Claydon House

Claydon House is a country house in the Aylesbury Vale, Buckinghamshire, England, close to the village of Middle Claydon. It is owned by the National Trust. There has been a manor house on the site of the present house since before the Norman Conquest of England. In the Domesday Book (a survey of England published in 1086) the house was listed as belonging to the Peverell family, who arrived from Normandy with William the Conqueror. Their tenants, the Gresleys, were managing it for them at the time. Claydon House front - my own photo This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Claydon House front - my own photo This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... A country house is a large dwelling, such as a mansion, located on a country estate. ... The Aylesbury Vale (or Vale of Aylesbury) is a large area of flat land largely to be found in Buckinghamshire, England. ... Buckinghamshire (abbreviated Bucks) is one of the home counties in South East England. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem God Save the King (Queen) England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Unified  -  by Athelstan 967 AD  Area  -  Total 130,395 km²  50,346 sq mi  Population  -  2006 estimate... Masouleh village, Gilan Province, Iran. ... Middle Claydon is a village in Buckinghamshire, England. ... The standard of the National Trust The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as The National Trust, is a British preservation organization. ... Ightham Mote For the London district, see Manor House, London. ... Bayeux Tapestry depicting events leading to the Battle of Hastings The Norman Conquest of England was the conquest of the Kingdom of England by William the Conqueror (Duke of Normandy), in 1066 at the Battle of Hastings and the subsequent Norman control of England. ... A line drawing entitled Domesday Book from Andrew Williamss Historic Byways and Highways of Old England. ... Flag of Normandy Normandy (in French: Normandie, and in Norman: Normaundie) is a geographical region in northern France. ... William I ( 1027 – September 9, 1087), was King of England from 1066 to 1087. ...

Having passed by inheritance through two further families it was purchased by Sir John Brockley in 1433 who was Lord Mayor of London at the time. Current Lord Mayor of London John Stuttard during the parade on November 11th, 2006 Michael Berry Savory, Previous Lord Mayor (2004–2005) The Right Honourable Lord Mayor of London is the Mayor of the City of London and head of the Corporation of London. ...

The Verneys

Claydon has been the ancestral home of the Verney family since 1620. The church of All Saints, Middle Claydon lies less than 50 yards from the house and contains many memorials to the Verney family: among them Sir Edmund Verney, who was chief standard bearer to King Charles I during the English Civil War. Sir Edmund was slaughtered at the Battle of Edgehill on October 23, 1642 and is buried in the church at Claydon. It is said that at dusk, on the anniversary of his death every year, an apparition of the battle itself appears on the lawns of the great house, and has been reported by many servants from the house through the years since Sir Edmund's death. In 1661, following the Restoration of the Monarchy, Sir Edmund's son (Sir Ralph Verney II) was awarded a baronetcy by King Charles II for his and his father's loyalty and bravery during the preceding period of unrest. He was later, in 1703, made Viscount of Fermanagh and his grandson was, in 1742, created an Earl. Both titles have since, however, become extinct. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Sir Edmund Verney (1590-1642) was a casualty of the battle of Edgehill. ... Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. ... The English Civil War consisted of a series of armed conflicts and political machinations that took place between Parliamentarians (known as Roundheads) and Royalists (known as Cavaliers) between 1642 and 1651. ... The Battle of Edgehill (or Edge Hill) was the first pitched battle of the First English Civil War. ... October 23 is the 296th day of the year (297th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events January 4 - Charles I attempts to arrest five leading members of the Long Parliament, but they escape. ... King Charles II, the first monarch to rule after the English Restoration. ... A baronet (traditional abbreviation Bart, modern abbreviation Bt) is the holder of a species of knighthood known as a baronetcy. ... Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was the King of England, King of Scots, and King of Ireland from 30 January 1649 (de jure) or 29 May 1660 (de facto) until his death. ... For other uses, see Earl (disambiguation). ...

The original house was rebuilt by Ralph 2nd Earl Verney between 1757 and 1771. The house as it stands today is a fraction of its original planned size. The original conception was of a mansion to rival the richer Earl Temple's huge mansion at Stowe, a few miles away near Buckingham. The title Viscount Cobham is a Viscountcy in the Peerage of Great Britain. ... The south or garden front of Stowe from Jones Views of the Seats of Noblemen and Gentlemen (1819). ... Statistics Population: 11,572 Ordnance Survey OS grid reference: SP695335 Administration District: Aylesbury Vale Shire county: Buckinghamshire Region: South East England Constituent country: England Sovereign state: United Kingdom Other Ceremonial county: Buckinghamshire Historic county: Buckinghamshire Services Police force: Thames Valley Police Fire and rescue: {{{Fire}}} Ambulance: South Central Post office...

All Saints' Church, Middle Claydon, in the grounds of Claydon House

What remains today is the 'west wing'; this at one time had an identical twin, which contained the ballroom, and other state apartments. The twin wings were separated by a huge colonnaded rotunda surmounted by a cupola (similar, but smaller than that at Ickworth in Suffolk). The 2nd Lord Verney ran into financial problems before the latter two wings were entirely completed, and had to spend the final years of his life on the continent to escape his creditors. Following his death in 1792 his estate was inherited by his niece Mary Verney (later created Baroness Fermanagh, in the second creation): a parsimonious woman, unlike her extravagant uncle, she had the house reduced to its present size. Claydon House Chapel - my own photo This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Claydon House Chapel - my own photo This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... A State Room in a large European mansion, is usually one of a suite of very grand rooms which were designed to impress, they were the most luxurious in the house and contained the finest works of art. ... In Mosta, Malta, the Rotunda of Santa Marija Assunta is covered by a saucer dome. ... Cupola of St Peters Basilica, Rome In architecture, a cupola consists of a dome-shaped ornamental structure located on top of a larger roof or dome, often used as a lookout or to admit light and provide ventilation. ... Suffolk (pronounced ) is a large historic and modern non-metropolitan county in East Anglia, England. ... County Fermanagh (Fear Manach in Irish) is often referred to as Northern Irelands Lake District. ...

The exterior

The exterior of the house is quite austere — seven bays in total, on two floors, with a three bayed central prominent elevation surmounted by a pediment. The fenestration is of sash windows (the ground floor windows are crowned by small round windows suggesting a non-existent mezzanine). The centre bay contains a large central Venetian window on the ground floor. A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of a triangular section or gable found above the horizontal superstructure (entablature) which lies immediately upon the columns. ... A Georgian house in England with sash windows A sash window or hung sash window is made of one or more movable panels or sashes that form a frame to hold panes of glass which are often separated from other panes (or lights) by narrow muntin bars. ...

The interior

By contrast to the exterior the interiors are an extravaganza of rococo architecture in its highest form. The principal rooms; the north hall a double cube room (50 ft. x 25 ft. x 25ft high) may have lost its adjoining hall under the lost dome, however, its magnificence remains. The broken pedimented door cases are adorned with rococo carving, by Luke Lightfoot the most talented wood carver of the era, who worked extensively on the great mansion. His work can be found on the ceiling and the niches in the walls. The adjoining saloon is slightly more restrained in its decoration, however the ornate carving continues into the dado rails, and onto the Corinthian columns supporting the huge Venetian window. The third principal room was redecorated as a library by Pathenope, Lady Verney in 1860. The plaster rococo ceiling remains in all its splendour. North side of the Catherine Palace in Tsarskoye Selo - carriage courtyard: all the stucco details sparkled with gold until 1773, when Catherine II had gilding replaced with olive drab paint. ...

A staircase of inlaid ivory and marquetry leads to the first floor, the walls of the staircase hall are ornamented with medallions and carved garlands reflecting the theme established in the main reception rooms. The wrought iron balustrade of the stairs contains iron work ears of wheat, which rustle like the real thing as one ascends the flights. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The image on the cover of this box was made using the technique of marquetry. ... Species T. aestivum T. boeoticum T. compactum T. dicoccoides T. dicoccon T. durum T. monococcum T. spelta T. sphaerococcum T. timopheevii References:   ITIS 42236 2002-09-22 For the indie rock group see: Wheat (band). ...

The marvel of the first floor is the Chinese room: one of the most extraordinary rooms in the house if not England. Here the rococo continues, but this time in a form known as chinoiserie — basically a Chinese version of the rococo decorative style. The entire room is a fantasy of carved pagodas, Chinese fretwork, bells, and temples while oriental scrolls and swirls swoop around the walls and doors reaching a crescendo in the temple like canopy, which would have once contained a bed, but now gives a throne like importance to a divan. Chinese House (Potsdam) Chinoiserie refers to a European artistic style which reflects Chinese influence and is characterized through the use of fanciful imagery of an imaginary China, asymmetry and whimsical contrasts of scale, the use of lacquerlike materials and decoration. ...

Also on this floor is a small museum dedicated to the sister of Pathenope, Lady Verney, who frequently stayed, in old age, with her sister at the house. This was Florence Nightingale the nursing pioneer. At Claydon is displayed a large collection of her letters. She gave great support to the Royal Buckinghamshire Hospital in nearby Aylesbury. The Louvre Museum in Paris, one of the largest and most famous museums in the world. ... Florence Nightingale, OM, RRC (12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910), who came to be known as The Lady with the Lamp, was a pioneer of modern nursing, and a noted statistician. ... Nursing is a profession focused on assisting individuals, families, and communities in attaining, re-attaining, and maintaining optimal health and functioning. ... The Royal Buckinghamshire Hospital was founded in 1832 in response to the cholera epidemic that swept across England at that time. ... Aylesbury is the county town of Buckinghamshire in south east England. ...

Claydon House today

The present Verney family who still live in the later red brick south wing, are in fact the descendants of Sir Harry Calvert (2nd Baronet) who inherited the house in 1827. He was very tenuously related to the Verney's only through marriage. However, he adopted the name Verney on inheriting.

The house was given to the National Trust in 1956 by Sir Ralph Verney, 5th Baronet. His son, Sir Edmund Verney 6th Baronet, a former High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire lives, in the house today. The High Sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement position in Anglosphere countries. ...

Annually at Claydon House there is a hovercraft race meeting organised by the Chilterns Branch as part of the HCGB (UK) National Hovercraft Racing Series.

External links

• Claydon House information at the National Trust
• HCGB Chilterns Branch Hovercraft Race Site

Coordinates: 51°55′19″N, 0°57′20″W Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...