The note-books, of which there are eight, are mostly bound in parchment, and by way of fastening, are tied with two sets of parchment strips. They bear a strong family resemblance to the sketch-book of Inigo Jones, preserved at Chatsworth.
APPENDIX II
The Architects of Coleshill, Berkshire
Further interesting information regarding Sir Roger Pratt’s connection with Coleshill has been supplied by the kindness of Mr. Pratt of Ryston, and the Hon. Mrs. Pleydell Bouverie of Coleshill. It is derived in part from Sir Roger Pratt’s note-books, and in part from a diary of Sir Mark Pleydell (1692–1768), preserved in the muniment room at Coleshill.
The estate of Coleshill was bought from the Pleydells by Sir Henry Pratt, a grandson through a junior branch of William Pratt, who was Lord of the Manor of Ryston in 1628. Sir Roger Pratt was great-grandson of the same William through the senior branch. The estate returned to the family of Pleydell in 1699, by the marriage of a Pleydell with the heiress of the Pratts of Coleshill.
Sir Henry Pratt died on 6th April 1647, and the old house at Coleshill which he had bought was burnt down later in the same year, shortly after the marriage of his son, Sir George. The present house was begun in 1650, according to the tablet still preserved therein. Of this Sir Mark Pleydell says in his diary that Sir Roger Pratt of Ryston in Norfolk, knight, cousin to Sir George, was the architect in friendship to him. He also observes that “Mr. Mildmay apprehended it was built by Inigo Jones, and Lord Barrington says it was built by one Webb, a disciple of the said Inigo.”
In the same diary it is stated that before the existing house was commenced Sir George Pratt began to build a new seat in “the present cucumber garden,” which he raised to one story, when Pratt and Jones arriving, caused it to be pulled down and rebuilt where it now stands. Sir Mark adds that Pratt and Jones were frequently here, and Jones was also consulted about the ceilings. “John Buffin, who often saw them both, frequently declared this to Wm. Pepal, who came to Coleshill in 1700, and carried him to the spot in ye cucumber garden. We found ye remains of ye walls in ye cucumber garden ye 10th February 1746.”
It is interesting to find that Jones, Webb, and Pratt were all concerned in the design, and it is tolerably clear that Pratt had a large hand in the matter, not only from Sir Mark Pleydell’s express intimation, but also from Sir Roger Pratt’s own note-books. It will be remembered that Jones died in 1652, but the house was not finished until some years afterwards, probably in 1664. Roger Pratt has entries in his note-books that in December 1656 he gave Sir George Pratt’s man a tip of two shillings, in April 1659 he gave to six maids and two boys of Sir George two guineas, and in January 1662 he gave a dinner to Sir George and his lady at a cost of £5. 9s. Such hospitality may presumably be attributed partly to the ties of consanguinity, and partly to those of architect and client.
Sir Roger Pratt has notes relating to Coleshill under the year 1664, which, in addition to those concerning the ceilings mentioned in Appendix I. deal with the proportion of the windows. These, he says, seemed somewhat narrow, either because not sufficiently splayed on the sides, or because the wooden frame and the iron one took so much from the glass. The windows were at that time iron casements, not sashes as they are now; and they were all alike in this respect, including the dormers in the garrets and the turret. One remark is rather puzzling in which he speaks of the heads of the windows of the dining-room being 5 ft. below the ceilings, for the vertical distance between the windows of the ground and upper floors is only about 7 ft. from glass to glass.
The testimony that the windows were casements and not sashes is interesting, so too is the detailed description of the casements and of the devices to exclude the weather. The window-bars were ¼ in. thick and ½ in. broad; the casements ¼ in. thick and 2 in. broad. They were hanged upon three strong hooks, the opening-rod being ½ in. thick with five rings to hold it; there was an iron plate with a pin let into the wood to hold the hook of the rod. A little piece of iron was put over the rebate of the casements to keep out the wind, and a little border of lead was nailed close to the casements on the bottom and sides, as well as a strip over the heads outside. Further there was another border inside to prevent the rain, which beat up under the casements, from flowing down upon the baseboard.