EATON HALL. THE SEAT OF THE MARQUIS OF WESTMINSTER. THE exquisitely beautiful mansion of Eaton Hall stands on the edge of an extensive and richly-wooded park, and is situated about three miles to the south of the ancient city of Chester. It was built about twenty years ago, by the present Marquis of Westminster, on the site of the old mansion, which was raised by Sir Thomas Grosvenor, in the reign of William the Third, and was a large plain brick fabric. The vaulted basement story of the old hall was, however, preserved with the external foundations, and some of its subdivisions; but the superstructure was altered and altogether refitted, and many additional apartments erected on the north and south sides; making the area of the new structure twice the dimensions of the former. There is a view of the old Eaton Hall by Kip, in the "Noveau Theatre de la Grande Bretagne," a glance at which would instantly satisfy our readers of the vast improvement which Mr. Porden, the architect of the present noble mansion, has, by his skill, been enabled to effect. : The style of architecture of Eaton Hall is Gothic that of the age of Edward III., so exquisitely shown in York Minster, has been chiefly imitated, especially on the exterior, though the architect has sometimes availed himself of the low Tudor-arch, and the varieties of any other age that suited his purpose. Around the turrets, and in various compartments of the balustrades, are Gothic shields, embossed in relievo with the armorial bearings of the Grosvenor family, and other ancient families that, by intermarriages, the Grosvenors are entitled to quarter with their own.* In the middle of the west ront is the entrance, under a vaulted portico, large enough to admit a carriage to the steps that lea to the Hall, which is so spacious and lofty, that it occupies the height of two stories, and is arched over by a vaulted ceiling. The pavement is of variegated marble in Gothic compartments. At the end of the hall, a screen supports the gallery that connects the bedchambers on the north with those of the south side of the house, which are thus sepa * With his own coat of arms, the Marquis of Westminister is entitled to quarter the armorial bearings of sixteen other families, being descended from them by heiresses. rated by the height of the hall. Under the gallery, two open arches conduct to the grand staircase on the left and right, the state bed-room, and the second staircase; and opposite to the door of the hall, is the entrance to the saloon. On entering the saloon, the splendour of the three painted windows is especially observable. These windows contain, in six divisions, the portraits of Gilbert le Grosvenor, the founder of the family in Britain, and his lady; of William the Conqueror, with whom he came into England; the Bishop of Bayeux, uncle to the Conqueror; the heiress of the house of Eaton; and Sir Robert le Grosvenor, who signalised himself by his bravery in the wars of the great Edward III. The saloon is a square of thirty feet, converted into an octagon by arches across the angles. On the left of the saloon is an antiroom leading into the drawing room; and on the right, another that leads into the dining room. The windows of these rooms, glazed with a light Mosaic tracery, exhibit portraits of the six Earls of Chester, who succeeded Hugh Lupus the first Earl, and uncle to Gilbert le Grosvenor, in the government of Cheshire, as a county palatine, till Henry III. bestowed the title on his son Edward; since which period the eldest sons of the Kings of England have always been Earls of Chester. The dining room is situated at the northern end of the east front, and is about fifty feet long and thirty wide, exclusive of a bow containing five arched windows, the opening of which is thirty feet. In the middle window is a portrait of Hugh Lupus. The drawing room at the southern extremity of the east front, is of exactly the same form and dimensions as the dining room, with the addition of a large window looking to the south, which commands a view of the groves and fertile meadows of Eaton, with the village and spire of Oldford peeping from above them. All the windows of this magnificent apartment are adorned with heads and figures of the ancestors of the Grosvenor family, among which are the portraits of the present Marquis and his lady. The ceiling is beautifully illustrated with all the armorial bearings of the family, blazoned in their appropriate colours; and also the arms of Egerton, Earl of Wilton, the father of the Marchioness. The library is in the centre of the south front. The ceiling and the large bow window, with their ornaments, are in the same style as the rooms before described, but less rich; the book-cases, with the arches, tracery, buttresses, and battlements, are formed of English oak. The middle window of the saloon opens to a vaulted cloister, occupying the space between the dining and drawing rooms in the east front, and affording a sheltered walk in all weathers. A flight of steps leads from the cloister to a spacious terrace 350 feet long, beautifully laid out; from whence other steps, at each end and also in the middle, descend to the gardens and pleasure grounds,-which are disposed with great taste. The view from the terrace is rich and variegated; in the foreground, the groves, the gardens, and the greenhouse; immediately beyond them, the meads and the noble inlet of the Dee, (made by the present Marquis, in order to supply the want of a natural river,) with its pleasure yachts, form at times a lively and agreeable picture. The principal approach to Eaton Hall is from the west, through a triple avenue, formed by four rows of limes; and it was continued to the road leading from Chester to Wrexham, (a distance of nearly two miles) and terminated by a noble Lodge, called Belgrave Lodge, built in the same style as the house. We now proceed to furnish our readers with a short account of the illustrious and ancient family of the Grosvenors; which, whether we view it as ancient or honourable, is not to be surpassed by any family in the kingdom. The noble family of Grosvenor is descended from a long train of illustrious ancestors, who flourished in Normandy, from its first erection into a sovereign dukedom, A. D., 912, to the conquest of England by William, surnamed the Conqueror, in the year 1066. It cannot admit of doubt that, having been held of the foremost rank in that country, and having had the government of many strong holds and castles in the duchy, from that office of high trust, the family took its surname, which has been variously written Grosvenor, le Grosvenor, le Grosvenour, Grovenor, le Groveneur and le Groven our. The first of this ancient house was an uncle of Rollo the Dane, who having conquered Neustria, became Duke of that kingdom, under the title of Duke of Normandy. Among the attendants of William the Norman, in his expedition into this country, were Hugh Lupus, count of Avranches, and afterwards Earl of Chester, and Gilbert le Grosvenor, his nephew. Hugh Lupus, in the fourth year of the Conqueror's reign, obtained a grant of the whole earldom and county of Chester from the King, "to be holden as freely by his sword as the King held England by his crown." Passing, however, the more immediate descendants of Gilbert le Grosvenor-the patriarch of the family in this kingdom, we find Robert le Grosvenor engaged in the crusade with Richard Cour de Lion for the recovery of the Holy Land, with whom he distinguished himself in the assault on Messina, and at the conquest of the Island of Cyprus. He assisted, also, at the siege of Acon, which, after two years, was surrendered by the famous Saladin, Sultan of Egypt, in 1191; and in the year ensuing, at the great victory obtained by Richard over Saladin, when the former became master of Jaffa, Ascalon, and Cesarea. Another Robert le Grosvenor, afterwards knighted by Edward III., accompanied that monarch when he besieged Vannes, in Brittany in 1342, and was with him at the passage of the river Somme, and on the next day at the celebrated battle of Cressy; he was also at the siege of Calais, which continued for nearly a year. Sir Robert le Grosvenor, the grandson of the above, is especially memorable for the famous plea which he had with Sir Richard Le Scrope, Lord High Chancellor of England, under Richard II., about his coat of arms, viz., Azure, one bend, or. This suit, in which Sir Richard le Scrope was plaintiff, and Sir Robert le Grosvenor defendant, was tried before the High Constable and High Marshal of England, and others commissioned for that purpose, and lasted three years. The substance of the evidence on the part of Robert le Grosvenor, (and the testimony of a great many noblemen and gentlemen then bearing arms, was taken), was to the effect that they had seen in the chronicles, old deeds and other records, that Hugh Lupus, nephew to William, the Conqueror came into England with that monarch, and was accompanied by his own nephew Gilbert le Grosvenor, armed with the arms Azure, one bend, d'or; and that he bore the same to his death. And it was further proved, that all his descendants in a direct line had born the same arms and had worn them without molestation or hindrance down to the present contest, occasioned by the fact of Sir Richard le Scrope being armed with the same arms in the late expedition of the King into Scotland. It appeared, on the part of Sir Richard le Scrope, that he had in 1346, in his expedition, met with and challanged an esquire of Cornwall, of the name of Carminaw, and upon an examination before the knights and esquires present, it was proved that he (Sir Richard) and his ancestors had borne the said arms ever since the conquest of England; and on the part of Carminaw, it was alleged that his ancestors had born the same arms ever since the days of King Arthur. It was therefore adjudged, that both should continue to bear the same arms. In this cause, however, the sentence of the court was, that Sir Richard le Scrope should bear the arms as formerly, and that Sir Robert le Grosvenor should bear the same arms, but with a Bordure d' Argent. Sir Robert, feeling himself aggrieved by this sentence, appealed to the King, before whom the pleadings were reviewed; and at last it was decided that Sir Robert should either wear and use the arms as formerly adjudged, or else, instead of the Bend, or, might bear a Garb, or, from the arms of the ancient Earls of Chester; whereupon Sir Robert le Grosvenor adopted for his arms Azure, a Garb, or, and the same have been constantly used by his successors. Among others who tendered their testimony in this celebrated suit, were John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and King of Castile and Leon; the Earl of Derby, the Earl of Arundel, the Lord Grey of Ruthyn, the Earl of Northumberland, the Duke of Warwick, Sir Owen de Glendore, and the immortal Geoffrey Chaucer, the father of English poetry. Raufe le Grosvenor, second son of Sir Thomas le Grosvenor, and grandson of the above Sir Robert, settled at Eaton, in the county of Chester, and married the only daughter and heiress of that house, by which family, accordingly, Eaton Hall was originally possessed. From this family, the present Marquis of Westminster is descended in a direct line. Richard Grosvenor, a descendant of the above Raufe le Grosvenor, was knighted by James I., and afterwards created a baronet by the same king. Sir Richard Grosvenor, the second baronet, was sheriff of Cheshire in 1644, when he raised the posse comitatus for Charles I. to oppose the parliamentary army commanded by Fairfax. his unfortunate monarch, he continued in steadfast loyalty till the king's death. His estate being sequestrated, he was turned out of Eaton, and lived in a small house in the neighbourhood for many years till the restoration. To Sir Richard Grosvenor, the seventh baronet, was created Baron Grosvenor of Eaton, in the first year of the reign of George III. His Lordship was the twentieth in paternal descent from Gilbert le Grosvenor, who came to England with William I. He officiated at His Majesty's coronation as Great CupBearer of England, as his uncle Sir Richard had at that of George II. He was advanced to the dignity of Viscount Belgrave and Earl Grosvenor, in the year 1784. His only surviving son, the present Marquis of Westminster, succeeded his father as second Earl Grosvenor, in 1802. In 1794, he married Eleanor Egerton, heiress of Wilton, being the only daughter of Thomas, Earl of Wilton. The earldom was entailed upon the second son by this marriage. Earl Grosvenor was created Marquis of Westminster in the year 1832. MY LAST WISH. WHEN mute the tongue which breathes the strain, When life's vain dream hath passed away With gleams of joy, and clouds of pain, Chequered as April's fitful day. Prepare for me a lowly bed, Far from the stranger's curious eye, Where youth's gay spring in gladness fled, Lay me beneath that shelving yew, And be the spot but known to few, The few I loved and cherished here. |