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Andrew Williamson

Harewood Discovery in the Yorkshire Post…

In case you missed it in the paper, the Yorkshire Post were intrigued by a recent discovery made during current refurbishment work on the offices at Harewood House.

We’re not talking about a piece of unknown Chippendale or a Turner watercolour, but a brief insight into the lives of two workmen who were working at Harewood on 14th April 1912 –  an anniversary that’s been much talked about recently following the centenary anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic.

Found behind a panel on a doorway, E Sunderland and E Wilton wrote:

Titanic Discovery

Titantic Disaster
Sunday April 14th 1912
1503 persons drowned
705 persons saved
Commander Capt: Smith
This disaster happened near [illegible].
The boat was the largest afloat and on her maiden voyage.
E Sunderland
E Wilton
Painters

Robert Kay, Harewood’s chief decorator, who himself has worked at Harewood for 37 years, knew of Edgar Sunderland from his predecessor who remembered the man.  ‘He was well known for leaving time capsules and notes around the House.  We recently found photographs and newspaper cuttings behind a wall in the State Gallery from 1886.  It’s a wonderful way to enjoy and find out more about the legacy of people working at Harewood and we never know what we might find next.  I started work on the door panel on 14th May and it was eerie finding this exactly 100 years and one month from the date of the sinking, particularly as this year sees the centenary.’

Henry, 6th Earl of Harewood would have been in his early twenties on this date and the rooms continued to be used by the Lascelles’ family through the childhood’s of the 7th Earl of Harewood, who died in July last year, and his son David Lascelles, the 8th Earl of Harewood and his brothers.

In the early 1980s , Harewood revealed its most extraordinary find, handpainted Chinese wallpaper which had originally hung in the Chintz Bedroom in 1769 by Chippendale’s men.  But as fashions changed, it was removed, stored and forgotten for almost 2 centuries.  This fabulous wallpaper was conserved and re-hung in the newly refurbished East Bedroom for visitors to enjoy in 2008.

Harewood continues to evolve, both as a visitor destination and a major player in Yorkshire’s heritage.  The University of York is currently engaged in an archaeological dig on the site of Gawthorpe, which was the predecessor to Harewood House.  The dig will form a major element of Harewood’s major forthcoming Medieval Faire at the end of June and the 5 year celebration of Medieval at Harewood.  This is the second summer students from the University of York have been working in the grounds and finds continue to astound.

Harewood continues to provide clues to its history, some that we search for and some that we come upon by chance.  Harewood and its people might change across the centuries, but if anything is a constant here, it is change and Harewood looks forward to embracing finds in the future …. now where did Robert put that Jubilee time capsule?

Visit Harewood this Summer… Discover the House, Grounds and Gardens – you can check our opening times and prices on our website

News from the Bookshop…

Bookshop - Terrace Cottage

You may have noticed trestle tables outside the bookshop with a glorious display of healthy plants for sale including flowers, herbs and vegetables….the new plant stall at the bookshop is open!

Call into the Bookshop on your next visit to Harewood…

We have hardbacks and paperbacks, books for adults, books for children and a comfy area for you to kick back, relax, enjoy a cup of coffee and browse the books at you leisure.

Harewood Second-hand Bookshop is run by a team of volunteers and depends entirely on donations…

All proceeds help fund educational projects around Harewood House and Gardens and the Bookshop run events and activities to promote reading to the young and old.

We are currently desperate for music CDs, so if you are spring cleaning your collections, we would love to have any unwanted copies you may have…

Shhhhhhh….the Clandestine Cake Club comes to Harewood, read the bookshop newsletter to find out more… There’s also still time to enter our Favourite Five survey to let us know your top reads.

Read more on the Bookshop webpage…

New ‘Dig for Victory’ bed in the Walled Garden this Summer

This year as part of Royal Harewood celebrations in the House, we are planting our own ‘Dig for Victory’ bed in the Walled Garden. A scaled-down version of the original Dig for Victory beds, this will be a learning resource for school groups and also an opportunity for visitors to look back on the history of the Gardens at Harewood.

The Dig for Victorycampaign was launched at the outbreak of the Second World War. It encouraged people to cultivate their gardens and grow food to support the war effort.

This year at Harewood we are recreatingDig for Victory Leaflet No.1 on this bed (see poster).

We have sourced, where possible, varieties of vegetables that were grown during the war years.

Whilst the bed is not as long as recommended in the poster, we have tried to be as true to the planting plan as possible.

Visit the Walled Garden this Summer, and feel free to ask a gardener for more information!

HRH Princess Mary made Harewood her home thoughout 4 decades and saw many changes in the use of the Gardens at Harewood, especially during the war years. She was also a keen gardener and plantswoman herself, and had a significant impact on the Gardens – the legacy of which is still visible in the Gardens today.

In 2012 we will also be launching a new rose ‘Yorkshire Princess’, a fitting tribute to the Princess who loved roses and had many varieties planted on the Terrace here at Harewood in her time…

Read more about the Gardens on our website…

http://www.harewood.org/grounds/gardens

HRH Princess Anne visits Harewood ahead of ‘Royal Harewood’ exhibition launch

HRH Princess Anne visited Harewood today ahead of our new exhibition season… The Princess was greeted by Lord and Lady Harewood, Harewood Chief Executive Mike Schafer and Harewood House Staff. Presented with one of Harewood’s new roses, Rosa ‘Yorkshire Princess’ the Princess toured the exhibitions on the State Floor, ‘Royal Harewood: Celebrating the Life of the Yorkshire Princess‘, as well as our temporary exhibition in the Terrace Gallery ‘Marcus Adams: Royal Photogrpaher‘…

Royal Harewood - Portrait

Celebrating the Life of The Yorkshire Princess

Harewood was home to HRH Princess Mary, The Princess Royal, through four decades. Her love of Yorkshire and the affection the people of Yorkshire felt for her in return mean that she will always be remembered as ‘The Yorkshire Princess’.

Princess Mary married Henry, 6th Earl of Harewood in 1922 and they moved into Harewood House in 1929. They were avid collectors and, with the generous help of the Heritage Lottery Fund, we will be displaying for the first time many of the things that were precious to her: personal items such as exquisite fans, gifts from heads of state, presents from her royal relations by the great designer Fabergé. These displays provide a glimpse into the life and loves of a very ‘Yorkshire Princess’.

Marcus Adams: Royal Photographer

Exhibition - Marcus Adams Royal Photographer - The Queen Princess Anne and Prince Charles

In the Terrace Gallery a special collection of photographs taken by favourite royal photographer Marcus Adams, and generously lent by The Queen from The Royal Collection, capture with wonderful charm the young Princess Elizabeth, life as the new royal family, the pre-war years and then later a new generation of royals; Prince Charles and Princess Anne. Don’t miss the opportunity to see these striking, fun, informal and vibrant photographs.

Visit the House this season and round your visit off with a delicious cream tea in the Terrace Café! Marcus Adams exhibition open until Sunday 17 June, and Royal Harewood: Celebrating the Life of the Yorkshire Princess runs until 30 Sept.

Click here to visit our exhibitions pages

 

Uncovering the past: Gawthorpe Hall Dig at Harewood

Student archaeologists on trail of Yorkshire gem’s hidden past

Gawthorpe Dig with York University Archaeology Department - gawthorpe old drawing

Archaeologists from the University of York are revealing intriguing traces — hidden for more than two centuries — of the forerunner of one of Yorkshire’s great country houses.

In the shadow of Harewood House, a team of undergraduate students is carrying out the painstaking task of unearthing the remnants of Harewood’s predecessor, Gawthorpe Hall, which was demolished in 1773.

After carrying out exploratory digs and geophysical surveys over the last two years, the student archaeologists are spending three weeks uncovering the layout of the Hall of which only two contemporary illustrations survive.

Education sessions will allow school groups to explore the excavation, get their hands dirty digging and talk to the archaeologists. Workshops, lectures and public tours of the dig as well as exhibits of finds will be a feature of Harewood’s Medieval Festival on 16th and 17th July. You’ll also find out more about Harewood All Saints’ Church (founded in 1116), the 12th century Castle and medieval village of ‘Harwood’ [then spelt without an ‘e’]. Visit our Medieval Festival event webpage for details.

Gawthorpe Dig 2011 - finds

The archaeologists have already discovered a wealth of artefacts including a coin dating from the early 15th century, an 18th century chamber pot, decorative glassware and wine bottle fragments, decorative pins and a thimble as well as a range of ceramics from the medieval period up to the 18th century, which will help us to tell the story of how the family lived, how the hall was decorated and much more besides. The students have also unearthed a flint arrowhead dating back to pre-history.

Dr Finch said: “As well as providing a much longer history of Harewood that stretches thousands of years back into prehistory, the archaeology will give us a unique insight into the impact the Caribbean sugar industry and slavery had, not just on the fortunes of the Lascelles family, but on English landscape and society as a whole over two hundred years ago.”

Gawthorpe Dig 2011

David Lascelles said: “So much of what we know of Harewood’s history focuses on Harewood House and who has lived there. The excavation being done by York University students is helping to fill some of the gaps of that earlier history and – we all hope – answer some of the questions about Gawthorpe. We’ll be re-creating medieval Harewood in a digital “fly-by” to be shown as part of our Medieval Festival event in July, revealing a landscape without Harewood House and before Capability Brown’s intervention.”

Dr Finch headed a team from the University of York which travelled to Barbados last month to investigate the old Lascelles plantations, some of which still operate as sugar plantations with historic houses and factory buildings still surviving. Artefacts discovered there will be added to those found at Gawthorpe to create a new teaching resource based in Barbados and Yorkshire.

Education Sessions for Schools

Bookable education sessions will allow school groups to explore the excavation, get their hands dirty digging and talk to the archaeologists. Contact our Learning department for details on 0113 218 1043 or email.

To read more about our upcoming Medieval Festival, visit our What’s On pages here.

University of York logo

For more information about the University of York’s Department of Archaeology visit their website here…

You can also visit the dig to see the archaeology in action. Click here to read more…

Keep up with the progress of the archaeology team on their blog or facebook
You can see finds from the Dig in the Terrace Gallery as part of our Summer exhibitions programme. Click here to read more…

This summer, explore Medieval Harewood with us…

Find out more on our Medieval Harewood webpages…