![Allerton Castle (geograph 3632989)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Allerton_Castle_%28geograph_3632989%29.jpg)
Allerton Castle, also known as Allerton Park, is a
Grade I listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
nineteenth-century
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
or
Victorian Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
house at
Allerton Mauleverer in
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. It was rebuilt by architect George Martin, of Baker Street, London in 1843–53.
It is east of
Harrogate
Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor at ...
and just east of the
A1(M)
A1(M) is the designation given to a series of four separate motorway sections in England. Each section is an upgrade to a section of the A1, a major north–south road which connects London, the capital of England, with Edinburgh, the capit ...
, at its junction with the
A59 York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
-
Knaresborough
Knaresborough ( ) is a market and spa town and civil parish in the Borough of Harrogate, in North Yorkshire, England, on the River Nidd. It is east of Harrogate.
History
Knaresborough is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Chenares ...
road and a late 20th-century block used for education and corporate functions.
Outside is
St Martin's Church, Allerton Mauleverer
St Martin's Church is a historic Anglican church in the village of Allerton Mauleverer, North Yorkshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* Listed building#England and Wales, listed b ...
.
History
Pre-1786
The Allerton estate belonged to the Mauleverer family from the time of the
Norman Conquest
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...
. The nearby church of St Martin contains several tomb-monuments to them. When Richard Mauleverer died heirless in 1692, Allerton passed to his wife, who left the estate to
Richard Arundell, her son by her second marriage.
Arundell rebuilt the house in the 1740s, and in 1745 remodelled the church in
Norman revival style. The mid-18th century interior of the church remains unaltered to this day.
"The Grand Old Duke of York"
![The Temple, Allerton Park - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/The_Temple%2C_Allerton_Park_-_geograph.org.uk_-_89778.jpg)
Following Richard Arundell's death in 1758, Allerton passed to
Viscount Galway
Viscount Galway is a title that has been created once in the Peerage of England and thrice in the Peerage of Ireland. The first creation came in the Peerage of England in 1628 in favour of Richard Burke, 4th Earl of Clanricarde. He was made Earl ...
, whose son sold it in 1786 to
Prince Frederick, Duke of York
Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (Frederick Augustus; 16 August 1763 – 5 January 1827) was the second son of George III, King of the United Kingdom and Hanover, and his consort Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. A soldier by profess ...
, second son of
George III
George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...
and brother of
George IV
George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...
.
Prince Frederick rebuilt the house to designs by
Henry Holland, but sold the estate to
Thomas Thornton shortly afterwards in 1789.
Prince Frederick also constructed the Temple of Victory, which is today visible from the A1 on a high hill. According to local legend, the ant-like activity of workers constantly ascending and descending to build this gigantic mound inspired the famous nursery rhyme concerning
The Grand Old Duke of York
"The Grand Old Duke of York" (also sung as The Noble Duke of York) is an English children's nursery rhyme, often performed as an action song. The eponymous duke has been argued to be a number of the bearers of that title, particularly Prince Fre ...
and his 10,000 men.
1805–1983
The estate changed hands again in 1805 when purchased by the 17th
Baron Stourton
Baron Stourton is a title in the Peerage of England, It was created by patent in 1448 for John Stourton. In 1878, the ancient barony of Mowbray was called out of abeyance in favour of the twentieth Baron Stourton. About two weeks later, the ...
. The Hon
Edward Stourton's family owned the house from 1805 to 1983 (the
Lords Mowbray). The contents were sold in 1965.
It then became 'Stourton House', and the Catholic peer added a chapel in
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
style. However, in 1843 his son demolished the
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
house and engaged George Martin, to build the present house in a Tudor-Gothic style. In 1856 work came to a halt as there was not enough money to complete all the interiors.
The house was used by the
Royal Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
during the Second World War (for the headquarters of RAF Bomber Command's
No. 6 Group RCAF
No. 6 Group RCAF was a group of Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) heavy bomber squadrons in Europe during the Second World War, between 1942 and 1945. The group operated out of airfields in Yorkshire, England.
History
No. 6 Group was a Royal Cana ...
) and in 1965.
The family ceased to live there after the death of the 22nd Baron Stourton.
1983–present
In 1983 the house was sold to Dr Gerald Rolph, an American businessman. The purchase included the house and gardens, but not the surrounding park which was retained by
Lord Mowbray. Dr Rolph set about renovating the building to the highest standards, filling the house with furniture and pictures of appropriate scale and splendour.
The estate is now run by the Gerald Arthur Rolph Foundation for Historic Preservation and Education, and rooms are available to hire for corporate events and weddings.
A severe fire in January 2005 caused substantial damage to the north aspect of the castle, including the main dining room, library, rear entrance hall, two bedrooms and adjoining dressing rooms and bathrooms and the Servants' Wing. Restoration work commenced in the spring of 2006 and is now more or less complete. The restoration work by specialist contractors consisted of substantial repairs to the ornate stonework and windows, the installation of new floors at first, second and attic levels, significant steelwork, and a new roof structure to match the existing roof. Electrical, plumbing and heating installations as well as plasterwork were also renewed.
Arrangement
A short drive leads past a late 18th-century stable-block before the visitor is confronted with the Tudor-Gothic Victorian building. The main block is built of dark-coloured stone, with a high tower rising above the entrance porch. The lower brick range to the right houses the Chapel of 1805, and behind are the lower buildings of the service courtyard, dating from the 18th century.
The interior of Allerton was designed on a vast scale, with late-Gothic decoration in the style of
Pugin
Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin ( ; 1 March 181214 September 1852) was an English architect, designer, artist and critic with French and, ultimately, Swiss origins. He is principally remembered for his pioneering role in the Gothic Revival st ...
's work on the
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parli ...
. The early-Victorian craftsmanship and the recent restoration work are of the highest quality.
The galleried great hall is one of the highest baronial halls in England, almost high, lit from a huge lantern which rises from the centre of the main block. It is adorned by intricately carved oak panelling lit by stained glass windows, and has galleried landings whose walls are hung with full-length portraits including works by
Michael Dahl
Michael Dahl (1659–1743) was a Swedish portrait painter who lived and worked in England most of his career and died there. He was one of the most internationally known Swedish painters of his time. He painted portraits of many aristocrats and s ...
and
William Dobson
William Dobson (4 March 1611 (baptised); 28 October 1646 (buried)) was a portraitist and one of the first significant English painters, praised by his contemporary John Aubrey as "''the most excellent painter that England has yet bred''". He ...
.
The hall is central and gives access to the elegant drawing room, the blue-and-white ballroom, and the library with bookcases based on the original designs and restored in the on-site workshop. Most of the original bookcases, together with the books, were destroyed in the fire. The wallpaper was based on one of Pugin's designs for the Houses of Parliament and the ceiling has recently been repainted in the original colours.
The principal staircase opens off the great hall, under another vaulted ceiling hung with portraits of the Mowbray and Stourton families.
The library and dining room occupy the north side of the Hall. The dining room is panelled and has stained glass windows with the arms of the Mowbray and Stourton families. On the huge table, original to the house, are candelabra dating from 1848.
The drawing room has a magnificent plaster ceiling. On the walls are portraits by Michael Dahl and
Charles Jervas
Charles Jervas (also Jarvis and Jervis; c. 1675 – 2 November 1739) was an Irish portrait painter, translator, and art collector of the early 18th century.
Early life
Born in Shinrone, County Offaly, Ireland around 1675, the son of John J ...
, and vast
rococo
Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...
mirrors, made for
Melton Constable Hall
Melton Constable Hall is a large (Grade I listed) country house in the parish of Melton Constable, Norfolk, England designed in the Christopher Wren style and built between 1664 and 1670 for the Astley family who owned the estate from 1235 until 19 ...
in Norfolk. The ballroom, in the west of the house, was left with bare masonry by Lord Mowbray and Stourton, but Dr Rolph has decorated it with a plaster vaulted ceiling.
On the entrance-side of the house are the Billiard Room, the Music Room, housing a collection of late-19th and early-20th century automatic musical instruments, and the Morning Room.
On a knoll to the west of the house is the "Temple of Victory", a fine octagonal building of
Palladian
Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...
design.
References
External links
Allerton Castle web site
{{Authority control
Grade I listed buildings in North Yorkshire
Royal residences in England
Gothic Revival architecture in North Yorkshire
Houses completed in 1853
Grade I listed houses
Grade I listed castles
Country houses in North Yorkshire