Annesley Hall, Nottinghamshire
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Annesley Hall is a Grade II listed country house near
Annesley Annesley is a village and civil parish in the Ashfield district of Nottinghamshire, England, between Hucknall and Kirkby-in-Ashfield. At the 2011 census, it had a population of 1,162 (including Annesley Woodhouse to the west), and this inc ...
in
Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...
, England and the ancestral home of the Chaworth-Musters family. The 13th-century park, 17th-century terraces and 19th-century pleasure gardens and walled gardens of the hall are Grade II* listed on the
Register of Historic Parks and Gardens #REDIRECT Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England #REDIRECT Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England {{R from move ...
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.


History

The Hall dates from the mid-13th century and was the home of the Annesley family, passing to the Chaworth family when Alice, heiress to the Manor of Annesley, married George Chaworth, third son of Sir Thomas Chaworth of Wiverton, in the 15th century. The Chaworth family were to possess the estate for the next 350 years. It was significantly enlarged and improved by Patrick Chaworth, 3rd Viscount Chaworth, in the 17th century when damage to his family seat at Wiverton obliged him to move to Annesley. Mary Chaworth, who lived at the Hall, was the boyhood lover of the poet
Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...
, who lived at nearby
Newstead Abbey Newstead Abbey, in Nottinghamshire, England, was formerly an Augustinian priory. Converted to a domestic home following the Dissolution of the Monasteries, it is now best known as the ancestral home of Lord Byron. The Abbey is on the national ...
. Byron's poem "
The Dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Dream may also refer to: Art Paintings * ''The Dream'' (Detaille), an 1888 painting by Édouard D ...
" concerns the meeting of two lovers on Diadem Hill, part of the Misk Hills range, which belonged to the Annesley estate. The uncle of the poet Byron had killed William Chaworth in a duel at the Star and Garter tavern in Pall Mall, London after a meeting of the "Nottinghamshire Club" that met there every month. Mary Chaworth eventually married John Musters of
Colwick Hall Colwick Hall was an English country house in Colwick, Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshir ...
in 1805. Their teenage son, Charles Musters, sailed as a Volunteer 1st Class aboard HMS ''Beagle'' with
Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...
, but died of malaria in South America on 19 May 1832. The Chaworth-Musters family became one of the most powerful families in Nottinghamshire. John Chaworth-Musters was appointed
High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire This is a list of the High Sheriffs of the English county of Nottinghamshire. The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centu ...
for 1864–65. Structural alterations to the hall took place in the 18th and 19th centuries, including the addition of a service wing c.1880. Annesley Lodge, the former gatehouse to the hall, is also grade II listed.


20th and 21st century

It remained in the hands of the Chaworth-Musters family until sold by Major Robert Patricius Chaworth-Musters in 1972. The new purchasers carried out extensive internal alterations and removed many of the 17th century fittings. The hall suffered a fire in 1997 which caused damage to the structure and it has not been lived in since. The hall is now in private ownership, in very poor condition and not open to the public.
English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...
have listed the building on the 'Buildings at Risk Register' as high vulnerability and deteriorating. Two of the three floors at the hall were severely damaged in a fire on 16 May 2015.


Annesley Old Church

Annesley Old Church, near to the hall, is a grade I listed building and a scheduled ancient monument. It is on the Heritage at Risk register but the Heritage Lottery Fund has awarded £450,000 towards its conservation.


References

* * {{coord, 53.065582, -1.250818, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Country houses in Nottinghamshire Grade II listed buildings in Nottinghamshire Grade II listed houses Grade II* listed parks and gardens in Nottinghamshire