Golden Cottage
Golden Cottage and Beaumanor Hall have been together for almost 600 years. This is their story.
Introduction
Originally created as a hunting estate, Beaumanor is mentioned as an estate and hall at Woodhouse when recorded in 1277. It belonged to the powerful Despenser family who had been supporters of the Baron’s revolt about 1265, during the reign of King Henry III. John le Despenser forfeited the lands for his part in the rebellion. His son Hugh was able to continue, and put in hand repairs and refortification of the house at Beaumanor. Ownership of the Hall reverted to the Crown on several occasions. It was granted in 1327 to Henry Beaumont.
A Steward who would have been needed to assist in running the estate, and there is a record of his account in 1277. It mentions payments for a large house, already old enough to need many repairs. To carpenters and labourers for repairs to walls, roofs and the drawbridge, and purchasing locks for the various gates to the estate. The Steward became responsible for running the Estate, and therefore of considerable importance. He would also be responsible for organising everything when important visitors arrived, particularly Royalty.
Golden Cottage (to give it its present name), was originally built during the 1400s as a residence for the Steward to the Royal Estate of Beaumanor. As with many properties of this era, a fireplace would have been sited in the centre of the main room, with a hole in the roof above to allow most of the smoke to escape. Around 1480, as a sign of the Steward’s status, the central fireplace was removed from the house to be replaced by a splendid carved timber framed fireplace inserted into the wall of the house, with a proper chimney stack. This is still in position in the Cottage. Traces of soot can still be seen today on the beams in the attic from the original central fireplace.
From this period onward the Cottage has always been an important part of Beaumanor. During its long history, it has witnessed three different manor houses, culminating in the one we see today.
1524 to 1726
In 1524 Henry VIII granted the manor to Lord Leonard Grey. Lord Grey, the Duke of Suffolk and his wife Frances Brandon, the niece of King Henry VIII were living at Bradgate Park when their daughter, Lady Jane Grey became Queen of England for nine days in 1553. As is well known, both Jane and Lord Grey were executed for treason. Frances Grey later married Adrian Stocks and they purchased a 21 years lease from Queen Mary to live at Beaumanor. During this time a wing was added to the cottage to give the Steward a separate kitchen and bedchamber.
In 1597 Beaumanor estate was purchased by Sir William Herrick, a wealthy London goldsmith. The survey he commissioned on the existing hall at that time was described as “A anciante mannor house of greate receipt emoted aboute with a large mote well stored with fishe, with a Gardyn Orcharde and hopyarde belonging to the same with a douehouse a fayre Barne and a stable with a Kilne and a malthouse with Garnersfor Corne and a Smithes forge, all of which with some other necessarie houses thereto belonginge conteyne by estimation about foure acres of grounde, all verie Conveniente and answerable beinge the freeholde within the Parke and worth by the years”. As many alterations were made over the years it is not known whether this was substantially the same building recorded in the late 13th century. Sir William’s main home remained at Richmond in Surrey, with Beaumanor being a place of retreat and relaxation. For much of the time, the estate was run by the Steward, supervised by Sir William’s Leicester brothers. Then, sometime in the 1600s the final wing was added to the Steward’s cottage.
About this time, there is an extract from the Lord’s Steward’s Account:-
“…item for a man roofing the gatehouse above the chamber of the Lord’s armoury and above the chamber near the gateway for 4 days and a half, 9d…item 1 carpenter hired for 1 day and a half for mending the drawbridge 4d…item 1 lock bought for the Fletcher door of the dovecote of a certain John Herm 3d…item for 5 men hired for 2 days for mending the weir 2s 1d…item 2 carpenters hired for 1 day for making the enclosure and stable within the site of Beaumanor for the Lord’s great horse 5d…”.
The first hall was finally demolished in 1726 to be replaced by the second hall. Although built to the accepted ideas of the period, the design of this hall was not very well received. “A very plain and unpretending building”.
1847 to 1900
In 1847 the third and present Hall took it’s place. The designer of this was Walton Railton, who also designed Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square, London. He was also responsible for St Paul’s Church in Woodhouse Eaves and St Peter’s Church in Copt Oak. The design of this bears similarities to the medieval Hall in parts. The map shows the relationship of Beaumanor Hall to the various residencies in the village of Woodhouse. Golden Cottage is almost opposite the entrance to the drive leading to the Hall. It is reasonable to assume that, because of its importance, at some time during his visits to Woodhouse, William Railton could have set foot inside the Steward’s cottage.
Later on in its history, as the position of the Steward became less in use, the property became home to the Estate’s Head Gardener, and was known as Garden Cottage. The kitchen gardens and nursery were very important to Beaumanor, providing much of the food required. Included in the area were a long span heated greenhouse, 3 small heated greenhouses, ranges of frames, an espalier (a lattice work for trees etc.) and a wall fruit. Gardens, brick and slated bothy buildings; including boiler house and potting sheds. An excellent walled Kitchen Garden with 3 long heated glasshouses (for grapes and peaches), 2 orchards, 3 small span heated greenhouses and a small lean to peach house. The second map clearly shows the Cottage and the adjacent kitchen gardens and nursery.
The Garden Accounts for 1889, showing the Beaumanor gardeners’ wages give a fascinating picture of horticulture routine on a high Victorian estate. In summer, 17 men were employed, each with his own tasks in the glasshouses, kitchen gardens, pleasure grounds etc. The emphasis on fruit and vegetable produce is clear. A weather record is also included. All this would have been under the supervision of the Head Gardener from Garden Cottage.
1900 to 1946
A sad story with the cottage concerns the family living there in the early 1900s. The children all developed tuberculosis. Mrs. Perry Herrick had a small wall removed at the rear of the house, which was then set back to form a covered patio for the children to sit in to get the fresh air, which in those days was considered to be the best way to treat T.B. Unfortunately they all died and are buried in St Mary-in-the-Elms churchyard.
The cottage had been known as the Steward’s, then Garden Cottage. A local story then tells how the name was changed to the present one of Golden Cottage when some gold was found in the adjacent fields. True or not? Nevertheless it is a good story.
A feature of Golden Cottage is that the front door entrances are at the rear of the property. It is believed that this is because the original “road” passed behind the cottage, being replaced at some time by the present road passing through the village. This theory is quite possible as there was an ancient “Salt Way” that started at Seg’s Hill (now Six Hills), and continued in a more or less straight line, passing through Quorn and Woodhouse, eventually fading away near Beacon Hill. Examining this on a map indicates that the “Salt Way” and its successors could have passed behind Golden Cottage, hence the “front” door opening onto it.
The road that now passes through Woodhouse village is about two feet higher than the foundations of Golden Cottage. This is no doubt because the road has been built up and levelled over the years for the “benefit” of passing traffic.
In the 1920s period, as the photographs show, Woodhouse village and Garden/Golden Cottage were still very much part of rural Leicestershire.
In 1946, the Beaumanor Estate was finally broken up by public auction, the sale taking place at the Victoria Room in the Town Hall, Loughborough on Thursday and Friday, December 19th and 20th 1947 by John D. Wood & Co., 23 Berkeley Square, London, W1. Golden Cottage was Lot 35a. “The valuable detached, brick, part stucco and stone slated house in Woodhouse village. With gardens extending to about 24 perches. It adjoins Lot 36, which were the important Beaumanor kitchen gardens and nursery.” (These of course had been part of the Garden/Golden Cottage). “The property contains 4 bedrooms, bathroom, sitting room, kitchen, scullery, yard and garden. Estate water, drainage to septic tank. Electric light. Occupied by Mr. Kirk (Estate employee) on a service tenancy, rent free. Vacant possession on completion. Landlord pays rates. Apportioned yearly outgoings: Land Tax 1/3d.” (about 6p)
Shortly after this it was bought by Colonel Minshall, the retired Commanding Officer of Garats Hay Army Camp. He had a model railway in the upstairs rooms.
2002 to 2004
In 2002, approximately 600 years after it was originally built, Helen and Chris Kessling, together with their three children purchased Golden Cottage. Within hours of moving in they received a very pleasant surprise in the shape of a painting of their cottage. This came from Jean Bentley showing the cottage from the centre of Beaumanor Hall. The people shown would appear to be about the very early 1900s period. It is entitled “GARDEN COTTAGE – BEAUMANOR” and is believed to have been painted by a relative of Colonel Minshall.
Then there was an even greater surprise. About two weeks after moving in, an e-mail was received from a Mr. Paul Chamberlain in Dawlish saying that his great grandfather, Alfred Hamshere had been a gardener at Beaumanor, and lived in the cottage about 1880. He had two paintings of the front and rear of the cottage which he would like to present to the new owners during a visit to see the cottage. These paintings, dated 1888, and signed by H.Avigdor, also of “GARDEN COTTAGE” actually showed his ancestors. He also had photographs of them.
Alfred Hamshere was born on 12th October 1849, and he married Mary Saunders on 14th March 1877. They had three children, Alfred, born 1878, Mary Lucy, born 1881, both in Woodhouse, and Avis Jane, born 1883 in Lenton, Nottingham. The photographs show the family in later life.
Golden Cottage was a little sad, needing some tender, loving care. Helen and Chris decided to bring its history right up to date, sympathetically taking the cottage “back to the future” by restoring many of its original features, particularly the oak beams, and moving some walls back to their correct positions. A task that needed some courage and a lot of determination.
The garden at the rear of the cottage was also rather overgrown, a further project in order to tidy it up. Major features in the garden were the magnificent trees that would appear to have been there for over 100 years, having once been part of the Beaumanor kitchen gardens. Although modern houses cover the old gardens, these trees serve as a lovely memory of Golden Cottage’s historic past in the village of Woodhouse. Long may they remain into the future.
Now, although designed with modern living in mind, Golden Cottage can take its place as a magnificent reminder of how it has progressed over a period of 600 years.
Having completed the superb restoration of Golden Cottage, what did Helen and Chris do?
They moved elsewhere in 2004!
2004 onwards
During July 2010, I was contacted by Chris Minshall, the son of Lt. Col. N.J.H. Minshall, who provided the following information about Golden Cottage.
On retirement as C.O. of Garats Hay Army Camp in Woodhouse, Col. Minshall purchased Golden Cottage in 1948, and lived there with his wife Eillish (but known as Pinette) until his death in 1989. Chris, their son, lived there from a small boy until joining the Royal Navy in 1959. Chris and his wife Wendy, (also ex. Royal Navy), now live in Quorn.
One of the Colonel’s first tasks on moving in was to expose and restore the magnificent crenulated beam over the inglenook fireplace, which had been progressively covered with layers of plaster and paint over the previous centuries. This endeavour took him some 3 months to complete, but was well worth the effort.
He also built a model railway in an upstairs bedroom, but later rebuilt a more elaborate one in the ground floor room at the south end of the cottage, half of which was partitioned off in order to accommodate it.
To supplement his army pension, Col. Minshall ran a small poultry business. He kept three 240 bird henhouses, one in the garden of the cottage, and the other two on ground across the road, on land rented from Greystones Farm.
After his death, his widow Pinette struggled with the upkeep of the property, and some 18 months later sold the cottage and moved into one of the Herrick Almshouses located at the other end of the village.
Chris is also of the opinion that the earlier painting – ‘Garden Cottage – Beaumanor’ was not painted by a relative of Col. Minshall, but was possibly commissioned by him, probably in the 1960’s. Col. Minshall did commission two splendid pen & ink drawings of the front and back of Golden Cottage by A. Warbis(?). These are first class sketches, showing that externally nothing much has changed, except that the conservatory at the rear was no longer there when the Kessling family bought Golden Cottage in 2002.
Front of cottage
Rear of cottage
Col. Minshall loved Golden Cottage and I feel sure that he would certainly approve of the way it has been looked after through all those years.
Brian Axon
August 2010
