![Tetton House - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Tetton_House_-_geograph.org.uk_-_221076.jpg)
Tetton is an historic estate in the parish of
Kingston St Mary
Kingston St Mary is a village and parish in Somerset, England, situated at the southern end of the Quantock Hills north of Taunton in the Somerset West and Taunton district. The village has a population of 921.
The parish includes the hamle ...
in the English county of
Somerset
( en, All The People of Somerset)
, locator_map =
, coordinates =
, region = South West England
, established_date = Ancient
, established_by =
, preceded_by =
, origin =
, lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset
, lord_ ...
. The present
grade II* listed Tetton House dates from 1790 and was enlarged and mainly rebuilt in 1924-6 by Hon.
Mervyn Herbert
The Honourable Mervyn Robert Howard Molyneux Herbert (27 December 1882 – 26 May 1929) of Tetton, Kingston St Mary in Somerset, was a career diplomat and a first-class cricket player.
Origins
Herbert was born at Highclere Castle in Hampshire ...
(1882-1929) to the design of the architect
Harry Stuart Goodhart-Rendel
Harry Stuart Goodhart-Rendel (1887 in Cambridge – 21 June 1959 in Westminster, London) was a British architect, writer and musician.
Life
Harry Stuart Goodhart was born on 29 May 1887 in Cambridge, England. He added the additional name Rende ...
.
History
Dyke
The Dyke family of Somerset uses the same arms as the ancient Dyke family which originated at Dykesfield, Cumberland, before 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 Con ...
of which branches later settled at Henfield in Sussex and at Cranbrook in Kent. Reginald de Dike of Cranbrook was
Sheriff of Kent in 1355. Thomas Dyke (d.1632) of Cranbrook married Joan Walsh, heiress of the manor of Horeham in the parish of Waldron in Sussex, which thus passed to the Dykes. The
Dyke Baronetcy, of Horeham in the County of Sussex, was created in 1677 for Thomas Dyke, Commissioner of Public Accounts and a
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
for Sussex and East Grinstead.
![Brass ThomasDyke Died1672 KingstonStMaryChurch Somerset](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Brass_ThomasDyke_Died1672_KingstonStMaryChurch_Somerset.xcf)
*Thomas Dyke (1591-1672) of Tetton, who married a certain Anna (1598-1630). His
monumental brass survives on the wall of the Tetton Pew of Kingston St Mary Church, inscribed as follows:
::"Here lye buried the bodyes of Thomas Dyke and Anna his wife. She died 15th day of May 1630 aetatis suae 32. He died 26th day of May anno d(omi)ni 1672 aetatis suae 81".
:On a
speech scroll
In art history a speech scroll (also called a banderole or phylactery) is an illustrative device denoting speech, song, or other types of sound.
Developed independently on two continents, the device was in use by artists within Mesoamerican cult ...
emanating from the mouth of a skull above two crossed-bones:
::Farewell fond world, I found thee vaine at best,
::In
Abram's bosome I find sweetest rest.
:Also engraved here on a shield are the Dyke arms : ''Or, three cinquefoils sable''; above, on an esquire's helmet, the Dyke crest: ''A cubit arm erect, vested and cuffed, the hand grasping a mace, the head of which is barbed with seven spikes''.
:Below is inscribed in Latin:
::''Siste viator morae pretium erit scire qui vir hic situs est''. ("Stand still, O traveller, the prize of your delay shall be to know what man is placed here")
:Below is inscribed verse:
::"Here lyes just pious prudence which is more,
::Here lyes the father of the orphan poore;
::King, country, church, the poore, all these have lost,
::Good subject, servant, son, those fathermost".
:Below is inscribed in Latin:
::''Abi viator et vale donec resurgamus''. ("depart, traveller, and fare thee well, until we rise again")
![Brass ThomasDyke Died1689 KingstonStMaryChurch Somerset](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Brass_ThomasDyke_Died1689_KingstonStMaryChurch_Somerset.xcf)
*Thomas Dyke (1613-1689), Doctor of Medicine, son, whose
monumental brass also survives on the wall of the Tetton Pew of Kingston St Mary Church. He proved his father's will dated 10 March 1671 at the Archdeaconry Court of Taunton on 24 June 1672. He married twice, firstly to Elizabeth Pepys, a daughter of John Pepys (1576-1652) of Ashtead and sister and eventual co-heiress of Edward Pepys. Without progeny. Secondly to Joanna Deane, possibly his servant, by whom he had an illegitimate son called Thomas Deane, of the
Inner Temple
The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and ...
, who later adopted his father's surname of Dyke, and died without progeny.
*Thomas Dyke (d.1745) of Tetton. He was one of the sons of Edward I Dyke (will dated 1728) of
Pixton, Somerset, by his wife Elizabeth Blackford (d.1736), a daughter of Richard Blackford of Dunster, Master in Chancery, and heiress of her cousin Henrietta Blackford (1725-1733), heiress of Holnicote.
*Elizabeth Dyke (d.1753), daughter and sole heiress. She married
Sir Thomas Acland, 7th Baronet (1722-1785) of
Killerton
Killerton is an 18th-century house in Broadclyst, Exeter, Devon, England, which, with its hillside garden and estate, has been owned by the National Trust since 1944 and is open to the public. The National Trust displays the house as a comfortab ...
in Devon and
Petherton Park
Petherton Park (also known as North Petherton Park or Newton Park) was a Deer park around North Petherton within the English county of Somerset.
The origins are unclear but the area was part of an earlier Royal Forest stretching from the River ...
in Somerset. She was also the heiress of her childless uncle Edward II Dyke (d.1746) of
Pixton, the husband of Margaret Trevelyan, a daughter of
Sir John Trevelyan, 2nd Baronet
Sir John Trevelyan, 2nd Baronet (9 April 1670 – 25 September 1755) of Nettlecombe, Somerset, Nettlecombe, Somerset was a British landowner and Tory politician who sat in the English House of Commons, English and House of Commons of Great Britai ...
(1670–1755), of
Nettlecombe in Somerset, and widow of
Alexander Luttrell (1705-1737) of
Dunster Castle
Dunster Castle is a former motte and bailey castle, now a English country house, country house, in the village of Dunster, Somerset, England. The castle lies on the top of a steep hill called the Tor, and has been fortified since the late Anglo- ...
. Edward's portrait survives in Dunster Castle. Elizabeth Dyke thus brought to her husband the estates of Tetton, Holnicote and Pixton, "a splendid dowry" worth about £30,000, and extending into 24 parishes. According to the
marriage settlement
A marriage settlement in England was a historic arrangement whereby, most commonly and in its simplest form, a trust of land or other assets was established jointly by the parents of a bride and bridegroom. The trustees were established as legal o ...
Elizabeth and her husband were obliged to adopt the additional surname of Dyke.
Acland
![AclandArms](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/AclandArms.jpg)
The Acland family originated in the 12th century at the estate of
Acland, from which they took their name, in the parish of
Landkey
Landkey ( kw, Lannke) is a small village in the county of Devon in the south-west of England with a population of 2274, falling to 1,734 at the 2011 census. It is situated from the nearest town of Barnstaple. The village is a major part of ...
, North Devon. In the opinion of the Devon historian
Hoskins
Hoskins is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Allen Hoskins (1920–1980), American child actor who played Farina in the Our Gang series
* Andrew Hoskins (born 1975), Canadian rower
* Anthony Hoskins (1828–1901), Royal Navy a ...
(1981), based on the family's early and repeated use of the
Flemish
Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...
firstname of ''
Baldwin'', the Acland family probably migrated to England from
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...
soon after 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 Con ...
of 1066.
Sir John Acland, 1st Baronet (c. 1591 – 1647) moved his residence from Acland to Columb John, near
Exeter, the former seat of his great-uncle Sir John Acland (died 1620), and soon after the family moved again to the adjoining estate of
Killerton
Killerton is an 18th-century house in Broadclyst, Exeter, Devon, England, which, with its hillside garden and estate, has been owned by the National Trust since 1944 and is open to the public. The National Trust displays the house as a comfortab ...
where they built a grand country house, today the property of the
National Trust
The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...
.
![SirThomasDykeAcland7thBtByReynolds](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/SirThomasDykeAcland7thBtByReynolds.jpg)
*
Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 7th Baronet
Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 7th Baronet (14 August 1722 – 24 February 1785) of Killerton in Devon and Petherton Park in Somerset, was Member of Parliament for Devon, 1746–1747, for Somerset, 1767–1768, and was High Sheriff of Somerset in 1751. ...
(1722–1785), who in 1745 married Elizabeth Dyke, the heiress of Holnicote, Pixton and Tetton. He was the eldest son and heir of
Sir Hugh Acland, 6th Baronet (1697-1728) of
Killerton
Killerton is an 18th-century house in Broadclyst, Exeter, Devon, England, which, with its hillside garden and estate, has been owned by the National Trust since 1944 and is open to the public. The National Trust displays the house as a comfortab ...
in Devon, by his wife Cicely Wroth, eldest daughter and eventual sole heiress of
Sir Thomas Wroth, 3rd Baronet
Sir Thomas Wroth, 3rd Baronet (c.1674-1721) of Petherton Park, Somerset was an English High Sheriff and Member of Parliament.
He was born the only surviving son of Sir John Wroth, 2nd Baronet, of Petherton Park. He succeeded his father in 1677 as ...
(1674–1721), MP, of
Petherton Park
Petherton Park (also known as North Petherton Park or Newton Park) was a Deer park around North Petherton within the English county of Somerset.
The origins are unclear but the area was part of an earlier Royal Forest stretching from the River ...
, Somerset. He served as
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
for
Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...
, 1746–1747, for
Somerset
( en, All The People of Somerset)
, locator_map =
, coordinates =
, region = South West England
, established_date = Ancient
, established_by =
, preceded_by =
, origin =
, lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset
, lord_ ...
, 1767–1768, and was
High Sheriff of Somerset
The office of High Sheriff of Somerset is an ancient shrievalty which has been in existence since the 11th century. Originally known as the "Sheriff of Somerset", the role was retitled on 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government ...
in 1751. He was a prominent member of the
Westcountry gentry, and a famous
staghunter who used as his hunting seats his wife's
Exmoor
Exmoor is loosely defined as an area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England. It is named after the River Exe, the source of which is situated in the centre of the area, two miles north-west of Simonsbath ...
estates of Pixton and Holnicote. He kept his own pack of hounds, which had formerly been kept by the Dykes. He became forester or ranger of Exmoor under grant from the Crown and ''"hunted the country in almost princely style. Respected and beloved by all the countryside, he was solicited at the same time to allow himself to be returned as member of Parliament for the counties of Devon and Somerset. He preferred, however, the duties and pleasures of life in the country, where he bore without abuse the grand old name of gentleman"''.
Herbert
![Herbert arms](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Herbert_arms.svg)
*
Henry George Herbert, 2nd Earl of Carnarvon
Colonel Henry George Herbert, 2nd Earl of Carnarvon DL, FSA (3 June 1772 – 16 April 1833), styled The Honourable Henry Herbert from 1780 to 1793 and Lord Porchester from 1793 to 1811, was a British peer, nobleman, and Whig politician.
Backg ...
(1772-1833), who inherited Tetton and Pixton as part of the
marriage settlement
A marriage settlement in England was a historic arrangement whereby, most commonly and in its simplest form, a trust of land or other assets was established jointly by the parents of a bride and bridegroom. The trustees were established as legal o ...
on his marriage in 1796 to Elizabeth "Kitty" Acland, daughter of
John Dyke Acland
Colonel John Dyke Acland (18 February 1746 – 31 October 1778), of Tetton and Pixton in Somerset, was Tory Member of Parliament for Callington in Cornwall and fought in the American War of Independence in 1776.Chambers Biographical Diction ...
(1746-1778) by his wife
Lady Harriet Fox-Strangways (1750-1815), a daughter of
Stephen Fox-Strangways, 1st Earl of Ilchester
Stephen Fox-Strangways, 1st Earl of Ilchester PC (12 September 1704 – 26 September 1776) was a British peer and Member of Parliament.
Origins
Fox was the eldest surviving son of Sir Stephen Fox (1627-1716), the first Paymaster of the Forces ...
(1704-1776). John Dyke Acland was the son and
heir apparent
An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
of the 7th Baronet by his marriage to Elizabeth Dyke, and was the father of
Sir John Dyke Acland, 8th Baronet (d. 1785), who died aged 7. Lady Harriet died at Tetton in 1815.
*
Edward Charles Hugh Herbert (1802-1852) of Tetton, MP for
Callington, second son of
Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Carnarvon
Colonel Henry George Herbert, 2nd Earl of Carnarvon DL, FSA (3 June 1772 – 16 April 1833), styled The Honourable Henry Herbert from 1780 to 1793 and Lord Porchester from 1793 to 1811, was a British peer, nobleman, and Whig politician.
Backg ...
by his wife Kitty Acland. In 1851 the occupant of Tetton was Thomas Acland, the future 11th Baronet. His whole household was struck down by
scarlet fever, probably caused by bad drains and water supply, and his first wife and one of his daughters, 3 year-old Cecily, died there in May 1851, after which the family moved to Holnicote, which then burnt down, then to Sprydon, purchased by his father the 10th Baronet.
*Edward Henry Charles Herbert (1837-1870), only surviving son, of Tetton, was murdered by brigands in Greece.
*Dr. The Hon. Alan Percy Harty Molyneux Howard Herbert (1836-1907), of Tetton,
[Hampshire Archives and Local Studies
75M91 - Carnavon of Highclere Papers, 75M91/Y5-Y3]
/ref> first cousin, second son of the 3rd Earl, a doctor of medicine who was awarded the Legion of Honour
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
by the French government in 1871 for his service as a doctor during the siege of Paris in the Franco-Prussian War, and remained there as the physician in charge of the Hertford Hospital until 1901. He inherited the estate of Tetton from his first cousin Edward Henry Charles Herbert (1837-1870).
*Hon. Mervyn Robert Howard Molyneux Herbert (1882-1929), of Tetton, nephew, third son (second son by second wife) of Henry Herbert, 4th Earl of Carnarvon
Henry Howard Molyneux Herbert, 4th Earl of Carnarvon, (24 June 1831 – 29 June 1890), known as Lord Porchester from 1833 to 1849, was a British politician and a leading member of the Conservative Party. He was twice Secretary of State for the C ...
(1831-1890), of Highclere Castle in Hampshire and of Pixton in Somerset. The eldest son of the 4th Earl, by his first wife, inherited Highclere and the earldom, whilst he bequeathed Pixton to Aubrey Herbert
Colonel The Honourable Aubrey Nigel Henry Molyneux Herbert (3 April 1880 – 26 September 1923), of Pixton Park in Somerset and of Teversal, in Nottinghamshire, was a British soldier, diplomat, traveller, and intelligence officer associat ...
, his eldest son by his second wife. Mervyn Herbert, younger brother of Aubrey Herbert, was a diplomat and cricketer who enlarged and rebuilt Tetton House between 1924–26, to the design of the architect H.S. Goodhart-Rendel. His inscribed brass memorial tablet survives in the Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Kingston St Mary. In 1921 he married Mary Elizabeth Willard, a daughter of Joseph E. Willard.
*Edward Alan Mervyn Henry Molyneux Herbert (1926-1994), son. Captain, Coldstream Guards, a lawyer at the Middle Temple and an Associate of the Royal institute of British Architects. In 1966 he married Bridget Anne Hibbert (d.1976), daughter of Major Hugh Washington Hibbert.[Kidd, Charles, ''Debrett's Peerage & Baronetage'' 2015 Edition, London, 2015, p.P216, Earl of Carnarvon] In 1994 the Tetton estate comprised 2,000 acres, but had originally been only 700.
*Alan Mervyn Edward Hugh Herbert (born 1971), son, residing at Tetton House in 2015.
In the late 19th century the gate piers and walls from Tetton were moved to Cothelstone Manor
Cothelstone Manor in Cothelstone, Somerset, England was built in the mid-16th century, largely demolished by the parliamentary troops in 1646 and rebuilt by E.J. Esdaile in 1855–56.
It is closely associated with the Church of St Thomas of Ca ...
. In World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
the house was used as a maternity unit. It has since been divided into apartments.
The south front has a colonnade
In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or cur ...
, of fluted Doric columns, onto a courtyard around which the house is built. The east front has a pediment
Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape.
Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds.
A pedim ...
ed porch.
References
Bibliography
*
*
{{coord, 51.0679, -3.1318, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title
Country houses in Somerset
Grade II* listed buildings in Taunton Deane