KNOLE 
 
 
■ .. 
 
 fs/ 
 
 
 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2016 
 
 https://archive.org/details/knolehouseitsstaOOsack 
 
KINOLE. 
 

 

Knole House 
 
 ITS 
 
 State Roo/as, Pictures and 
 Antiquities, 
 
 BY 
 
 LIONEL SACIWILLE WEST. 
 
 NEW AUTHORIZED EDITION. PRIVATELY PRINTED. 
 
 Illustrated from 
 
 Original Water Colour Drawings by 
 
 C. ESSENHIGH CORKE. 
 
 COPYRIGHT. ENTERED AT STATIONERS’ HALL 
 
 Sevenoahs : 
 
 PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY J. SALMON, 85 & 87, HIGH STREET. 
 
 1906 . 
 
COPYRIGHT. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 History of Knole ... 
 
 General Description 
 
 The Great Hall 
 
 The Staircase 
 
 Brown Gallery 
 
 Lady Betty Germaine’s Rooms 
 
 The Spangled. Bedroom 
 
 The Spangled Dressing Room 
 
 The Old Billiard Room 
 
 The Venetian Bedroom 
 
 The Leicester Gallery 
 
 The Organ Room 
 
 The Chapel Room ... 
 
 The Chapel 
 
 The Ball Room 
 
 The Crimson Drawing Room ... 
 
 The Cartoon Gallery 
 
 King James I. Bedroom 
 
 Private Rooms 
 
 Music Room 
 
 The Colonnade 
 
 The Dining Room ... 
 
 Attic Galleries 
 
 Page 
 
 1 
 
 12 
 
 26 
 
 28 
 
 34 
 
 37 
 
 39 
 
 41 
 
 43 
 
 45 
 
 50 
 
 52 
 
 54 
 
 57 
 
 68 
 
 74 
 
 80 
 
 83 
 
 87 
 
 91 
 
 94 
 
 103 
 
Full-Page Plates. 
 
 (black and white.) 
 
 South and East Front ... 
 
 To face page 6 
 
 Hall— showing Screen... 
 
 „ 12 
 
 4th Earl of Dorset (Van Dyck)... 
 
 „ 18 
 
 Grand Staircase 
 
 „ 26 
 
 Organ Room 
 
 „ 50 
 
 Ball Room 
 
 „ 56 
 
 3rd Duke of Dorset (Gainsborough) 
 
 „ 58 
 
 3rd Duchess of Dorset ( Hoppner ) 
 
 „ 64 
 
 Crimson Drawing Room... 
 
 „ 68 
 
 Miss Linley and her Brother (Gainsborough) 
 
 72 
 
 La fille au Chapeau de Paille (Monnier) 
 
 „ 90 
 
 The Park — Winter 
 
 „ 94 
 
 Fir Woods in the Park 
 
 „ 106 
 
Coloured Plates. 
 
 The Sackville Children' ( Hnppner ) ... Frontispiece. 
 
 West Front ... ... ... To face page 2 
 
 Glade in the Park ... ... ... ,, 4 
 
 Beech Trees in the Park ... ... „ ,, 8 
 
 Stone Court ... ... ... ... ,, ,,10 
 
 Green Court, West ... ... ... ,, „ 14 
 
 Green Court, East ... ... ... ,, ,,10 
 
 South Front (Pacing W.) ... ... ,, ,,24 
 
 Brown Gallery... ... ... ... ,, ,,28 
 
 Spangled Bedroom... ... ... ... ,, ,,30 
 
 Spangled Bedroom- Window ... ... ,, ,,38 
 
 Spangled Bedroom— Poorway ... ,, ,, 40 
 
 Ambassador’s Room ... ... ... „ ,,44 
 
 Leicester Gallery ... ... ... ., „ 48 
 
 The Chapel ... ... ... .. „ ,,54 
 
 Cartoon Gallery ... ... ... ,, ,, 74 
 
 Cartoon Gallery— Window ... ... ,, ,, 78 
 
 King James I. Bedroom ... ... ... ,, ,,80 
 
 South Fpont ... ... ... ... „ ,, 82 
 
 South Front (Facing E.)... ... ... „ ,,86 
 
 Colonnade ... ... ... ... „ „ 92 
 
 North-East Front ... ... ... ,, ,, 102 
 

 
 
 
KNOLE. 
 
 O F the early history of the manor and 
 estate of Knole, little or nothing is 
 known prior to the time of King John. Records of the time 
 shew that in the fifth year of that reign (1204) Baldwin de 
 Bethun, Earl of Albermarle, gave the manor of Knole as 
 well as those of Bradbourne, Kemsing, and Seal, in “ frank 
 marriage ” with his daughter Alice to William Mareschal, 
 Earl of Pembroke. This William Mareschal was succeeded 
 in the estates and title by his brother Richard, who however 
 left no heirs ; whereupon Knole became the property of 
 Roger, son of Hugh Bigod, Earl of Norfolk, who had married 
 
2 
 
 Maud, the Earl of Pembroke’s sister, and on his death 
 passed, by bequest, to his nephew. During the years 
 which followed Knole changed hands several times; and 
 in 1456 it was in the possession of William Fiennes, Lord 
 Say and Sele, who by indenture, dated June 30th of that 
 year, conveyed it to Thomas Bourchier, Archbishop of 
 Canterbury, for four hundred marks, or roughly speaking, 
 about £2,500 of our money. 
 
 Kilburne, in his Survey of Kent, published in 1659, 
 states that Archbishop Bourchier “re-built the manor 
 house, inclosed a park round the same, and resided much 
 at it ” ; but it is uncertain whether he entirely demolished 
 the then existing house before re-building. The somewhat 
 primitive and mixed architecture of that portion of the 
 house which faces east, points to the probability that he 
 altered and added to the building, as he found it, rather 
 than reconstructed it from its foundations. 
 
 Bourchier, at his death in i486, bequeathed the 
 manor and its appurtenances to his successors in the see 
 of Canterbury. 
 
 Archbishop Moreton, his immediate successor, appears 
 also to have spent considerable sums of money in 
 
WEST FRONT. 
 


 
 
 
 : i 
 
 
 
 
 
3 
 
 embellishing and adding to the house. He is said also to 
 have entertained King Henry VII. at Knole. Moreton 
 died at Knole in 1500, and was succeeded by Archbishop 
 Dene, who resided but little at this house, and dying in 
 1502 was succeeded by Archbishop Warham. Warham’s 
 successor was the celebrated Cranmer (1532-1537). He, 
 being alarmed at the growing discontent caused by the 
 vast wealth of the Church, made an apparently voluntary 
 surrender of his palace of Knole to King Henry VIII. and 
 his successors by indenture dated 30th November, 1538. 
 In one of the rooms looking into the Green Court, east 
 side, now used as a bedroom, and still known as Cranmer’s 
 Room, are five coats of arms of the Cranmer family in 
 stained glass. 
 
 Henry VIII. does not appear to have been much at 
 Knole; and in 1550 it was granted by his successor, 
 Edward VI., to John Dudley, Earl of Warwick, afterwards 
 Duke of Northumberland. Three years later, after the 
 Duke’s execution, Knole reverted to the Crown, but was 
 granted away by Queen Mary to her cousin, Cardinal 
 Pole, for his life. At his death Queen Elizabeth resumed 
 possession of it, and shortly afterwards conveyed it to her 
 favourite, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester. In 1566, 
 
4 
 
 Leicester for some .unknown reason, restored it to the 
 Queen, leaving however a record of his ownership in one 
 of the principal galleries, which is still known as the 
 Leicester Gallery. In 1 567 or 1569 Queen Elizabeth 
 granted the house and manors of Knole to her, cousin, Sir 
 Thomas Sackville, whose mother was Margaret Boleyn ; 
 he was afterwards created Baron Buckhurst and Earl of 
 Dorset. Until 1603, however, the house and manor were 
 leased to the family of Lennard (of Chevening), who 
 resided there, and it was not until that year that Lord 
 Buckhurst finally took it into possession. It is said that 
 the Queen’s motive for bestowing this house on Thomas 
 Sackville was, “ to keep him near her Court and Councils, 
 that he might repair thither on any emergency, with more 
 expedition than he could from his seat of Buckhurst in 
 Sussex, the roads in which County were at times 
 impassable.” Buckhurst near Withyham in Sussex had 
 been the seat of the Sackvilles for many generations, 
 having come into the family by the marriage of Sir Jordan 
 de Sackville with Lady Ela de Dene, heiress of the Manor 
 of Buckhurst, in the reign of Henry II. She was the 
 founder of the Abbey at Bayham, near Lamberhurst in 
 Kent, w r here her tomb is still to be seen. Thomas 
 
GLADE IN THE PARK. 
 
f 
 
 
 

 
5 
 
 Sackville, ist Earl of Dorset and Lord Treasurer to Queen 
 Elizabeth, undoubtedly did much to beautify Knole House, 
 both externally and internally, though it is difficult now to 
 state the exact extent of his improvements. It is 
 however, certain from the evidence of the old drawings 
 
 Bracken in Knole Park. 
 
 and prints of the period that the main construction and 
 external features of the buildings have been little, if at 
 all, interfered with or altered since his day. Most of the 
 leaden waterspouts still in use on the house bear the 
 initials and arms of Thomas Sackville with the date 1605* 
 
6 
 
 Lord Dorset, besides filling several important offices 
 of State under Elizabeth and James I., was a man of 
 considerable learning, and possessed of no mean poetic 
 talent. He was the author of a tragedy entitled 
 “ Gorboduc,” which was performed before Queen Elizabeth 
 at Whitehall. He also wrote “ The Mirrour for Magis- 
 trates,” a poem illustrating the lives of well-known 
 characters of English History from the date of the 
 Conquest. He died in 1608, whilst attending a Royal 
 Council, and since his death Knole has been uninterruptedly 
 in the possession of his direct descendants. 
 
 * 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
7 
 
 KNOLE stands in a well-wooded and 
 undulating park of about one 
 thousand acres, in which there are 
 some line specimens of beech, oak 
 and chestnut, one beech-tree, known 
 as the King Beech, being considered 
 one of the largest in the country. 
 
 A Glade in Knole Park. 
 
8 
 
 The main approach to the house is from the town of 
 Sevenoaks, but from this side little idea can be gathered 
 of the full extent of the building. The house, as a matter 
 of fact, comprises seven distinct courts and contains 365 
 rooms and 52 staircases. It occupies nearly four acres of 
 ground, while the extent of the roof has been computed at 
 7 acres. The best views to be obtained are those from a 
 corner in the garden known as the Duchess’ seat, and from 
 a large expanse of open ground, called the Cricket Plain 
 on the North-East side. 
 
 The garden is situated on the Southern side of the 
 house, and is enclosed by a high wall, being thus entirely 
 shut off from the park. The main plan of the garden has 
 scarcely been altered since the beginning of the seven- 
 teenth century, as can be seen from the prints of that 
 time. In front of the house there is a broad gravel walk 
 with a grassy bank sloping up from it, to the “ bowling- 
 green,” a large area of level lawn. To the right of this 
 there is an apple orchard, said to have been planted in the 
 time of Charles I., and along the wall beyond it runs a 
 grass walk, with a border of herbaceous plants. Other 
 portions include a small rock-garden, which is quite a 
 recent addition, and a sunk-garden surrounding a pond 
 
BEECH TREES IN THE PARK. 
 


t 
 
9 
 
 called the Looking-Glass Pond. Near one of the three 
 iron gates which lead out into the Park, and known as the 
 Bush Gate, there is a grove of lime trees which has been 
 formed by the branches of the original and centre tree 
 growing downwards into the ground and there taking 
 root. This has been repeated until now there are three or 
 four complete circles of trees, thus affording a shelter 
 from the sun on the hottest days. A large shrubbery called 
 the Wilderness forms the remainder of the garden. 
 
 The principal entrance to the house is under a massive 
 tower, standing nearly in the centre of the north-west face 
 of the building. This leads into the largest of the seven 
 Courts, known as the Green Court, in which there are two 
 bronze casts, one of the Gladiator Repellens, and the other 
 of Venus rising from the bath. On the opposite side of 
 the Court facing the porter’s lodge, is a fine oriel window 
 over an archway, which leads into the second or Stone 
 Court. This window is in a room which was formerly 
 Archbishop Bourchier’s Chapel; and carved on one of the 
 stone corbels in this room is his devise a “ Bourchier 
 Knot.” Through the archway under Bourchier’s window 
 is a stone lobby, known as the Inner Wicket. Oak doors 
 on the right and left of this lobby lead to the private 
 
I o 
 
 The Bourchier Tower. 
 
 rooms ] while opposite is the entrance to the Stone Court. 
 Immediately facing this entrance is a large balcony, which 
 
STONE COURT. 
 


 
1 1 
 
 extends over the whole breadth of the Court, being 
 supported by eight Ionic columns, and surmounted by a 
 fine shield carved in stone, bearing the Arms of the 
 Cranfield family, which was placed there probably to 
 commemorate the marriage of Lady Frances Cranfield, 
 heiress of the Earl of Middlesex, with Richard Sackville, 
 5th Earl of Dorset. 
 
 A small door under this balcony leads into a passage, 
 from which issues the entrance into the Great Hall. The 
 horns under the balcony are those of an Elk, found in a 
 bog in Ireland, and were presented to the 6th Earl of 
 Dorset in the reign of Charles II. There is also a 
 Rhinoceros horn of remarkable size. 
 
THE GREAT HALL. 
 
 HIS ROOM, which was formerly 
 used as the Banqueting Hall, is 
 of fine proportions, being 75 
 feet long and 36 feet wide. 
 The upper end, where the floor 
 is raised, formed the dais, where 
 the table stood reserved for 
 the owner, his family and guests, while “below the 
 salt ” at long oak tables, sat the humbler guests, servants 
 and retinue. In one of the private rooms, called The 
 Colonnade, there is a list of the persons who dined daily 
 in this hall in the time of Richard, 3rd Earl of Dorset, in 
 1624. It contains in all 126 names. Eight persons dined 
 “ at my Lord’s table,” viz. : My Lord, My Lady, My Lady 
 Margaret, My Lady Isabella, Mr. Sackville, Mr. Frost, 
 John Musgrave, Thomas Garret. At the Parlour Table 
 twenty-one persons sat, including Mr. Legge, the Steward, 
 
7 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 j 
 
 
 
 
I 3 
 
 Mr. Dupper, Chaplain, Mr. Caldicott my Lord's favourite. 
 At the Clerk's Table twenty-one also, amongst them the 
 Yeoman of the Pantry, The Clerk of the Kitchen, The 
 Slaughterman and Loury, a French boy. At the Long 
 Table there were 47 accommodated — here sat The 
 Scrivener, The Yeoman of the Wardrobe and of the 
 Granary, The Groom of the Great Horse, several Footmen 
 and the Groom for the Strangers’ Horse, The Postilion, 
 The Bird-Catcher, The Huntsmen and two men to carry 
 wood. Next came the Laundry-Maid's Table, which included 
 Grace Robinson, a Blackamoor, and at the Kitchen and 
 Scullery table sat another Blackamoor, called John 
 Morockoe. Only one of the oak tables remains, and on it 
 are now placed the various patents of nobility granted to 
 the Sackvilles, from the time of Queen Elizabeth to the 
 present day, some of them being beautifully illuminated, 
 and include portraits of Queen Elizabeth, James I., 
 Charles II., with the seals of each sovereign attached. 
 
 The room is panelled in oak, which until lately was 
 painted yellow ; this paint was scraped off in 1904, when 
 several former coats of paint were discovered underneath 
 the yellow amongst others a sky blue and a white one. It 
 has now been left the natural colour of old oak, which adds 
 
14 
 
 greatly to the impressive appearance of the room. Whilst 
 this work was being done, behind one of the panels was 
 found an old play bill of the eighteenth century, advertis- 
 ing a play to be given at Drury Lane, in which Peg 
 Woffington was to appear. There were also found several 
 long clay Churchwarden pipes. The high oak screen with 
 the Minstrel’s Gallery above it was erected at the begin- 
 ning of the seventeenth century by Thomas Sackville, ist 
 Earl of Dorset, and was formerly of the same yellow 
 colour until restored at the same time as the rest of the 
 wood-work. It is boldly carved and bears the arms of the 
 Sackville family. 
 
 At the end opposite to the screen stands a fine and 
 very valuable antique marble statue of Demosthenes, 
 purchased in Italy by the 3rd Duke of Dorset in 1770 from 
 an English resident in Rome called Jenkins. There is 
 another statue of Demosthenes similar in all essential parts 
 to this one in the Braccio Nuovo in the Vatican in Rome — 
 they are both of them inspired by a bronze statue, the 
 work of an artist called Polyeuktos, which was placed in 
 the market place of Athens in the year 280 B.C. * 
 
 *See report of meetings of the Imperial German Archaeological Institute in 
 Rome, Winchelmann Celebration 1902. 
 
GREEN COURT, WEST. 
 
.TB5£ V/ /nijO'jf 
 
 
 
 
 'i-. ! . Jjli ) 
 

 
 
 
 
 
i5 
 
 The two fire-dogs of steel and 
 iron which stand in the large open 
 fire-place were originally the pro- 
 perty of the Bolevn family one 
 bears the arms of Henry VIII. and 
 the initials H.R. and the other a 
 falcon crowned, from which issue 
 white and red roses (a cognizance 
 of Anne Bolevn) with the initials 
 H.A. 
 
 The hall is now frequently 
 used as a dining - room, on which 
 occasions it is certainly seen to its 
 best advantage. The pictures, Anne Boleyn’s Fire-Dogs. 
 amongst which are four very fine Van Dycks, are lit up 
 by electric light; and on the long oak table under the 
 windows which runs nearly the whole length of the room, 
 there is an imposing display of Charles II. silver, arranged, 
 in three rows ; a table under the statue of Demosthenes is 
 covered with silver-gilt plate, the most noticeable pieces 
 being two large Charles II. rose-water dishes and a hand- 
 some beaker of the same period, also a gilt coffee pot with 
 the Arms of Queen Anne. On the mantelpiece and round 
 
i6 
 
 the walls there is an old dinner service of pewter engraved 
 with the family arms. There are thus three complete 
 different sets of plate, one of silver-gilt on the dining table, 
 one of silver on the long oak table and one of pewter on 
 the mantelpiece. 
 
 That this room was the scene of many a festive 
 gathering is testified to by the following poem which 
 appeared in 1830 in Armiger’s “Sportsman’s Vocal 
 Cabinet,” the occasion of the banquet being to celebrate a 
 great run with Sir John Dyke of Lullingstone’s hounds in 
 the eighteenth century. 
 
 Fox-Hunting Dinner at Knole. 
 
 ^^HEN parting at Cobham, his Grace let it fall, 
 
 “ Tell my friends I expect them at Knole' s ancient hall, 
 To-morrow at seven; and this understand, 
 
 Let each bring a neighbour, or friend, in his hand: 
 
 For we mean to be gay, and that time shall give place 
 To the sweets of the bottle, and charms of the chase.” 
 
 Old Time heard the mandate, and pleas’d at the sound, 
 
 The Duke’s invitation flew speedily round : 
 
 The hall was lit up by the great chandelier, 
 
 And its panels adorn’d with the spoils of the deer; 
 
GREEN COURT, EAST. 
 
l 9 
 
 That to honor the Duke we took in a flood : 
 
 All, all, was good humour, till young squire Hoare , 
 
 Fell back in his chair, and could take in no more. 
 
 Now merry Frank Mackwreth , a little afloat, 
 
 Emptied his glass down the young squire’s throat; 
 
 This trifle excepted, our joys were complete ; 
 
 And the bugle now sounds for the guests to retreat : 
 Upstanding, uncover’d, was claim’d from the host, 
 
 And fresh bumpers were fill’d for Sir Horace's toast. 
 
 “ May health ! peace ! and plenty! still wait on his Grace, 
 With a son like himself, and no end to his race !” 
 
 Thus ended the meeting, and fox-hunters gay 
 Remounted their steeds, and rode cheerful away. 
 
 Diana was up, for she knew they must roam, 
 
 And kindly assisted in lighting them home. 
 
 The most striking picture is Van Dyck’s portrait of 
 Edward Sackville, 4th Earl of Dorset, which hangs over 
 the fire-place. This Lord Dorset held, amongst other 
 offices, that of Chamberlain to Charles I., and the key 
 which is attached to the frame is his key of office, which he 
 is represented in the picture as wearing on his right hip. 
 Clarendon in his History of the Rebellion thus speaks of 
 
20 
 
 him — “ His person beautiful and graceful, and vigorous; 
 his Wit pleasant, sparkling, and sublime; and his other 
 Parts of Learning, and Language, of that lustre, that he 
 could not miscarry in the world. The Vices he had, were 
 of the Age, which he was not stubborn enough to contemn, 
 or resist. ... As his Person and Parts were such as 
 are before mentioned, so he gave them full scope, without 
 restraint ; and indulged to his appetite all the pleasures, 
 that season of his life (the fullest of jollity and riot of any, 
 that preceded, or succeeded) could tempt or suggest to 
 him. He entered into a fatal Quarrel, upon a subject very 
 unwarrantable with a young Nobleman of Scotland, the 
 Lord Bruce ; upon which they both transported themselves 
 into Flanders, and attended only by two Chirurgions 
 placed at a distance, and under an obligation not to stir, 
 but upon the fall of one of them, they fought under the 
 Walls of Antwerp, where the Lord Bruce fell dead upon 
 the place; and Sir Edward Sackville (for so he was then 
 called) being likewise hurt, retired into the next Monastery, 
 which was at hand.” 
 
 What the cause of the quarrel was, has never trans- 
 pired. The account of the duel in Edward Sackville’s own 
 words is as follows : — 
 
imp? 
 
 Edward Sackville— 4th Duke of Dorset. 
 
 ( Van Dyck.) 
 
l l 
 
 Where the tale of Actaeon was painted to life, 
 
 And the huntress Atalanta , Meleager’ s wife. 
 
 But above all the rest, to improve the design, 
 
 The table was cover’d with excellent wine. 
 
 His Grace took the chair, as becoming a lord, 
 
 And these were the lads that sat down at his board : 
 
 Sir Horace below did duty in prime, 
 
 A better could not be selected by time. 
 
 Honest Homewood came to partake of the sport, 
 
 And the Tildens were there from Old Ifield Court ; 
 
 Next Dering , Sir Edward, the county’s delight, 
 
 Who always stood up for the Kentish man’s right : 
 
 Then Twisden , Sir Roger, a sportsman more bold 
 Ne’er cross’d o’er a saddle in heat or in cold. 
 
 Stout Boghurst was there, who had sat himself down 
 By Symmonds , Recorder of Rochester town, 
 
 And opposite Whiffle , a talkative elf, 
 
 Who always was telling strange things of himself, 
 
 ’Squire Hoare , and young Stanhope from Chevening Place ; 
 And these were the friends that surrounded his Grace. 
 
Comport of the castle, and old brewer Best , 
 
 Whose Butt has been famous from east to the west ; 
 
 Bill Edmeads of Nutsted ) and two or three more, 
 
 The whole, in conjunction, might make up a score, 
 
 Beside a few stanch hounds, the best of the breed, 
 
 Which ever were famous for keeping the lead. 
 
 A bugle was sounded, the mirth to begin, 
 
 When bounce went the corks, as the punch was brought in 
 All forms of distinction were banished aside, 
 
 No thoughts on precedence, the offspring of pride. 
 
 All, all, was true friendship, that never beguiles, 
 
 That springs from the heart enliven’d by smiles. 
 
 The Duke claim’d attention, all answer’d, “ Hush ! hush ! ' 
 While he held up his bumper, and shew’d them the brush 
 This sentiment gave (the hall rang with the sound), 
 
 “ All jovial fox-hunters ! wherever they’re found.” 
 
 Now round flew the toast, and to crown it with glee, 
 
 We demanded the chorus of “ three times told three.” 
 
 Thus with high tales of sporting, the hunter’s delight, 
 
 And libations to Bacchus , we shorten’d the night ; 
 
 The wine was so potent, the spirit so good, 
 
23 
 
 were not stopped!’ Whereupon I asked, ‘ if he desired 
 his surgeon should come?’ which he accepted of; and so 
 being drawn away, I never offered to take his sword, 
 accounting it inhumane to rob a dead man, for so I held 
 him to be. This thus ended, I retired to my surgeon, in 
 whose arms, after I had remained awhile for want of blood, 
 I lost my sight, and withal, as I then thought, my life also. 
 But strong water and his diligence quickly recovered me ; 
 when I escaped a great danger, for my lord’s surgeon, when 
 nobody dreamt of it, came full at me with his lord’s sword, 
 and had not mine with my sword interposed himself, I had 
 been slain by those base hands, although my lord Bruce, 
 weltering in his blood, and past all expectation of life, 
 conformable to all his former carriage, which was un- 
 doubtedly noble, cried out, 1 Rascal, hold thy hand ! ’ So 
 may I prosper as I have dealt sincerely with you in this 
 relation.” 
 
 EDWARD SACKVILLE. 
 “Louvain, the 8th September, 1613.” 
 
 Edward Sackville was a devoted adherent to the 
 cause of Charles I. under whom he held many important 
 offices. He distinguished himself at the Battle of Edge 
 Hill by being instrumental in re-capturing the Royal 
 
24 
 
 Standard which had been taken by the Parliamentary 
 forces. It is said that he took the execution of Charles I. 
 so much to heart that he never stirred out of his house 
 afterwards. 
 
 In 1645 ^e Parliamentary Commissioners held a 
 Court of Sequestration at Knole when they deprived the 
 Earl of Dorset of this property, which however was after- 
 wards restored to him. Two or three years previously the 
 house had been visited by a company of rebel horse, who, 
 besides doing damage in the house to the extent of £120, 
 took away five waggon-loads of arms, which may account 
 for the fact of there being no armour now remaining. 
 Lord Dorset had no cause to love the Parliament men, as 
 his son, Edward, in 1625 was taken prisoner by them and 
 killed. 
 
 PICTURES. 
 
 James, Marquis of Hamilton. Van Dyck 
 
 Edward Sackville, 4th Earl of Dorset. Van Dyck 
 
 Sir Anthony Cope. Van Dyck 
 
 Frances Cranfield, wife of 5th Earl of Dorset. Van Dyck 
 Jean Louis de Nogaret, Due d’Espernon 1554-1642. Porbus 
 
21 
 
 “ I being then very mad with anger the Lord Bruce 
 should thirst after my life with a kind of assuredness, bade 
 him alight, which with all willingness he quickly granted ; 
 and there, in a meadow (ankle-deep in the water at 
 least), bidding farewell to our doublets, in our shirts we 
 began to charge each other, having afore commanded our 
 surgeons to withdraw themselves a pretty distance from 
 us ; conjuring them besides, as they respected our favour 
 or their own safeties, not to stir, but suffer us to execute 
 our pleasure ; we being fully resolved (God forgive us) to 
 despatch each other by what means we could. 1 made a 
 thrust at my enemy, but was short ; and in drawing back 
 my arm, I received a great wound thereon ; but, in revenge, 
 I pressed into him, though I then missed him also ; and 
 then received a wound in my right pap, which passed level 
 through my body, and almost to my back ; and there we 
 wrestled for the two greatest and dearest prizes, honour 
 and life ; in which struggling, my hand, having but an 
 ordinary glove on it, lost one of her servants, though the 
 meanest, which hung by a skin. But at last breathing, yet 
 keeping our holds, there passed on both sides propositions 
 of quitting each other’s sword. But, when amity was dead, 
 confidence could not live, and who should quit first was the 
 
22 
 
 question; and, re-striving again afresh, with a kick and a 
 wrench together, I freed my long-captive weapon, which 
 incontinently levying at his throat, being master still of his 
 I demanded if he would ask his life or yield his sword? 
 Both which, though in that imminent danger, he bravely 
 denied to do. Myself being wounded, and feeling loss of 
 blood, having three conduits running on me, began to make 
 me faint ; and he courageously persisting not to accord to 
 either of my propositions, from remembrance of his former 
 bloody desire, and feeling of my present estate, 1 struck at 
 his heart; but, with his avoiding, missed my aim, yet 
 passed through his body, and, drawing back my sword re- 
 passed it again through another place, when he cried, * Oh, 
 I am slain ! ’ seconding his speech with all the force he had 
 to cast me. But being too weak, after I had defended his 
 assault, I easily became master of him, laying him on his 
 back ; when being upon him, I re-demanded, if he would 
 request his life ? But it seems he prized it not at so dear 
 a rate to be beholden for it, bravely replying ‘ He scorned 
 it ! ’ which answer of his was so noble and worthy, as I 
 protest I could not find in my heart to offer him any more 
 violence, only keeping him down, till, at length, his surgeon 
 afar off cried out, ‘ He would immediately die if his wounds 
 
SOUTH FRONT (FACING W.) 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
27 
 
 There is a door on the landing which opens on to a 
 perpendicular shaft running from the floor above to the 
 bottom of the house, in which shaft there hangs a rope 
 providing a means of escape from a secret room or hiding 
 place above. From this secret room a full view into the 
 Ball Room can be obtained through an eye-hole, bored 
 through the carved freize of the Ball Room. Means of 
 entrance to the secret chamber are afforded by a trap door 
 above it and also by three steps, which are made to slide 
 from their position, and by their removal give access, 
 although rather a narrow one, to the room. 
 
 PICTURES. 
 
 A view of Dover Castle with the procession of 
 the Lord Warden after having taken the 
 Oath of Office at a Court of Shipway. Woctton 
 
 Other Archer, 6th Earl of Plymouth. Saunders 
 
 He married Lady Mary Sackville, 1811-1833. 
 
 A Battle Piece. Borgognone 
 
 Giardini, a Violinist. Gainsborough 
 
 John Frederick, 3rd Duke of Dorset. 
 
 Opening on to the landing at the top of the stairs are 
 two doors, that on the right leading into the Ball Room, 
 and that on the left into the Brown Gallery. 
 
28 
 
 THE BROWN GALLERY. 
 
 HI5 gallery, also known as the 
 Reformers’ Gallery on account 
 he portraits of Martin Luther, 
 ancthon and Pomeranus, is eighty 
 in length, and is panelled in oak 
 1 an arched ceiling divided into 
 compartments by oaken fret work. The portraits on the 
 walls are interesting, not so much for their artistic merit 
 as for the fact that they represent most of the celebrated 
 men during the reigns of Henry VIII., Mary, Elizabeth, 
 and James I. They are nearly all of them painted on 
 wooden panels, and were evidently painted as a set, since 
 they are all of one size and similar in character. 
 
 The furniture consists of chairs, armchairs and settees 
 of the 1 6th and early 17th centuries, and they are covered 
 for the most part in old embroidered velvet. In fact the 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
25 
 
 The Three Brothers Coligny— Porbus 
 
 Odet, Cardinal de Chatillon, 1515-1571. 
 
 Francis, Sieur d’Andelot, 1521-1569. 
 
 Gaspar, Admiral of France, 1516-1572. 
 
 King George III. Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 King George IV. Sir Thomas Lawrence 
 
 Queen Charlotte. Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex. Dobson 
 
 COATS OF ARMS IN THE WINDOWS. 
 Arms of Sackville and Dean. 
 
 Arms of Sackville quartering Den, Aguillon, Dallingridge, 
 Neuile Courcy, Curzon, and Cranfield. 
 
 Arms of Sackville. 
 
 Arms of Vere, Earl of Oxford, quartering seven others. 
 Arms of Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex. 
 
26 
 
 THE STAIRCASE. 
 
 HE walls of the passage leading from 
 the Hall to the principal staircase 
 are painted in “ grisaille,” w r hich 
 style of decoration is carried out 
 on the walls of the staircase 
 itself and in many other parts of 
 staircase was copied in oak for the 
 British Pavilion at the Paris Exhibition of 1900). 
 
 In a case on the landing are the coronation robes, 
 coronets and court costumes of the 3rd Duke of Dorset. 
 The chairs on the landing at the top of the staircase are 
 the state chairs of Lord Whitworth when Viceroy of 
 Ireland. He was the second husband of the 3rd Duchess 
 of Dorset. The lantern hanging from the ceiling is worthy 
 of notice from its quaintness of design and the primitive 
 contrivance for adjusting its elevation. 
 
 the house. (This 
 

 BROWN GALLERY. 
 

3 1 
 
 Henry Fitz Alan, Earl of Arundel, 1506-1569. 
 
 Roger Bacon (Friar Bacon) 1214-1294. 
 
 John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, 1502-1558. 
 William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke, d. 1569. 
 
 Queen Mary, 1517-1558. 
 
 Sir Thomas More, Lord Chancellor, 1480-1535. 
 
 Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury 1489-1556. 
 Stephen Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester, 1483-1556. 
 John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, 1459- 1 535. 
 
 Earl of Surrey. 
 
 Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex, 1480-1540. 
 
 Queen Catherine of Aragon, d. 1537. 
 
 King Henry VIII., 1491-1547. 
 
 Sir Thomas More, Lord Chancellor, 1480-1535. 
 
 Cardinal Wolsey, 1471-1530. 
 
 John Wickliffe, Reformer, 132 4-1384. 
 
 Geoffrey Chaucer, Poet, 
 
 Jane Seymour, third wife of Henry VIII. 
 
 Edward VI., I 537 " 1 553 - 
 
 Henry Carey, Lord Hunsdon, 1591. 
 
 Rodolphus Agricola, 1443-1485. 
 
 Portrait of a Lady. 
 
 Head of a Young Man. 
 
32 
 
 Portrait of a Gentleman. 
 
 Erasmus, 1467-1563. 
 
 Portrait of a Gentleman (Half-length). 
 
 Portrait of a Lady. 
 
 Anne, Countess of Hume, daughter of Richard, 5th Earl 
 of Dorset. Mytens. 
 
 King Charles II. 
 
 Henry, 7th Baron Abergavenny, 1558-1641. 
 
 He married Mary Sackville, daughter of Thomas, 
 1st Earl of Dorset. 
 
 Francis ist, King of France. 
 
 Dutch Boor. 
 
 King Edward ist. 
 
 Dutch Housewife. 
 
 Dutch Boor. 
 
 Martin Luther, 1483-1546. Melancthon, 1497-1560, and 
 Pomeranus. 
 
 James Cranfield, Earl of Middlesex. Dobson. 
 
 Edward Cranfield, 2nd son of Lionel, Earl of Middlesex. 
 
 Dobson. 
 
 Lionel Cranfield, Earl of Middlesex. Dobson. 
 
 Head of a Youth, blowing a Pipe. Ascribed to Murillo. 
 Richard, 3rd Earl of Dorset. 
 
 Lord Hunsdon. 
 
 William Paulet, ist Marquis of Winchester, d. 1572. 
 
2 9 
 
 English furniture at Knole is one of the most remarkable 
 features of the house, since every period from the time of 
 Queen Elizabeth is fully represented, and the chairs them- 
 selves most carefully preserved. 
 
 PICTURES 
 
 Lady Anne Clifford, 3rd Countess of Dorset. 
 
 Cornelius Janssens 
 
 Richard Sackville, 3rd Earl of Dorset. Cornelius Janssens 
 Portrait of a Gentleman, dated 1543. 
 
 King James 1st. 
 
 William 1st, Prince of Orange. 
 
 Sir Philip Sidney. 
 
 Isabella Clara Eugenia, Governess of the Low Countries. 
 Portrait of a Lady. 
 
 Portrait of a Gentleman. 
 
 Francis, Duke of Guise 1519-1563. 
 
 Alexander Farnese, Prince of Parma 1545-1592. 
 
 Henry II., Duke de Montmorency, 1595-1632. 
 
 Charles, Duke of Bourbon, 1489-1527. 
 
 Henry of Lorraine, Duke of Guise 1550-1588. 
 
 Don John, Duke of Austria 1546-1578. 
 
 Alphonso d’Avalos, Marquis del Guasto 1504-1546. 
 
Robert Blake, Admiral, 1589-1657. 
 
 Richard Bancroft, Archbishop of Canterbury 1544-1612. 
 Harry Howard, Earl of Northampton 1539-1614. 
 
 Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury 1561-1612. 
 
 Ferdinand Alvarez, Duke of Alva 1508-1581. 
 
 King James I., 1566-1625. 
 
 Thomas Howard, Earl of Suffolk, d. 1626. 
 
 Thomas Egerton, Lord Ellesmere, 1540-1616. 
 
 Sir Walter Mildmay, d. 1596. 
 
 John Whitgift, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1530-1604. 
 
 Sir James Wilford. 
 
 Thomas Sackville, jst Earl of Dorset, 1527-1608. 
 
 Sir Francis Drake, 1545-1596. 
 
 Charles Howard, Earl of Nottingham, Lord High Admiral, 
 1535-1624. 
 
 Sir John Norris, Naval Officer. 
 
 Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk, 1536-1572. 
 
 George Clifford, Earl of Cumberland 1558-1605. 
 
 Sir Francis Walsingham, 1536-1590. 
 
 Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester 1532-1580. 
 
 Queen Elizabeth, 1533-1603. 
 
 Sir Christopher Hatton, Lord Chancellor, 1539-1591- 
 William Cecil, Lord Burleigh, 1520-1598. 
 
 Thomas Ratcliff, 3rd Earl of Sussex, d. 1583. 
 
33 
 
 From the window at the 
 end of the Brown Gallery a 
 pretty view is obtained of 
 part of the garden, with a 
 broad grass walk leading up 
 through an avenue of trees to 
 some fine wrought-iron gates 
 of the time of Queen Anne. 
 On the right, opening directly 
 out of the gallery, are two 
 small rooms known as Lady 
 Betty Germaine’s Rooms. 
 
34 
 
 LADY BETTY GERMAiNE’S ROOWIS. 
 
 C HESE were occupied during the 
 first half of the eighteenth cen- 
 tury by Lady Betty Germaine, who 
 was the daughter of the Earl of 
 Berkeley, and second wife of Sir 
 John Germaine. She was a lady in 
 waiting to Queen Anne, and an intimate friend of the first 
 Duchess of Dorset. On her death in 1769 she left Drayton 
 House, Northamptonshire, and a legacy of £ 20 , 000 , with 
 half the residue of her estate to Lord George Sackville, 3rd 
 son of Lionel, rst Duke of Dorset, who thereupon took 
 the name of Germaine. She appears to have been an 
 accomplished needlewoman, for the curtains and hangings 
 of the bed in this room, and the covers of the chairs in the 
 next, her sitting room, are examples of her skill, and there 
 are several counterpanes and curtains in different parts of 
 the house which are ascribed to her. 
 
35 
 
 The high-backed chairs are of the period of Charles II., 
 and the carpets are of a quaint and uncommon design. 
 
 PDCTURES 
 
 Thomas Durfey. Vander Gutch 
 
 Lionel Sackville, ist Duke of Dorset. Godfrey Kneller 
 Dean Swift. After Jervas 
 
 PICTURES IN SITTING ROOM. 
 
 Portrait of Lady Betty Germaine. 
 A Lady at her Toilet. 
 
 Landscape. 
 
 The Salutation. 
 
 Musician. 
 
 Study of an old Man. 
 
 Quack Doctor. 
 
 Stable. 
 
 Sir Anthony Cope. 
 
 Possibly a study by Van Dyck for the 
 
 F. Mieris 
 Wouvernians 
 Rembrandt 
 Teniers 
 
 Teniers 
 
 Wouvermans 
 
 large portrait in the Hall. 
 
 Portrait. 
 
 Earl of Carey. Holbein 
 
 Thomas, ist Earl of Dorset. 
 
 Guillaume, Baron de Montmorency. Holbein 
 
 Charles the Fifth. 
 
 Martin Luther. 
 
 Holbein 
 
36 
 
 Lady Margaret Sackville, Countess ofThanet. Mytens 
 Mary, Queen of Scots, when a child. 
 
 Margaret, Queen of Spain. 
 
 Isabella, Duchess of Brabant. 
 
 Prince Maurice of Nassau and Orange, younger son of 
 William the Silent, 1567-1625. 
 
 Anne Boleyn. 
 
 Phillip, the 3rd, King of Spain. 
 
 Albertus, Archduke of Austria. 
 
 Raphael. Raphael 
 
 The Flight into Egypt. Bassano 
 
 Cupids. Parmegiano 
 
 Holy Family. Perugino 
 
 An old label at the back of this picture says “ It was painted by 
 
 Pietro Perugino, the Master of Raphael, for the Nuns of La Madonna 
 di Monte Lena at Perugia, from whom it was purchased by T.J. in 
 1769 and sold to the Duke of Dorset in Rome in 1770.” 
 
 Holy Family. Titian 
 
 Judith with the Head of Holofernes. Garofalo 
 
 The offering of the Wise Men. Mazzolina dia Ferrare 
 The Nativity. Van Dyck 
 
 These Italian pictures were all purchased by the 3rd Duke of 
 Dorset, the receipts for which are still extant. He paid ^50 a-piece 
 for them. 
 
 On the opposite side of the Brown Gallery a door leads 
 to the Spangled Bedroom. 
 
c 
 
 
 SM 
 
 SPANGLED BEDROOM 
 

 
 
 
 
 

37 
 
 THE SPANGLED BEDROOM. 
 
 C HE furniture and bed in this 
 room were given by 
 James I., and are covered with red 
 silk, ornamented with gold thread and 
 silver spangles. The oak carving 
 near the windows, and the fire-place 
 
 are worthy of notice.. 
 
 In front of the bed is a very fine and valuable Oriental 
 carpet, of beautiful colour and design, also a large leather 
 screen in one of the corners. The walls are hung with 
 tapestry, which like most of the tapestry in the house is of 
 Flemish workmanship. 
 
 The silver on the table near the bed is supposed to be 
 Italian, probably Genoese work, although it bears a strong 
 resemblance to the silver filagree work of India, by which 
 it was probably inspired. 
 
38 
 
 If it is true that the first accurate clock in England was 
 set up at Hampton Court in 1540, it may certainly be 
 presumed that clocks were not generally in use at the 
 time when these rooms were inhabited. It will be noticed 
 that here and in other rooms in this part of the house there 
 are large hour or sand glasses, which served to mark the 
 time. That the fire-places were not sufficiently large to 
 warm the galleries and larger rooms may be inferred from 
 the presence of the brass braziers which, filled with live 
 embers, were probably placed in parts of the room remote 
 from the heat of the fire. 
 
 PICTURES 
 
 Henry, Duke of Gloucester, b. 1640, d, 1660. Tyssen 
 
 Youngest son of Charles I. 
 
 Charles II. 
 
 James Compton, 3rd Earl of Northampton, d. 1681. Dobson 
 
 Son of Spencer, 2 nd Earl, and father of Lady Mary, wife of Charles, 
 6th Earl of Dorset. 
 
 Replica of a picture at Castle Ashby. 
 
SPANGLED BEDROOM 
 
 (Coronation Robes of the Dorset Family). 
 

 ifioomm murntw 
 
 TasaoCI , rr ao gasoil oitaVlOsoO' 
 

 
 
39 
 
 THE 
 
 SPANGLED DRESSING ROOM. 
 
 C HE small room leading out of 
 the spangled bedroom is called 
 the spangled dressing room, and 
 contains portraits of some of the 
 ladies of the Court of Charles II. 
 That which hangs over the door is 
 supposed to be an early one of Nell Gwynne. This 
 celebrated person before being received into favour by 
 Charles II. lived for some time under the protection of 
 Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset, then Lord Buckhurst. 
 
 Pepys in his Diary (13th July, 1667,) tells us “that my 
 Lord Buckhurst hath got Nell away from the King’s House 
 (the Play-house) and gives her £100 a year, so as she 
 hath sent her parts to the house, and will act no more.” 
 The following day he goes to Epsom “to the ‘King’s Head’ ; 
 and hears that my Lord Buckhurst and Nelly are lodged 
 at the next house, and Sir Charles Sedley with them : and 
 
40 
 
 keep a merry house/’ The establishment of the “ merry 
 house” does not seem to have been a success, for on the 
 26th August the same authority says “ that Nell is already 
 left by Lord Buckhurst, and that he makes sport of her, 
 and swears she hath had all she could get of him.” 
 
 O 
 
 PBCTURES 
 
 Early Portrait of Nell Gwynne. 
 
 La Belle Stewart, Duchess of Richmond. Sir P. Lely 
 
 Anne, Countess of Bedford. Sir P. Lely 
 
 Daughter of Robert Carr, Earl of Somerset. She died in 1684 of 
 grief for the loss of her son, Lord William Russell, executed for 
 treason in 1683. 
 
 Anne Hyde, Duchess of York. Sir P. Lely 
 
 Daughter of Edward, Earl of Clarendon. She married the Duke of 
 York, afterwards James II., and was the mother of two Queens of 
 England — Mary and Anne. 
 
 Anne Marie, Countess of Shrewsbury. Sir P. Lely 
 
 Daughter of Robert Brudenell, 2nd Earl of Cardigan. She was 
 second wife of Francis, nth Earl of Shrewsbury, who died in 1667 of 
 a wound received in a duel with George Villiers, 2nd Duke of 
 Buckingham. She is said to have held the Duke's horse during the 
 duel, in the disguise of a page. 
 
 Henry Spencer, Earl of Sunderland. Sir P. Lely 
 
 Barbara, Duchess of Cleveland. Sir P. Lely 
 
 Daughter of William Villiers, Viscount Grandison, and one of 
 Charles II.’s favourites. Died 1709, aged 69. 
 
 Mrs. Sackville. 
 
 Sir P. Lely 
 
4i 
 
 THE OLD BILLIARD ROOM. 
 
 C HIS room, which is really part 
 of the Leicester Gallery, con- 
 tains a billiard table, the lower 
 structures of which are evidently of 
 the time of Charles I., while the top 
 or bed, with the cushions and pockets 
 Round the table are several chairs so 
 constructed as to fold up, and belong possibly to the period 
 of the Protectorate or earlier. The copies of the Italian 
 Masters are of nearly the same date as the originals, and 
 are of a high order of merit. 
 
 PBCTURES 
 
 Supposed head of Cleopatra. 
 
 Heraclitus, the Crying Philosopher. Mignard 
 
 Diana and Nymphs, discovered by Actaeon. After Titian 
 
 The original of this and its companion picture opposite, were 
 painted for Charles II. of Spain, and were in the Marquis of Stafford’s 
 collection. 
 
 are of a later date. 
 
42 
 
 Democritus, the laughing Philosopher. Mignard 
 
 Catarina Cornaro, Queen of Cyprus 1492-1546. 
 
 Giulio Romano 
 
 Ninon de l'Enclos, 1616-1706. 
 
 This extraordinary lady retained her charms to an advanced period 
 of life. At 57 years of age she made the conquest of the Marquis de 
 Sevigne. She was upwards of 60 when the Chevalier de Villiers fell, 
 upon his sword, on discovering the object of his passion to be his 
 mother. 
 
 Venus and Cupid. After Correggio 
 
 Diana and Calisto. After Titian 
 
 Madonna and Child. Carlo Dolci 
 
 Head of a Poetess. Domenichino 
 
 The words which she is depicted as writing are : — ■“ Sta pensando il 
 cor, e la mia penna scrive, E per quello che penssa, e spire e vive’\ 
 
 Three Landscapes. Salvator Rosa 
 
 Magdalen. Guercino 
 
43 
 
 THE VESSSETIAW BEDROOM 
 
 LSO opens out of the Leicester 
 Gallery, and is so called from its 
 having been occupied by Nicolo 
 Molino, Venetian Ambassador at the 
 court of James I., on the occasion of 
 a visit to Knole. His portrait, by Mytens, hangs on the 
 right side of the door. There is a magnificent state bed 
 in this room with a finely embroidered silk bed cover and 
 green Genoa velvet hangings. It is said that the bed and 
 furniture were originally intended to furnish a room for 
 the reception of James I., but were supplanted by those 
 which are now in the room known as James I.’s Room. 
 The tapestry on the walls is of a verv fine quality and 
 colour, as also is the Oriental carpet. It is interesting to 
 note that the fire-place and window were designed by 
 Inigo Jones, and are consequently of a much later date 
 than the remainder of the decoration of the house, and that 
 they are almost the onlv examples of that style to be met 
 with at Knole. The portrait of one of the Doges of Venice 
 
44 
 
 over the fire-place is by Paul Veronese. A cupboard in the 
 corner contains some fine specimens of old Venetian glass. 
 
 A curious story is related in connection with the bed in 
 this room. Some sixty or seventy years ago a most un- 
 pleasant smell was noticed to proceed from the bed, and 
 
 Chair in Venetian Bed Room. 
 
 in order to discover its cause the mattress was cut open, 
 when it was found to be stuffed with old wigs, which were 
 in anything but a wholesome condition — whether they had 
 been substituted for the usual stuffing of feathers by 
 accident or design, is not known. 
 
AMBASSADOR’S ROOM. 
 

 
45 
 
 THE LEICESTER GALLERY. 
 
 is is panelled in oak and 
 furnished with Elizabethan and 
 Jacobean chairs and sofas, one 
 of the latter made with folding 
 ends, being known as the Knole 
 sofa. The embroidery on the 
 small settees is remarkably fine. 
 In the window which looks over the Park there is a small 
 portrait of Herbrand de Sackville, executed in stained 
 glass, with the following inscription : — “ Herbrandus de 
 Sackville, Praepotens Normanus, intravit Angliam cum 
 Gulielmo Conquestore. Anno Domino, MLXVI. (Herbrand 
 de Sackville, a Norman Prince, came into England with 
 William the Conqueror, A.D. 1066). Near the fire-place 
 stand two large scrolls, on which are inscribed illuminated 
 coats of arms with the pedigrees of the Sackville and 
 Curzon families. One was executed in 1589 for Thomas 
 
4 6 
 
 Sackville Lord Buckhurst, and one in 1623 for Edward, 
 4th Earl of Dorset, who married Mary Curzon,of Croxhall, 
 in Derbyshire. 
 
 Besides several other good portraits by Mytens, there is 
 at the end of the gallery a full length picture of James I. 
 seated in a chair; and the chair in which the King is 
 portrayed as sitting stands immediately below the picture. 
 
 Lionel Cranfield, 1st Earl of Middlesex, whose portrait 
 by Mytens is in this gallery, was the father of Lady Frances 
 Cranfield, who married Richard Sackville, 5th Earl of 
 Dorset. As this lady’s brothers all died without issue, she 
 became heiress to her father’s possessions and thus brought 
 considerable wealth into the Sackville family. Her son, 
 the 6th Earl of Dorset, obtained the title of the Earl of 
 Middlesex in addition to that of Dorset, and when the 
 Dukedom of Dorset was conferred on his son in 1720, the 
 title of Middlesex became the courtesy title of the eldest son. 
 
 Lionel, 1st Lord Middlesex, was the son of Thomas 
 Cranfield, a London merchant, and though as Clarendon 
 says in his history “extracted from a gentleman’s family, 
 had been bred in the City, and being a man of great wit 
 
47 
 
 and understanding in all the mysteries of Trade, had 
 found means to work himself into the favour of the Duke 
 
 Settee in the Leicester Gallery. being jealous of his 
 success, induced the King to have him impeached for 
 corruption, and he was eventually heavily fined and im- 
 prisoned in the Tower. 
 
 There is at Knole a great mass of his papers whilst 
 Lord High Treasurer, which give a good insight into the 
 economic conditions of the time and the household 
 expenses of James I. 
 
 Isabella, daughter of Henry II. of France and Catherine de 
 
 of Buckingham.” In 
 1621 James I. appointed 
 him his Lord High 
 Treasurer and made him 
 Earl of Middlesex, but 
 his former friend the 
 Duke of Buckingham, 
 
 PICTURES 
 
 A. Moro 
 
48 
 
 Cosmo I. Duke of Tuscany 1519-1574. Tintoretto 
 
 This portrait was given by Cosmo III., Duke of Tuscany to Charles 
 Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset. 
 
 Catherine Fitz Gerald, Countess of Desmond. 
 
 A famous beauty remarkable for her longevity. The dates of her 
 birth and death are not exactly known, but she is said to have lived 
 at least 150 years. It is related that at the age ol 90 she fell from an 
 apple tree and broke her leg. If tradition can be believed, she was 
 present at the Court of Edward IV., and still alive at the accession of 
 James I. in 1603. 
 
 Henry Frederic, Prince of Wales. Mytens 
 
 Nicolo Molino, Venetian Ambassador at the Court of King 
 James I. Mytens 
 
 The Miser. Quentin Matsys 
 
 Head of an old Man. 
 
 Theodore de Mayern, Physician to James I. and Charles I. 
 
 Dobson 
 
 John Gay, Poet, 1688-1732. Dahl 
 
 Lord and Lady Arundel with Junius, their Librarian. 
 
 Van Dyck 
 
 Liberti, Organist at Antwerp. After Van Dyck 
 
 A Florentine of the Strozzi family, possibly Cyrial Strozzi 
 
 1 5°4' I 5^5- 
 
 Joseph Addison, Poet and Secretary of State 1672-1717. 
 
 Jervas 
 
 Unknown Portrait. 
 
 Ann Brett, Wife of 1st Earl of Middlesex. 
 King James I. 
 
 Mytens 
 
 Mytens 
 
LEICESTER GALLERY. 
 
.th.'Luad aaTaaoiaj 
 

 
 
 
49 
 
 Portrait of an old Man. 
 
 Masked Ball. Tintoretto 
 
 Lady Martha Cranfield, daughter of ist Earl of Middlesex. 
 
 My tens 
 
 Married Henry Carey, Earl of Monmouth. 
 
 Edward Cranfield. Dobson 
 
 Lionel Cranfield, Earl of Middlesex. Mytens 
 
 Lord High Treasurer 1621. Died 1645. 
 
 James Cranfield, 2nd Earl of Middlesex. Dobson 
 
 Sir Ralph Bosville, of Bradbourne, Sevenoaks. 
 
 Jacob’s Journey. Bassano 
 
 Portrait of a Gentleman. Bassano 
 
 At the end of the Leicester gallery there is a small 
 china closet filled with chiefly Oriental china, the collection 
 of Lady Betty Germaine, whose spinning wheel is also 
 here, and beyond this closet again is the Brown gallery. 
 A door opening out of this gallery leads on to a small 
 staircase, which communicates with the Organ Room. 
 
5 ° 
 
 THE ©RGAM ROOIVS. 
 
 C HIS room derives its name from 
 an old organ standing by an 
 opening in the wall which overlooks 
 the Chapel. It is enclosed in an oak 
 case, and bears the date 1623. The 
 peculiarity of it is that the whole of 
 the original pipes are of wood (oak), this material being no 
 doubt used instead of metal, with the idea of producing 
 greater softness and sweetness of tone. The date of the 
 Spinet standing next to the organ, which was exhibited a 
 few years since at the S. Kensington Museum Loan 
 Collection is about 1610. 
 
 Parts of the walls are hung with tapestry, but the 
 remainder are left bare, showing the oak boards, which 
 are fastened in a somewhat rough and ready fashion and 
 not framed into panelling. On a table in front of the 
 

 
 
 i 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 < 
 
5 
 
 window are several old glass wine bottles found in the 
 cellar, with the family arms on them, also some “ leathern 
 Jacks ” ; and tw^o long glasses by the fire-place testify to 
 the drinking powers of former days, as one of them is 
 capable of containing at least “a yard of ale,” and was 
 doubtless intended to be emptied in one long draught. 
 
 Fire-Place Bearing the Cognizance of Archbishop Bourchier. 
 These two glasses are known as u My Lord’s conscience 
 and My Lady’s conscience” — My Lady’s being the longest. 
 A curious old iron treasure-chest with a most complicated 
 steel lock, stands by the door. This dates from the days 
 of the Spanish Armada. Separated from this room by a 
 few steps is the Chapel Room. 
 
THE CHAPEL ROOM. 
 
 I N this room there 
 tion of old blue 
 and Oriental china, 
 plique embroidery 
 stands in one cor- 
 ner, said to be the 
 work of Queen Elizabeth, and on each 
 side of the fire-place are two Dutch 
 “Picture Board Dummies,” or almost 
 life-sized figures painted on wood. The 
 fashion of making “ Picture Board 
 Drawings” of this description and 
 placing them in conspicuous places 
 in houses, was introduced into England 
 during the seventeenth century and 
 probably originated in Holland. The 
 two figures in this room represent 
 
 is a large collec- 
 and while Delft 
 A screen of ap- 
 
53 
 
 pew, overlooking 
 
 a lady and gentleman ot the time 
 of William III., or perhaps Queen 
 Anne. The head-dress of the lady 
 is a “Fontange” of lace. A very 
 common form for these “ Dummies” 
 to take is that of a housemaid or 
 lady dressed as a housemaid and 
 holding a broom. 
 
 The tapestry represents the history 
 of Noah conducting the animals 
 into the Ark. A door in the far 
 corner leads into the Chapel, or 
 rather into the gallery or family 
 the Chapel. 
 
54 
 
 THE CHAPEL. 
 
 N the gallery are two very fine 
 pieces of Flemish tapestry, one 
 depicting the legend of Saint 
 Veronica and the other St. Paul’s 
 healing of Eutychus. Covering the 
 north wall of the Chapel, there is a 
 large piece of Gothic tapestry representing scenes from 
 the Passion of Christ, in which the colouring is remarkably 
 well preserved. The tradition is that this tapestry was 
 bought by Archbishop Cranmer for the Chapel, which was 
 built by him. The triptych and carved groups of Saints 
 over the altar, were given by Mary Queen of Scots to the 
 Earl of Dorset who had been entrusted with the duty of 
 informing her that her death-warrant had been signed by 
 Queen Elizabeth. In the East window is a remarkable 
 set of “ grisaille” glass representing the twelve Apostles, 
 

 THE CHAPEL. 
 

 
 
 
 
55 
 
 and there is some glass of the same kind in the window of 
 the pew. The prayer books are of the times of Charles 1st 
 or James ist. In the year 1644 a sermon entitled “ An 
 
 Chapel Doorway. 
 
56 
 
 Alarm beat up in Sion to War against Babylon,” was 
 preached in the Chapel at Knole by Joseph Boden, 
 Minister of God’s Word and Pastor of the Church at 
 Ashford in Kent, before the Committee of the County of 
 Kent. Printed in London, 1644. 
 
 Returning by way of the Chapel Room, there is a 
 small door leading into the Ball Room. 
 
OOM KNQLE 
 

 
 
 
 
 
5 
 
 THE BALL ROOM. 
 
 HIS, a large well-proportioned room, 
 is panelled in oak, which is, and 
 probably always was, painted white, 
 in order to give more light. Above 
 the panelling there is a broad frieze 
 on which are carved, in high relief, 
 This room and the rooms beyond it, 
 or at any rate their decorations, are of a later date than 
 the portion of the house hitherto described, and were 
 probably arranged in their present form by Thomas 
 Sackville, ist Earl of Dorset, at the end of the sixteenth 
 century. All the rooms and galleries previously mentioned 
 are of the Early English style, whereas the Ball Room, the 
 Crimson Drawing Room, and Cartoon Gallery, bear 
 evidence in the highly-decorated fire-places and ceilings, of 
 
 grotesque figures. 
 
58 
 
 the introduction into England of the art of the Italian 
 Renaissance. The marble fire-place is a particularly fine 
 one, as also is the ceiling. 
 
 The pictures, nearly all of them of full length, consist 
 of the portraits of the owners of Knole of the Sackville 
 family, commencing with Thomas, Lord Dorset, in the 
 time of Queen Elizabeth, and ending with the 4th Duke of 
 Dorset, who was killed out hunting in Ireland in the year 
 1815. He, the last Duke of Dorset to possess Knole, was 
 only five years old when he succeeded to the family 
 honours on the death of his father, the 3rd Duke, in 1799. 
 H e was educated at Harrow and Christ Church, Oxford, 
 and had only a short time come of age, when during a visit 
 to his mother, who had married Lord Whitworth, then 
 Viceroy ot Ireland, he met with the accident, whilst hunt- 
 ing with Lord Powerscourt’s hounds near Dublin, that 
 ended in his death. He was not married, and on his death 
 the title passed to his cousin, Charles Sackville Germaine, 
 of Drayton House, Northamptonshire, who died, 
 unmarried, in 1843, when the Dukedom of Dorset 
 became extinct. 
 
 Knole, however, and the estates, passed, on the death 
 
3rd Duke of Dorset, 
 (' Gainsborough .) 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 \ 
 
 
59 
 
 of the 4th Duke to his sister, Lady Mary Sackville, who 
 married firstly the Earl of Plymouth, and secondly Earl 
 Amherst. She died without issue, and Knole, together 
 with the estates and house of Buckhurst in Sussex, became 
 the property of her sister, Lady Elizabeth, who married 
 George John West, 5th Earl De La Warr, and was the 
 mother of the present Lord Sackville. 
 
 This same Lady De La Warr, by her will, directed 
 that Buckhurst should be the inheritance of her eldest son, 
 and Knole that of her younger sons in succession. 
 
 Undoubtedly the finest picture in the Ball Room is a 
 portrait by Gainsborough of the 3rd Duke of Dorset. The 
 portrait of his wife, Arabella Diana Cope, is the work of 
 Madame Vigee le Brun, who came to Knole for the pur- 
 pose of painting it ; Madame Vigee le Brun mentions 
 this fact in her Memoirs, and describes the bedroom which 
 she occupied and the furniture in it, which .is still the same. 
 She also relates that she was told by the Duchess that 
 strict silence was to be observed at meals. 
 
 Anne, wife of Richard, 3rd Earl, whose picture, by 
 Mytens, is in this room, was the daughter of George 
 
6o 
 
 Clifford, 3rd Earl of Cumberland, whose heiress she was, 
 but she did not succeed in establishing her claims to all his 
 possessions, which included the Castles of Appleby* 
 Brougham, Skipton and Pendragon, until nearly forty 
 years after his death. She was a woman of strong person- 
 ality and considerable ability, and has left a record of her 
 life and character in the form of a diary, a copy of which 
 is in the library at Knole. From this we gather that her 
 life with the Earl of Dorset was the reverse of happy. It 
 is curious to read in her diary of the time she spent at 
 Knole, and how she used to play in the Great Gallery, now 
 called the Cartcon Galler\-, at “ Glecko,” with the Steward. 
 The quarrels with her husband were chiefly owing to his 
 attempts to get possession of her money, as by “ his 
 excessive prodigality in housekeeping and other noble 
 ways at Court, as tilting, masking, and the like,” he did much 
 to injure his estate. In his portrait, by Marc Gheeradts, 
 he is represented as wearing the sword of his grandfather, 
 Thomas Dorset, the guard of which is formed by the initials 
 of his name, T.D. That Lady Dorset was not lacking 
 in appreciation of her own position and importance may 
 be gathered from the following story. A Mr. Joseph 
 Williamson, Secretary of State to Charles II., wished to 
 
nominate a member for the County of Cumberland, to 
 whom she replied, “ Sir, I have been bullied by an Usurper, 
 I have been neglected by a Court, but I will not be dictated 
 to by a Subject. Your man shall not stand. ” 
 
 Six years after the death of Lord Dorset in 1624 she 
 married Phillip Herbert, Earl of Pembroke, and died in the 
 86th year of her age, in 1676. 
 
 Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset, painted by Sir 
 Godfrey Kneller, was a man of considerable distinction 
 and filled several offices of importance during the reigns 
 of the first two Georges. On the death of Queen Anne 
 he was sent as Ambassador to Hanover to announce that 
 event to George I. In 1720 he was made Duke of Dorset 
 and next year Lord Steward of the Household, and acted 
 as Lord High Steward of England at the Coronation of 
 George II. He was twice Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, first 
 in 1730 and again in 1751, and four years later was ap- 
 pointed Master of the Horse. He was also Lord Lieutenant 
 of Kent, Constable of Dover Castle and Lord Warden of 
 the Cinque Ports. He died in 1765. 
 
 Near the door leading to the staircase is a painted 
 
62 
 
 Italian marriage chest in which it was the custom to keep 
 the trousseau of the bride. The painting on it is the work 
 of a Florentine artist and represents the Triumph of a 
 Roman Conqueror. 
 
 The furniture is gilt, most of it covered in red Genoa 
 velvet, and the best pieces are a sofa and arm chairs of 
 the time of James I. 
 
 The carpet is an exceedingly handsome one of 
 Indian manufacture, and dates from the 16th century. It 
 was made during the reign of Akbar, Emperor of Delhi, 
 who was a contemporary of Queen Elizabeth. 
 
 Among other fine things is a Buhl table from a design 
 of Berain, on which stands a valuable Dresden china jar 
 with an Oriental pattern. There is also some very hand- 
 some dark blue Worcester china on another table, and a 
 French Louis XV. clock. 
 
 The date of the large gilt sconces, which have been 
 lately fitted with electric light, is 1720. 
 
 The case in the bow window contains some remarkably 
 fine specimens of Vincennes and Sevres china decorated 
 
6j 
 
 by Chavaux, Evans, Ledoux, and Le Guay. They were 
 the gift of Napoleon the Great to Lord Whitworth, 2nd 
 husband of the 3rd Duchess of Dorset. Lord Whitworth 
 was Ambassador to Paris, and previously to St. Petersburg, 
 The following autograph letter, which is among the papers 
 at Knole, from Nelson to him, then Sir Charles Whitworth, 
 is of interest, and is believed not to have been published 
 before : — 
 
 “ Foudroyant off Malta, February 26th, 1800. 
 
 My Dear Sir, 
 
 I certainly feel under the highest obligations to Your 
 Excellency for obtaining from His Imperial Majesty the 
 cross of Malta for Lady Hamilton and Captain Ball, two 
 persons who have merited it more for their services at 
 Malta for these 16 months past, or will adorn it more can 
 never be looked for in any other. My uncommon good 
 fortune has put the Gen6reaux 74, and a large Storeship 
 into my hands on the 18th instant, having on board 2,000 
 Troops with provisions and stores for the relief of La 
 Villette. I have presumed to lay at His Imperial Majesty's 
 feet, the Sword of the French Admiral Perrie who was 
 killed in the little firing which took place, and have sent it 
 
64 
 
 with my letter to Count , His Minister to H.S. 
 
 Majesty, in order to its being forwarded to St. Peters- 
 burg ; this fortunate capture must facilitate the fall of La 
 Villette, for unless the French send their fleet from Brest 
 into the Mediterranean, they have no force to protect a 
 relief, the Ships in the harbour in consequence of this 
 capture are fitting for Sea, which is a sure indication of 
 their thinking of a surrender. I am keeping a good look, 
 and hope to have them, which will complete the destruc- 
 tion of the French Egyptian fleet, and enable me to say 
 that this War I have assisted at the Capture of 20 Sail of 
 the Line and 5 Admirals, it is then my resolution to retire, 
 for such fortune can never continue. With every senti- 
 ment of Respect, Believe me, Your Excellencys, 
 
 Most obliged Servant, 
 
 Bronte Nelson. 
 
 His Excellency Sir Chas. Whitworth, K. Bt.” 
 
 PICTURES 
 
 Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset 1536-1608. 
 
 Lord High Treasurer to Queen Elizabeth. 
 
Arabella Diana Cope— 3rd Duchess of Dorset. 
 
 (. Uoppner .) 
 

 
 
 
Lady Margaret Howard, daughter of the Duke of Norfolk 
 
 Lucas de Heere 
 
 Married 2nd Earl of Dorset, b. 1591 
 
 Cecelie, daughter of Sir John Baker, of Sissinghurst, Kent 
 
 Married Thomas, 1st Earl of Dorset 
 
 Robert Sackville, 2nd Earl of Dorset, d. 1609 
 
 Lucas de Heere 
 
 Anne Clifford, daughter of Earl of Northumberland 
 
 Mytens 
 
 Married Richard, 3rd Earl of Dorset 
 
 Richard Sackville, 3rd Earl of Dorset 1589—1624 
 
 Marc Gheeradts 
 
 Mary Curzon, daughter and heiress of Sir George Curzon, 
 of Croxhall, Derbyshire Marc Gheeradts 
 
 Married Edward, 4th Earl of Dorset. (She was buried in West- 
 minster Abbey). 
 
 Lionel Cranfield, Earl of Middlesex, father of Lady 
 Frances Cranfield, who married 5th Earl of 
 Dorset Mytens 
 
 Lord High Treasurer to James I. 
 
 Charles Sackville, 2nd Duke of Dorset, 1711 — 1769 
 
 Vanloo 
 
 Represented in the costume of a Roman Emperor 
 
 Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset, 1688 — 1765, and his 
 sister Lady Mary Sackville, afterwards Duchess 
 of Beaufort Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
66 
 
 Mary Compton, daughter of the Earl of Northampton 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Married Charles, 6th Earl of Dorset, b. 1668, d. 1691 
 
 Edward Sackville, 4th Earl of Dorset, d. 1652 
 
 Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset, 1688 — 1765 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Created Duke of Dorset, 1720. Twice Lord Lieutenant of 
 Ireland. 
 
 Arabella Diana, daughter and co-heiress of Sir John 
 Cope Madame Vigee Le Brun 
 
 Married John Frederick, 3rd Duke of Dorset. Secondly married 
 1st Earl Whitworth 
 
 George John Frederick Sackville, 4th Duke of Dorset, 
 b. 1793, d. 1815 Sanders 
 
 John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset, Ambassador 
 at Paris, b. 174^, d. 1799 Gainsborough 
 
 Elizabeth, daughter of Lt. -General Colyear T. Hudson 
 
 Married Lionel, 1st Duke of Dorset 
 
 Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset, b. 1637, d. 1706 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Outside the Ball Room there is a small landing at the 
 top of a staircase, which leads down to the private 
 sitting rooms, in which there is an ivory chair brought 
 back from the East by Lord Amherst, second husband of 
 
6y 
 
 Lady Mary Sackville, Countess of Plymouth. Lord 
 Amherst was sent as Ambassador to China in 1806, and 
 in 1823 was Governor General of India. He died at 
 Knole in 1859. A landscape by Berchem hangs near the 
 door leading to the Crimson Drawing Room. 
 
68 
 
 THE CRIMSON DRAWING ROOM 
 
 OR 
 
 REYNOLDS’ ROOM. 
 
 
 [1 |OST of the pictures in this 
 
 
 room are by Sir Joshua 
 
 
 Reynolds. A very striking and 
 
 
 beautiful full length portrait by 
 
 
 Hoppner, of Arabella Diana Cope, 
 
 
 3rd Duchess of Dorset, hangs on one 
 
 side of the fire-place, and on the other side is a fine 
 portrait by Reynolds of her husband, the 3rd Duke. 
 
 This Duke succeeded in 1769, being then about 24 
 years old, and was appointed Ambassador to Paris in 
 1 783, where he remained until shortly before the outbreak 
 of the Revolution. During his stay in Paris he was 
 admitted, by means of Madame de Polignac, into the 
 intimate circle surrounding the Queen, Marie Antoinette. 
 

 
 
 
6g 
 
 An old guide-book to Knole published a few years after 
 his death, which took place in 1799, says that “ he was 
 extremely fond of Knole; and, while he was constantly 
 adding to its internal embellishments, he would not suffer 
 its external form and character to be altered, but expended 
 considerable sums in its repair.” As a young man he 
 travelled a great deal in Italy, where he made the 
 purchases of pictures previously mentioned. 
 
 Many of the pictures in this room were painted at 
 Knole for him, Sir Joshua Reynolds and Gainsborough 
 being both friends of his ; he acted as one of the pall- 
 bearers at the funeral of Reynolds. The receipts for the 
 payments of these pictures show that ^37 10s od. was the 
 price for a half-length portrait, while for his own full 
 length picture by Reynolds, he paid £300. 
 
 Besides being a patron of art, he did much to 
 encourage the game of cricket in the County, and pre- 
 sented the Vine Cricket Ground, which is believed to be 
 the oldest Cricket Club in England, to the town of 
 Sevenoaks. In the library there is a small print represent- 
 ing a cricket match played at Sevenoaks, for the sum of 
 Five Hundred Guineas, between “ His Grace’s men and 
 Mr. Horace Mann’s men.” 
 
70 
 
 Upon an easel stands what is certainly one of the 
 most valuable and celebrated pictures at Knole — a portrait 
 by Gainsborough, of Miss Linley and her brother. This 
 lady was the wife of Richard Brinsley Sheridan, and 
 evidently a most beautiful woman. The face in this 
 picture is said by competent authorities to be the finest 
 ever painted by Gainsborough. 
 
 Another portrait in this room by the same master is 
 that of Lord George Sackville, son of Lionel, ist Duke of 
 Dorset. As has been before mentioned, he assumed the 
 name of Germaine on succeeding to the property of Lady 
 Betty Germaine. At the battle of Minden in 1759 he was 
 in command of the British Cavalry, and incurred the dis- 
 pleasure of Prince Ferdinand, of Brunswick, the Com- 
 mander-in-Chief, for not advancing with sufficient 
 promptitude. His conduct on this occasion was afterwards 
 the subject of a Court Martial, the verdict of which was 
 given against him. The affair created considerable stir at 
 the time, and aroused the sympathy of Voltaire, who wrote 
 him a letter expressing his regret at the accusations 
 brought against his honour. He was, however, afterwards 
 re-instated in the popular favour, and was somewhat more 
 successful as a statesman than he had been as a soldier. 
 
7 1 
 
 He was Colonial Secretary during the American War, and 
 was created Baron Bolebroke and Viscount Sackville 
 in 1782. 
 
 An interesting portrait is that of Miss Hannah 
 Lightfoot by Sir Joshua Reynolds. The story concerning 
 this lady, who belonged to the Society of Friends, and was 
 known as the Fair Quakeress, is that she so aroused the 
 admiration of George III., then Prince of Wales, that he 
 privately married her in 1759. This marriage, if it ever 
 took place, was however kept secret, and Miss Lightfoot 
 was disposed of and married a Mr. Axford. In connection 
 with this story it may be of interest to relate that in 1904 
 the present Lord Sackville received a letter from an 
 American lady who said that she was the great-grand- 
 daughter of Hannah Lightfoot and George III., and stated 
 that the son of this marriage emigrated to America during 
 the Revolutionary War, and settled there under the name 
 of George Rex, by which name his descendants have since 
 been known. 
 
 The oriental carpet in this room is one of the most 
 valuable in the house, the figures of men and animals being 
 very curious — it must be about 300 years old. 
 
7 2 
 
 The walls are hung with old red Genoa velvet and 
 the chairs and furniture are covered with the same material. 
 The fire-place and ceiling resemble in character those in 
 the Ball Room, and are in the Italian Renaissance style. 
 The fire-dogs, which stand on each side of the hearth, are 
 of silver, and of the time of Charles II. 
 
 In the corner, behind the picture of Miss Linley, there 
 is a Louis XV. cabinet inlaid with mother-of-pearl, sur- 
 mounted by an ormolu clock. The cabinet is curious in 
 that the decoration of it, ^although made in France, is in 
 imitation of Chinese work. The centre of the room is 
 occupied by a table on which there is a toilet service of 
 jaspar and silver. 
 
 PICTURES 
 
 John Frederick, 3rd Duke of Dorset. Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 Robinetta. Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 A similar picture to this is in the National Gallery. “ Robinetta ” 
 was Magdalene Lewis, afterwards Countess of Dysart. 
 
 David Garrick. Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Actor, b. 1717, d. 1779. 
 
 The Infant Samuel. 
 
 Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
A iss Linley and Her Brother. 
 
 (' Gainsborough .) 
 

 
 
73 
 
 Count Ugolino, and bis two sons starved to death in the 
 
 prison of Pisa. 
 
 Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Miss Hannah Lightfoot. 
 
 The Fair Quakeress. 
 
 Samuel Johnson. 
 
 Arabella Diana Cope. 
 
 Married 3rd Duke of Dorset. 
 
 Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 Hoppner 
 
 John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset. 
 
 Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Painted in his Coronation Robes. 
 
 Oliver Goldsmith. Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Poet'and Author, b. 1728, d. 1774. 
 
 Samuel Foote. Romney, after Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Actor and Dramatist, b. 1720, d. 1777. 
 
 Lord George Sackville. Gainsborough 
 
 Son of 1st Duke of Dorset. Created Viscount Sackville. 
 
 The Fortune Teller. After Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Sir Joshua Reynolds. Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 At the back of this portrait “Sir Joshua Reynolds, painted by 
 himself and presented to His Grace the Duke of Dorset in 1780.” 
 
 Hwang a Tung, a Chinese Youth. Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Educated at the Grammar School, Sevenoaks. 
 
 Peg Woffington Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 
 Actress, d. 1760. 
 
 Miss Linley and her brother. 
 
 Afterwards Mrs. Richard Brinsley Sheridan. 
 
 Gainsborough 
 
74 
 
 THE CARTOON GALLERY, 
 
 FORMERLY CALLED 
 
 THE GREAT GALLERY. 
 
 HIS gallery, which opens directly 
 out of the Crimson Drawing 
 Room, is go feet long, and derives 
 its name from the large cartoons 
 illustrating incidents in the lives 
 of the Apostles, which hang on 
 the walls. The history of these 
 paintings is that Charles I., having heard much of the 
 original cartoons painted by Raphael, sent his Court 
 painter, Mytens, to copy them, and was so well pleased 
 with the result that he bought the originals and gave the 
 copies by Mytens to Edward Sackville, Earl of Dorset, for 
 this gallery. Raphael’s originals were formerly at 
 Hampton Court and are now in the South Kensington 
 

75 
 
 Museum. These same cartoons were reproduced in 
 tapestry at Mortlake during the reign of Charles I. 
 
 The full length portrait of the Earl of Surrey (who was 
 beheaded in the reign of Henry VIII.), has been ascribed 
 by some to Holbein and by others to Moroni. Below it 
 stands a table and two large tripods of Charles II. ’s time 
 inlaid with platinum and brass, and on the table are 
 drawings by Guercino, Laudido and Carraci. The ceiling 
 and fire-place in this gallery are of the same style and 
 period as those in the Crimson Drawing Room and Ball 
 Room — the silver fire-dogs, which are very noticeable 
 on account of their design and workmanship, are of the 
 time of Charles II. 
 
 The chairs and stools of the I jih and 1 6th centuries are 
 very fine specimens of English furniture, more especially 
 those at the far end of the gallery, which are covered in 
 brilliant coloured velvets of various shades. Underneath 
 the covering of one of the sofas was found, a short time 
 ago, the original material with which it was covered and 
 which dated from the reign of Elizabeth. The present 
 red velvet is of the seventeenth century. Their wood- 
 work also is handsomely carved, and they are probably 
 
7 6 
 
 the work of Italian workmen, who were so plentifully 
 introduced into England on account of their skill in 
 furniture making during the reigns of Elizabeth and 
 James I. 
 
 Nearly opposite the fire-place there is a curious old 
 leather chest, elaborately studded with brass nails, which 
 belonged to the ist Earl of Dorset, Lord Treasurer to 
 Queen Elizabeth, On the table at the far end of the 
 
77 
 
 gallery are three handsome and very valuable vases of 
 Nankin china. Very fine also are the elaborately chased 
 gilt locks on all four doors in this room. These locks were 
 the gift of William III. His monogram and crown are 
 very finely chiselled on them. The fire-place, ceiling and 
 general proportions of the Cartoon Gallery served as a 
 model for the large gallery at the British Pavilion at 
 the Paris Exhibition of 1900. 
 
 PICTURES 
 
 King Henry VIII. After Holbein 
 
 Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey. ? Holbein 
 
 Son of Thomas, Duke of Norfolk 1547. 
 
 Sir Thomas More. After Holbein 
 
 Lord Chancellor to Henry VIII. 
 
 Mary, Queen of Scots. Zucchero 
 
 Henry Somerset, 5th Earl and 1st Marquis of Worcester. 
 
 Defender of Raglan Castle against Cromwell. 
 
 Lord Glamorgan, his eldest son, made the first steam-engine. 
 
 Portrait of a Gentleman. Tintoretto 
 
 Sir Walter Raleigh. 
 
 Elizabeth Throgmorton 
 
 Maid of honour to Queen Elizabeth, married Sir Walter Raleigh. 
 
78 
 
 The stained glass shields, being coats of arms, let 
 into the windows, are a record of the alliances of the 
 Sackville family from the time of Sir Robert Sackville in 
 the nth century to that of Richard, the 3rd Earl of 
 Dorset, and are as follows : — 
 
 ARMS IN WINDOWS. 
 
 Sackville and Clifford. Sackville and Arundell. 
 
 
 Howard. ,, 
 
 De la Beech. 
 
 j * 
 
 Baker. ,, 
 
 Mortimer. 
 
 
 Bruges. ,, 
 
 Malyns. 
 
 j) 
 
 Boleyn. ,, 
 
 Aguillon. 
 
 ) > 
 
 Digges. 
 
 Hastings. 
 
 j j 
 
 Brown. ,, 
 
 Normanville. 
 
 j > 
 
 Culpepper. ,, 
 
 Brook. 
 
 j » 
 
 Nowers. ,, 
 
 Vere. 
 
 > ) 
 
 Dalingridge. ,, 
 
 Den. 
 
 
 Sackville and Woodville. 
 
 
 Besides th 
 
 ese coats there are twelve 
 
 others — six in 
 
 the large window in the recess, and six in the window at 
 the end of the gallery. They belong to families in no way 
 
CARTOON 
 
 GALLERY— WINDOW. 
 

 ///(Ximw mLLIAO /iOOTHAD 
 
 . 
 
79 
 
 connected with Knole, and there is no apparent reason 
 for their having been placed there. They are all of them 
 the arms of law officers of the Crown, as follows : — 
 
 John Popham. 
 
 Attorney General. 
 
 John Purkinge. 
 
 Sergeant at law. 
 
 Gilbert Gerrard. 
 
 Master of the Requests. 
 
 Suagge. 
 
 Master Sergeant at law. 
 
 John Herbert. 
 
 Master of the Requests. 
 
 William Aubrey. 
 
 Judge of Audience. 
 
 Julius. 
 
 Judge of Admiralty. 
 
 Roger Manwoode. 
 
 Chief Baron of Exchequer. 
 
 Christopher Wray. 
 
 Lord Chief Justice. 
 
 William Lewyn. 
 
 Judge of Prerogative. 
 
 Ralph Rokesby. 
 
 Master of Requests. 
 
 Richard Cole. 
 
 i 
 
 Of the Arches. 
 
8o 
 
 KING JAMES I. BEDROOM. 
 
 C HI 5 , one of the most interest- 
 ing and picturesque of the 
 rooms at Knole, is reached from 
 the Cartoon Gallery by a short 
 passage, out of which opens a 
 small room, doubtless used as an 
 antechamber, and known as the King’s Closet, in which 
 there is a remarkably fine carved oak chest. 
 
 The bedroom was prepared and the bed and furniture 
 purchased for the reception of James 1 . on the occasion 
 of one of his visits to Knole. Tradition says that the bed 
 alone cost £8,000. The curtains, counterpane and 
 pillows of the bed are richly embroidered with gold and 
 silver, and were lined originally with crimson satin, 
 although the colour has almost entirely faded, except on 
 
KING JAMES l. BEDROOM. 
 

 .ttooaaaa .1 smki o/±ra 
 
 
8i 
 
 the inside which has not been exposed to the light. The 
 lining also is very delicately embroidered in gold and 
 silver. The mattresses are of white satin. 
 
 The walls are hung with Flemish tapestries, repre- 
 senting scenes from the history of Nebuchadnezzar, of 
 which another example is to be found at Glamis Castle in 
 Scotland. The chairs, stools and sofa are all of the date 
 of James I., and, as mentioned above, are the work of 
 Italian workmen in England. 
 
 The most striking feature of this room is the profusion 
 of silver, all of the time of Charles II. The largest 
 and most important piece is a table of magnificently 
 chased silver with two tall tripods standing on each 
 side of it, and a large looking glass above it, while on 
 the walls are fourteen silver sconces of the same 
 period. There are in all twenty-six of these sconces, 
 but twelve have lately been removed to one of the 
 private rooms, the Colonnade, where they show to 
 better advantage than in the dark corners of this 
 room. 
 
 The silver toilet service and looking glass on the 
 dressing table near the window is mentioned by Cripps in 
 
82 
 
 his work on English Plate as being particularly fine, and 
 consists of two hair brushes and several boxes. All 
 this silver was a wedding present to Lady Frances 
 Cranfield, Countess of Dorset, and bears her monogram. 
 The small vases with silver artificial flowers which 
 stand on a small cabinet to the left of the dressing table 
 are Neapolitan and are probably of the early 16th century. 
 On two very fine and valuable Spanish cabinets made of 
 ebony and stained ivory there are some more silver urns 
 and bowls, also of the time of Charles II. Of the same 
 date are the silver fire-dogs in the hearth and on each side 
 is a handsome ewer and basin. 
 
 The portrait over the fire-place is a contemporary 
 one of King James I. while that over the door is of Sir 
 Walter Raleigh. 
 
 This ends the description of the rooms ordinarily 
 shewn to visitors. 
 
SOUTH FRONT. 
 
.T/iOjr* iiTuoa 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
83 
 
 PRIVATE ROOMS. 
 
 C HE private sitting rooms are 
 on the ground floor, and face 
 towards the garden or south- 
 western side of the house. The 
 first in order is a sitting room con- 
 taining some fine pastels of the 
 eighteenth century, the work of Rosalba Carriera (1675- 
 1 75 7) , b ut the chief feature of the room is a charming 
 portrait by Hoppner of three children, one of whom was 
 the 4th Duke of Dorset, and the others his two sisters, 
 Lady Elizabeth Sackville, Countess Plymouth, and Lady 
 Mary Sackville, Countess De la Warr, the latter of which 
 was the mother of the present Lord Sackville. The 
 colouring and grouping of this picture are most pleasing, 
 
8 4 
 
 and a pretty view taken in the Park near the Sevenoaks 
 lodge forms a delightful background. 
 
 Over the fire-place an ornamental one of the date of 
 Queen Anne, is a portrait of Lady Betty Germaine, the 
 occupant of the rooms previously described. There are 
 also two portraits of Lady Plymouth and Lady De la 
 Warr, by Sanders and Beechey respectively. 
 
 PICTURES 
 
 La Muscovite. Rosalba 
 
 The Sackville Children. Hoppner 
 
 Lady Milton, daughter of Lionel, ist Duke of Dorset. 
 
 Rosalba 
 
 Lord John Sackville. Duchess of Bedford 
 
 This painting closely resembles a picture by Chardin, now in the 
 possession of the German Emperor. 
 
 Lord John Sackville. Rosalba 
 
 The Earl of Chesterfield. Rosalba 
 
 Lady Betty Germaine. Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Charles Sackville, 2nd Duke of Dorset. 
 
 Rosalba 
 
«5 
 
 Lionel Sackville, ist Duke of Dorset, 
 Charles Sackville, 2nd Duke of Dorset. 
 Rosalba Carriera. 
 
 Lady Betty Germaine. 
 
 Lady Elizabeth Sackville, 1795-1870. 
 
 Rosalba 
 
 Rosalba 
 
 Rosalba 
 
 Rosalba 
 
 Beechey 
 
 Married 5th Earl De la Warr. 
 
 Lady John Sackville. 
 
 Elizabeth Colyear, ist Duchess of Dorset. 
 Lady Mary Sackville. 
 
 Sanders 
 
 Rosalba 
 
 Rosalba 
 
 Married Earl of Plymouth, 2ndly Earl Amherst. 
 
 The room is furnished in English and French satin 
 wood of the eighteenth century. 
 
 The Library, which lies beyond this room, is lined 
 from floor to ceiling with bookshelves, containing some 
 valuable and well bound editions of the last two centuries. 
 The casing of the shelves is in dark oak, and the old and 
 quaintly carved fire-place and mantel piece are of the 
 same wood. A curious specimen of the somewhat rare 
 Mortlake tapestry hangs in a recess in this room, being a 
 copy in tapestry from a picture, painted by Van Dyck, of 
 
86 
 
 the Earl of Bristol ,and of the painter himself. The 
 original painting from which this tapestry was copied is in 
 the Prado Museum at Madrid. There are also two fine 
 Louis XVI. writing tables. 
 
 The room next to the sitting room already described, 
 is the Music Room. 
 
SOUTH FRONT (FACING EJ 
 
I OW 
 

 / 
 
 
 
 
8 7 
 
 THE MUSIC ROOM. 
 
 C HE paintings in this room are 
 nearly all portraits of a high 
 order of merit. 
 
 The first one, on the right of the 
 door, is a portrait of the 3rd Duke of 
 Dorset, executed in pastel by Romney, 
 a medium very rarely employed by this painter. 
 
 The portrait next to it is of Ozias Humphrey, a 
 miniature painter, also by Romney. Ozias Humphrey was 
 employed by the 3rd Duke of Dorset to copy in miniature 
 nearly all the Jfamily portraits then at Knole, and this 
 collection of miniatures was left by the Duke to Mr. Bayle, 
 his chaplain at Buckhurst, on whose death it was sold. 
 
88 
 
 Ozias Humphrey and Romney came together to 
 Knole previous to their journey to Italy in 1773. 
 
 The Comte de Chamcenetz, painted by Gainsborough, 
 was an officer in the Swiss Guards of Louis XVI., and 
 narrowly escaped with his life when the Tuileries were 
 assaulted by the mob at the commencement of the 
 Revolution. He came to England, and, being a friend of 
 the Duke of Dorset, was a constant visitor at Knole. 
 
 In one corner of the room there is a cast of Houdon’s 
 celebrated bust of Sophie Arnould, a well-known French 
 actress of the eighteenth century. Opposite to it is one 
 of Madame Baccelli, an Italian opera dancer; her portrait 
 by Sir Joshua Reynolds is also in this room. This lady 
 made her first appearance in London at the Pantheon in 
 1779, and created a great sensation by her dancing. 
 Walpole writes of her as dancing in Paris in 1788 with a 
 blue bandeau on her head, having on it the motto of the 
 Order of the Garter, she being then living under the 
 protection of the Duke of Dorset. Previous to his marriage 
 she came and resided with the Duke at Knole and caused 
 much scandal by going to the County Ball at Sevenoaks, 
 again wearing the Order of the Garter and the family 
 
8 9 
 
 jewels. She had a suite of apartments set aside for her 
 exclusive use at Knole in one of the towers over the 
 inner wicket, which is still known as “ Shelley’s Tower,” 
 which is evidently an English version of her name. She 
 also had a separate staff of servants, as in a list of the 
 Duke’s servants there appear several names set down as 
 “ Servants to Signora Baccelli.” She died in Sackville 
 Street in 1801, and sat for her portrait to Reynolds in 1782. 
 
 There are some very good drawings near the fire- 
 place by various French artists, among which are Watteau, 
 Boucher, Greuze, and Le Prince. The fire-place is a fine 
 one of the Adam period and over it hangs a remarkably 
 good Louis XV. cartel clock. The drawings of French 
 actresses hanging beneath it are by Bernard, and there 
 are also two small crayon portraits of the 3rd Duchess of 
 Dorset by Cipriani and Bartolozzi. 
 
 The Sevres china on the mantelpiece is exceedingly 
 
 fine. 
 
 PICTURES 
 
 John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset Romney 
 Ozias Humphrey (Miniature Painter) Romney 
 
9 o 
 
 Comte de Chamcenetz 
 Madame Giovanna Baccelli 
 Queen Charlotte 
 Cupids 
 
 Gainsborough 
 Sir Joshua Reynolds 
 Russell 
 Nicolas Poussin 
 
 Drawing of the Countess of Thanet Hoppner 
 
 Mrs. Bates (an Opera Singer) Ozias Humphrey 
 
 Arabella Diana Cope, 3rd Duchess of Dorset 
 
 Madame Vigee le Brun 
 
 La Filleau Chapeau de Paille Monnier 
 
 Queen Catherine of Russia 
 
 Cupids Nicolas Poussin 
 
 Lady Mary Sackville, Countess of Thanet (pastel) Romney 
 
La fille au Chapeau de Paille. 
 (Monnier.) 
 

 
 
9 1 
 
 THE COLONNADE. 
 
 small room, called the Guard Room, 
 on the walls of which are hung some 
 old weapons and swords, divides the 
 Music Room from the Colonnade. 
 This last is a long low room with a 
 fine Elizabethan ceiling, and is used as the drawing 
 room. On one side of it is a row of arches filled in with 
 windows, looking on to the garden. These windows were 
 put in at a later date than the arches, and it is probable 
 that formerly this room was partly open to the garden, 
 and hence bore the name of the Colonnade. 
 
 The arches are reproduced in painting on a grey 
 background on the walls. This room in common with all 
 the private sitting rooms and bedrooms is now lighted with 
 
electric light, the fittings for which have as far as possible 
 been adapted to suit the style and period of the house. In 
 the Colonnade twelve of the silver sconces from King 
 James Ids bedroom have been utilized for this purpose 
 and go well with the handsome silver 
 and ebony looking glasses which hang 
 on the walls. The two fire-places are 
 of the Jacobean period, and on the 
 
 mantel pieces stand some very fine silver ginger-jars 
 of the time of Charles II., which match those in the King’s 
 bedroom. The two silver chandeliers of the same period 
 are exceedingly handsome. The cupboard at the far end 
 of the room contains some valuable specimens of Chelsea, 
 Dresden, and Crown Derby china, as well as a very good 
 
COLONNADE. 
 


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
93 
 
 collection of Battersea enamel boxes. It is curious to note 
 that the chintzes covering the chairs in this room are over 
 a hundred years old, and in spite of their age and the fre- 
 quent cleanings which they have undergone, still retain 
 their original freshness of colour. They are of a material 
 known as Toile de Jouy. 
 
 The oak door at the far end of the Colonnade leads 
 into a small lobby containing a case filled with Biscuit de 
 Sevres and Worcester china. This lobby forms the 
 
 passage into the Dining Room or Poet’s Parlour, as it was 
 formerly called. 
 
THE DgNBPSG ROOM . 
 
 I T was in this room in 1645 that 
 the Parliamentary Commissioners 
 held their court of sequestration 
 which has been mentioned already. 
 
 The pictures consist almost 
 entirely of the portraits of the poets 
 and men of letters of the Restoration period, most 
 of whom were the personal friends of Charles, 6th 
 Earl of Dorset, who was a great patron of art and litera- 
 ture. He himself was a poet of some talent and the 
 author of the song, “ To all you ladies now on land,” 
 which he is said to have composed at sea on the eve of a 
 naval engagement with the Dutch. It is also related of 
 him that on the occasion of a party of his friends being 
 

 
 
 
 
95 
 
 assembled at Knole, it was proposed that each guest 
 should write an impromptu, and that the poet Dryden who 
 was also present, should be called on to decide which was 
 the most apt. Each person present, including Lord 
 Dorset, having handed his composition to the umpire, 
 Dryden rose and said that having carefully perused them 
 all he had come to the conclusion that none of them could 
 surpass their host’s, which ran thus : “ I promise to pay 
 Mr. John Dryden or order five hundred pounds on demand. 
 Dorset.” 
 
 A very flattering epitaph written by Pope to this 
 Lord Dorset hangs in Lady Betty Germaine’s china closet 
 at the end of the Leicester Gallery. 
 
 PSCTURES 
 
 George Frederick Handel, 1684-1799 Denner 
 
 Earl Whitworth, 2nd husband of the 3rd Duchess of 
 Dorset Hoppner 
 
 Samuel Garth, M.D., 1661 — 1718 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Physician and Poet 
 
 Abraham Cowley, 1618 — 1667 
 Poet 
 
 Adrian Hanneman 
 
Dobson 
 
 Thomas Hobbes, 1588 — 1679 
 
 Philosopher 
 
 John Locke, 1632 — 1704 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Oliver Cromwell 
 
 Thomas Otway, 1651 — 1685 
 Poet 
 
 Thomas Betterton, 1635 — 1710 
 
 Poet and Playwright 
 
 Edmund Burke, 1729 — 1797 
 Samuel Butler, 1612 — 1630 
 
 Author of Hudibras 
 
 Walker 
 
 Soest 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Opie 
 
 Soest 
 
 Sir Walter Scott, 1771 — 1832 Thomas Phillips 
 
 Earl of Rochester, 1647— 1O80 Dubois 
 
 Satirical Poet and Courtier 
 
 Sir Kenelm Digby, 1603 — 1665 Van Dyck 
 
 Mountjoy Blount, Earl of Newport and Lord George 
 Goring J Van Dyck 
 
 Scene in the Steward’s Room at Knole in the time of the 
 1 st Duke of Dorset Vandergucht 
 
 Containing portraits of Thomas Durfey; Maxmilian Buck, Chaplain; 
 Lowry, the Steward ; George Allen, a Clothier ; Mrs. Moss ; Jack 
 Randall. Bequeathed to the Duke of Dorset by Chief Baron Lant. 
 
 Charles de Malloney 
 
 Engraver, of Antwerp 
 
 Van Dyck 
 
97 
 
 Edmund Waller, 1605 — 1687 Riley 
 
 Poet 
 
 Counsellor Strode 
 
 Arcangelo Corelli, 1653 — 1713 Vito Maio 
 
 Composer 
 
 Picture of the Hall at Knole Dahl 
 
 Matthew Prior, 1664 — 1721 
 
 Chailes Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset, 1637 — 1706 
 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Nicholas Rowe, 1673 — 1718 
 
 Dramatist and Poet 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Thomas Flattman, 1633 — 1688 
 
 Poet and Painter 
 
 Thomas Flattman 
 
 William Cartwright, d. 1643 
 
 Actor and Bookseller 
 
 Riley 
 
 John Dryden, T631 — 1701 
 
 Poet 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Alexander Pope, 1688 — 1744 
 
 - Van Loo 
 
 William Wycherley, 1640 — -1729 
 Dramatic Poet 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 William Congreve, 1670 — 1729 
 
 Dramatic Poet 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
9 8 
 
 Ben Johnson, 1574— -1637 
 
 Dramatic Poet 
 
 William Shakespeare, 1564 — 1616 
 
 A replica of the Chandos portrait 
 
 lohn Fletcher, 1570 — 1625 
 Dramatist 
 
 Francis Beaumont, 1584 — 1615 
 
 Dramatist 
 
 The Private Bedrooms are almost entirely furnished 
 with Chippendale and Sheraton furniture of very fine 
 quality. The room formerly occupied by Archbishop 
 Cranmer has already been mentioned and another fine 
 bedroom is the one known as the Queen’s room, having 
 been used by Queen Victoria on the occasions of her 
 private visits to Lady De la Warr, the present Lord 
 Sackville’s mother. The Venetian bedstead in this room 
 is a fine one. The two other most noticeable bedrooms 
 are George III.’s, in which there is a four-posted bed 
 embroidered with that king’s name and arms; and the 
 Gateway Room which is entirely furnished in the Empire 
 style and contains some good pieces of furniture of that 
 period which were given by Napoleon I. to Lord 
 
99 
 
 Whitworth, the 2nd husband of the 3rd Duchess of 
 Dorset. 
 
 The passage leading from the Inner Wicket to the 
 Great Hall and known as the Parlour Passage, contains 
 some interesting portraits. The following is a list of 
 them : 
 
 PICTURES. 
 
 The two sons of Edward, 4th Earl of Dorset 
 
 Cornelius Neue 
 
 Richard Sackville, Lord Buckhurst, 1622-1677, afterwards 5th Earl 
 of Dorset ; and Edward Sackville, married Baroness Norreys. Killed 
 in the Parliamentary War near Abingdon in 1646. 
 
 George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham Janssens 
 
 Sir Hatton Fermor Van Somer 
 
 Killed by a fall from his coach, 1640 
 
 Lady Anne Clifford My tens 
 
 Countess of Dorset and afterwards Countess of Pembroke and 
 Montgomery 
 
 George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, 1592-1628 
 
 Honthorst 
 
 The favourite of King James I. 
 
 Richard Sackville, 5th Earl of Dorset Soest 
 
 William, Prince of Orange Cornelius Van Cculen 
 
 at the age of 7, and afterwards King William III. 
 
100 
 
 Mary Curzon Marc Gheeradts 
 
 Wife of Edward, 4th Earl of Dorset, Governess of the children of 
 Charles I. Was buried in Westminster Abbey. 
 
 Anthony Ashley, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, 1621-1683 
 
 Greenhill 
 
 Lord Chancellor in 1672. 
 
 Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset Marc Gheeradts 
 Frances Cranfield After Van Dyck 
 
 Married Richard, 5th Earl of Dorset 
 
 Children of the 5th Earl of Dorset 
 
 Charles Sackville, Lord Buckhurst, afterwards 6th Earl of Doiset 
 Edward Sackville 
 
 Lady Mary Sackville, afterwards Lady Broghill and Countess of 
 O rr ery 
 
 Thomas Sackville, 1662-1675 Lely 
 
 Youngest son of 5th Earl of Dorset 
 
 Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset 
 
 Children of the 5th Earl of Dorset Lely 
 
 Lady Anne Sackville, b. 1650 
 Countess of Hume 
 Lady Frances Sackville, b. 1655 
 Viscountess Lanesboroogh 
 
 Mrs. Whitworth Lely 
 
 Spencer Compton Cornelius Van Ceulen 
 
 2nd Earl of Northampton, 1601-1643 
 
 Sir Thomas More 
 
 Edward Sackville, 4th Ear! of Dorset 
 
 After Holbein 
 After Van Dyck 
 
IOI 
 
 Elizabeth, Queen of Bohemia, 1596-1662 Honthorst 
 
 Daughter of James I. Married Frederick, 5th Elector Palatine. 
 Queen of Bohemia 1619 
 
 Frederick, Elector Palatine, 1596-1632 Honthorst 
 
 Afterwards King of Bohemia. Married Elizabeth, daughter of 
 James I. 
 
 Princess Louisa of Bohemia, 1623-1709 Honthorst 
 
 Daughter of King and Queen of Bohemia 
 
 Sophia Dorothea, 1630-1714 Honthorst 
 
 Electress of Hanover. Youngest daughter of King and Queen of 
 Bohemia. Married Ernest, Elector of Hanover. Granddaughter of 
 James I. and mother of George I. 
 
 The corresponding passage on the other side of the 
 Stone Court leading to the private bedrooms and called 
 Lord George’s passage, has the following pictures : 
 
 Woman holding a Candle. 
 
 Sir Kenelm Digby, 1603-1665. 
 
 Three small pictures. 
 
 Portrait ot a Lady. 
 
 Woman holding a Candle. 
 
 Portrait of a Gentleman. 
 
 Portrait of a Lady. 
 
 Lady Frances Cranfield. 
 
 Married Richard, 5th Earl of Dorset. 
 
 St. John Baptist. 
 
 Bought in 1771 by the 3rd Duke of Dorset. 
 
 Schalcken 
 After Van Dyck 
 Cuyp 
 
 Schalcken 
 
 After Lely 
 Corregio 
 
 o 
 
102 
 
 Head of old Man. 
 
 Portrait of a gentleman in a blue coat 
 
 Thomas Betterton, 1635-1710. Sir Godfrey Kneller 
 
 Actor. 
 
 Lady Anne Campbell. 
 
 Daughter of the Duke of Argyll and Greenwich. Married in 1741 
 William, 2nd Earl of Strafford. Died in 1785. 
 
 Portrait of a man. 
 
 Elizabeth Colyear. 
 
 Married Lionel, 1st Duke of Dorset. 
 
 Venetia, Lady Digby, 1600-1633. 
 
 Daughter of Sir Edward Stanley. Married Sir Kenelm Digby 
 Similar to an engraving by Hollar. 
 
 Portrait of a Lady. 
 
 Portrait of a Lady. 
 
 Charles Montagu, 1st Earl Halifax, 1661-1715. 
 
 Sir Godfrey Kneller. 
 
 Son of Earl of Manchester. Chancellor of the Exchequer, 1695. 
 
 Charles 1st and Queen Henrietta Maria. 
 
 Sir Fleetwood Shepherd. 
 
 Usher of the Black Rod. 
 
 Catherine Phillips, 1631-1664. 
 
 Poetess. Daughter of Mr. Fowler, a London Merchant. 
 
 Margaret Sackville, Countess of Thanet. 
 
 Monsieur de St. Evremont, 1613-1703. 
 
 French Writer. 
 
NORTH-EAST FRONT. 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
03 
 
 ATTIC GALLERIES. 
 
 ft 
 
 iONE the less interesting, as 
 examples of the many and 
 varied rooms required by the 
 household in the Elizabethan and 
 Jacobean periods are the numer- 
 ous Attics or “ Wardrobes ” on 
 the upper floor, and immediately over the state apartments. 
 Though not, of course, lofty, they are in some cases very 
 long, and are well lighted by the quaint Dormer windows, 
 which seen from the outside give such a character to 
 Knole. The one known as the “ Retainer’s Gallery,” 
 extends the whole length of the house from north to south, 
 and is reached by two staircases, the principal one leading 
 
104 
 
 from the Colonnade vestibule and also by a smaller one 
 from near the Kitchen, passing behind the musicians 
 Gallery in the Great Hall. This gallery is immediately 
 over the Hall and Crimson Drawing-rooms ; it has a very 
 handsome plaster ceiling and stone fire-place, proving it 
 to have been a room of considerable importance. At its 
 south end to the right a door leads into another long 
 gallery extending over the whole of the south wing to the 
 Green Court ; and to the left a passage leads into other 
 rooms of a similar character. One, which is above the 
 Ball Room, contains some curious leather chests and 
 travelling trunks, mostly Jacobean. One of them, studded 
 with brass nails, bearing the date 1623. These old chests 
 bear evidence of having all been forced open, and are in 
 all probability those which in Cromwell's days were broken 
 open by his troopers, who plundered Knole. In a 
 memorandum still existing relative to this, among other 
 details is set forth : “They have broken open six trunks ; 
 in one of them was money. What is lost we know not in 
 regard the Keeper of it is from home,” etc., etc. 
 
 One of the Attics above the Spangled Bedroom and 
 Leicester Gallery on the east side of the house is called 
 the Dumb Bell Gallery, a name which has possibly been 
 
handed down from Jacobean times. It contains a curious 
 wooden machine resembling the windlass used for hauling 
 up the buckets from a draw well, but has no handles. A 
 
 Dumb-Bell of the 17th Century. 
 
 rope is wound round the middle of the roller, and at each 
 end are four iron arms, each with a poise or ball of lead 
 at the end. The rope formerly passed through a hole in 
 
the floor (which still exists) into the Leicester Gallery 
 below. A person by pulling this rope in this gallery would 
 cause the roller with the iron arms poised with lead to 
 revolve at the first pull, and the impetus thus given would 
 re-wind the rope again, and so continue to wind and un- 
 wind at each pull, thus giving the same exercise as that of 
 ringing a bell in a Church tower without producing any 
 sound. 
 
 The late Professor R. S. Ferguson, F.S.A., Chancellor 
 of Carlisle, in a paper read before the Archaeological 
 Society, March 1895, attributes this machine to the 17th 
 century, and was greatly interested in its discovery. He 
 wrote to many Archaeologians to try and find if there was 
 any other such known in England, but without success. 
 
 Doubtless it is the missing link in the derivation of 
 the name “ dumb-bell,” which is now applied to short bars 
 of iron or wood weighted at each end and used with the 
 hand. These were probably developed from the windlass 
 dumb-bell by some athlete, who cared nothing about 
 practising bell ringing, but who wished to develope 
 his arms. 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
10 / 
 
 Sir Henry Dryden attributes this machine to the 17th 
 century “when bell ringing was part of a gentleman’s 
 education and practice. It was probably to keep in 
 practice the arms for bell-ringing, not merely for 
 exercise. ” 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 . 
 
 
 
 
 
GETTY CENTER LIBRARY 
 3 3125 00956 KL ^ ^ 
 
 J. SALMON, 
 Printer & Bookbinder, 
 Sevenoaks,