May 2019: Blenheim Palace and Chatsworth House

We took the opportunity to visit Blenheim Palace and Chatsworth House with two of our temple ordinance worker colleagues, Marvin and Stephanie Smith.  The Smiths live in Provo now but for many years they lived and worked in the Atlanta area where they also served in the Atlanta Temple.

Blenheim Palace

Blenheim Palace is named after the 1704 Battle of Blenheim (in southern Germany) where John Churchill, General of the British forces defeated the French and Germans.  For this service, Churchill was named the First Duke of Marlborough by Queen Anne, who also provided financing for his estate.  Blenheim Palace became the principal residence of the succeeding Dukes of Marlborough, and the only non-royal country house in England to hold the title of palace. It is one of England's largest houses and was built from 1705 and 1722.  Among the descendants of this family are Sir Winston Churchill, former Prime Minister of Great Britain and Lady Diana Spencer, the late Princess of Wales.

A 1702 Painting of John Churchill, the First Duke of Marlborough, his wife Sarah, their four daughters Henrietta, Anne, Elizabeth and Mary and their son.  Anne (shown in the red dress) married Charles Spencer and is a fore bearer of Lady Diana Spencer, the late Princess of Wales. 

The line of succession for the Dukes of Marlborough showing that Sir Winston Churchill is also a descendant of the illustrious Spencer-Churchill family.

In the library of Blenheim palace is a marble statue of Queen Ann, the monarch who made John Churchill the Duke of Marlborough and provided the financing for his Blenheim Palace estate. 

Panoramic view of the front of Blenheim Palace.

The "back yard" of Blenheim Palace with beautiful fountains and gardens.

Sister Burkinshaw in front of the Blenheim Palace fountains.

Blenheim Palace great hall ceiling which shows the Duke of Marlborough presenting the plan for the battle of Blenheim to Britannia, the personification of the United Kingdom.

Paintings of the Churchill family, all part of the Dukedom of Marlborough in one of the beautifully appointed parlors.

Sister Burkinshaw in the Blenheim Palace dining room.

One of the stunning wall tapestries showing the 1704 Battle of Blenheim which gave rise to Blenheim Palace.

We listened to a beautiful organ concert of the pipe organ in Blenheim Palace.  The organ was constructed for the 8th Duke of Marlborough who left the following inscription:
"In memory of happy days and as a tribute to this glorious home, we leave thy voice to speak within these walls in years to come when ours are still." 1891
This is the largest organ in private ownership in Europe, with four manuals and pedals, 2300 pipes and 53 speaking stops.

Blenheim Palace chapel with white marble sarcophagus for John and Sarah Churchill.  Notice the pulpit has a small canopy over it called a "sounding board" which helps project the voice of the speaker.

The chapel mausoleum which holds the bodies of John and Sarah Churchill, the First Duke and Duchess of Marlborough with statues that represent them as Caesar and Caesarina.  Successive Dukes and their wives are also interred in the vault beneath the chapel.

Winston Churchill and Blenheim Palace

Since one of the most famous descendants of the Duke of Marlborough was Sir Winston Churchill, there is a special display about his early life at Blenheim Palace.

A sculpture of Winston Churchill at his special exhibit in Blenheim Palace.

A picture of Winston Churchill and his Grandmother Frances who was an important mentor.  "Winston's childhood was not entirely happy.  His glamorous, socialite parents, Lord and Lady Randolph Churchill, were not generous with their time.  But his Grandmother, France, 7th Duchess of Marlborough, nourished him with affection and guidance.  Before and during his difficult schooldays, she encouraged and helped Winston to develop his love of nature and the sense of history that would drive his adult life.  Love, duty and destiny first visited Winston during his youth at Blenheim."

Winston and Clementine Churchill were married on the 12th September 1908.  Winston had chosen the beautiful setting of Blenheim's "Temple of Diana" for his proposal.  Their courtship was intensely romantic and their wedding took place a month after their engagement.  Clementine was a vital constant in Winston's life - a source of strength, support and guidance throughout the 56 years of their long and happy marriage.

The story of Winston Churchill's proposal to Clementine.

The story of Clementine's acceptance of Winston's proposal of marriage.

A photo of Winston Churchill in his later years.

A mural of Winston Churchill with Queen Victoria and his mother.  Note that he wears the insignia of the Most Noble Order of the Garter established by King Edward III in an effort to model King Arthur and the Round Table. 

While a Blenheim palace, we got to see a cricket match - we still don't understand the game! ;-)

A panoramic view of the side yard of Blenheim Palace with Sister Burkinshaw and Elder and Sister Smith on the right.

Chatsworth House

Chatsworth House has been described as "one of the grandest private homes in the world." It is the seat of the Duke of Devonshire and has been home to the Cavendish family since 1549.  It contains an important collection of paintings, furniture, Old Master drawings, neoclassical sculptures, books and other artifacts.  Chatsworth has been selected as the United Kingdom's favorite country house several times. Chatsworth House may be most familiar as the exterior and interiors for Mr Darcy's swanky mansion at Pemberly in the 2005 movie "Pride and Prejudice."  It is only a 45 minute drive from the Burkinshaw ancestral home in the Barnsley area of South Yorkshire.

The land for the estate was purchased by Sir William Cavendish (Treasurer of King Henry VIII) and his wife Bess of Hardwick.  Bess began to build house in 1553.  Sir William died in 1557, but Bess finished the house in the 1560s.  She fired the first architect because she felt he was making things to ostentatious and hired someone who would cater to her more simple tastes.  Bess died in 1608 and Chatsworth was passed to her eldest son, Henry. The estate was purchased from Henry by his brother William Cavendish, 1st Earl of Devonshire.  William Cavendish's great grandson became the 1st Duke of Devonshire in 1694 for helping to put William of Orange on the English throne and Chatsworth has been the seat of this dukedom since that time.

Chatsworth House with the access bridge, built in 1764, across the River Derwent.

Main entry hall of Chatsworth House with murals from the life of Julius Caesar.

Sister Burkinshaw at the top of the grand staircase in the main hall of Chatsworth House.

Chatsworth House main entry hall from the other direction.  

A photo from the 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie in Chatsworth House main hall.

The veiled Vestal Virgin, by the Italian Sculptor Raffaele Monti, is one of the most popular pieces of art at Chatsworth. Although it appears to be one piece of seamless marble, the Virgin is actually made up of four pieces fixed together. There are no other tricks here, everything else, including the magnificent veil, comes from the artist’s skill and technique.

Sister Burkinshaw at the Chatsworth Chapel which is still used for special occassions such as family christenings.  The gold statue in the statuary is entitled "St Bartholomew's Exquisite Pain" depicting the martyred apostle with his flayed skin and the curved flensing knife with which he was skinned.  The painting above the statuary portrays the Biblical story of Doubting Thomas.  It is believed that it was chosen as the ideal parable to match the family motto, Cavendo Tutus, meaning "safety through caution."

The ceiling mural in the Chatsworth chapel of the resurrected Jesus with the angels.

Bess of Hardwick, wife of William Cavendish and the builder and first owner of Chatsworth House.  Cavendish was Treasurer for Henry VIII who used the money he made as Treasurer to buy the land and finance Chatsworth beginning in 1553.  Bess was really the visionary who directed the building of Chatsworth House despite Williams death in 1557 and the house was completed in 1563.

King Henry VIII, the benefactor who indirectly provided the financing for Chatsworth House through the remuneration of his Treasurer, William Cavendish.

Panoramic view of the music room in Chatsworth House.  Gilded leather lines the walls in this room.  A violin appears to hang from a peg in the doorway which is a "trompe l’oeil" or painting that tricks the eye by artist Jan van der Vaardt.

This is the state bedchamber of William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire and senior courtier to King George II.  He took the bed in 1761 as a perk from the estate of King George II after the king died in that very bed.  His wife Charlotte added the 17th century Brussels tapestries to the walls. 

Ceiling mural in the state bedchamber at Chatsworth House.

Sister Burkinshaw near the bottom of the Oak Staircase with a wall of paintings of the Cavendish family.

A broader view of the Oak Staircase with Cavendish Family paintings. 

The beautiful dome above the Oak Staircase which provides light for the Cavendish Family paintings.

The Chatsworth House library with the first Axminster carpets (1830) which rivaled the French Savonnerie carpets.   The 17,000 books in these rooms form part of one of the most significant private book collections in Britain.

Sister Burkinshaw with the Steinway piano tucked into the corner of the library. 

Sister Burkinshaw in the Great Dining Room of Chatsworth House.  The first dinner given in here was in 1832 and hosted for the future Queen Victoria who was 13 at the time for  her first formal dinner experience.  The room is still used today to host up to 40 guests.

The east-facing back yard of Chatsworth House.

Sister Burkinshaw in front of the Chatsworth water cascade, designed by Monsieur Grillet, a French hydraulics engineer with experience in decorative waterworks for Louis XIV of France, took two years to build and was completed in 1696.

Sister Burkinshaw on the south side of Chatsworth House.  The stairs in the distance figure prominently in the 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie.

The south side of the Chatsworth House estate with the Emperor fountain, which also plays an important role in the 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie. 

As we were driving to Chatsworth House, we passed the 14th century Church of St Mary and All Saints in Chesterfield which caught our attention. Known for its twisted and leaning spire, an architectural phenomenon which has led to the church being given the common byname of the Crooked Spire, it is now believed that the twisting of the spire was caused by the lead that covers the spire because when the sun shines during the day the south side of the tower heats up, causing the lead there to expand at a greater rate than that of the north side of the tower, resulting in unequal expansion and contraction.  However, among the townspeople, the well-established explanation (legend) goes that a virgin once married in the church, and the church was so surprised that the spire turned to look at the bride, and continues that if another virgin marries in the church, the spire will return to true.

We close sharing a thought we gave at one of our temple preparation meetings.

Sister Becky Craven in her October 2018 General Conference talk entitled “Careful or Casual,” said following: 

“We are disciples of Jesus Christ, and as such we are about elevating others, lifting them to a higher, holier place where they too can reap greater blessings.”

“I also plead with you not to be critical of others making this same journey. We are each in the process of growth and change.”

This is illustrated by the following story:

When I was 18, as I was preparing to serve a mission, my bishop called me to teach the Sunbeams. I had never before learned to love others more than myself until I had served those children in such a simple assignment. With time and patience I learned how to keep those seven children in their seats and listening to a simple lesson.

One day I invited Mike to come to church and sit in my class. Mike was my age but had stopped attending church completely by the time he was 12. We had remained friends over the years as I had served as the deacons quorum president, the teachers quorum president, and first assistant to the bishop in the priests quorum. He had been the topic of many fellowshipping discussions and was often part of my prayers as the years had passed. Once in a while Mike would accept my invitations to come to an activity. It always surprised me when he did, so I kept inviting him.

At that time, Mike had long, black hair and a beard. His complexion was dark and pleasant. I don’t remember when I invited him to my Primary class, but one day he showed up.

“Class, I would like to introduce you to my friend Mike,” is how I began my lesson. “He is visiting us today.”

Mike sat next to me in front. The children sat in a semicircle with their eyes fixed on him. They were much quieter than usual. I was about five or six minutes into the lesson when one little boy got up from his chair and walked across the room and stood directly in front of my friend. The boy paused for a moment and then climbed onto his lap. I continued with the lesson as I watched the two of them from the corner of my eye.

The boy sat looking into Mike’s face. Mike was quite uncomfortable but did not interrupt the lesson or turn the boy away. The other children watched the two of them for a few minutes.

Then one of the girls climbed off her seat and approached Mike. I was intently interested in seeing how Mike would react and did not want to instruct the two children to return to their seats. The girl stood with her hand on Mike’s knee looking into his face.

Then it happened. The boy on Mike’s lap reached up with both hands and turned Mike’s face directly to his. I stopped my lesson to see what was about to unfold.

With the innocence of a child, he said to Mike, “Are you Jesus?”

The look on Mike’s face was total surprise. It seemed, as I glanced at the children’s faces, they all had the same question on their minds.

Mike looked at me as if to say, Help, what do I say?

In a flash of inspiration, I stepped in and said, “No, this is not Jesus. This is His brother.”

Mike looked at me as if in shock.

Then without hesitation the boy in Mike’s lap reached up and wrapped his arms around Mike’s neck. “I can tell,” the boy said as he hugged Mike.

The rest of the children smiled and nodded in agreement as their simple question was answered. Mike blinked back the tears in response to the love he felt from this small Sunbeam. The lesson went on, but that day the teacher who taught the most was a three-year-old child.

Mike spent more than a year getting ready to serve a mission. It thrilled me to learn that he left for the mission field a few months before I returned.  (Ken Merrell, “The Visitor,” May 2000 New Era)

Jesus taught “Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.” (Matthew 18:4-5)

President Monson taught, “[People] need fewer critics and  more role models to follow.” (Thomas S. Monson, “Anxiously Engaged,” Ensign, Nov. 2004, 56)

May we be more child-like in our treatment of others.  In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Cheers,
Elder and Sister Burkinshaw