew up plans for the completion of Heriot's Hospital. His design, for the central tower of the north façade, was eventually executed in 1693. The main building was the first large building to be constructed outside the Edinburgh city walls. It sits next to Greyfriars Kirk, built in 1620, in open grounds overlooked by Edinburgh Castle directly to the north. Parts of the seventeenth-century city wall (the Telfer Wall) serve as the walls of the school grounds. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Heriot%27s_School Sir Walter Scott described the school as ‘one of the proudest ornaments of Edinburgh’. JM Turner sketched the building in 1818 in preparation for a watercolour which was engraved to illustrate Scott’s Provincial Antiquities and Picturesque Scenery of Scotland: Heriot’s Hospital, circa 1819 (National Gallery of Scotland). https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/turner-heriots-hospital-view-from-the-south-west-with-edinburgh-castle-d26247

George Heriot's Hospital. © Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1412990

George Heriot’s School is thought to have provided JK Rowling the inspiration for Hogwarts. Like Hogwarts, the building is grand and includes towers and turrets. The pupils wear school uniforms and are sorted into houses. But unlike Hogwarts, the house names are Lauriston, Greyfriars, Raeburn, and Castle. https://www.rabbies.com/en/blog/8-essential-harry-potter-sites-edinburgh . Kim Traynor adds the following information to his photograph description (above) “In the words of the historian Christopher Smout, its architect, William Wallace, "constructed four tower blocks in the Scottish tradition and uneasily joined them by four horizontal ranges in the English manner". The clock tower is a later addition from 1693. The building faces north, the entrance being approached originally from Heriot Bridge on the south side of the Grassmarket. It is now more usually seen from the rear, from Lauriston Place.” https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1412990

Inigo Jones: The school, described by Sir Walter Scott as ‘one of the proudest ornaments of Edinburgh’ in The Miscellaneous Prose Works of Sir Walter Scott, Bart, Vol.VII, Provincial Antiquities, Edinburgh and London 1834, p.262.is reputed to have been designed by Inigo Jones p261, though the architects were in fact William Wallace and William Aytoun. https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-heriots-hospital-view-from-the-south-west-with-edinburgh-r1136175#fn_1_2_1 …..so Lucy accepted Scott’s error together with many others of her day.

The Honours of Scotland, also known as the Scottish Regalia and the Scottish Crown Jewels, dating from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, are the oldest surviving set of crown jewels in the British Isles. The regalia were used together for the coronation of Scottish monarchs from Mary I in 1543 until Charles II in 1651. They were used to represent Royal Assent to legislation in the Estates of Parliament before England and Scotland were unified under one parliament in 1707, at which time the Honours were locked away in a chest and the English Crown Jewels were adopted by British monarchs. They were rediscovered in 1818 and have been on public display at Edinburgh Castle ever since.

The Regalia of Scotland from Views of Edinburgh and its Vicinity, artist & engraver W Banks. http://www.rareoldprints.com/p/16337

The Honours have been used at state occasions including the first official visit to Scotland as monarch by George IV in 1822 and the first such visit by Elizabeth II in 1953. The Scottish Parliament was founded in 1999 and the Honours are used there once again to represent Royal Assent. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honours_of_Scotland

Rediscovering the Honours of Scotland tableau, Edinburgh Castle - © Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2179374

Kim Traynor adds the following to his photograph, above, of the Edinburgh Castle tableau representing the discovery of the Regalia: "Contemporaries apparently began to doubt the existence of the Honours of Scotland when ... enter Walter Scott with his enthusiastic interest in the Scottish past and all things antiquarian. Convinced that they must still exist, he requested a search be carried out and, in 1818, the room and the chest containing them were opened by him in the presence of the Governor of the Castle. George IV rewarded Scott with a baronetcy. Having escaped the fate of their English counterparts, melted down in the Civil War, the Honours are the oldest crown jewels in the United Kingdom. They are now on public display in the Crown Room of the Castle, though visitors are no longer allowed to handle them as they did in the 19th century. " "The extreme solemnity of opening sealed doors of oak and iron, and finally breaking open a chest which had been shut since 7th March 1707, about a hundred and eleven years, gave a sort of interest to our researches, which I can hardly express to you, and it would be very difficult to describe the intense eagerness with which we watched the rising of the lid of the chest, and the progress of the workmen in breaking it open, which was neither an easy nor a speedy task. (...) The discovery of the Regalia has interested people's minds much more strongly than I expected, and is certainly calculated to make a pleasant and favourable impression upon them in respect to the kingly part of the constitution. It would be of the utmost consequence that they should be occasionally shown to them, under proper regulations, and for a small fee." -- Sir Walter Scott, letter to J. W. Croker M.P., 5th February, 1818 https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2179374 It is highly likely that Lucy and other members of the family would have taken the opportunity to handle the Regalia, which had only been discovered about nine months earlier that year.

Holyrood Palace is located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh Castle, has served as the principal residence of the Kings and Queens of Scots since the 16th century, and is a setting for state occasions and official entertaining.

Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh from page 106 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.106_-_Holyrood_Palace,_Edinburgh_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

2016: Front view of Holyroodhouse, by XtoF , the copyright holder of this work, (More of my work on my photoblog: https://www.xtof.photo ) and published under the (CC BY-SA 4.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Holyroodhouse_(xtof.photo).jpg

The 16th century Historic Apartments of Mary, Queen of Scots and the State Apartments, used for official and state entertaining, are open to the public throughout the year, except when members of the Royal Family are in residence.

2012: The Palace of Holyrood House and the Holyrood Abbey as viewed from the Salisbury Crags, Edinburgh, Scotland, by Saffron Blaze, the copyright holder of this work, and published it under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license. Attribution: Saffron Blaze, via http://www.mackenzie.co https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Holyrood_Palace_and_Abbey.jpg

It was at Holyrood that the series of famous interviews between the Queen and John Knox took place, and she married both of her Scottish husbands in the palace: Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, in 1565 in the chapel, and James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, in 1567 in the great hall. It was in the Queen's private apartments that she witnessed the murder of David Rizzio, her private secretary, on 9 March 1566.

1833: The Murder of David Rizzio, painted by William Allan (1782–1850). Photographer National Galleries of Scotland online collection This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Murder_of_David_Rizzio.jpg

Darnley and several nobles entered the apartment via the private stair from Darnley's own apartments below. Bursting in on the Queen, Rizzio and four other courtiers, who were at supper, they dragged the Italian through the bedchamber into the outer chamber, where he was stabbed 56 times. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holyrood_Palace The “blood” that Lucy witnessed is still on the floor of the palace in public view.

The ruins of the Abbey adjoin the palace:

2016: Ruins of Holyrood Abbey by XtoF , the copyright holder of this work, (More of my work on my photoblog: https://www.xtof.photo ) and published under the (CC BY-SA 4.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Holyroodhouse-Abbey_(xtof.photo).jpg

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

Please click here if you can help

Share

18th October 1819, Hopetoun – Dalmeny - House, grounds and stables, Edinburgh Papa, Mama and Alexander dined with Dr Hope

Monday 18th October 1819

Monday Oct 18th immediately after breakfast we went to Hopetoun House 12 miles from Edinburgh in our way we passed through Ld Rosberry’s Park & hearing that the house was to be seen we walked over a few of the rooms which are of a moderate size & well furnished Hopetoun House is a fine building something resembling Buckingham House the rooms are spacious & beautifully furnished Ld Hopetoun had very politely ordered us refreshment he was out hunting the grounds are very extensive & there are fine stables & a nice riding house we returned to Edinburgh. Papa & Mama & Alexander dined at Mr Hopes.

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Hopetoun House was built 1699-1701 and designed by Sir William Bruce. It was then hugely extended from 1721 by William Adam until his death in 1748, being one of his most notable projects. The interior was completed by his sons John Adam and Robert Adam. The magnificent entrance hall dates from 1752.

1871: Hopetoun House, Visited by the British Association, from the Illustrated London News'of August 19 1871. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233346762119

2016: Hopetoun House. Author Godot13 , Copyright holder Andrew Shiva / Wikipedia. Published under the (CC BY-SA 4.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Scotland-2016-West_Lothian-Hopetoun_House_01.jpg

The Hope family acquired the land in the 17th century and operated lead mines. Charles Hope, the first occupant, was only 16 years old when his mother, Lady Margaret Hope, signed the contract for building with William Bruce, on 28 September 1698. The master mason is noted as Tobias Bachope of Alloa. The plumber and glazier was John Forster of Berwick. The house was the site of the departure of the visit of King George IV to Scotland on the 29th August 1822. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopetoun_House

2009: View of the rear of Hopetoun House, near Queensferry, Edinburgh by George Gastin, the copyright holder of this work, and published under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hopetoun_house_sunny_day.jpg

Dalmeny House was completed in 1817 for Archibald, 4th Earl of Roseberry 1783-1868, and sits in rolling parkland to the West of Edinburgh. With spectacular views overlooking the Firth of Forth. The Earl realised the need to replace the family house, Barnbougle Castle, and shortly after his father's death he commissioned plans for a new house from William Wilkins.

1819: Dalmeny Park. Engraving by F.R. Hay after J.P. Neale. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SEDalmenyPark.jpg

By 1817 the present Dalmeny House was completed, and Barnbougle Castle, just a quarter of a mile away on the shore, was left to the sea birds. In contrast to the exterior, most of the principal rooms are in the Regency style, with the exception of the hammerbeam roof of the hall.

2016: Dalmeny House is a Tudor Gothic Revival mansion overlooking the Firth of Forth, by Mat Fascione. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection.The copyright on this image is owned by Mat Fascione and is licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dalmeny_House_(geograph_4979104).jpg

Harriet Bouverie, his wife and mother of his four children, never saw her new house. In a notorious divorce case in 1815 Lord Rosebery sued his brother-in-law, Sir Henry Mildmay, for “alienating his wife's affections”. Sir Henry, whose dead wife had been Harriet's sister, had followed her from London and arrived at the castle by rowing boat from Cramond, disguised as a fisherman. The mud from his boots was noticed on the carpet, and he was discovered in Lady Rosebery's bedroom by Lord Rosebery's younger brother Frank. Sir Henry was chased out of the window and Lady Rosebery was sent after him by carriage early next morning. Together they left for the continent, where they eventually married and spent the rest of their lives. https://roseberyestates.co.uk/dalmeny-house

General John Hope, 4th Earl of Hopetoun, was in residence at Hopetoun House in 1819.

John Hope (1765 - 1823), the fourth Earl of Hopetoun, after Sir Henry Raeburn (1756-1823) . Online source. This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or fewer. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Hope,_4th_Earl_of_Hopetoun.jpg

He commanded a Division during the advance into Spain and commanded the British left at the Battle of Corunna in 1809, succeeding to overall command when Sir John Moore was killed. Later that year he commanded the reserve army during the Walcheren Campaign. He was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Ireland and was admitted to the Irish Privy Council in 1812. He then commanded the First Division under The Duke of Wellington at the Battle of Nivelle and at the Battle of the Nive in 1813. He was captured fighting the French sortie at the Battle of Bayonne in 1814. He was highly commended by Wellington, who said, " he was the ablest man in the Peninsular army." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hope,_4th_Earl_of_Hopetoun

Hopetoun House Garden park: The English garden style landscape park in which it lies were laid out in 1725 by William Adam. The east front centres on the distant isle of Inchgarvie and North Berwick Law. The walled garden dates from the late 18th century. In the grounds an 18th-century mound was excavated in 1963 to reveal the remains of the earlier manor house, Abercorn Castle, dating from the 15th century. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopetoun_House

The house and grounds are open for part of the year. https://hopetoun.co.uk/house-and-grounds/visit-the-house-and-grounds/

Mr Hope Papa & Mama & Alexander dined at Mr Hopes. According to The Peerage General John’s sons were younger than Lucy. His father, the 2nd Earl of Hopetoun had three wives, and John was the son of the second and succeeded to the title when his older brother died in 1817. His younger stepbrothers were General Hon. Charles Hope (1768-1828) who had one daughter, and General Hon. Sir Alexander Hope (1769 - 1837) whose children were younger than Lucy. Both were high ranking officers and Lucy would probably have referred to their military title than “Mr”. Tomorrow after breakfast the family are taken by a “Dr Hope” to some of the most important sites in Edinburgh. Were the titles Mr and Dr interchanged by Lucy, referring to the same person, and could he have been a more distant cousin of General John, the 4th Earl?

Can you help us?

Mr or Dr Hope? Obviously a person of influence connected to the ennobled Hope family, who was he?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

Please click here if you can help

Share

17th October 1819, St Pauls and St Georges Churches, walked Carlton Hill, Nelson’s Monument

Sunday 17th October 1819

Sunday Oct 17th We went to a small English Chapel in York Place in the morning afterwards we made some visits & walked to Calton Hill from the top of

of Nelsons monument there is an uncommon fine view of Edinburgh

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

St Paul’s & St George’s Church 46 York Place, Edinburgh, was designed by Archibald Elliott, 1818, in perpendicular Gothic with octagonal corner turrets, pierced parapets and crocketted finials.

1829: St George's Chapel, York Place, Edinburgh from page 87 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.087_-_St_George%27s_Chapel,_York_Place,_Edinburgh_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

Matching sanctuary added by Peddie & Kinnear, 1892. https://scotlandschurchestrust.org.uk/church/st-pauls-st-georges-church-edinburgh/ The photograph below shows the larger church (the chapel together with the matching sanctuary) as it is today.

St Paul's and St George's Church, York Place, Edinburgh . © Copyright Mike Pennington and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5417273

Calton Hill is situated beyond the east end of Princes Street and included in the city's UNESCO World Heritage Site. Views of, and from, the hill are often used in photographs and paintings of the city. Calton Hill is the headquarters of the Scottish Government, which is based at St Andrew's House, on the steep southern slope of the hill. The Scottish Parliament Building and other notable buildings such as Holyrood Palace lie near the foot of the hill.

1829: Edinburgh, from the Calton Hill from page 55 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.055_-_Edinburgh,_from_the_Calton_Hill_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

Calton Hill is also the location of several iconic monuments and buildings: the National Monument, the Nelson Monument, the Dugald Stewart Monument, the old Royal High School, the Robert Burns Monument and the Political Martyrs' Monument.

Waterloo Place, the National and Nelson's Monuments, Calton Hill, etc, Edinburgh from page 73 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.073_-_Waterloo_Place,_the_National_and_Nelson%27s_Monuments,_Calton_Hill,_etc,_Edinburgh_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

Edinburgh cityscape. Waverley Station and Calton Hill can be seen.© Copyright N Chadwick and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2322243

In 1787, the artist Robert Barker, inspired by walking on the hill created the world’s first panorama - an immersive 360 degree view depicting Edinburgh from the tower of the City Observatory at the summit of Calton Hill. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calton_Hill

1829: North Bridge, Calton Hill, etc, from the Bank of Scotland from page 81 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.081_-_North_Bridge,_Calton_Hill,_etc,_from_the_Bank_of_Scotland_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

Nelsons monument was built between 1807 and 1815 to commemorate Nelson's victory over the French and Spanish fleets at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, and his own death at the same battle.

1829: Nelson's Monument, Calton Hill from page 119 of Modern Athens, displayed in a series of views; or, Edinburgh in the nineteenth century; exhibiting the whole of the new buildings, modern improvements, antiquities, & picturesque scenery of the Scottish metropolis & its environs, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd. Original held and digitised by the British Library (Accession number HMNTS 010370.dd.10.) This work is in the public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MA(1829)_p.119_-_Nelson%27s_Monument,_Calton_Hill_-_Thomas_Hosmer_Shepherd.jpg

The tower was intended as a signal mast, attended by sailors who would be accommodated within the ground floor rooms, although these were in use as a tea room by 1820.

Nelson Monument on the Calton Hill . © Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) CreativeCommons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1945314

Public access was available from the start, for a small fee. The Royal Navy's White Ensign and signal flags spelling out Nelson's famous message "England expects that every man will do his duty" are flown from the Monument on Trafalgar Day each year. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Monument,_Edinburgh

“The Nelson Monument built on Glasgow Green in 1806 was the first major tribute in stone to the 'Hero of Trafalgar', but Robert Burn's tower on the Calton Hill, built in the shape of a telescope, was a close runner-up. Work on the 106ft high structure, paid for by public subscription, began in 1807 and was completed in 1816. Thus, patriotic North Britons demonstrated their gratitude for Nelson's victory some thirty years before London erected”. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1945314

“An uncommon fine view” from Nelson’s monument

Nelson Monument view of Holyrood Palace © Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1516594

Nelson Monument view of the Canongate. © Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1516578

Lucy would not have had the magnificent view, below, of the National Monument, photographed by Kim Traynor, which began construction in 1822.

Nelson Monument view of the National Monument . © Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1516553

The contributor, Kim Traynor, adds these comments to his photograph on Geograph: “Begun in 1822, Scotland's National Monument to the fallen in the Napoleonic Wars was to be a church designed by Charles Robert Cockerell and William Henry Playfair and modelled on the Parthenon on the Acropolis of Athens. Only the portico was built. The pillars of Craigleith sandstone, each weighing between 10 and 15 tons and costing over £1,000, were to be paid for by public subscription. The donations dried up, however, and work had to be stopped in 1829, leaving behind an instant ruin that has become one of the most recognisable landmarks on the Edinburgh skyline. And thus while London is the Rome of the empire, to which the young, and the ambitious, and the gay, resort for the pursuit of pleasure, of fortune, or of ambition, Edinburgh might become another Athens, in which the arts and the sciences flourished, under the shade of her ancient fame, and established a dominion over the minds of men more permanent than even that which the Roman arms were able to effect. -- Sir Archibald Alison, historian, quoted in Blackwood's magazine” https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1516553

Nelson Monument view towards Leith . © Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1516547

Kim Traynor comments on the intense development of this view towards Leith: “Housing statistics reveal the area between Easter Road and Leith Walk to be the most densely populated part of Edinburgh, but it wasn't always so...” He adds two poignant comments, written nearly a century apart: There scarcely can be a finer view than that from the Calton Hill, which rises from the town of Edinburgh. I have never seen the view of Naples, to its Bay, but I am told, those who have seen both, are in doubt to which of the two to give the preference. On gaining the summit of Calton Hill, a grand view presents itself to the North, over the flat ground of a mile and a half, between Edinburgh and Leith, enriched by villas, gardens, woods, and fine land; over which is seen the town of Leith; its road, crowded with ships, and the Forth, like an arm of the sea, seven miles broad, flowing from Stirling to the German Ocean; with the mountains of Fife closing the scene. (...) But as that hill is common, daily, and nightly lounge of all the common vagabonds and loose tribe of the town, the walk over it must be taken with a gentleman in company, else women of decency will be insulted.-- Sarah Murray, A Companion And Useful Guide To The Beauties Of Scotland, 1799

Now all the ground eastward of the Walk to Easter Road is rapidly being covered by new streets, and the last of the green fields there has well-nigh disappeared. Between the North British Goods Station and Lorne Street the ground fronting the Walk belongs to the Governors of Heriot's Hospital, while the ground between the latter and the Easter Road is the property of the Trinity Hospital. The ground in these districts has been feued at from £105 to £120 per acre, for tenements four storeys in height, at an average value each of from £1,800 to £2,000. Many of these streets are devoid of architectural features and meant for the residence of artisans. -- James Grant, Old And New Edinburgh, Vol.III, 1883 https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1516547

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

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