Part 29

The arms of the Duke of Devonshire are—_sable_, three harts’ heads, caboshed, _argent_, attired, _or_. Crest: a serpent noued, _proper_. Supporters: two bucks, _proper_, each wreathed round the neck with a chaplet of roses, alternately _argent_ and _azure_.

There are four principal entrances to Chatsworth Park, two of which—those at Edensor and Edensor Mill—are public, and the other two (at Baslow and at Beeley) are private. The Baslow Lodge, shown on our engraving, is stately and noble in the extreme, and forms a fitting entrance to so magnificent a domain. The Beeley Lodge is simple and unassuming; and that at Edensor, with its rustic cottages, remarkably pretty. The most picturesque, however, in regard to its situation, is the Edensor Mill Lodge, which we also engrave. Near it runs the river Derwent, spanned by the single arch of Beeley Bridge, and it is charmingly embosomed in trees and shrubs.

By whichever of the lodges the visitor enters this “wide domain,”—if from the south, it will be at Edensor Mill or Beeley, and from the north and other parts at Edensor or Baslow,—he will have a rich treat, indeed, of scenery to interest him on his progress to the mansion. The park is divided in two by the river Derwent, which flows through it, the mansion and the Baslow and Beeley Lodges being on one side, and Edensor, Edensor Lodge, and Edensor Mill Lodge on the other. From either of these latter routes, which are on the higher side of the park, the visitor obtains the finest views of the house and grounds, and will, in his approach, cross the Derwent by the elegant bridge shown in the engraving on page 343.

Arrived at the house, he will—after proper application at the Lodge, and the necessary permission obtained—be ushered through the exquisitely beautiful gates shown on the engraving on the next page, and be conducted through the court-yard—where stands a magnificent weeping ash-tree, of enormous size (we well remember seeing it removed, bodily, from Mile-Ash, near Derby, to its present proud position, as long ago as 1830)—to the state entrance. Admitted to the princely mansion, the first room the visitor enters is—

The SUB-HALL, a spacious apartment, the ceiling of which is enriched by a copy of Guido’s “Aurora,” painted by Miss Curzon. The sculpture in this sub-hall includes a statue of Domitian; busts of Homer, Jupiter, Ariadne, Socrates, Caracalla, and others. From this hall the visitor next enters the North Corridor, and, turning to his left, passes along its exquisitely inlaid marble floor, to the Great Hall, which occupies the whole length of the eastern side of the quadrangle.

The GREAT HALL, or GRAND HALL, is a noble room, 60 feet in length by 27 feet in width, and of the full height of the two principal stories of the mansion. The floor is formed of polished marble, laid in a remarkably striking geometric design, in mosaic, of black and white and veined marbles. It was originally the work of Henry Watson, being laid down by him in 1779; but was taken up and relaid, with considerable alterations, by the late Duke. In the centre of the hall stands an immense marble table, of Derbyshire marble, and the chimney-piece, which is very massive, is also of marble. At the south end of the hall is the grand staircase, leading to the state apartments, and at the north end, beyond the corridor, are the north stairs. The hall is four windows in length, and galleries of communication between the north and south run, midway in height, along the sides. The ceiling and walls of the upper story are painted in the most masterly manner in historical subjects, by Laguerre and Verrio. The series of subjects are events in the life of Julius Cæsar:—They are, his passing the Rubicon; his passing over to his army at Brundusium; sacrificing before going to the Senate, after the closing of the temple of Janus; and his death in the Senate House at the foot of Pompey’s pillar; and on the ceiling is his apotheosis or deification. Between the windows, and in the window-cases, are also painted trophies of arms, and wreaths of flowers, &c. In the hall are two remarkably fine bronze busts placed upon pedestals, and other interesting objects, among which is a fine canoe, the gift of the Sultan to the late Duke. Over the fire-place is a marble tablet bearing the following inscription:—

“ÆDES HAS PATERNAS DILECTISSIMAS. ANNO LIBERTATIS ANGLICÆ MDCLXXXVIII INSTITUTAS. GUL : S : DEVONIÆ DUX, ANNO MDCCCXI HÆRES ACCEPIT, ANNO MŒRORIS SUI MDCCCXL PERPECIT;”

which may be thus translated:—

“These well-loved ancestral halls, Begun in the year of English Freedom, 1688, William Spencer, Duke of Devonshire, inherited in 1811, And completed in the year of sorrow, 1840.”

The “year of sorrow,” so touchingly alluded to, being that of the death of the much-loved and highly-gifted Countess of Burlington, the wife of the present noble owner of Chatsworth. On the exterior of this grand hall, on the east side of the quadrangle, are some trophies of arms, &c., magnificently and boldly carved in _alto-relievo_ in stone, by Watson.

In this hall, of which our engraving gives but a sorry representation, the visitor is usually asked to remain for a short time, and to inscribe his name in the visitors’ book on the central table. From the centre of the south end of this noble room, the grand staircase leads up to the various suites of apartments on the library and state-room stories, and on either side of this staircase an open archway gives access to the “Grotto-Room,” the south corridor, and the apartments on the ground floor. From the corridor at the north end, the north stairs give access in like manner to the various apartments and to the north wing.

The house is three stories in height, and these are known as the basement, the library, and the state-room stories. Through the extreme kindness and liberality of the noble Duke a part of each of these stories is, under proper regulations, permitted to be shown to visitors. It is not our intention to describe these various apartments in the order in which they are shown to visitors—for this would for many reasons be an inconvenient and unwise arrangement—but will speak of them according to the stories on which they occur. And first we take the upper, or state-room story, which, like the others, runs round the four sides of the quadrangle. The State-rooms and Sketch-Gallery occupy the south side; the grand staircase is at the south-east angle; the continuation of the gallery of old masters, the west stairs, and a number of bed-rooms, including the Sabine-room, occupy the west side; the north is taken up with bed-rooms, with the north staircase at the north-east angle; while on the east are “Mary Queen of Scots’ Rooms,” so called because occupying the same position as those used by her in the old mansion which was removed and rebuilt, and other suites of splendid sleeping apartments which of course are not shown to the visitor.

The SKETCH-GALLERY, which, as we have said, occupies the south and a part of the west side, contains perhaps the most choice and extensive collection of original drawings by the old masters in any private collection, embracing the Italian, French, Flemish, Venetian, Spanish, and other schools; and containing matchless examples of Raffaelle, Michael Angelo, Albert Dürer, Titian, Rembrandt, Rubens, Leonardo da Vinci, Poussin, Claude, Salvator Rosa, Correggio, Luca Signorelli, Andrea del Sarto, Lo Spagna, Giulio Romano, Caravaggio, Zucchero, Andrea Mantegna, Parmigiano, Giorgione, Giulio Campagnola, Paul Veronese, the Carracci, Guido Reni, Domenichino, Guercino, Holbein, Lucas Cranach, Lucas Van Leyden, Vandyke, Van der Velde, Jan Miel, and indeed of almost every well-known name. The collection was formed by the second Duke of Devonshire at considerable cost; the nucleus being purchased at Rotterdam. Among those by Michael Angelo are a study for the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel; some spirited studies of figures for the same ceiling; and a Virgin and Child. By Leonardo da Vinci a fine head of the Virgin. By Raffaelle are the sketch for the picture by Pinturicchio at Sienna, of “Æneas Silvius kissing the foot of Pope Eugenius IV. at the Council of Basle;” the figure of St. Paul for the cartoon of “The Sacrifice at Lystra;” “St. Catherine,” the original sketch for the picture now in the National Gallery; “the Virgin and Child;” “Joseph discovering himself to his Brethren;” and others. By Holbein, some of the finest known examples, including “the Fall of Phaeton,” “the Last Judgment,” “Hagar and Ishmael,” “Diana and Actæon,” and others. By Albert Dürer several fine examples. Altogether the collection is the most remarkable in any mansion.

The State-apartments, which are entered from this Gallery, consist of a splendid suite of rooms, occupying the entire length of the building. The entrance is through a small apartment around the walls of which is arranged a fine collection of examples of Ceramic Art, including many good specimens of the more famous English and foreign makes. These were, in great measure, removed here from the Duke’s villa at Chiswick. Adjoining this, at the south-west angles, is—

The STATE DRESSING-ROOM, the coved ceiling of which is beautifully painted, the subject being, in the centre, the flight of Mercury on his mission to Paris, and, on the coving, groups representing the Arts and Sciences. The wood-carving in this room, as in the whole of this suite of apartments, is of the most wonderful and most exquisitely beautiful character, and is unmatched in any other existing mansion. On the west side are four pendants and a group of the most delicate workmanship, and over the principal doorway is represented a group of carvers’ tools, &c.—a globe, compass, brace and bit, square, augurs, chisels, gouges, _cum multis aliis_, and a small bust. This apartment contains some fine Japan, inlaid, and other cabinets, and curious old earthenware; and on the walls, besides a clever picture in mosaic, is a frame containing what is universally admitted to be the finest and most wonderful specimen of wood-carving ever executed;—this we engrave. It is usually called “Grinling Gibbons’ masterpiece,” and whether by Gibbons or not (and there is no direct authority either one way or other), it is, _indeed_, a masterpiece of art. Concerning the question whether the carving is by Gibbons or not, we shall have a few words to say when writing of the chapel. The “masterpiece” is a group consisting of a cravat of point-lace, as clear and delicate in the open-work as the finest lace itself, a woodcock, some foliage, and a medal with a bust in relief. Of this group Horace Walpole thus wrote:—“When Gibbons had finished his work at that palace (Chatsworth) he presented the Duke with a point cravat, a woodcock, and a medal with his own head, all preserved in a glass-case in the gallery;” but he had no authority for any such statement, nor is there any record of Gibbons having ever been at Chatsworth. From the door of this room the vista, when looking through the state-apartments, is remarkably striking and effective; the flooring throughout the suite being of oak parqueterie which reflects the light in a pleasing manner. This we engrave.

The OLD STATE-BED-ROOM, the first apartment seen through the doorway in our engraving, is a fine and very interesting apartment. The ceiling, which is coved, is splendidly painted, the principal subject being “Aurora chasing away the Night;” and the walls are hung with embossed leather of rich arabesque pattern, heavily gilded; the frieze, also of embossed leather, is richly foliated, with medallions bearing respectively the bust of the late Duke of Devonshire, his crest and coronet, and his monogram, alternating round the room. Over the doorways are splendid examples of wood-carving of groups of musical instruments; on one group is suspended a medallion head of Charles II., and the words “CAROLVS II. DEI GRATIA,” and on the other a watch. Over and around the chimney-piece are cherubs’ heads, birds, foliage, &c., of the same fine class of wood-carving. In this room (besides cabinets, vases, and beakers, and a charming model of the tomb of Madame Langlan, at Hildebank, near Berne, in which the spirits of the mother and child are seen bursting through their broken tomb) is a noble and ancient embroidered canopy and state-chair, the work of Christiana, Countess of Devonshire, the wife of the second Earl of Devonshire.

The canopy is of crimson velvet, exquisitely covered with needlework in gold and colours, in groups of figures, trees, animals, and insects;—here, a goat, a stag, a fox, a rabbit, a pig, dogs both leashed and single, a horse, an eagle, and a swan; there, butterflies, flies, and innumerable other devices around; while inside the top a group of three figures within a border is in the centre, and the rest dotted with animals, flowers, &c., with a border of figures and foliage. The back of the canopy bears, above the chair, the arms of Cavendish (_sable_, three bucks’ heads caboshed, _argent_, attired _or_) impaling those of Bruce of Kinloss (_or_, a saltire and a chief, _gules_, on a canton, _argent_, a lion rampant, _azure_), with mantling, helmet, crest, &c. Supporters, dexter, a stag, proper, gorged with a wreath of roses, _argent_ and _azure_, attired _or_, for Cavendish; sinister, a wild man, proper, wreathed round the head and loins with laurel, _vert_, for Bruce. Motto, CAVENDO TVTVS FVIMVS; the first part, “Cavendo Tvtvs,” being the Cavendish motto, and the latter part, “Fvimvs,” that of Bruce; the rest of the velvet is covered with flowers, animals, &c., and surrounded by a border of groups and flowers. The chair is of the same character, Christiana, Countess of Devonshire, to whose fair hands is owing this charming piece of embroidery, and to whose good taste the arrangement of these blended armorial insignia is due, was the daughter of Edward, Lord Bruce of Kinloss, and sister of the first Earl of Elgin, from whom the present ninth Earl is lineally descended. The armorial bearings upon this canopy are therefore peculiarly interesting as showing, not only the impaled arms themselves, but the blended supporters and motto, of Cavendish and Bruce. In this room are also preserved the coronation chairs and foot-stools of George III., and Queen Charlotte, and of William IV. and Queen Adelaide; and a wardrobe which is said, whether correctly or not, to have belonged to Louis XVI.

The STATE MUSIC-ROOM, like the others, contains some exquisite wood-carving. Over one doorway are flowers, fruit, wreaths, wings, &c., and a ribbon with the family motto “CAVENDO TVTVS;” over the other, flowers, fruit, and cornucopia; and over the chimney-piece are heads, festoons, flowers, fruit, corn, foliage, &c., all true to nature. Over the central door is a group of musical instruments, and in the centre of the frieze is a garter and monogram. The walls are hung with embossed leather, richly gilt and heightened with blue, and the frieze has the medallion heads, crest, and monogram of the late Duke, as in the apartment just described. The ceiling is splendidly painted with mythological subjects, and several interesting pictures, busts, and other objects, are arranged in the room. One of the features of this apartment remains to be noticed. It is a curious piece of deceptive painting on one of the double doors leading to the gallery—a fiddle painted so cleverly on the door itself as to have, in the subdued light of the half-closed door, all the appearance of the instrument itself hanging upon a peg. The tradition of Chatsworth is, that this matchless piece of painting was done by Verrio to deceive Gibbons, who, in his carvings, had deceived others by his close imitation of nature.

The STATE DRAWING-ROOM has its walls hung with tapestry from Raffaelle’s cartoons, and its carved ceiling is splendidly painted with mythological and allegorical subjects, in the same manner as the rest of this suite of rooms. The carving over one of the doors is a military trophy, consisting of swords, drum, battle-axes, shield, helmet, with dragon crest, foliage, &c.; and over the other, military music and foliage. Above the chimney-piece, around an oval in which is a portrait of the first Duke, are Cupids, trophies, shells, foliage, masks, helmets, arms, &c., and an owl; beneath these are two carved banners with the Cavendish arms, tied together with a snake (the family crest). Among the furniture and adornments of this room are some fine examples of china and earthenware, and a remarkably large malachite table.

The STATE DINING-ROOM, which forms the south-east angle of the building, is a splendid apartment, the ceiling of which, by Verrio, is of the most masterly conception, and represents, among an assemblage of gods and goddesses, the Fates cutting the thread of life, &c., and on one side of the coving is a monogram of the letter D.

The carvings in this noble apartment are of matchless character, and hang in a profusion that is almost bewildering. In the panels of the wainscoted walls are festoons of flowers, &c.; over one doorway is a group of leaves and corn, and over the other two are splendid groups of crabs, lobsters, fish, and shells, all “as true to nature as nature itself.” Over the fire-place, across the top, and hanging down the sides of an octagonal tablet, is the richest of all the rich carvings of this suite of rooms. It consists of dead game—heron, pheasants, &c., at the top; over and around these a net is loosely thrown, which, hanging down the sides, forms a groundwork of festoons, on which hang pheasants, woodcocks, grouse, partridges, snipes, and other birds, so true to life that it is only by careful examination that the spectator can discover that they, with the net and all the mouldings, are carved out of solid wood. In this room are several busts in marble by Chantrey, Nollekens, and others. Among these are the Emperor Nicholas of Russia, and his Empress; Fox; Canning; Francis, Duke of Bedford; Lord G. H. Cavendish, &c. There are also cabinets of rare old china. On the central table will be noticed, among rare and valuable articles, the rosary of King Henry VIII.; a fine set of carved ivory chessmen; ivory-carvings, rare glass and china; and silver filigree and other ornaments. And there is also the malachite clock presented to the late Duke by the Emperor Nicholas of Russia, and an exquisitely sculptured marble model of the Victoria Regia.

From this room a doorway opens on to the GRAND STAIRCASE—the casings of the doorways, of exquisitely-carved marble, being worthy of especial note—in the south-east angle. Opposite this doorway another door opens into a suite of apartments, of course not shown to visitors, but to which some brief allusion may here be made. Here are the rooms usually known as MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS’ ROOMS, but which really have no possible connection with that ill-fated lady. They are so called because they occupy the same position in the present building as those used by her did in the old one; they overlook the inner court, or quadrangle, on its east side. The other suites of bed-rooms adjoining are known as the “Leicester” and “Wellington” rooms, and they are fitted, as may well be supposed, in a style of princely magnificence. In one of these rooms is the bed and bed-room suite used by Her Majesty Queen Victoria when a guest at Chatsworth. This suite is of satin-wood, hung in green and white satin.

On this same floor is the SABINE-ROOM, so called from the subject of the “Rape of the Sabines,” by which it is adorned. This singular apartment, when the doors are closed, is one large painting, the whole surface, from floor to ceiling, doors included, being painted with figures, groups, and architecture, &c. The ceiling, too, is splendidly painted with an allegorical subject. At the angles of the coving is the monogram of the Duke of Devonshire, within a garter, and surmounted by the Ducal coronet. The furniture of this and the adjoining room is of the finest, most massive, and sumptuous description.

The MIDDLE, or LIBRARY STORY, besides occupying the four sides of the quadrangle or inner court (in the same manner as the upper story), extends the whole length of the north wing; it is, therefore, the most extensive and important part of the mansion. The grand staircase is at the inner south-east angle, and the north stairs at the inner north-east angle. The south side is taken up with the gallery of paintings, the chapel (at the south-west angle), the billiard-rooms, and the two drawing-rooms; the west by the gallery of paintings, the west staircase, and suites of bed-rooms; the north side by the library-corridor and sumptuous bed-rooms, &c.; and the east side by galleries of the great hall, and the library and ante-library. The north wing, continuing in a line with the libraries, comprises the dining-room, sculpture-gallery, and orangery.

The GALLERY OF PAINTINGS, which occupies two sides of the quadrangle, and from which access is had to the various apartments, contains, with the adjoining ante-room, many remarkably fine and valuable art-treasures—such, indeed, as no other mansion can boast. Among these, it will be sufficient to name Landseer’s original paintings of “Bolton Abbey in the Olden Time,” and “Laying down the Law,” a number of family portraits by Reynolds, Lawrence, and others; with two remarkable representations of the old mansion, one of which we engrave on page 325.

The BILLIARD or MUSIC-ROOM, and the GRAND DRAWING-ROOMS, which form one continued suite, are as well-proportioned, as chastely and elegantly decorated, and as magnificently furnished, as can well be imagined, and they contain a matchless collection of works of art. In the billiard-room, from which a door opens into the gallery of the chapel, are several remarkably good paintings, the most striking of which are an admirable full-length portrait of the present Duke of Devonshire, seated, and a full-length portrait of the father of the present noble Duke. Among the treasures of art in the drawing-room (the ornaments of the ceiling and cornices of which are richly gilt) may just be named Reynolds’s celebrated portrait of “the beautiful Duchess” of Devonshire, Rembrandt’s grand head of a Jewish Rabbi, and picture-gems by Claude, Murillo, Bassano, Steinwyck, Salvator Rosa, Titian, Berghem, Gaspar Poussin, Leonardo da Vinci, Primaticcio, Parmigiano, Watteau, Teniers, Breughel, Guercino, Giordione, Carlo Maratti, Jan Miel, and others.

In the Grand Drawing-room, which has a splendid ceiling divided into compartments, and, with the massive panellings of the pictures let into the walls, is richly gilt, are some rare and priceless full-length paintings. These are Philip II., by Titian; Admiral Capella, and Antonio de Dominis, by Tintoretto; the Duke of Albemarle, by Dobson; Henry VIII., by Holbein; Mary Queen of Scots, by Zucchero; and Charles I., by Jansen. The furniture is of the most sumptuous character, and every elegancy which the most perfect taste can desire, or the most liberal expenditure secure, adds endless charms to the room. We engrave one portion of this apartment, and also the Hebe of Canova, with which, and other rarities, it is graced.