Claiming my birthright.

Thursday 29th September 2016

So.....today's grand house is Haddon Hall, on the A6 east of Bakewell.  It is the ancestral home of the Vernons!  I think Richard de Vernon was the Lord of the Manor in 1215.  It stayed with a string of Richards, Williams, one Henry and a George till 1565 when George Vernon's only daughter Dorothy eloped with the second son of the Manners family.  This marriage was a mixture of scandal and romance.  The Manners family still own the Hall.

More about the hall later.

We cycled from the site to Bakewell.  Nice little town famous for its tarts.

Answers to ths weeks caption completion please...

Bakewell must be a rough place as there was the biggest police presence I have seen for a small place.

There were nine police vehicles in total and I actually saw police officers walking around the town.  Something must have happened?

Here's the thing.....me and my tart (sorry, Janice) continued to Haddon Hall and really enjoyed it.  

My brother David has told me that the original property for the Vernon family was Shipbrook Castle near Northwich.  That Castle no longer exists and now is an organic farm.  I also have other Vernon houses to visit at Sudbury Hall near Ashbourne and Hanbury Hall at Droitwich Spa.  I am determined to find some family connection to money, power and status although I shouldn't show my motives as that behaviour is unbecoming for a man of my position.

The tapestry was apparently given to the family by Henry VIII, Sir Henry Vernon was a chief adviser to King Henry's brother.

The portrait is Dorothy Vernon, can you see the likeness?

This is the Vernon coat of arms.  Wild Boars feature heavily, that perhaps explains a lot!

This is the Long Hall.

Putting family bias to one side, this was a really interesting visit and I would recommend anyone who is in the area to give it a visit.  The house is really old and the stone floors are well worn.  It feels very authentic and unspoilt.  Of course I told one of the guides my name and I had come to claim my birthright.  She was quite amused and she gave us the full run down of the family at the Hall.