Knightshayes Court
Encyclopedia
Knightshayes Court is a Victorian
country house in Tiverton, Devon
, England
, designed by William Burges
for the Heathcoat-Amory family
. Nikolaus Pevsner
describes it as "an eloquent expression of High Victorian ideals in a country house of moderate size." The house is Grade I listed as of 12 May 1975.
was born into a Derbyshire farming family in 1783. An inventor of genius, he designed and patented a machine that revolutionised the production of lace. His factory destroyed in the Luddite
revolt of 1816, he moved his basis of manufacture, and a large number of his workers, to Tiverton, Devon
and there established a lace-works which, by the later part of the nineteenth century, was the largest lace-producing manufactory in the world.
in 1867 and the foundation stone laid in 1869. By 1874, the building was complete, although not to Burges' original designs, and work had begun on the interior. However, unlike Burges' partnership with John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute
, the relationship between architect and client was not successful, Sir John objecting to Burges' designs both on grounds of cost and of style. "Heathcote-Amory (had) built a house he could not afford to decorate, by an architect whose speciality was interior design." This disagreement led to Burges' sacking in 1874 and his replacement by John Dibblee Crace
.
Nevertheless, Knightshayes Court remains the only example built of a medium-sized Burges country house, to the "standard" Victorian arrangement. Its virtues were recognised in its own time; "Knightshayes is eminently picturesque, executed with great vigour and thorough knowledge of detail.." The plan with hall
, drawing
, morning and smoking room
s, library
and billiard room
is conventional and the exterior is, by Burges' usual standards, restrained. A massive tower, to have been constructed over the West end, would have given the house "a more overtly romantic silhouette" but only the base was built.
The interior, by contrast, was to have been a riot of Burgesian excess but "not one of the rooms was completed according to Burges's designs.". Of the few interior features that were fully executed, much was dismantled or covered over by Sir John and his successors. Since the National Trust
took over guardianship of the house in 1973, it has sought to recover and restore as many of Burges's fittings as possible, including some "sparkling" ceilings, such as that in the Drawing Room, which was discovered in 1981, having been boarded over as early as 1889. In a number of instances, the Trust has brought in Burges furniture from other locations, including a bookcase from The Tower House
, now in the Great Hall, and a marble fireplace in the Drawing Room, from Burges's redecoration of Worcester College, Oxford
. The presentation album which Burges prepared, and which can be seen at the house, shows what might have been. "At Knightshayes Burges was on top form. But (his) magical interiors remained a half-formed dream."
During the Second World War, the house was used as a convalescent home for the U.S. Eight Air Force
.
, the golfer. An exhibition of golfing memorabilia can be found in the house. Roderick Heathcoat-Amory (1907–1998), youngest son of the second Baronet, was a Brigadier in the Army. His sons are the Conservative politician David Heathcoat-Amory
, and the leading political columnist of the Daily Mail, Edward Heathcoat Amory.
but were much simplified in the nineteen fifties and sixties. Sir John and Lady Heathcoat Amory undertook much work in the gardens for which they were both awarded the Royal Horticultural Society's Victoria Medal of Honour
.
The estate includes a rare stické
court dating from 1907. Other features include the extensive topiary
, specimen trees, rare shrubs and the stables and walled kitchen garden, also by Burges.
since 1973 and is open to the public.
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
country house in Tiverton, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, designed by William Burges
William Burges (architect)
William Burges was an English architect and designer. Amongst the greatest of the Victorian art-architects, Burges sought in his work an escape from 19th century industrialisation and a return to the values, architectural and social, of an imagined mediaeval England...
for the Heathcoat-Amory family
Heathcoat-Amory Baronets
The Heathcoat-Amory Baronetcy, of Knightshayes Court in Tiverton in the County of Devon, is a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 21 March 1874 for the businessman and Liberal politician John Heathcoat-Amory. Born John Amory, he was the maternal grandson of John...
. Nikolaus Pevsner
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
describes it as "an eloquent expression of High Victorian ideals in a country house of moderate size." The house is Grade I listed as of 12 May 1975.
History
The fortunes of the Heathcoat-Amory family were founded in the early nineteenth century. John HeathcoatJohn Heathcoat
John Heathcoat was an English inventor.Heathcoat was born at Duffield near Derby. During his apprenticeship to a frame-smith near Loughborough, he made an improvement in the construction of the warp-loom, so as to produce mitts of a lace-like appearance by means of it...
was born into a Derbyshire farming family in 1783. An inventor of genius, he designed and patented a machine that revolutionised the production of lace. His factory destroyed in the Luddite
Luddite
The Luddites were a social movement of 19th-century English textile artisans who protested – often by destroying mechanised looms – against the changes produced by the Industrial Revolution, which they felt were leaving them without work and changing their way of life...
revolt of 1816, he moved his basis of manufacture, and a large number of his workers, to Tiverton, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
and there established a lace-works which, by the later part of the nineteenth century, was the largest lace-producing manufactory in the world.
The house
The house was commissioned by his grandson Sir John Heathcoat-AmorySir John Heathcoat-Amory, 1st Baronet
Sir John Heathcoat Heathcoat-Amory, 1st Baronet , was a British businessman and Liberal politician.Born John Amory, he was the maternal grandson of John Heathcoat, Member of Parliament for Tiverton, and assumed the additional surname of Heathcoat by Royal license. He was a partner of J...
in 1867 and the foundation stone laid in 1869. By 1874, the building was complete, although not to Burges' original designs, and work had begun on the interior. However, unlike Burges' partnership with John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute
John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute
John Patrick Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute KT, KSG, KGCHS was a landed aristocrat, industrial magnate, antiquarian, scholar, philanthropist and architectural patron.-Early life:...
, the relationship between architect and client was not successful, Sir John objecting to Burges' designs both on grounds of cost and of style. "Heathcote-Amory (had) built a house he could not afford to decorate, by an architect whose speciality was interior design." This disagreement led to Burges' sacking in 1874 and his replacement by John Dibblee Crace
John Dibblee Crace
John Dibblee Crace was a distinguished British interior designer who provided decorative schemes for the British Museum, the National Gallery, the Royal Academy, Tyntesfield and Longleat among many other notable buildings....
.
Nevertheless, Knightshayes Court remains the only example built of a medium-sized Burges country house, to the "standard" Victorian arrangement. Its virtues were recognised in its own time; "Knightshayes is eminently picturesque, executed with great vigour and thorough knowledge of detail.." The plan with hall
Hall
In architecture, a hall is fundamentally a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age, a mead hall was such a simple building and was the residence of a lord and his retainers...
, drawing
Drawing room
A drawing room is a room in a house where visitors may be entertained. The name is derived from the sixteenth-century terms "withdrawing room" and "withdrawing chamber", which remained in use through the seventeenth century, and made its first written appearance in 1642...
, morning and smoking room
Smoking room
A Smoking room is a room which is specifically provided and furnished for smoking, generally in buildings where smoking is otherwise prohibited....
s, library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
and billiard room
Billiard room
A billiard room is a recreation room, such as in a house or recreation center, with a billiards, pool or snooker table...
is conventional and the exterior is, by Burges' usual standards, restrained. A massive tower, to have been constructed over the West end, would have given the house "a more overtly romantic silhouette" but only the base was built.
The interior, by contrast, was to have been a riot of Burgesian excess but "not one of the rooms was completed according to Burges's designs.". Of the few interior features that were fully executed, much was dismantled or covered over by Sir John and his successors. Since the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
took over guardianship of the house in 1973, it has sought to recover and restore as many of Burges's fittings as possible, including some "sparkling" ceilings, such as that in the Drawing Room, which was discovered in 1981, having been boarded over as early as 1889. In a number of instances, the Trust has brought in Burges furniture from other locations, including a bookcase from The Tower House
The Tower House
The Tower House is a late-Victorian town house, built between 1876 and 1878 in the 13th century French gothic style, by the Victorian art-architect William Burges for himself...
, now in the Great Hall, and a marble fireplace in the Drawing Room, from Burges's redecoration of Worcester College, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. The presentation album which Burges prepared, and which can be seen at the house, shows what might have been. "At Knightshayes Burges was on top form. But (his) magical interiors remained a half-formed dream."
During the Second World War, the house was used as a convalescent home for the U.S. Eight Air Force
Eighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command . It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana....
.
The family
Sir John Heathcoat-Amory, grandson of the 1st Baronet, was married to Joyce WetheredJoyce Wethered
Joyce Wethered, Lady Heathcoat-Amory was a golfer widely regarded as the greatest British woman player of all time....
, the golfer. An exhibition of golfing memorabilia can be found in the house. Roderick Heathcoat-Amory (1907–1998), youngest son of the second Baronet, was a Brigadier in the Army. His sons are the Conservative politician David Heathcoat-Amory
David Heathcoat-Amory
David Philip Heathcoat-Amory is a British politician, accountant and farmer. He was the Conservative Member of Parliament for Wells from 1983 until he lost his seat in the 2010 general election.-Education and professional life:...
, and the leading political columnist of the Daily Mail, Edward Heathcoat Amory.
The gardens
The gardens were designed by Edward KempEdward Kemp
Edward Kemp was an English landscape architect and an author. Together with Joseph Paxton and Edward Milner, Kemp became one of the leaders in the design of parks and gardens during the mid-Victorian era in England....
but were much simplified in the nineteen fifties and sixties. Sir John and Lady Heathcoat Amory undertook much work in the gardens for which they were both awarded the Royal Horticultural Society's Victoria Medal of Honour
Victoria Medal of Honour
The Victoria Medal of Honour is awarded to British horticulturists resident in the United Kingdom whom the Royal Horticultural Society Council considers deserving of special honour by the Society...
.
The estate includes a rare stické
Stické
Stické is a racquet sport invented in the late 19th century merging aspects of real tennis, racquets, and lawn tennis...
court dating from 1907. Other features include the extensive topiary
Topiary
Topiary is the horticultural practice of training live perennial plants, by clipping the foliage and twigs of trees, shrubs and subshrubs to develop and maintain clearly defined shapes, perhaps geometric or fanciful; and the term also refers to plants which have been shaped in this way. It can be...
, specimen trees, rare shrubs and the stables and walled kitchen garden, also by Burges.
Current ownership
Knightshayes Court has been in the ownership of the National TrustNational Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
since 1973 and is open to the public.