“It will look, I fear, a little like arrogance in a private man to give a printed description of his villa and collection, in which almost everything is diminutive. It is not, however, intended for public sale, and originally was meant only to assist those who should visit the place”.
Strawberry Hill House
So wrote Horace Walpole, modestly, in his guidebook for visitors to his Gothic home
When he bought the house on this site in 1749, it was a small and unremarkable 17th Century building known as Chopp’d Straw Hall. Unhappy with the name, and while searching through some old deeds relating to the land he’d just purchased, he found “Strawberry Hill”, which he liked, and promptly adopted, for his new home.
Walpole’s father, Sir Robert Walpole, had been Prime Minister and Earl of Orford, and he was fortunate to have a private income. Combined with being a lifelong bachelor, and full of ideas, he found himself with enough money and time on his hands to make his visions a reality. Over a long period of time, from humble beginnings as Chopp’d Straw Hall, Walpole transformed the house into a unique space to showcase the many books and artefacts he collected throughout his life. Unlike many of his peers who were inspired by Greek and Roman architecture on their travels, Walpole had a fascination with the Gothic style, which stemmed from the grand tombs and cathedrals he encountered as a young man touring through Northern Europe. Though unfashionable in the 18th Century, when grand homes such as Orleans House down the road tended to be constructed in the Palladian style, his “Gothic Castle” was striking, and unsurprisingly the talk of the town. Stepping into the hallway of Strawberry Hill, the visitor is plunged into the gloom of a space painted to resemble a tomb. Walpole coined the phrase “gloomth” to describe the atmosphere in the old Gothic buildings that inspired his work. As well as the emphasis on gloominess, in contrast Walpole designed a cheerful garden, much of which was developed before, and alongside, the development of the house.
Most of the entrance hall was restored to its original appearance during the recent restoration of Strawberry Hill, which cost almost £9 million. Fortunately, fragments of the old wallpaper painted to look like the walls of a tomb survived and are preserved today. Indeed, one of the main features of the newly restored Strawberry Hill is said wallpaper. Carefully crafted by hand by Griffen Mill, it is based on Walpole’s own designs. The wallpaper now seen in his bedchamber was preserved by accident in a cupboard in the room, and the survival of original wallpaper meant that Griffen Mill could produce an exact reproduction that could be used to decorate the entire room. All of the wallpaper produced for Strawberry Hill during the restoration was manufactured and painted with the same techniques and materials that would have been used during Walpole’s time – as a result, visitors are reminded not to touch or brush against the papered walls as the covering is less robust than modern wall papers.
Creation of the museum-like home he aspired to, it was clearly necessary for the house to be open to the public in order that they may see the collections. This is where things became tricky. Comfortable hosting foreign ambassadors, royalty and aristocracy, the middle classes he found less desirable, giving rise to a few eccentric “coping strategies” (see more in a moment). In the meantime, in a letter to George Montagu in 1763, Walpole complained:
"I have but a minute's time in answering your letter, my house is full of people, and has been so from the instant I breakfasted, and more are coming – in short, I keep an inn; the sign, the Gothic Castle...my whole time is passed in giving tickets for seeing it, and hiding myself when it is seen – take my advice, never build a charming house for yourself between London and Hampton-court, everybody will live in it but you.”
In another letter 20 years later, to Sir Horace Mann in July 1783, Walpole was still complaining about the visitors about how he was:
“tormented all day and every day by people that come to see my house”.
He was particularly irked by visitors who came as an escape from illnesses circulating in London, suggesting:
“You see the plague! You are the plague.”
While Walpole was clearly annoyed from time to time, he also came to see his estate as contributing to the public's enjoyment, arriving at the conclusion that:
“all he has done is for the benefit of others rather than for himself".
I can find no evidence of an admission fee, but various controls were exercised to try and minimise Walpole’s discomfort. Visitors were encouraged to apply for tickets which admitted four adults, (no children were permitted), to see the grand rooms, usually accompanied by Walpole’s housekeeper rather than the man himself, who often retreated to a cottage in the grounds when visitors were present. Sometimes he even hid under his bed. Oh, and tickets were only accepted if they had been issued with Walpole’s signature on them.
Walpole produced an informative visitor’s guidebook. In 1757 the Strawberry Hill Press had been founded, and Walpole used this private press to publish not only his own work and that of his friends, but also to print the guidebook, which explained the contents of each room, and also acted as a souvenir. His introduction to the guidebook began with the short paragraph that opens this post.
A visitors list for Strawberry Hill House maintained between 1784 and 1797 shows that between May and September, (when it was open), an average of approximately 300 people a year viewed the house.
As when Walpole lived there, Strawberry Hill remains a popular visitor attraction today. The cost is £14.50 for an adult at the time of writing. Visitors still receive a guidebook which contains many of Walpole’s own words about Strawberry Hill, along with modern additions describing the building’s restoration and information about artefacts that are no longer housed there.
The first room encountered when visiting is the refectory, or great parlour, one of the earliest spaces Walpole designed for receiving visitors. It’s in the oldest part of the house - the building that was once Chopp’d Straw Hall, and in Walpole’s time used for entertaining.
The furniture in the room consists of replicas of what would originally have been in there – the chairs are exact copies of ones designed by Walpole that are now held by the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the sofas were carefully created by students at London Metropolitan University, inspired by those depicted in an 18th Century painting.
Walpole’s intention was not to create an accurate replica of a medieval Gothic building, but to create a building inspired by the structures and art he encountered. He even incorporated fragments of old glass into the windows, (I wonder if any of these were inspired by, or the result of, the explosion at The Shot Tower), describing those in the great parlour as having “some fine painted glass and one ridiculous Dutch piece representing the triumph of Fame.” Dates are visible on some of the painted glass fragments. With due respect to those unfortunate enough to be caught in it when, in 1772, three mills exploded at The Shot Tower in Crane Park shattering glass and buildings in “the neighbourhood” extending to Strawberry Hill House two miles east, I can't help but be amused by the image of an alarmed and irate Horace Walpole writing to complain to his friend and relative Seymour Conway, then Lieutenant General of the Ordnance, that all of his decorative painted glass had been blown out of his windows (see Post 58 for more).
It was Strawberry Hill House that provided Walpole with the inspiration for The Castle of Otranto, now recognised as the first Gothic novel. He had dreamt of a giant armoured fist appearing on the staircase at the house, which inspired the opening scene where a young prince is crushed by a falling helmet. Walpole did actually keep some armour on display by the staircase. The novel was to inspire the new literary genre of the Gothic novel, with authors such as Mary Shelley, Edgar Allan Poe and Bram Stoker among those whose work was influenced by Gothic themes. Walpole was also given to writing the occasional letter, leaving about 7,000 of them on his death, as well as an account of the historical items in his collection at the house.
After Walpole's death in 1797 Strawberry Hill House grew neglected and unloved by its owners, and the novelty and enjoyment of the building and its contents faded for visitors. Being a single man, the house passed through various distant female relatives. Then George, the 7th Earl of Waldegrave, inherited it and the building was left to ruin, with the collection being sold off in 1842. Things looked really grim for this once unique and popular building … but then, in stepped George’s widow, Lady Frances Waldegrave. He had left her rather a lot of money, and she went on to marry another wealthy gentleman, meaning she could afford to add extensions to the house sympathetic in style to Walpole’s original Gothic fantasy. She lived there in the 19th Century and was keen to preserve what Walpole had created. By the Victorian period the Gothic Revival was in full swing, and the medieval-inspired designs first seen at Strawberry Hill had become a popular architectural style. Like Walpole, Lady Waldegrave used Strawberry Hill for entertaining – she knew many important political figures of the day and her parties at the house caused traffic jams of coaches coming from Twickenham Station. It is to her, alongside the current owners, St Mary’s University College and the Heritage Lottery Fund, that we owe our thanks for the survival of such an extraordinary building we can now all enjoy.
Sadly, to pay off his large debts, Lady Waldegrave’s husband sold Walpole’s vast collections in a Great Sale in 1842. It attracted a huge amount of international attention, and caused the items that had been housed at Strawberry Hill to be dispersed all over the world. Today, a large number are held in America at the Lewis Walpole Library at Yale University, Connecticut. Careful investigative work has helped to identify objects that were once on show at the house, and gradually some of Walpole’s possessions are being brought back, or replicas commissioned.
Strawberry Hill is a unique house that arguably had a significant impact on architectural trends of the 19th Century. Although the Gothic Revival also had its roots in an increased interest in ecclesiastical architecture, Strawberry Hill was the first home to showcase Gothic designs built from scratch. Like other early advocates of the Gothic Revival, Walpole was fascinated by history and this interest was reflected in the huge array of objects, pictures and books that he collected and housed there. This eccentric house, with so many of its original features intact, is his legacy.
Looking up from the entrance - Gloomth, no less
Example of one of the stained glass windows
Fragments of Walpole’s original painted wallpaper on the staircase
Walpole kept some armour on display by the staircase
The Refectory - the first room encountered by visitors today
Furniture in the room consists of replicas of what would originally have been there – the chairs being exact copies of ones designed by Walpole now held by the Victoria and Albert Museum
An example of the sofas made by students at London Metropolitan University
Windows, showing dates
A few more examples of the wallpaper
The Library
The Gallery, popular as a wedding venue these days
Restoration
An updated version of Walpole’s guide to Strawberry Hill that is provided for today’s visitor
Into the Garden, and Walpole’s Shell Seat
One of his favourites, among his many creations, was a half clamshell. At 7 x 7.5 x 4 feet in size, it sat in the corner of the garden, facing the Thames. In a surviving letter, Walpole mentions that his three nieces, the Ladies Waldegrave, could all sit comfortably together on it.
Shell seat in the garden of Walpole’s Strawberry Hill villa, 1822. Artist unknown
(Not keen on naturalia himself, Walpole’s mother was a noted shell collector)
This replica now stands in the garden of Strawberry Hill House
(It isn’t in the same location as the original as a summer house occupies the spot)
The Chapel in the Wood
This lovely Grade I listed building sits in the grounds of nearby St. Mary’s University on Waldegrave Road in Strawberry Hill. An example of early Gothic Revival architecture, the front is Portland stone, with a design inspired by a tomb in Salisbury Cathedral; the roof is slate.
The Chapel in the Wood
The blue and gold vaulted chapel ceiling
described by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner as "pretty"
Built for Walpole in 1772–74 The Chapel in the Wood was originally in the grounds of his home, but subsequent building work - notably St. Mary's University - saw it separated from the house.
Horace Walpole
Many of us like a bit of art. This bloke actually lived in it.
Lady Frances Waldegrave
Old painting of the house and garden
(Artist unknown)
Nope. Not a hill in sight. Nor a strawberry, for that matter. Though they are known to have been grown in the area before Walpole's time, and commercial fruit gardens were later established nearby.
Red arrow: Strawberry Hill House
Well, if you made it this far without skipping any posts I hope you felt it was worth it.
Many thanks for finding the time to take a ride with me through some local history in this south-west nook of London.
The End
Comentarios