Loughborough Rectory Part 1
THERE are few men and women who do not feel a strong attraction for the genuine old country house.
Some derive satisfaction from those features which are of definite architectural interest, others admire the effect produced by the mellowing influence of time.
The student of history, on the other hand, regards the house from another angle, and is definitely stirred by the thought that its substantial walls throughout the ages have sheltered diverse people who have taken an important part in the gradual evolution of, rural civilisation.
The Loughborough Rectory provides an instance of a house which fulfils all these conditions, and has points which will appeal to the architect, the artist, and the many residents who are keenly interested in the history of the town.
It was a tragedy and a real loss to Loughborough when the greater part of the old house was burnt down in a disastrous fire which occurred in 1826.
At that time the Rectory had a fair claim to be regarded as a genuine country mansion, and in a northerly and north-westerly direction there was an uninterrupted stretch of open country.
It is interesting to remember that a short distance from the rectory, opposite the junction of Toothill and Clarenceroads, there was once a small mound, and here in the civil wars when there was brisk fighting around Loughborough, the Parliamentarians are believed to have placed there primitive guns to counter the attacks of the Royalists from the direction of Cotes.
Stabled Horses in Church.
It was about this time that Cromwell’s troopers stabled their horses in the Parish Church, and an entry in the accounts reveals a charge for frankincense to sweeten the church after the military occupation.
According to the records, the first Rector of Loughborough was appointed in 1103, and there is every reason to believe that he lived in a house on the site of the present rectory and that portions of the original building are standing to this day.
There are definite writings to be seen in the Bishop’s registry at Lincoln which prove the existence of a parsonage in 1233. Moreover in that portion of the building which happily escaped the ravages of fire, there are traces of work of the transitional Norman period which must have been carried out before the end of the twelfth century.
Further proof is afforded by the present Archbishop of York, who stated that the rectory is fifty years older than York Palace, which gives additional indication of its early origin.
It is evident that in the early days several additions were made to the rectory at different periods. Close to the outlines of a Norman arch, now bricked up, is the trace of an Early English window, built in the thirteenth century.
Further work of this period is indicated by the presence of a lancet window on the south front.
On the south-eastern wall is a trefoil window of the Decorated period when Gothic architecture, in the opinion of many experts, had attained its highest expression in this country.
The top storey of the old portion on the south front was destroyed by fire; and here the Georgian builder, with characteristic lack of imagination, completely ruined the general effect by rebuilding in red, brick. This forms an unhappy contrast with the fine stone-work, below.
The modern part of the rectory, however, is quite attractive, though the formal lines of most Georgian work lack the pleasing and picturesque irregularities of earlier periods.
The original building/ consists chiefly of the kitchen and the bedrooms above. Some of the walls are at least three feet in thickness and as is usual in old houses there are confusing features which add to the interest of an initial visit.
It is difficult to tell whether certain parts belong to the second or the third floor, while an unusual formation of the walls in one of the bedrooms suggests the, existence at one time of an old staircase.
The Unexpected. Gradually the visitor learns to expect the unexpected, and therefore is not surprised when he turns a corner and comes face to face with a fine Elizabethan door, or establishes sharp contact with a low oak beam of undoubted antiquity.
There is a print in the hall corresponding with the one to be seen in Nichols’ History of Leicestershire, but - it is not certain whether this is an absolutely accurate copy of the house in 1792.
According to this print the front then consisted of four gables, which occupied the whole length.
A short and interesting description accompanies the print in our county history.
“A little distance from the churchyard stands the rectory or parsonage house, an ancient strong edifice, built at a time when English oak was plentiful hereabouts, as appears by the roof of this building in the inside., The present Rector, Dr. Hardy, has lately made some considerable additions to this house.”
A Ghost?
It is disappointing that a house of this age does not possess an authentic ghost.
True there is a legend that one of the rectors late one evening was engaged in deep reflection, when a spectre materialised from the floor, tarried a brief moment and then disappeared as mysteriously as it had come.
This rector, who was not a nervous subject, investigated the floor close to the entrance of his nocturnal visitor and discovered a trapdoor hitherto unsuspected. Unfortunately the legend ends abruptly at this stage, and further interesting revelations are lacking.
The old tradition that a passage once existed between the rectory and the church is discounted in official circles, and cannot be upheld with justification.
Although the greater part of the rectory is modern, we have shown that a considerable portion of the old building still r-mains, and in this respect it is reasonable to claim that the rectory is one of the oldest inhabited houses in the country.
A record which we think will be regarded with great satisfaction and no little pride by the natives and other residents of the town.
To be continued
A DELVE in the Echo archives often turns up some surprising and interesting finds and none more so than a series of articles by an author going under the pen name of “Heywood”.
During the 1930s Heywood contributed a number of pieces for the Echo looking at local country houses, churches and also local legends.
We know many readers have been enjoying the old legend articles we have been revisiting these last few months. Sadly we’ve now run out of Heywood’s tales, but now we are concentrating on his writings on local country houses.
We hope you enjoy his reflections 90-odd years on after they were first published