The following notes on the Ferrands were sent to us by Brenda Graham, who has ancestoral links with the Ferrands via the Richardson family. - Ed.
It is recorded that the Ferrands came with William de Fortibus, Earl of Albemarle (or Aumal) and Lord of Skipton Castle from Normandy in the late12th century.
The King of England was the Duke of Normandy at that time - Aumal is situated on the Eastern border of Normandy. Hereditary custody of the Gate of Skipton Castle was granted to William Ferrand in about 1190 by William de Fortibus. The grandson of William de Fortibus had one surviving child, Aveline, who married Edmund Plantagenet, Earl of Lancaster, second son of Henry Ill, this marriage produced no issue and it was then that the Castle was escheated to the crown in c1296. The Bailiffs of Queen Dowager Eleanour contested the hereditary grant of the custody of the Gate of Skipton Castle and from this it is known that the first three custodians of the Gate were Hugo, Henry and then Hugo Ferrand.
This latter Hugo Ferrand was reinstated in 1307. The barony of Skipton was then granted to Robert Clifford; the Ferrands served four generations of de Fortibus and eleven generations of Cliffords a total of more than four hundred years, which is quite remarkable. Sir Francis Clifford, later the 4th Earl of Cumberland, petitioned the Earl Marshall for a grant of Arms for William Ferrand of Carleton Hall 'by reason of the fidelity and good service of himself and his ancestors to our house ever since our possession of Skipton Castle, these four hundred years continuing.'
The arms were granted on 20th March 1586. Their Motto Justus Propositi Tenax, roughly translated, Firm and Fair of Purpose, was indicative of their loyalty, commitment and bravery during centuries of difficult and tumultuous times. The Ferrands lived at Carleton, 2 miles south of Skipton. John Ferrand lived there in 1739. The sole heiress of the Dawtry (or de Altaripa) family married Roger Ferrand in 1475, whose name is the earliest of the Grant of Arms. His grandson built Carleton Hall in 1584. When the hall was pulled down in the 1920s William Ferrand was given the date stone and Dawtry Coat of Arms, which he placed in the courtyard of St Ives, Bingley. On a visit to Skipton Castle recently, when all the visitors had gone, I was allowed to close the huge wooden gates just as our ancestors would have done.
The present gates date back to the 1500s; they are beautifully crafted and so cleverly hung that I could close these impressive gates, at a touch, with the palm of my hand. I felt very honoured indeed.
This is a short account of the history of the early Ferrands, some gleaned from the National Archives and also members of the Ferrand family, past and present, who have dedicated many years of research to produce accurate and detailed records of the family. Brenda Graham 2008.
If you take the path to the left, as you enter from the Keighley Road entrance.
Or alternatively walk along side Coppice pond and continue along up the hill.
You will come to Lady Blantyre's Rock.
The left hand picture shows the stone plaque that was placed under the rock. Some years ago, this was badly damaged by vandals but was expertly repaired by Bradford Metropolitan Council Parks Department. The inscription reads as follows: -
The Dowager Lady Blantyre for nearly 30 years was accustomed, in Summer to sit under this rock reading and enjoying the scenery In 1857 St Ives was altered and enlarged from plans entirely drawn by herself and her daughter the Honr'bl Mrs Ferrand.
The Terrace and the flower garden were also designed by them.
Her Ladyship ended her last visit on the 21st of November 1874 and died resting on the Rock of Ages at Lennox- love in East Lothian on the 19th of the following November, in her 84th year with faculties unimpaired, and most deeply lamented.
Mr Ferrand her son in law mournfully dedicated this rustic monument to her beloved memory, and with confidence requested the future owners to preserve it as an affectionate Memento of the best of Mothers and the sweetest of women’
William Busfeild Ferrand 1809 - 1889
Take the path up the right hand side of the rock and you will face a granite pinnacle, dedicated to the memory of William Busfeild Ferrand. The monument now has an open aspect, looking across to St David’s Ruin near 'Black Hills', Wilsden, Cullingworth and the moors above Hebden Bridge.
There are picnic benches and table if you want to recover from the walk up the hill.
Three of the four panels below the spike are carved with text, these are as follows: -
*correct spelling of Busfeild
In Bingley Cemetery rests William Ferrand of St Ives who so affectionately dedicated the rustic monument below this rock to my dear mother and I Fanny Mary Ferrand his loving wife dedicated this memorial to his dear and lamented memory.
In early life he took an active part in support of the ten hours factory bill and after seventeen years of ceaseless effort he assisted as MP for Knaresbro in carrying it through the House of Commons.
He brought under notice the iniquity of the truck system and a stringent law was passed to compel the payment of wages in the current coin of the realm.
He vigorously exposed the harsh clauses of the poor law, until they were removed from the statute book, and he was the firm denouncer of all corruption among public men.
He planted about 400acres of wood for the benefit of the property and to beautify his native place.
He was MP for Knaresbro from 1841 to 1847 and for Devenport from 1863 to 1865 was a deputy Lieutenant of the West Riding and acted as a magistrate for nearly 50 years during a great portion of which time he presided as chairman of the Keighley Petty Sessional Division in perfect harmony with his fellow magistrates.
He died 31st March 1889 in his 80th year.
The following notes on W.B Ferrand were sent to us by Brenda Graham, who has ancestral links with the Ferrands via the Richardson family. - Ed.
William Busfeild (Busfeild is the correct spelling) was born at Cottingley Bridge in 1809 the home of his mother Sarah (nee Ferrand) and Currer Fothergill Busfeild. The family was not a wealthy one and at times was supported by both Edward and Walker Ferrand. The Ferrands were perhaps endowed with more wealth than the Busfeilds but the Busfeilds were proven intellects and University educated.
They served their respective areas in many ways from practising law and serving as JPs to ministers of the church. Johnson Atkinson had married Elizabeth Busfeild in 1765. She was the sole heiress to her uncle Thomas Busfeild of Ryshworth and in time Johnson Atkinson added Busfeild to his name. In days gone by a change of family name was not uncommon, enabling a continuation of the family estates to a blood relative, who did not bear the family name.
There was an element of retaining the power and wealth of a family but it also allowed the continuation of a dynasty. Edward Ferrand who died in 1837 was described as a very kindly man. He had inherited the Ferrand estates from Benjamin Ferrand of St Ives and was married to Frances Holden. They had one daughter Frances who married Richard Paul Amphlet. Edward’s sister Jane born in 1775, the eldest daughter of John Ferrand married the Rev. Charles Benjamin Charlewood. Their son Benjamin Charlewood, would have inherited St Ives but sadly died aged 21 in 1817 and was only a child when Benjamin Ferrand died in 1803. Edward became Lord of the Manors of Cottingley, Oakworth, Allerton cum Wilsden and Crossley.
It was by a chance of genealogical fate, which allowed Sarah Busfeild to inherit St Ives and her eldest son William to follow suit and inherit St Ives after her death in 1854, both changing their name to Ferrand by Royal Licence and assuming the Arms of Ferrand.
William Busfeild firstly married Sarah PriesAith a Silver Grecian Vase bearing the inscription:
Presented to W Ferrand Esq., of St Ives, Bingley by 2,539 contributors of the working classes of the borough of Devonport and the township of East Stonehouse as a token of their high esteem.
For the people of Devonport, at that time, to be impressed with a Tory MP was unusual to say the least and shows William Ferrand’s genuine compassion for the people he served.
He could not tolerate corruption or cheating of any kind and this applied to all classes. He was unerringly loyal and had many friends in Parliament who were all fighting for reform in the era of the Industrial Revolution, which brought with it such a massive change in the country.
Parliament was as never before and it needed tough and compassionate men to oppose the exploitation of ordinary working people.
It does appear though, that despite William Ferrand’s genuine respect and admiration for women, he was quite chauvinistic in his point of view, questioning why women should ever want to have any money.
In 1847 William Ferrand married the Hon. Fanny Mary Stuart and there was much rejoicing in the town and countryside around Bingley. In later years William was to drop the name Busfeild.
After the death of William Ferrand, St Ives passed to his nephew also William Busfeild who changed his name to Ferrand. He was the last member of the family to own St Ives.
Fanny Mary Stuart was the daughter of Robert Walter Stuart (11th Lord Blantyre) and Fanny Mary Rodney. Both the Stuart and Rodney pedigrees are impressive. James the VI of Scotland (I of England) bestowed the lands and Priory at Blantyre to his cousin Walter Stuart who was born in 1556.
Walter Stuart took the title Lord Blantyre in 1606. James VI’s father Lord Darnley was the son of Matthew Stuart 4th Earl of Lennox. Matthew Stuart was related to James V of Scotland.
The marriage of Mary Queen of Scots and Lord Darnley produced James V1 of Scotland (to become James I of England) and so Matthew Stuart was James VI grandfather.
Mary Queen of Scots was the daughter of James the V of Scotland who was married to Margaret daughter of Henry VII of England.
The Royal Stuart line goes back many centuries and includes Robert the Bruce, the famous warrior.
Fanny Mary Stewart’s father Robert Walter Stuart was a highly decorated Army officer reaching the rank of Major General. He was killed by a shot during the insurrection of Brussels in 1830.
Fanny’s sister Caroline Stuart married William Rashleigh of Menabilly near Fowey who was the MP for East Cornwall in 1841 - 1847. William Rashleigh was a firm friend of William Busfeild Ferrand and there were frequent visits to Rashleigh’s London home. This is where William Ferrand became acquainted with and courted the beautiful Hon. Fanny Mary Stuart and they subsequently married in 1847.
It was Fanny Mary and her mother Lady Blantyre who oversaw the reconstruction and the interior decoration of St Ives. William and Fanny Ferrand had one son Hugo born a year after their marriage who died in London in 1876/7 aged 28. [Nothing has been written or recorded, outside the family, about this son and it is presumed he may, sadly, have been mentally impaired].
After the death of her mother Lady Blantyre, she and her husband William, moved to Cannes in Southern France and spent her remaining years there dying in 1896.
Suggested reading:
John Ward’s book WB Ferrand ‘The Working Man’s Friend’ printed by Tuckwell Press and probably available to lend from the Public Library.
The web sites: Cottingley Connect and Powys-Lybbe Ancestry (a miscellany of genealogy including the Ferrand pedigree.
The Bradford Archives hold a lot of information on the family and the estates. Two books written in the late 1800s Harry Speight’s ‘Old Bingley’ and Horsefall Turners Ancient Bingley contain
invaluable information.
Brenda Graham 2009
Since receiving the above contribution, Brenda Graham has sent us part of a letter by Sarah Ferrand to Jan Hudig in Holland.
This letter describes the home coming to St Ives after William Ferrand's second marriage on 10th August 1847 at St James Westminster to the daughter of the 11th Lord Blantyre.
Please note that this was written prior to the exchange of place names.
In those days: Harden Grange was what we know as St Ives and St Ives of that date was what we know as Harden Grange.
On the happy day the Bingley Bells began to ring early in the morning & continued to do so at times - two bands of Music there. At one of the hotels or as we call them, one of the Inns, Dawson presided and 150 set down to dinner and had as much Ale and Punch as they liked (by Punch I mean spirit and water with lemons and sugar), they were tenants; at another Inn the tradesmen about 150 dines & they were treated with abundance and wine etc. - another Inn were at least as many, who had an excellent dinner etc., the old people at the workhouse or poorhouse, likewise had dinner and in the afternoon the women and children had tea in very abundant manner at the National School, where there was plenty of room for them and later in the evening they danced there and people poured into Bingley from all the neighbouring villages and the dancing and feasting were kept up till long past daylight - I am not sure that there was one really sober man in the town of Bingley. On the day the happy pair arrived, they drove thro’ the park and past St Ives as fast as four grey horses would carry them - we all waved our handkerchiefs and away they went. On reaching the lodge on the road to Bingley were met by crowds of people who cheered them and would have taken off the horses and dragged them up the hill to Harden Grange, but they were wiser. A band of Music too met them and when they arrived within these gates my sons troop of Yeomanry Cavalry were on each side of the road to receive them, mounted on their horses and the men in full uniform”.
Brenda Graham 2010
Allotments. This was formerly Ferrand land that was made into allotments at the instigation of Mr W.B. Ferrand.
Speight1 tells us that the making of the allotments had the effect of withdrawing a good many men from low pursuits, such as cock-fighting.
Mr. Disraeli and Lord John Manners were both at the opening which was reported in the Leeds Intelligencer for October 19th 1844.
He goes on to tell us that some of the finest gooseberries produced in England were grown in these plots and that the Bingley Gooseberry Society had an excellent reputation; the National Show having been held here.
Our picture shows the society on a photograph marked 1913, in pencil on the back.
On the scales is a giant Gooseberry.
Is this the champion one that had a circumference of six inches?
Sybil
On one visit by Disraeli there was a trip to Druids Alter and this was included in the topography for part of Disraeli's novel Sybil.
W.B. Ferrand was a member of the 'Young England Party' of which Disraeli was a leading member. Disraeli's sentiments in this direction show in the novel.
Ref. #1 Old Bingley, Harry Speight, 1898 Elliot Stock'
The Ferrands and their Connection to the Richardsons of Bierley in the 17th Century
The following notes were sent to us by Brenda Graham, who has ancestoral links with the Ferrands via the Richardson family. -Ed
To maintain status, the gentry married into families who were well connected, had substantial property, and who could sustain a high standard of living.
The Ferrands were no exception, sometimes marrying in to families of noble ancestry. However, that is not to say there wasn’t mutual respect, love and admiration. When Edward Ferrand of Harden Beck married Jane Richardson c1690, he married in to a wealthy family with remarkable academic attainments. Richard Richardson was a botanist with a special interest in bryophytes (mosses, lichens and vascular plants.) Some of his work, illustrations and findings are today housed in the archives in Kew Gardens. He also trained at the Dutch University of Leiden in the 1680s as a physician. He practised as a doctor on his return to Bierley Hall continuing his passion for plant collecting travelling throughout the country and into Scotland and Wales.
The garden at Bierley was a mix of botanical and medicinal plants both native and foreign. Richard Richardson’s son (Jane Richardson’s brother) was also a prolific gardener, though not as well known as his father. He carried on the work of constructing the garden, which at the height of its splendour boasted garden ponds and a grotto.
They also constructed a glass greenhouse, very innovative and quite a curiosity in those times. Sadly the industrial revolution was, in part, responsible for the destruction of the garden.
The first Cedars of Lebanon in Yorkshire were planted in the garden and sadly these too were destroyed.
Dr. Richardson did a lot of research in and around Bingley, identifying and cataloguing the wild plants, ferns and mosses.
The Richardsons and their gardening contemporaries of the 17th and 18th centuries introduced plants to this country, which are now found in our gardens and sold in garden centres.
Bierley Hall was the ancestral home of the Richardson family. Richard born 1663 and his son Richard born 1702 rebuilt the house in 1690 and created the very special garden. Eventually the house became an isolation hospital and was replaced by a modern hospital in 1968.
Nothing remains of the original buildings but a little of the grounds remain.
The marriage of Edward Ferrand of Harden Grange and Jane Richardson produced two sons, Richardson and John. John became a merchant in Hull and then lived and traded from Stockton on Tees. Ships from Stockton sailed to many countries and John traded with Holland. He became acquainted with Maria Hudig the daughter of a wealthy merchant called Caspar Hudig and they married in 1722.
Richardson married Anne Walker, the eldest daughter of the Rev. George Walker at Stockton on Tees. Richardson and Anne had four sons and two daughters: Hudig Whalley who died an infant, John who married Sarah Dale, George who died without issue and Richardson my 5th great grandfather, who married Catherine Stubler/Stabler. This Richardson born in 1759 was an apothecary and physician and, like his father Richardson Ferrand before him, the Mayor of Stockton on Tees.
John Ferrand practised law. John and Sarah produced a large family of which Edward Ferrand born in 1777 was the eldest son. It was this son who inherited the family estates of the senior branch of the family from Benjamin Ferrand who died unmarried. The estate at St Ives was created and planted with great care to become the beautiful and peaceful place it is. Perhaps it was partly inspired by the earlier influence of the Richardson family and their garden at Bierley.
If you stand looking at the Manor House and peel back the years, you can imagine the horse drawn carriages driving up to the entrance with their celebrated guests including the great man Disraeli.
Imagine Lady Blantyre and her daughter walking or riding along the tree lined pathways to Lady Blantyre’s favourite spot, known as Lady Blantyre’s Rock.
It is so important to befriend St Ives, to enjoy and preserve the abundant natural history, so that future generations can also have the pleasure of visiting these wonderful
and remarkable surroundings.
Sources: The Richardsons and their Garden at Bierley Hall - the Bradford Antiquary
Walker Ferrand’s Father-in-Law - General William Twiss
Many will not have heard about General William Twiss but yet they have passed his work as they travel round the country.
This is a brief account of him, his work and his connection with the Ferrands.
General William Twiss (1745-1827) was the father of Katherine Maria his only child. Katherine was Walker Ferrand's cousin and they were married 1st September 1805.
Twiss was probably born in Kent, he worked in the ordnance office at the tower of London from 1760 before becoming an overseer of works at Gibraltar.
Receiving a commission in the army in 1763.
Returning to England he commenced work on the defences at Portsmouth Dockyard before going to Canada in 1776 where he was responsible for a number of defensive programmes.
He returned to England in 1783. Over the following years Twiss oversaw the construction of various defences, including the chain of Martello Towers along the Kent and Sussex coastline, defences at the Castle and the Western Heights in Dover, and the Royal Military Canal, running from Hythe to Rye.
In 1825 he was made a full General. After retiring Twiss lived in Myrtle Grove Bingley. By November 1823 Harden Grange's (now St Ives) extension was completed which enabled General and Mrs Twiss to move there permanently as Twiss was now in poor health. General Twiss died 14th March 1827. He was buried in the church of All Saints Bingley.
M.C.W. Ferrand and contributions by S Hart Editor's note
‘We cannot under estimate the importance of the work that Twiss did on the South Coast. The early 1800s' must, in many ways, have been like the early 1940's for people living on the South Coast, with invasion expected any day. Napoleon Bonaparte had taken over large parts of Europe and had about 175,000 men (estimates appear to vary, the lowest that I have heard is 130,000 and the highest 200,000 men), camped ready to carry out the invasion of Britain. His main stumbling blocks being the Royal Navy and the weather. The senior officer at this side of the channel, charged with our defence and with whom Twiss worked, was Sir John Moore.
As all English school boys will tell you, having been dragged through the poem, Moore later died in action at Corunna. (cf. The Burial of Sir John Moore at Corunna (1816) by Charles Wolfe)
One story is told, that farmers round Hythe were opposed to the building of a major defence work, the Royal Military Canal. A meeting was held with the Prime Minister Pitt, Moore, Twiss and the Lords and Bailiffs of the Level of Romney Marsh, to discuss the topic of flooding the marsh with salt water in the event of an invasion. As this would have destroyed the land for farming for a considerable period it comes as no surprise that work on the canal went ahead.
General Twiss appears to have been a bit of a character. Travelling round Bingley in a sedan chair, carried by men wearing his own livery.
His last journey up to the Harden Grange (St Ives) was done using the sedan chair.
Based upon work supplied to us by Brenda Graham
The private catholic chapel at Lulworth castle owned by the Weld family
It was not until 1791 that Catholics were legally allowed to worship in public. The Weld family of Lulworth Castle were Roman Catholics and had a private Chapel inside the castle.
In 1786 Thomas Weld engaged the architect John Tasker to build the present Chapel in the grounds. King George III gave his permission
'to build a mausoleum and you may furnish it inside as you wish.'
The Chapel stands in the grounds surrounded by trees, It has a hemispherical domed roof and could be mistaken for a classical garden building. The interior is beautiful, the font being positioned in a side alcove with light streaming in from clear windows and is simply and beautifully designed. So this was the Chapel where the twins Victoria Caroline Busfeild and Albertine Sarah Busfeild were baptised with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert acting as their sponsors and where their Crispin aunts and uncles had been baptised before them.
The Proxy godparents were Sir Edward and Lady Doughty and Mr and Mrs Edward Weld. The Queen and Prince presented to each child an engraved piece from their Godmother Victoria R and Godfather Albert, dated April 2nd 1846.
Catholic children are usually baptised within days of their birth, but in order for the Queen and her Consort to be godparents letters had to be written and advisors consulted, which would have taken time and organisation. There was obviously a close relationship with the Weld family as Benajamin Crispin born in 1804 bequeathed all his real and personal property to several trustees including, Joseph Weld and Reginald Weld which was to be distributed as per his instructions.
The stone nearer the road reads:
Beneath are the mortal remains of Caroline the wife of Commander William Crispin RN and daughter of the late Currer Fothergill Busfeild Esq of Cottingley Bridge, near Bingley Yorkshire and his wife Sarah, afterwards Ferrand of St Ives. William and Caroline were living at 10 Royal Crescent Melcombe Regis Weymouth when Caroline died. The twins Victoria and Albertine were brought up by their aunt, Elizabeth (1799 - 1861) who never married and lived off her father's pension. The three other aunts were also unmarried: Mary Ann who died in West Lulworth in 1865, Jane who died in West Lulworth in 1868 and Sarah who died in Bristol in 1891. Benjamin Hugh Crispin (1775-1836) Captain RN married Elizabeth White and they eventually settled in West Lulworth in about 1803 with three of their children: Elizabeth (1799 - 1861) born Yarmouth Mary Ann (1800 - 1865) born Yarmouth Wiliam (1803 - 1865) born Portsea
Our picture shows the Christening present given to Victoria by Queen Victoria.
The whereabouts of the Claret Jug given by Prince Albert to Albertine is not currently known.
Photograph supplied by - Michael Ferrand
In the Spring of 2013 we had a visitor at Cuckoo Nest, a Mrs Christine Hayes (nee Scott) whose forebears had been the Game Keepers to the Ferrands.
Some time ago she came across a poem written for Mr W B Ferrand by Robert Carrick Wildon, a renowned local poet of the 19thCentury.
Having associations with the Estate she bought it and we have attempted to transcribe it below.
The poem was written after a visit to St Davids Ruin (a folly on the Wilsden side of the valley).
We do not know exactly when it was written but the poem places St Ives in the valley bottom and Harden Grange overlooking the valley.
As the names where not swapped over until 1858, it would put the work prior to this date.
'The Ruins' by Robert Carrick Wildon’
Poem composed while sitting at St David's Ruin for W B Ferrand.
Soft sylvanspot, Oh calm sentiment, meet
For hermit grey to make a blest retreat.
Here might he form his solitary home,
Where human footsteps seldom dared to come;
Here might the poet long-long hours beguile,
And woo and win Thalia's witching smile,
Oh gentle muse, this place must surely be
A chosen temple consecrate to thee;
Where thou dost weave bright wreaths of laurel boughs_
Garlands of fame to deck thy vot'ries* brows;
E'en now thy pleasing influence I feel
Like summer dream, upon my senses steal;
Oh with me stay, fair goddess and inspire
My fluttering heart, and tune my rustic lyre,
Come let us sing _ though rude our numbers be_
The soothing chasms 'tis now our lot to see;
Here could I linger all the live long day,
And proudly wile the happy hours away;
All_all the troubles, all the cares forget
That in the life our onward path beset;
Wrapp'd in the joys of this enchanting scene,
The huge grey rocks, the tall trees waving green;
The old arch'd window in the antique style
Like the lone relic of some holy pile;
The fast lock'd tower where Ivy loves to creep,
Seems like remains of some old Castle Keep;
Oh like the home of some austere recluse,
Sick of the world, its outrage and abuse;
The rocks hard by a shade and shelter form Gainst sultry rays,
and gainst the driving storm;
Oh could I here but have my silent cave,
No better home, no brighter wealth I'd crave,
Here could I sing and spread the long _ long days
Heedless of lucre and of idle praise
Dwelling alone in solitude profound,
Hymning* the scenes that sweetly lie around
An where is he who on these scenes might glance,
And still exclaim "All_all things come by chance;"
Who this would say is pityfully blind.
And ne'er can know such bliss as glads my mind;
Does not each leaf, each plant and opening bud.
Bespeak the works of One allwise_allgood!
Behold! St Ives, calm nestling in the vale,
Like a sweet home describ'd in fair tale;
Before it Nature like a bounteous dame
Such carpets spreads as man may never frame;
Soft by its side luxurious gardens bloom,
Shedding fair blossom in its rich perfume;
Tull*There grow such plants and there such lovely flowers
As might adorn a queen's imperial bowers;
Oh gentle spot so silent, so serene,
How calm thou look'st amid this peaceful scene;
The stout trees near thee clad in robes of May
Bow like sad mourners and would seem to say,
"Alas the hour! that Death arriv'd to claim
The breath of her'our last indulgent dame”
Whose bounty aft on suffering hearts, I ween.
Shed light and joy where darkness else had been;
oft her kindness reach'd the cotter's hearth;
And sooth'd the pains of penury and dearth;
A balmy influence her sweet nature shed
Around the scene of many a sick man's bed;
And throbbing hearts when sinking into death
Have bless'd her mem'ry with the parting breath;
And all shall wail ' maids, husbands, children, wives,
The loss of their late matron of St Ives
Oh fairy home that sought of tumult knows,
Where world worn heart might truly find repose.
And to the sights the lowly Woodbank Stands
Deck'd in green robes by Nature's magic hands;
While far above 'mid fair trees towering high
The lofty Grange attracts the gladsome eye,
Glancing below on its extensive lands
As plumed chief looks on his warrior bands;
And that fair mansion proudly seems to say
"I am the lord of all that I survey"
These meadows broad where flowers in myriads rise
And deck the green sward* with their laughing eyes;
These vallies deep where soft rills* roll along
And ever sing their murmuring_tinkling song
These brakes these glens, these silent perfum'd groves,
Where happy pair might breath their secret loves-,
These far spread woods of elm,ash,oak and pine,
All these fair things, know- lowly bard are mine!"
To this the poet has but one reply, "I envy not your wealth and fortunes high,
All I would crave is freedom to repair To this lone place its witching charms to share;
To woo the muse in her most pleasing mood,
And with her revel in this solitude;
Then might I strike the unassuming lyre,
And feel a spark of true poetic fire;
Not all the pomp produc'd by human art
Could e'er to me such rapt'rous joys impart,
Let noble lord in gilt saloon recline,
And seek enjoyment in the rosy wine'
Let wealthy merchant ply* his daily schemes;
And find a joy in speculative dreams.
Let the bold sailor Ocean's anger brave
And feel delight upon the wrathful wave;
Let the stern soldier on the tented field
Go seek the joy that bloody battles field;
Let miser starve with hunger and with cold,
And pleasure find in counting o'er his gold;
Let the dark poacher seek his fierce delight,
In prowling forth beneath the shades of the night
To trap the hare or shed the pheasants blood,
Far in the depths of some sequester'd wood; Ranging abroad unknown to fear or awe,
Breaking his country's long established law-,
Let vulgar drunkard in the tap room house,
And idly revel in the deep carouse;
Seeking vain pleasure in the maddening bowl " Death to his body, anguish to his soul,-
These may pursue their various paths whilst I Amid the silence of these ruins lie,
Finding such rapture as is only found
In such scenes as Nature spreads around,
The rustling trees soft waving o'er my head,
The distant brooklet brawling o'er its bed,
The moss-grown stones, the woodbine creeping there
The wild rose waving in the sunny air;
The timid cowies* skipping to and fro
Amid the brushwood in the glen below
Poor artless thinks did man heed any behest,
Nor gun nor snare should ever ye molest;
Nor should my hand the rifles lock constrain
To take the life I could not give again,
Nor, ye should gambol where ye love to dwell,
And sport unharm'd in this your native dell;
The throstle's song that rings from glade to glade,
The blackbird's whistle in the thorny shade;
The soft sweet twitter of the linnet's note,
As in the brake it swells it's little throat;
Oh happy sounds, Oh ever happy things,
Whence purest love and inspiration springs;
Here lovely spot with thee I'd ever stay,
But sterner duties call my steps away;
This were a home I'd never sigh to change
For e'en St Ives, nor for the towering Grange.
Notes on words in the poem by Caroline Smith
1. Sylvan Sylvan or Silvan refers to an association with the woods. Specifically, that which inhabits the wood, is made of tree materials, or comprises the forest itself. The term can also refer to a person who resides in the woods or a spirit of the wood.
2. Vot'ries (votaries) A person, such as a monk or nun, who has made vows of dedication to religious service. A devoted follower, adherent, or advocate of someone or something: "he was a votary of John Keats".
3. Hymning
4. Tull/full Undecided about this though the name Tull meaning is as follows: Recorded in many forms as shown below, this is an English surname. It derives from the 8th century female personal name "Matilda" which translates as "The mighty battle maid", a striking description which no doubt accounted for much of its popularity. The immediate derivatives were Tilda, Tilla and Tulla, and after these became surnames in their own right, patronymic diminutives soon followed, denoting "son of Till or Tull". This is one of a handful of surnames surviving which were derived from the name of the first bearer's mother.
5. Cotters 1. (Historical Terms) Also called cottier English history a villein in late Anglo-Saxon and early Norman times occupying a cottage and land in return for labour.
2. (Historical Terms) Also called cottar a peasant occupying a cottage and land in the Scottish Highlands under the same tenure as an Irish cottier.
6. TBA
7. Sward An expanse of short grass. The upper layer of soil, especially when covered with grass. (Lawn - turf - grass - green - greensward)
8. Rills A small brook; a rivulet.
9. Ply
10. Cowie Woodland spirit - like a Brownie.