Beauport Park
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Beauport Park consists of the Beauport Lodge and house, together with approximately 800 acres of mixed meadow/woodland, now sub-divided into a number of distinct plots and occupancy. The area has been in use since Roman times, and possibly even earlier.
Romano British Usage[edit]
An extensive series of ironworks (bloomeries) were found in 1862 within Beauport Park, leading to a supposition that this was the third-largest iron producer in the Roman Empire[1]. Further excavations in 1967 by Gerald Brodribb and Dr. Henry Cleere uncovered a well-preserved Roman bathhouse, with walls standing up to six feet high. Coins found at the site dated from 120 AD to 240 AD.
Early records[edit]
David Denham (an associate of John Collier (1685-1760)), whose will was proved in 1719 was recorded as having lived here.The connection with Collier would seem to have been via David’s wife Elizabeth (Delves) who was the aunt of Collier’s wife Mary. Denham’s son, also David, is recorded as being a ‘clerk’ to Collier in 1729. Denham either built or rebuilt a house on the estate. Eventually the house fell into Collier’s hand as with many other estates and properties around the town.[2].
Murray Ownership[edit]
Beauport (Park) was either built or rebuilt by General Murray (1721-1784)[3] and his wife Cordelia (nee Collier) between 1762 and 1766, the estate being named after a village near Quebec, Canada. In landscaping the site, Murray incorporated a number of rare and exotic trees. Murray died in 1784 without any heirs who were interested in keeping the property. His son (James Patrick Murray (1782-1834)) eventually selling the house to the executor of a John Lamb in January of 1804. This Lamb was not related to the Lamb family but originally had the name of 'Burges'[2]
Burgess Ownership[edit]
After passing through a number of different hands, the property came under the ownership of James Bland Burgess, who served as Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs under William Pitt. An obelisk opposite the front of the house commemorates his second son, Ensign Wentworth Noel Burgess, who was killed in 1812 during the Peninsular War at the age of 18. In 1821, James and his eldest son, Charles, adopted the surname Lamb in honor of their benefactor, John Lamb. An Ionic temple was erected in the woods in memory of James's wife, though it has since fallen into neglect.
Later History[edit]
By the 1860s, the estate was under the ownership of Sir Charles Lamb's son, Archibald, who leased the house to Thomas Brassey, a prominent railway engineer. Following Brassey's death in 1870, his son, who later became Lord Brassey, inherited the lease. During this period, in 1868, a massive slag heap was discovered on the estate. The borough surveyor utilized vast quantities of this material to metal the road between Hastings and Battle, with an estimated 100,000 tons excavated over a decade. |
When the grounds were mapped during the mid 19th century, a maze and 'tilting ground' (jousting ground) were represented within the estate. Charles Montolieu Lamb (1785-1864) was known to have made several alterations to the property during his occupation. [4] Thomas Brassey later made the house the seat of the his family[5]. During the cold winter of 1846 a Curling match was reportedly played within the grounds, drawing a large number of spectators[6],A visitor's guide published in the Hastings & St. Leonards Observer during 1869 states the following[7]:
4 miles, a mansion built by General Murray, and now the seat of T. Brassey, Jun., Esq. Open to visitors on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, from two till four, by tickets, to be obtained at Dorman's library, and Hoad's office, St. Leonards; and Prior's library, Hastings
1923 Fire[edit]
Tragedy struck in 1923 when a devastating fire ravaged the 18th-century building, leaving it almost entirely destroyed. The house was subsequently rebuilt in 1926. In 1825, the road now known as The Ridge was diverted further from Beauport Park in conjunction with new turnpike roads being constructed in the area. Two new lodges, South Lodge and West Lodge, were built but were demolished in the 1960s. The old Baldslow Alehouse, built in 1619, became the East Lodge.
WW2[edit]
When the buildings were occupied by Canadian soldiers, it is claimed that a number of tunnels and hides were constructed for the Auxiliary Units both under the building and in the surrounding woodlands.
Post-war[edit]
A caravan park 'Yewlands' (run by Mr. Booth during the early 1950s) occupied part of the estate during the late 1940s and 1950s, this has extended somewhat and is now known as the 'Beauport Holiday Park' with a mixture of static and touring caravans.
Archaeological Investigations[edit]
In 1966, amateur archaeologist Gerald Brodribb discovered evidence of Roman pottery, slag heaps, Roman tiles, and the remains of a Roman lead-lined water tank at Beauport Park. In 1969, while digging a test pit, he uncovered the Roman bathhouse, with walls surviving up to six feet in height, and found coins dating from 120 AD to 240 AD, leading some to state this was possiblys the largest Roman ironworks in the entire Roman Empire.
Current Day[edit]
Over the years, the building has served various purposes, including as a country club, golf club, and more recently, a fitness center. Today, the estate comprises the hotel, a health club, a riding school, a caravan park, a 186-acre golf course, and 164 acres of surrounding woodland, with the original estate now transected by The Ridge and Queensway. Some of the original outbuildings may also be found in Beauport Home Farm Close, a fairly recent development.
Images[edit]
- Images
1804 Map of Beauport Estate
Yewlands Caravan Park c1960
Yewlands c1960s
Ionic style temple in Beauport Wood. St.Leonards on sea
References & Notes
- ↑ Momentous Britain on Battle of Hastings possible alternative battlefields, accessdate: 26 July 2020
- ↑ a b O1.2 BEAUPORTv2.pdf: O1.2 BEAUPORTv2.pdf, accessdate: 12 December 2019
- ↑ Wikipedia: James Murray (British Army officer, born 1721) - Wikipedia, accessdate: 12 December 2019
- ↑ A Guide to Hastings & St Leonards (Thomas Ross 1835) pg.51 Google Books
- ↑ Osborne's Visitor's Guide to Hastings and St Leonards c1854 3rd ed. Pg. 76 Google Books
- ↑ Brett Manuscript Histories Vol. 3 Chap. 36
- ↑ Hastings & St Leonards Observer 12 March 1869 pg. 4
