Repton and its neighbourhood

by F. C. Hipkins

BRETBY AND HARTSHORN.

Three miles south of Repton is the village of Bretby. Like most of the land round, it used to belong to the Earls of Chester, from them it passed into the hands of the Segraves, who possessed, among other manors and estates, Coton-in-the-Elms, Rosliston, Linton, and Repton.

In 1300 John de Segrave received a license to castellate his mansion at Bretby. Soon after it passed, with the manor, into the families of the Mowbrays, Dukes of Norfolk, and, through one of the co-heiresses of that family, to the Berkeleys, who, in 1585, sold it to Sir Thomas Stanhope, grandfather of Philip, 1st Earl of Chesterfield, and now, by descent, it belongs to the Earl of Carnarvon.

Plate 18.

Anchor Church. ([Page 123.])

Bretby Hall. ([Page 104.])

It is not known when the castle was pulled down, but most probably in the days of Philip, 1st Earl of Chesterfield (1585-1656), who built a mansion on the present site, within the park. The old castle stood on the land to the south-west of the church, the grass covered mounds indicate the foundations of a very strong fortress, consisting of two courts.

The stones of the castle were probably used in the building of the mansion in the park, which must have been a grand place, built “in the midst of a large park, well wooded, and stored with several kinds of deer, and exotic beasts; several fine avenues of trees leading to the house, which is of stone, though not of modern architecture, very regular, convenient, and noble, with a very curious chapel, (designed in the Grecian (Ionic) style, by Inigo Jones), very good outbuildings. The gardens, after the plan of Versailles, in the old grand style, with terraces, leaden images of wild beasts, fountains, labyrinths, groves, greenhouses, grottoes, aviaries, &c., &c.,” the park, with its chain of fishponds, and fine timber, must have presented a scene of unsurpassed natural beauty. Amidst such surroundings, an open-air masque, written by Sir Aston Cokayne, was “presented at Bretbie in Derbyshire on Twelfth Night, 1639,” before the Earl and Countess and a great company. The masque is printed in “Glover’s History of Derbyshire,” Vol. II., part I., p 184.

In November, 1642, during the Civil War, the house, which had been fortified by the Earl, witnessed another scene. Four hundred foot, with a party of dragoons and two sacres, under the command of Major Molanus, were sent to Bretby by Sir John Gell. They compelled the Earl, and his garrison of 40 musketeers and 60 horse, to abandon the house, and fly towards Lichfield. “Then the Countess was asked by the victorious officers to give 2s. 6d. to each soldier, to save the house from plunder, but she said she had not so much in the house; they proposed 40 marks as a composition, to which she returned the same answer; they then offered to advance it to her, but she declared she would not give them a penny; then the soldiers plundered the house, but the officers saved her own chamber, with all her goods.” (Sir John Gell’s M.S. Narrative).

In the year 1780, the young Earl “was persuaded ‘by an artful steward,’ to pull down this splendid mansion and chapel, as being in a dangerous state of decay, though it was afterwards proved to have been very substantial.” The gardens also suffered a like fate. Fortunately the fine cedar of Lebanon, planted in February 1676-7, on the east side of the house, escaped destruction. It is considered to be the oldest in the kingdom, and still flourishes, braced together by iron chains, and is the chief object of admiration to visitors to Bretby and its park. The present house was begun by the 5th Earl, who died in 1815, when the building operations ceased. The architect was Sir Geoffrey Wyatville, assisted by Mr. Martin, the Earl’s architect. A ground plan of the house is printed on page 187 of “Glover’s History of Derbyshire,” Vol. II., signed by W. Martin, architect and builder, September, 1828. When completed it will form a four-sided building, with a courtyard within it.

The church of Bretby, or rather the chapel, for it is one of the seven chapelries of Repton, was rebuilt in the year 1877, in the place of a very old building, built in the thirteenth century. It occupies the old site with the addition of an aisle, which forms a large pew for the noble owners, and a vestry, both on the north side. The village consists of a few scattered houses. To the east of the park is Bretby mill, on a small stream; which, rising in the Pistern hills, runs in a northerly direction, through Repton, till it joins the river Trent.

HARTSHORN.

About four miles south of Repton is the ancient village of Hartshorn, which at the time of the Domesday Survey belonged to Henry de Ferrers. Later on the Priory of Repton had lands, a moiety of a park, and the important right of free warren over the manor. According to the list of patrons of the living, various families succeeded to the manor, among whom are mentioned the de la Wards, Meynells, Dethicks, the Earls of Shrewsbury, and the Earls of Chesterfield. One of the rectors was Stebbing-Shawe, jun., (an O.R.,) editor of the Topographer, and historian of Staffordshire. The church, which is well placed on the higher part, with the rectory on the east side of it, forms a very pleasing object from a distance, a closer inspection reveals the fact that, at the restoration of 1835, when the nave of the church was rebuilt, cast iron windows, imitating Perpendicular tracery, were inserted! The east window of the chancel, of two lights, belongs to the Decorated period. The embattled tower is a fair specimen of the Perpendicular period, and contains a ring of five bells. Three of them were placed there during the time of Stebbing-Shawe, sen. The other two are of pre-Reformation date, and bear well lettered inscriptions: “Hec Campana Beata Trinitate Sancta Fiat,” and “Ave Maria Gracia Plena Dominus Tecum.”

Under an arch in the north wall of the chancel is an altar tomb, on which lie alabaster effigies of Humphrey Dethick, and his wife Eliza, of Newhall. In front of the tomb are representations of their six children, three sons and three daughters. The father and one son are clothed in plate armour. Above the tomb is a shield bearing the quartered arms of Dethick, Allestree and Meynell; at the east and west ends are shields quartering Longford with Hathersaye, Deincourt and Solney; Dethick impaling Longford, and Meynell impaling Longford.

Many other ancient monuments used to be in the church, but they have been “made away with.” There is a fine old parish chest, seven feet long, in the vestry.

In Vol. VII. of the Derbyshire Archæological Society there are many extracts from the parish records of Hartshorn: under the date 1612, an inventory of the church goods is given, the first item mentioned is “a Co̅m̅uio Cupp of Silver wᵗʰ a plate of silver having Ihon Baptᵈ head vppon it.” This plate was photographed by Mr. Keene, of Derby, and a copy of it, with a descriptive note by Mr. St. John Hope, was published in Vol. VIII. of the Journal. From it we gather the following facts.

The “plate of silver” is a paten of silver-gilt, 5¼ inches in diameter. The rim is quite plain, with the exception of four narrow lines engraved on the extreme edge. The centre has a circular depression, which again contains a slightly sunk sexfoil with the spandrils filled with a rayed leaf ornament. The central device is a Vernicle, (i.e., the face of our Saviour, as transferred to the handkerchief of St. Veronica, and usually called a Vernicle). The churchwardens wrongly described it as the head of St. John the Baptist. Round the head is a nimbus, with rays issuing from it. There are three “hall marks,” two of which, the maker’s name, a Lombardic B in a dotted circle, and a leopard’s head crowned, are remaining; the third, the date letter, is obliterated, so it is impossible to say, with certainty, when it was made, but as this type of paten prevailed between 1450 and 1530, the opinion is that its date is about 1480.

The communion cup bears the London date mark for 1611-12, and the inscription:

Justus fide vivet + J + R + C.

1612.

The letters J. R. C. probably stand for James Royll, Churchwarden, 1612, who, with Denis Hashard, made the inventory at that date.