A quite singular folly

The weekend before last I went on a walk through the Earl of Verulam's estate. Past the remains of the Roman ampitheatre and fields under which would have been the Roman city of Verulanium and to some other remains: those of Old Gorhambury House. Once a grand Elizabethan house built originally by Sir Nicolas Bacon, father of the philosopher Sir Francis Bacon, now Old Gorhambury House stands only as a complete ruin. I was surprised to learn it did not come that way purely by the ravages of time.


In the greater romantic period there was a fashion to incorporate romantic ruins in the gardens of great houses in order to provide romantic vistas when staring into the landscape. All grand houses worth their salt came complete with a 'folly' as they become known because these were artificies, constructed from scratch to look old and decayed. But some 'romantic' ruins, like those of Old Gorhambury House, have a different story.



In the 1770s Old Gorhambury House, which had been built rather shoddily originally apparently, had become uninhabitable. Architects were called in with the intention of rebuilding, but the house was in too bad a way to save and a decision was made to build a new residence. New Gorhambury House is a grand, neo-grecian country house, commanding the landscape from several hundred yards distant from the old house. The old house was largely demolished to create a romantic ruin. From what I could see, it looked as though much of the brick was used to build the walls of an extensive kitchen garden.



I'm not sure how 'romantic' Old Gorhambury House looks to me. Though in the care of English Heritage, it looks lonely and neglected. I think I prefer real follies created for the fun of it.