National Trust marks 125 years since first
historic house purchase
UK
NewsPublished: 10 hours ago
The Trust bought Alfriston Clergy House in East Sussex
for just £10 in 1896.
The
National Trust has marked 125 years since it bought its first historic house to
save for the nation – for just £10.
The then
newly-formed “National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty”
bought 14th century Alfriston Clergy House in East Sussex in 1896 for £10 and
spent a further £400 on repairs.
This
purchase and restoration paved the way for the fledgling Trust, which now cares
for more than 500 historic houses, castles, parks, and gardens and more than
one million works of art.
The house
originally captivated Octavia Hill, one of the founders of the Trust, who wrote
that she was moved by “the pleading voice of the old building itself… to be
left to tell its story to the days that are to come”.
Holly
Jones, National Trust operations manager for Alfriston Clergy House, said:
“Today, 125 years later, the atmosphere when you stand beneath these beams is
palpable.
“It has the
same power to move and inspire, as it did with Octavia Hill years ago. Our
founder knew she had to rescue it and open it to the public. We’re proud to
continue her vision in caring for this fine house.
“We want
Alfriston Clergy House to be loved, explored and enjoyed by as many people as
possible. We can’t wait for lockdown to end and to open our doors once again.”
The house
was at risk of collapse when the National Trust purchased it. It is a type of
vernacular building known as a Wealden Hall House and dendrochronology (tree
ring) testing in recent years has dated the house to 1399-1407.
National
Trust curator George Roberts said: “The experience of conserving and finding a
use for the clergy house played an important role in the development of the
newly-formed, little-known National Trust.
“Had its
efforts to purchase and restore the house failed, the Trust may never have
acquired another building.”
Mr Roberts
added: “While Alfriston Clergy House may seem small, in its day the
architecture would have been incredibly grand. The timbers and crown post in
the hall are truly remarkable. Beautiful natural and historic places matter.
“Our role
is to care for them and ensure they look and feel amazing forever, so that they
provide the most benefit to the most people.”
The house
was home to Alfriston’s parish priest until the early 18th century, and
remained in church ownership until it was sold to the National Trust in 1896.
The
building underwent several alterations to modernise it as styles and tastes
changed. After the Reformation, when clergy were permitted to marry, work took
place to enlarge the house to accommodate more people.
Church
records show that the vicar Hugh Walker, appointed in 1593, had at least seven
children living in the house with him and his wife.
By the 18th
century, the Clergy House had been subdivided into two cottages. It was still
officially the vicarage until the 1850s, when a new house was purchased for the
vicar to live in.
The house
later attracted figures in the art world, including Arts and Craft architect
and designer Charles Ashbee, who honeymooned there with wife Janet in 1898.
The house’s
links to the art world continued when it was taken on by Charles Aitken,
director of the Tate Gallery in London, and Sir Robert Witt, a well-known art
collector and one of the founders of the Courtauld Institute in London.
The
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, commonly
known as the National Trust, is a charity and membership organisation for
heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland,
there is a separate and independent National Trust for Scotland.
The Trust
was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley
to "promote the permanent preservation for the benefit of the Nation of
lands and tenements (including buildings) of beauty or historic interest".
It was given statutory powers, starting with the National Trust Act 1907.
Historically, the Trust acquired land by gift and sometimes by public
subscription and appeal, but after World War II the loss of country houses
resulted in many such properties being acquired either by gift from the former
owners, or through the National Land Fund. Country houses and estates still
make up a significant part of its holdings, but it is also known for its
protection of wild landscapes such as in the Lake District and Peak District.
As well as the great estates of titled families, it has acquired smaller houses
including some whose significance is not architectural but through their association
with famous people, for example the childhood homes of Paul McCartney and John
Lennon.
One of the
largest landowners in the United Kingdom, the Trust owns over 248,000 hectares
(610,000 acres; 2,480 km2; 960 sq mi) of land and 780 miles of coast. Its
properties include over 500 historic houses, castles, archaeological and
industrial monuments, gardens, parks and nature reserves. Most properties are
open to the public for a charge (members have free entry), while open spaces
are free to all. The Trust has an annual income of over £630 million, largely
from membership subscriptions, donations and legacies, investments, entrance
fees to properties, and profits from its shops and restaurants. It also
receives grants from a variety of organisations including other charities,
government departments, local authorities and the National Lottery Heritage
Fund.
The Trust
was incorporated on 12 January 1895. The founders were social reformer Octavia
Hill, solicitor Sir Robert Hunter and clergyman Hardwicke Rawnsley.
In 1876,
Hill, together with her sister Miranda Hill had set up a society to
"diffuse a love of beautiful things among our poor brethren". Named
after John Kyrle, the Kyrle Society campaigned for open spaces for the
recreational use of urban dwellers, as well as having decorative, musical and
literary branches. Hunter had been solicitor to the Commons Preservation
Society, while Rawnsley had campaigned for the protection of the Lake District.
The idea of a company with the power to acquire and hold buildings and land had
been mooted by Hunter in 1894.:1–23
In July
1894 a provisional council, headed by Hill, Hunter, Rawnsley and the Duke of
Westminster met at Grosvenor House and decided that the company should be named
the National Trust for places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty. Articles
of association were submitted to the Board of Trade and on 12 January 1895 the
Trust was registered under the Companies Act. Its purpose was to "promote
the permanent preservation for the benefit of the Nation of lands and tenements
(including buildings) of beauty or historic interest".:24-25
Early years
Wicken Fen
The Trust
acquired its first property in early 1895. Dinas Oleu, a piece of land on the
cliff top above Barmouth in Wales, was donated by Fanny Talbot, a friend of
Rawnsley. The Trust's first building was acquired the following year. Alfriston
Clergy House was a fourteenth-century house in the Sussex village of Alfriston.
It was bought for £10 and required a further £350 for repairs.:27
In 1907
Hunter drafted the first National Trust Act, which was passed by Parliament and
gave the Trust the power to declare its land inalienable, meaning that it could
not be sold without parliamentary approval. In addition the Act enabled the
Trust to make by-laws.:30-31 Further Acts would follow in 1919, 1937, 1939,
1953, and 1971.
In the
early days the Trust was concerned primarily with the acquisition (by gift or
purchase) of open spaces and a variety of threatened buildings. The buildings
were generally of a modest size, an exception being Barrington Court in
Somerset, the Trust's first large country house.:34-36 Two of the sites
acquired by the Trust in its early years later became nature reserves: Wicken
Fen in Cambridgeshire and Blakeney Point in Norfolk, both purchased with the
help of a donation by naturalist and banker Charles Rothschild.:36-37 White
Barrow on Salisbury Plain was the Trust's first archaeological monument,
purchased in 1909 for £60.
By 1914 the
Trust, operating out of a small office in London, had 725 members and had
acquired sixty-three properties, covering 5814 acres.:40
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