Monday 26 May 2014

Strange happenings in the Long Gallery

Last February, whilst on holiday in London, we decided to pop down to Richmond and visit Ham House:

The front:


The very handsome rear view:

As with most old country houses, Ham House has a very interesting history.
Having been built at the beginning of the early seventeenth century (about 1610), the house was leased by King Charles I to his good friend, William Murray.
I should point out here that William Murray had been Charles' whipping boy when CHarles was a young prince.  In the 15th and 16th Century, only the King was allowed to punish or whip his sons because they had the potential to become kings themselves, and in the Stuart era, when the Divine Right of Kings was rampant, no one would dare to strike a king (or a king-in-waiting) and yet sometimes, even princes needed punishment.  This is where the whipping boy came in - taking the punishment meant for the prince.  Luckily, it would appear that Charles was a relatively well-behaved child and so William Murray rarely suffered punishment.
Of course there were benefits to being the whipping boy.  Living with the prince's household, sharing his schooling and, as in the case of William and Charles, forming a close friendship: A very profitable situation to be in!
When they were grown up and Charles was King, William not only received Ham House but an earldom as well...

* * * * * *

These days Ham House is run by the National Trust and is closed for much of the Winter.  On the day we attended, they had opened a few rooms as a preliminary to 'The Season'.  As these times, entry is only permissible for those who choose to go on a guided tour.  We were okay with that and duly joined the group waiting at the front door.

The 'thing' about Ham House is that it is said to be haunted.  The star among the ghosts is Elizabeth, daughter of William, and Duchess of Lauderdale.  

Here she is with her second husband, John Maitland, Duke of Lauderdale:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:John_Maitland,_1st_duke_of_Lauderdale,_and_his_wife_Elizabeth_Murry,_Duchess_of_Lauderdale_(3977704407).jpg

Surviving both of her husbands, Elizabeth stayed on at Ham House, and died there.  Her ghost is said to often be heard and sometimes seen on the stairs . . .

. . . and in various other parts of the house as well.  Her dog is said to do the rounds with her; and the Duke of Lauderdale haunts one of the main rooms, so it is very much a family affair!

Anyway…

We went in through the front door with the others on the tour:


We walked through the various rooms and looked at the treasures they contained:



Soon we were up in the Long Gallery, where various wonderful paintings are to be seen:


One in particular is this:
'Self Portrait with Sunflower' by Antony van Dyk - I do like this painting.

Then AGA saw this portrait of the Duchess of Lauderdale and asked me to take a photo because given the subject matter, he intended to use it as in example of slavery, in a unit of inquiry he was teaching.  For some reason I felt a little uneasy as I took the photo:

Everyone else left the room, including AGA but I (and another chap) lingered to take a few more photos while the guide stood at the doorway.  I particularly wanted to take this one of King Charles I.
The portrait faces that of the Duchess, and as I took the photo, I had the strangest feeling come over me.

It is hard to explain accurately but I felt as if I had been passed through by something. My energy was completely drained and I thought I was going to pass out.  I remember closing my eyes and saying silently to myself: 'pull yourself together!'  
The sensation was brief and I soon felt absolutely fine.  The others seemed unaware that anything had happened and so I left with them, went back through the gallery with AGA and the rest, then down the stairs.  our tour concluded soon afterwards.
When we were well out of earshot of anyone else I told AGA what had happened.  He is a very no-nonsense, scientific sort of chap.  He told me in all seriousness that he had had exactly the same feeling on the stairs as we were leaving:

When I checked the guide book it said that the gallery and the stairs were supposedly the most haunted parts of the house. . .

So there you have it.
Perhaps the Duchess was saying 'hello'.
Then again, perhaps she heard the somewhat uncharitable remarks we had made about her possible personality while viewing her portrait and decided to give us a fright . . .
Whatever it was, it was certainly most unusual and in time to come when we are very old, we will entertain the younger generations with talks of our visit to one of the most haunted houses in England.

By the way, even in winter, the gardens of Ham look nice:


And I think that this might appeal to David Cowell over at the Willowbrook Park blog:


I hope you enjoyed this post!

22 comments:

  1. Hello Kirk,

    Now, that is decidedly odd! We have a sneaky suspicion that ghosts may well exist so can well believe that they walk the corridors and staircases of Ham House!

    We love Ham House and, in particular, the garden. It appeals to our appreciation of a formal garden with little in the way of flower. The topiary elements are so well designed and everything is kept so immaculately.

    The collection of paintings is particularly fine and you highlight some wonderful examples here. They capture the lives and times so intriguingly, although we can well understand your disquiet at photographing the Duchess and her slave.

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    1. Dear Jane and Lance,
      I have that same sneaking suspicion regarding ghosts as well. We used to have a photo of what we were sure was one my sister took while we were at Fountains Abbey many years ago - alas long lost.
      I also agree with you regarding the garden, and feel that the absence of flowers in no way detracts from the garden's beauty.
      Bye for now,
      Kirk

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  2. Good morning Kirk! I am so glad you are back, and I did enjoy my tour with you! I hope to make it to some part of England one day, and next summer I will be going to France. I do hope to skip on over to The Netherlands and for sure, England. Your tours and suggestions are PERFECT! Gorgeous history here. Be well! Anita

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    1. Thank you, Anita.
      I think I will take you to the south of France in my next 'tour'. I like the Netherlands: Amsterdam and Leiden in particular but then I have seen some of the photographs that Madeleif took and perhaps I would like Rotterdam as well.
      Bye for now,
      Kirk

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  3. Dear Kirk - I wonder if you would have the courage to return to Ham House for the Halloween ghost tour which searches for the evil Duchess? Having read your spooky experience I don't think that I would.
    I do love the paintings by Van Dyck - I think I am right in saying that the Duchess is painted by Peter Lely, all of them have exquisite frames.
    The box and lavender is cut to perfection.

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    1. Dear Rosemary,
      No ghost tours for me: I once went on a ghost tour of the streets of York and that was enough. I get spooked far too easily!
      We are sure that our apartment building has a ghost: we had named him Fritz. Luckily I have never seen him although AGA thinks he has.
      Yes you are correct: Peter Lely. Such a very nice artist although for me van Dyke is very much the purveyor of all things Stuart - I think it is the colours he uses!

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  4. Such an interesting house and history! I think I would not like staying the night there....The grounds look beautiful with the box trees. Even in winter!

    Have a lovely week ahead.

    Madelief x

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    1. Dear Madelief,
      I agree with you: The gardens of Ham House look beautiful in winter. My camera didn't show it so well but there were little clumps of snowdrops and crocuses around about as well. It looked very nice indeed.
      I hope it isn't as grey and dreary and humid over there as it is over here in Dusseldorf…
      Bye for now
      Kirk
      x

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  5. Hello Kirk, The Duchess of Lauderdale has a vivid personality that comes through strongly in her portraits, and I am sure that she would make a most formidable ghost. I'll keep this in mind, as I have long wanted to visit Ham house, with its famous original harpsichord and proximity to Strawberry Hill, the Gothic home of Horace Walpole.
    --Jim

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    1. Dear Jim,
      How are you?
      Formidable: a very good word to use for the Duchess.
      AGA told me that the Ham House harpsichord is a fake - but an ancient one. Is it a fake Ruckers?
      I have not been to Strawberry Hill either. Have you been to Chiswick? That is another very nice place to visit as well.
      Bye for now,
      Kirk

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  6. Dear Kirk,

    I most certainly did enjoy this post, and the tour of Ham House! I've always enjoyed van Dyck's self-portrait, and I wonder as I look at it if there is a particular symbolism as he points at the giant sunflower. I've read that Charles I was not particularly impressive in person, but that van Dyck always did a marvelous job of portraying him with more authority.

    I'm glad that Mr. Murray was rewarded for what might have been a dreadful childhood!

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    1. Dear Mark,
      Thank you for your kind comments. The sunflower in the van Dyck portrait is wonderful and even better in real life. I believe that Charles I was a somewhat short chap. I know that one lot of my ultra Puritan ancestors were less than friendly towards him and were excommunicated for it!
      I'm sure he didn't think so as a child but an earldom, a fine house and the friendship of the King was a nice reward for the punishments he may have suffered on the Prince's behalf. The tour guide said that Charles was a good child and rather pious - and so William would not have suffered too much. Imagine being the whipping boy for King John when a prince - one would probably never recover!

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  7. You mentioned that the house was _leased_ by King Charles I to his good friend, William Murray, not _sold_ to Murray. The family would have no security at all because if Murray did something to displease the king at a later date, the family could be thrown off the estate in a heart beat.

    I agree about the long gallery. In winter it would have been a lovely way to get exercise and enjoy the beautiful art :)

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    1. Dear Hels,
      On the tour we were told that after the Restoration, King Charles gave the house and land to the family, gratis. I think that it may not have been in Charles I power to give the house and land as it would have been seen as alienating royal lands meant for the King's heirs. At the Restoration however the new King was able to make these gifts under the guise of rewards for loyal service.
      I'm with you: I do like the idea of a long gallery, filled with beautiful paintings and statuary, where one can promenade in the winter.

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  8. Wow so much history in this house. Amazing. Makes me want to visit there someday. I love visiting historical places like this. Such a great learning experience!

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    1. Dear Keith,
      I am a big fan of Jacobean/Baroque architecture. I cold quite easily live in such a house!

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  9. Dear Kirk, I truly did enjoy your posting about Ham House. I'm a history buff and take real delight in learning new things about the past. That helps me, often, to understand the present. Your experience is intriguing and I'm agreeing with both of you that truly a ghost or a presence may have passed through you and greeted you for some reason. I wonder why the presence hasn't gone on to new realms of Light. Peace.

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    1. Dear Dee,
      Thank you for your kind comments. I too am a history buff. I love to collect books on history. I think that sometimes people are so attached to earthly possessions that it is hard for them to leave.
      Bye for now
      Kirk

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  10. Hello Kirk

    This is a fascinating house and I enjoyed reading about your experience. The VanDyk self portrait is of particular appeal. The light and values are superb.
    How frightening it must have been for you when had that weird sensation following taking the picture of the Duchess and that AGA also experienced it too.
    A delightful post and I will put Ham house on my list.
    Helen xx

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    1. Dear Helen,
      Yes, you should definitely visit Ham House. We only saw half of it as it was so early in the Season. That Van Dyke portrait was one of my reasons for visiting!
      Bye for now
      Kirk

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  11. I love Ham House, esp the gardens and the green closet lined with silk and miniature paintings. I wish I had had a whipping boy when I was a child!

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    1. Dear David,
      I also wish I had had a whipping boy. I tried to arrange for my sisters to be whipping girls on various occasions but without success...

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