This portrait by van Dyck hangs in the National Gallery in London. It depicts William, 1st Earl of Denbigh (c 1587 – 1643). He had been to India in the early 1630s and is seen, looking florid, in Indian dress with a servant helpfully pointing out a parrot for him to bag.
William was a Feilding and there are two fine chest tombs commemorating his 16th century ancestors in St Edith’s at Monks Kirby. This was our second port of call on Saturday’s church crawl. Monks Kirby was founded as a priory in 971 and after the Conquest was re-endowed by the Benedictines of Angers. It later became Carthusian until 1538 when Henry VIII sold it and gave the proceeds to Trinity College Cambridge. In 1433 the Feildings bought land here and after the Dissolution of the Monasteries the former priory became their parish church.
Sir William died in 1547 and his wife in 1539. His feet rest on a lion. Nearby is another chest tomb to their son, Basil, and his wife Goditha. He has a dog beside him and she has two puppies, one asleep and one playing.
Both tombs are attributed to the Dutch sculptor, Garrett Hollemans the Elder, who came to England in the 1580s to work. James Miller opines that they were both commissioned by Basil’s son, Sir William Feilding, who built a large new house at Newnham Paddox to reflect the Feildings rising prestige.
The house was rebuilt in the 18th and 19th centuries before being demolished in 1952. The estate still belongs to the Earls of Denbigh and Desmond. The current holder is the 12th Earl of Denbigh and the 11th Earl of Desmond. Quite an achievement to have retained their ownership for almost 600 years.
Yesterday I had lunch at Hoare’s bank in Fleet Street. My host was Michael Hoare. C Hoare & Co go back to 1672 when the family were goldsmiths and diversified into usury. As it happens my mother was a customer and my brother is, but that’s a digression. I was invited because I support the National Churches Trust and if you are interested in church architecture you might like to join me as a member of their Cornerstone club. I sat between Michael, we were in the same House at Eton, and Claire Walker, Chief Executive of the Trust. Funnily enough Michael’s son had been on James Miller’s church crawl.