Tuesday, June 09, 2015

Monday at Moseley Old Hall

Moseley Old Hall, a National Trust property, is south of Stafford and quite close to the city of Wolverhampton near the village of Coven.  We'd visited ages ago, in fact so long ago that it was before we had digital cameras, so I was looking forward to going back to view it again and see what changes had been made.

It is an Elizabethan farmhouse which was brick clad in the early 19th century when the ravages of its sitting over former coal mines became apparent.  It is still very much an Elizabethan house inside and as its owners the Whitgreaves were Roman Catholic in faith, in an era when this was quite a dangerous thing to be, the place is riddled with priest's holes and hiding places with a chapel in the attic which could be quickly dismantled and hidden away.


It's main claim to fame though is its connection with royalty namely King Charles II.  After the battle of Worcester in 1651 Charles, then Prince of Wales, was on the run for 41 days in all, so our very able guide informed us, until he finally escaped to France.  He was hidden first at the White Ladies Priory and then at nearby Boscobel House which is about ten miles from Moselely Old Hall, he famously spent a night there in an oak tree.  This is where the old celebration of Oak Apple day originates. He was then moved from there to  Moseley Old Hall.  Here is a - link - to more of the story.


We gathered for our tour near the wood pile and entered into the former brew house - now a kitchen area.



 
Downstairs is an Oak panelled room with many portraits of the Stuart Family and of the Whitgreave family plus a portrait of Jane Lane who took Charles, Prince of Wales as far as Bristol dressed as her servant.  All these people were rewarded well for their help when Charles returned as King in 1660.
 We were shown the priest holes and hiding places as we went around the house but I'm afraid it was too dark to get a decent photo as it was to get a photo of King Charles's bed.

This bed was in the attic close to the temporary chapel

A view of the knot garden from an upstairs window

Up in the roof is another 'hidey hole'

Original Elizabethan bricks in the chimney


The lady was grinding coffee for the Coffee House.  Each Monday in June there is a re-enactment of what it may have been like in a 17th century coffee house.

When we arrived the men - (only men were allowed in coffee houses - the only women allowed were servants) -  were discussing the issues of the day when the news came in and a proclamation read out informing of the death of King Charles II and the accession of his brother James as James II - immediately there was great dissent to this as he was known to be of the Roman Catholic faith.  The year was 1685.

Whilst in the coffee house I was given a pamphlet to read about the women's objections to their menfolk frequenting  the coffee houses, coffee they thought was the devil's brew.  We tasted the coffee which was served in little white dishes.

We then sought out the tree hide in the woods which was brilliant and a firm favourite with children.

 We had a lovely morning walking around the house and gardens

 the people in costume made it extra special.

 Everything here is quite photogenic and , as you can imagine, I took loads of photos.

We had a great time


Thank you for all your lovely comments on my last post, I'll get around to answering them soon and also to visiting you all.  This week so far is proving to be quite busy.

26 comments:

  1. I LOVE Moseley. It's ages since I went too. Looks like I need to go back.

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    1. There have been lots of changes since we visited last, including the woodland as well as a new reception area:)

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  2. What a wonderful place!

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  3. You have captured some lovely photos of the place. I didn't know about the tree hide in the woods. I will have to look out for it next time I am there.

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    1. Thank you, I think the hide is fairly new - it is great fun too:)

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  4. I've never been to Moseley Old Hall, it looks really interesting. I love it when there are re-enactors, it adds a lot to the atmosphere of a place.

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    1. The re-enactors do add a special quality to a place don't they? If ever you do visit you could also go to Boscobel House, where the Oak tree is, which isn't very far away:)

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  5. What a fabulous place to visit!!! You must have loved it! The knot garden is beautiful isn't it, a great view from the windows! xx

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    1. I loved the knot garden and the garden at the front of the house too:)

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  6. Oh my!!! What a stunning place! I'm SO envious you have seen a priest hole. It is my life ambition to see or find a priest hole or secret passage. X

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    1. There were two priest holes and a hidey hole in the roof too, you'd have liked it Kezzie:)

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  7. Looks a nice place that Rosie.

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  8. So pleased to see a place associated with Charles's time on the run and very timely for marking the recent Oak Apple Day. A opportunity to see the priest holes must have been fascinating and the house and gardens all looks very atmospheric with the actors in period dress and demonstrating what it would be like to have been there during those dramatic times.

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    1. I would have liked to have visited both Moseley and Boscobel on the weekend of Oak Apple Day but I also wanted to wait for the Mondays in June when they are re-enacting the 17th century coffee house:)

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  9. Lucky you, great photos, love, love, love the knot garden.

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    1. The knot garden is wonderful isn't it? This place is only just under an hour away from us too, not much further than Little Moreton but in the opposite direction of course:)

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  10. Lovely photos! I have been inside the house but I don't recognise anything from your photos - the only thing I recall is that view of the knot garden from the window!

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    1. That is a view that you can't forget isn't it? I was taking photos whilst we were being guided around so I had to wait for people to move about - perhaps I got some unsusual angles, also some of the rooms were too dark to take photos:)

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  11. Great photos Rosie. I especially like the ones of the woman walking away down the path in the garden and of the 'hidey hole' in the roof. Did you enjoy the coffee by the way? x

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    1. Yes, I like the photo of the woman in the gateway too. I wouldn't have wanted more than a sip of the coffee it was cold and bitter:)

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  12. This looks like a fabulous place. I love it when people dress up. It's not so much what they actually do, but their infectious enthusiasm. I'm thinking about joining the NT again.

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    1. It does add atmosphere when people wear costume, I did it for a short while at the Gladstone Museum although there we had to stay in character and only talk about what would have been known at the time setting, which was 1910. At Moseley and some other places although they are in costume they will discuss all things with you - the time they represent and things that are happening around them on that day too. We get a lot of enjoyment from being members of the NT and EH too:)

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