Fun At Felbrigg

Last Tuesday we spent the day with our very good friends Peter and Jenny, who were having week's holiday in Norfolk. We visited Felbrigg Hall [P&J are NT Volunteers down in Dorset] The gardens are amazingly well laid out

This clever construction has a central pyramid structure protecting a cucumber plant, and then the end of each pole holds a string to support a tomato plant [I think] You need a lot of space for something like this!

We did like the wall of plants - a simple construction of wooden slats and black fabric. Bob took many pictures and is considering building a similar, smaller one at Cornerstones.

There were lots of clever artworks - Bacchus and his grapes stood at the end of the path to an arbour seat. Bob and Jenny dashed ahead, to save a space for our picnic in the sunshine. Around the corner was a stone with a thought-provoking Kenyan Proverb

There were some fun sculptures inside too

And in the servant's quarters, some of the old household items. A box from Harrod's labelled "Knightsbridge Sperm, self-fitting ends". You would not immediately guess that referred to candles for your dinner party!

The NT is very concerned about the environment - there was an interactive water display of a Riffle. You could move the stones and see how the water flow was affected [clever lighting reflected the ripple patterns on the ceiling.] Here is Peter rearranging the pebbles.

Here is William [Mad] Windham [1840-1866]. He was the heir to Felbrigg. His father died when he was 14. His mother's family had a reputation for eccentricity. As a young man, he was expelled from various schools for laziness and extreme behaviour. He was finally sent to Eton, where he had a reputation as a buffoon, fond of feasting, and dressing up in crazy costumes**. He came into his inheritance aged 21, and three weeks later married a woman named Ann Willoughby [she was living with a Mr Rogers at the time, and the three formed a menage a trois]

But William's uncle brought a lunacy claim, in the hopes of disinheriting him, and getting the Hall for himself. 140 witnesses were called, and the case lasted 34 days - the longest, most expensive lunacy case in British legal history. Windham won the case, the public were thrilled, and uncle slunk away, disgruntled. But William had £20,000 in legal fees to pay, and frittered away the rest of his inheritance. He had to sell Felbrigg and declare bankruptcy. He moved to Norwich and became a coach driver [the horse drawn sort, not Shearings Holiday Tours!] He died, a dissolute wreck aged just 26. A popular ballad of 1862 did the rounds of the music halls, recounting the Great Lunacy Case.

Here are just a few of the verses...

The Ballad of Poor Windham

 Because he had a jovial life,
and squandered lots of money
Because he married a buxom wife
and made things seem quite funny

It is a shame and what’s their game
To a madhouse try to send him
Money, money, that’s the thing
But they won’t get over Windham
 
His uncle has sons and daughters too
At Felbrigg Hall a grumbling
And people say their hearts are hard
As hard as Norfolk Dumplings

**Possibly in this day and age, someone behaving like this would end up in Downing Street...

Thank you Peter and Jenny- it was so lovely to catch up with you. Come back to Norfolk again soon!