Sir Henry Hobart (I25528)
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Personal Facts and Details
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| Birth | 1563 Plumstead, Norfolk, England |
| Marriage | 22 April 1590 (Age 27) Dorothy Bell - [View Family (F10050)]
Blickling, Norfolk, England |
| Occupation | Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas |
| Death of father | 17 January 1599 (Age 36) Thomas Hobart (I25849) - [Relationship Chart] |
| Residence | 1616 (Age 53) Builder of Blickling Hall |
| Death | 29 December 1625 (Age 62) Blickling, Norfolk, England |
| Universal Identifier | 13F663419C69A940B532CA45F1E61C8A0E51 |
| Last Change | 21 April 2007 - 16:37:01 Last changed by: dcoplien |
Notes
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Created Baronet by King James I Attorney General for Engand and Wales Builder of Blickling Hall Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas Palace: The name Blickling was originally believed to derive from the Old English word 'Bekeling' meaning water-meadow but more recently it is thought to indicate the settlement of the family or followers of one Blicla. Blickling has been the site of a manor house since long before Sir Henry Hobart built the mansion which can be seen today. 1057 The first manor house to be built at Blickling was owned by Harold, Earl of the East Saxons, later to be King of England. This first manor house is thought to have been built among the meadows of the River Bure in the vicinity of Moorgate and in 1057 Harold transferred ownership to his brother Gurth. After the Conquest of 1066 it was given by William I to his chaplain, Herfast, Bishop of Thetford, and from 1091 Blickling remained the country palace of the bishops. Bishop Everard granted the southern section of the manor to John Fitz-Robert. The manor was to pass through many hands until in 1378 coming into the possession of Sir Nicholas Dagworth. 1378 In 1390 Sir Nicholas who had followed a distinguished military and diplomatic career in the service of Edward III, built a rectangular moated house on the site of the present mansion and settled at Blickling till his death in 1401. 1401 Blickling was bought from Dagworth's widow by Sir Thomas Erpingham. Erpingham was a man of great prominence. In 1367 he had crossed the Pyrenees as a companion of John of Gaunt in an ill-fated English expedition to restore the throne of to Pedro the Cruel and in 1459 his support for Gaunt's son, Henry Bolingbroke, led to his appointment as one of the commissioner to receive Richard II's renunciation of his crown. 1431 The knight Sir John Fastolfe, a powerful man with many houses, bought Blickling. Fastolfe was another famous soldier, whose name, subtly altered, was borrowed for Shakespeare's comic hero. He died at Caister Castle in 1459, having sold Blickling to his neighbour and protégé Geoffrey Boleyn in 1437. Geoffrey Boleyn prospered so well that he became the Lord Mayor of London. 1505 Blickling was inherited by his grandson Sir Thomas Boleyn, whose daughter Anne became Henry VIII's second wife in 1533. Sir Thomas was undoubtedly one of Blickling's most interesting and significant owners, making a place for himself at court and capitalising on the King's ardent interest in his daughters. Despite her place in history when and where Anne was born is not known, although tradition has it she was born at Blickling and spent much of her childhood here. 1539 Six years after the death of Anne Boleyn and her brother, Sir Thomas died at Hever Castle in Kent and Blickling passed to through his brothers hands into the ownership of Sir Edward Clere. Sir Edward who had once had such impressive wealth died bankrupt in 1605 and eleven years later his widow finally sold Blickling to Sir Henry Hobart. 1616 Sir Henry Hobart, Chief Justice to the Common Pleas to James I, had been trying to buy Blickling for some time and when he finally acquired the house he immediately set about rebuilding it. He entrusted the design of the present hall to Robert Lyminge (Robert Cecil, Earl of Salisbury, employed Lyminge as architect of Hatfield House), and building works started in 1619. Sir Henry was an old man by this time and he died two years before building work was complete in 1628. 1628 The second baronet, Sir John Hobart, became Blickling's new owner. Unlike his father he was a man for the country and settled his family into the routine life at Blickling. This was a time of relative stability in Blickling's history. Sir John died in 1647 leaving no sons but only daughters. The estate was inherited by his youngest daughter, Phillipa. 1647 Phillipa had married her first cousin, John, son of Sir Miles Hobart of Intwood. John also inherited the baronetcy, an unorthodox arrangement but one which ensured the survival of the dynasty, a major preoccupation of the family in the 17th century. Sir John Hobart, 3rd Baronet, was a Parliamentarian and served in Cromwell's upper house but became reconciled to the monarch and in 1671 Charles II visited Blickling to be 'most noblie and plentifully treated in the great dining-room' although the King was later to remark on his arrival at Oxnead that he was relieved to find himself 'safe in the house of a friend'. 1683 Sir Henry Hobart, 4th Baronet, inherited many debts along with Blickling which was at the time mortgaged to John White a London merchant. Henry married Elizabeth, co-heir of Sir John Maynard, and it was her £10,000 dowry which released Blickling from its mortgage. Following the election of 1698 Sir Henry, who was a politician, was incensed at rumours that his defeat had largely been due to allegations of discreditable conduct at the Battle of the Boyne. He accused his neighbour Sir Oliver Le Neve, of Great Witchingham Hall, of circulating the stories and demanded satisfaction. They met on Cawston Heath where Sir Henry, expecting to easily be the victor, was mortally wounded by Le Neve. Sir Henry was returned to Blickling where he died the following day. Killed in a dual - HOBART SQUARE (Hall Road) STANDING in an enclosure at Cawston is an urn known as the Duel Stone — it marks the spot where, on a summer morning in 1698, swashbuckling swordsman Sir Henry Hobart of Blickling Hall lost his life. Sir Henry, a powerful and hot tempered man, had challenged mild mannered Oliver Le Neve of Great Witchingham Hall to a duel.It was believed that the peaceful squire stood no chance against the bold baronet. But it was Oliver who foxed the knight with his “southpaw” stance — and as a result he met his maker. The quarrel between the two men came at a time of mounting crisis for Henry who had become baronet in 1683 and carried on his father’s tradition of playing a prominent and tempestuous part in Norwich and Norfolk politics. The years of political activity put a strain on the family exchequer and Sir Henry was forced to sell off part of his lands. The election of 1698 was a disaster for many prominent Whig members, including Sir Henry, and to make matters worse he heard that Oliver Le Neve was spreading a rumour that he had lost the election because he had shown cowardice while serving in Ireland for King William. COWARDICE! The Duel Stone at Cawston which marks the spot where the fight between Sir Henry and Oliver took place in 1698. Nobody called Sir Henry a coward. He was furious and challenged Oliver to a duel. He sent a denial and historians now believe these rumours had been stirred up by troublemakers. But Henry was beside himself with rage. He rode to Reepham and repeated his challenge in public. Oliver had no alternative but to accept it. When they met on Cawston Heath Oliver must have felt a doomed man. He was an awkward left-handed swordsman, no match for Henry’s skill. Little is known of the duel itself except that Oliver was wounded in the right arm. He switched his sword to his left and ran his opponent through the stomach. Sir Henry, who had been Steward of Norwich, MP, Attorney-General and Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, died at Blickling the next day. 1698 - 1717 The estate is placed in chancery for its 5 year old heir John Hobart until in 1717 he returned from his travels on the continent and married Judith Britiffe, daughter of the Recorder of Norwich. For the second time Blickling was able to be released from financial burden by means of a large dowry. Through the influence of his witty and attractive elder sister, Henrietta Howard, who was a close friend, and said to be mistress, of King George II, John Hobart became Sir John in 1725, Treasurer of the Chamber in 1727 and Baron Hobart of Blickling in 1728 finally to become 1st Earl of Buckingham in 1745. The title and the estate passing to his son, also John, on his death in 1756. 1756 John Hobart, 2nd Earl of Buckinghamshire, was one of the more distinguished of Blickling's owners. In 1762 he was made Ambassador to Russia, and brought home the gigantic tapestry of Czar Peter the Great at the Battle of Poltawa, a gift from Catherine the Great. Today this hangs in the Peter The Great Room which was especially constructed to display it. In 1793 on the death of the 2nd Earl the title passed to his brother George, while Blickling went to his second daughter Caroline. 1821 Caroline's husband, who by now had become Lord Suffield of Gunton, died in 1821. Lord and Lady Suffield were however childless so Blickling passed to the son of her elder sister Harriet. Harriet had married the Earl of Ancram who later became 6th Marquis of Lothian. It was from this point on that Blickling really ceased to belong to the Hobart family and transferred to the Lothian's although Lady Suffield continued to live at Blickling until her death in 1850. 1850 On the death of Lady Suffield, Blickling passed to her great-nephew the 8th Marquis of Lothian. Lord and Lady Lothian travelled extensively during the early years of their marriage and their return to Blickling in 1856 signaled the start of major building works at the house. The Lothians implemented many improvements to make Blickling a more comfortable house. Unfortunately the 8th Marquis was not to enjoy these benefits for long, for in 1870, at the age of 38, he died from disease contracted during his travels. Lady Lothian stayed on at Blickling and spent her time redesigning the formal gardens and providing a basis for the garden layout of today. 1901 - 1932 Following Lady Lothian's death in 1901 Blickling was let to tenants. In 1932 the 11th Marquis of Lothian decided to make the house his principal English seat. 1932 The 11th Marquis spent 14 months overseeing work to bring Blickling back to the standards needed to entertain his distinguished guests, among whom included The Astor's and on one occasion Von Ribbentrop, Berlin's ambassador to the Court of St James. Part of the works included the simplification of the Parterre gardens. Lord Lothian was made Britain's ambassador to Washington in 1939. He spent much of his time in the United States working to gain American support during the Second World War and it was here that he died from illness in 1940. 1940 Although the house had been requisitioned and was now in use as the Officers Mess of nearby RAF Oulton the house and its estate passed to The National Trust, under the terms of the Country Houses Scheme which Lord Lothian himself had helped to set up. 1945 - now After the end of the war and the de-requisitioning of the house The National Trust again let the house to tenants until 1960. In 1960 the Trust carried out preparatory work to restore the house to a style to reflect its history. The house and grounds being opened to the Public in 1962. |
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Family with Dorothy Bell - [View Family (F10050)] |
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