ANNESLEY HALL

I continue with my trio of local Grand Houses with Annesley Hall & it's connections to Newstead Abbey.

Annesley Hall

1982

These first two photos of the Hall & the ruins of All Saints Church were taken from the public footpath which runs through the grounds in 1982.

1982

Annesley Hall, originally the home of the Annesley Family is a Grade II listed building with parts of the Hall dating back to the 13th century. In the mid 15th century the Hall passed to the Chaworth family via the marriage of Alice Annesley, heiress to the Manor of Annesley & George Chaworth, third son of Sir John Chaworth of Wiverton. Annesley Hall was to become the Chaworth family seat for the next 350 years.
In the 17th century, Patrick Chaworth, the 3rd Viscount enlarged Annesley Hall with him taking residence there after Wiverton Hall had been damaged during the Civil War. 

The Byron's Newstead Estate lies on the eastern edge of the Chaworth-Musters Annesley Estate with the two houses only being two & a half miles apart & as previously wrote the lives of the two families are interconnected in various ways.
My next connection is the quarrel which took place in 1765 between William Chaworth & the 5th Lord Byron at the Star & Garter Tavern in Pall Mall, London. The disagreement about how to stop poachers on their neighbouring estates resulted in a sword duel in which Chaworth lost his life. William was buried on the 5th February 1765 in the now ruined Old Annesley Church next to the Hall. 
A recent visit to Newstead Abbey has resulted me in photographing the 5th Lord Byron's sword which did the dastardly deed. After the duel Byron was only fined for his actions & I have been told that he then proudly displayed the sword in his house, showing all visitors who came to see him. 

The next notable period of the Hall was in 1803 when Lord Byron fell in love with Mary Chaworth. Byron wrote poetry for Mary & in the poem "The Dream" it included references to places on the Estate. Mary did not marry Byron but married John Musters of Colwick Hall in 1805 with John taking the Chaworth name with his own. The marriage took place at All Saints Church next to the Hall & Mary walked the short distance to the ceremony. The Chaworth-Musters family became one of the most powerful families in Nottinghamshire with John Chaworth-Musters being appointed High Sheriff of Nottingham in 1864 - 65.

Link to photo of a painting of Mary Chaworth aged 17.
http://www.picturethepast.org.uk/frontend.php?action=printdetails&keywords=Ref_No_increment;EQUALS;NTGM009346&prevUrl=

Alterations to the Hall where made in the 18th & 19th centuries & included a service wing which was built in 1880. The Hall remained in the family until Major Robert Patricius Chaworth-Musters sold the Hall in 1972/3 & then moved to nearby Felley Abbey which I write about next & is another one of my connections.

The following Annesley Hall photos were taken in September 2015 on two glorious days with the first 10 being taken from the grounds of All Saints Church which is accessible from a small car park at the side of the Church.

All Saints Church

The life of the Hall since 1972 has had it's ups & quite a few downs with it being damaged by fire on several occasions, but I can now report that the future is looking promising with the present owners, Dennis Rye Limited preparing to reinstate the 2nd & 3rd floors to the building which were badly destroyed by fire on 16th May 2015.
Major Robert Chaworth-Musters originally sold the Hall to the Football Association who's intentions were to build a soccer training centre there but the Association were unable in their planning applications to divert the footpaths which pass through the estate & the Hall & it's grounds were sold to the present owners who have over the years made the building safe & water tight until the series of fires which has left it in the position that you see it in today. Steve Rye of Dennis Rye Ltd has told me that the building is perfectly sound despite the fires & there are future plans to bring the Hall back to life, so this now sorry shell can be reborn & be accessed by the public once more. Steve also tells me that the Byron & other local historical societies frequently visit the site with it having connections to the Byron Family.

Three photos of the carriage & stable block & this building may have also contained the Estate offices & servants quarters.

This is the nearest shot you can get of the Hall from the Church grounds.

The following photos of the Hall have been reproduced in the post with the permission of Steve Rye of Dennis Rye Ltd. The Hall grounds are not accessible to the general public but the Hall can be viewed from the public footpath which runs through the grounds, so take a good zoom lens & from the church yard. 

On my second visit the following day I had the opportunity to view the Hall at close hand. It is sad to think that this building was habitable before the fires & is now boarded up, but we can only hope that the restoration will soon take place & this historic Hall will one day be lived in again.

This final photo was taken from the public footpath same as the one I took in 1978.

Link to an ariel photo of Annesley Hall taken in 1973, the year Major Chaworth-Musters left for nearby Felley Abbey. 
Also to note is that the north wing of the house (nearest part towards the road) is still standing at this date.
http://www.picturethepast.org.uk/frontend.php?action=printdetails&keywords=Ref_No_increment;EQUALS;NTGM013490&prevUrl=