Helmingham Hall Estate
Helmingham Hall is a moated manor house in Helmingham, Suffolk, England. It was begun by John Tollemache in 1480 and has been owned by the Tollemache family ever since. The house is built around a courtyard in typical late medieval/Tudor style. The present Helmingham Hall may have been initially constructed in 1510 on the site of an earlier house called Creke Hall. The exterior was altered between 1745–1760, again in 1800 by John Nash, and in 1840. The original half-timbered walls have been concealed by brick and tiles.
The house is surrounded by a moat, over which it is reached only by two working drawbridges, which have been pulled up every night since 1510. These were originally operated with a windlass but in recent years this has been replaced by an electric motor.
Queen Elizabeth I is said to have twice visited Helmingham: first in 1561, and later to attend the christening of Lionel Tollemache as her godchild. Lionel Tollemache marked the first of ten consecutive generations of the family with that name. Furthermore, Helmingham has been privileged to receive Her Majesty The Queen Elizabeth II and other members of the Royal Family on many occasions over the last few years.
The house is not open to the public and Helmingham is best known for its fine garden, which is open on a regular basis. It is a semi-formal mixed garden with extensive borders, a rose garden, a knot garden, a parterre and an orchard. Beyond the garden there is a 400-acre park with herds of red and Fallow Deer.
On a very dull and misty morning we set off across the deer park, dodging between trees so as not to scare the deer too much. (we must have looked quite a sight!)
Having only a 200 mm lens, I was pleased with the images I did manage to capture.
Of course, however stealthy you try to be, the deer are well aware of your presence.
Two young Fallow deer playing at what will be a serious business as they mature.
On our wander we came across this obelisk, which is about 20 m high and standing on a mound about 7 m high.
It`s made of red brick, and has a square plinth about 2.5 m high and has a square sinking in each face. The needle-formed obelisk rises without interruption, tapering to a width of 0.5m at the head.
The mound was part of an 18 century wilderness garden; a summerhouse of c.1760, together with a brick wall, was demolished and the bricks reused in the obelisk in about 1860.
Throughout the park there are numerous wonderful trees, some dead like this one, but which made a picture, I thought.
In the north-west corner of the park is a small brick and flint bridge, described as 'new' in a document dated 1815 (Williamson 1995). I am hoping it is this one - or maybe the other one!
The front of the Hall from the driveway, it not being accessible at this time of year. The gardens, but not the Hall, are open from May until mid September. We shall return to see the gardens another time.
A herd of Red deer disturbed by us as we approached.
The Church of St Mary on the edge of the park has connections with the Tollemache family dating back to the Middle Ages. St Mary is in fact that rare thing in Suffolk, an estate church.
The Tollemache family were living here in the 15th century, and it was John Tollemache who signed the contract for the tower in 1488 - it survives in the Bodleian Library.
One of the most striking feature of this church is what appears to be a dormer window to the rood along the south side of the nave. These exist at St Nicholas in Ipswich, and you might think this is something similar. In fact, it isn't. It was installed after the Reformation to accommodate a very large memorial moved here from the church at Bentley, the Tollemache family's other seat. And this is the key thing about this building today; it memorialises more than any other Suffolk building the dead of a single family. You step inside, and are surrounded on all sides by elaborate Tollemache memorials - I mean lots of them!
The dormer window mentioned above.
The highlight of a visit to St Mary are the magnificent memorial to generations of the Tollemache family. The most imposing of these was erected in 1615 in memory of the 1st Baronet, who died in 1550. The monument also commemorates 3 further generations of the Tollemache family, all named Lionel, who died in 1553, 1575, and 1605. Each Lionel Tollemache is represented by a kneeling figure set into a niche, with the eldest Lionel at the top and the three younger ones in a row beneath.Taken as a whole, the Tollemache memorials are a stunning set of monuments spanning over 300 years, beginning in the early 17th century. They are reason enough to visit Helmingham all by themselves.
You will also be struck by the biblical quotations that line the walls and fill every available space. They are the work of one of the major figures of 19th century evangelicalism, John Charles Ryle, first Bishop of Liverpool. He was Vicar here early in his career, before taking his muscular Christianity onto Stradbroke (where his enthusiasm for graffiti was toned down a bit) I have never come across a church with so many `slogans` on the wall!
15th century font, decorated with figures of lions standing on human heads.
Looking toward the altar you get some appreciation of the scale of the monuments.
To the left and right front of the entry to the Hall, are lodges - also listed Grade II
A huge amount of history lies in the grounds of this estate and makes for some fascinating reading. The park is a lovely walk, and worth doing just to see the deer, and of course the gardens we have yet to see - perhaps 2018?
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