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This post, the eighth in the series detailing the rooms and contents of Middleton Hall as described in the 1676 inventory, focuses on the rooms named as “Frank’s Chamber”, “Chamber Over Against Frank’s Man’s” and two areas called “Space Before The Nursery”. There is no Frank’s Man’s Chamber nor any nurseries specifically listed in the inventory. Thus, this is confirmation that the list of rooms in the inventory was incomplete. Frank was Francis Willoughby, the eldest son of F

This post, the seventh in the series detailing the rooms and contents of Middleton Hall as described in the 1676 inventory, focuses on the room named as Lady Child’s Chamber. This room can unquestionably be identified as the chamber of Emma Barnard, the widow of Francis Willughby FRS. She married Sir Josiah Child on 22nd August 1676. Thus, the name of this room conclusively dates the inventory to after that date. Interestingly, considering this inventory was made when the hou

This post, the sixth in the series detailing the rooms and contents of Middleton Hall as described in the 1676 inventory, focuses on the rooms named as “The Master’s Chamber Hung” and “The Study to The Master’s Chamber”. The unanswerable question is whether this room had been occupied after the death of Francis Willughby in 1672, who was the last Master of the house, and the time of this inventory. As mentioned in the previous post on the Red Chamber and Old Study, in this e

This post, the fifth in the series detailing the rooms and contents of Middleton Hall as described in the 1676 inventory, focuses on the rooms named as “The Red Chamber” and “The Old Study”. Both of these rooms were mentioned in the previous post on The Chapel, having been entered on the inventory list either side of “The Space Into The Chapel”. As a result, it is thought that these rooms may have been situated close to where the 1391 Chapel was located on the north side of M

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was the last in October but was undated. It was described as payment for a yard of frieze to mend one of the Children of the Chapel’s coats. The amount was 6 pence, which was the equivalent of about £11.03 today. Frieze was a highly durable coarse woollen, plain weave cloth with a shaggy or raised nap on one side. Originally, it was known as “Frisian cloth”. This name originated from the Middl

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 21st October. It was described as a reward to Lord Hastings’ minstrel. The amount was 20 pence, which was the equivalent of about £36.77 today or, at that time, the equivalent of 2 days’ wages for a skilled tradesman. As has been seen in numerous previous entries in the Middleton Accounts, it was common practice for travelling liveried minstrels of high-ranking lords to perform at th

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 20th October. The first was described as payment for six caps for the Children of the Chapel and the amount was 6 shillings, which was the equivalent of about £132.38 today. The second was described as payment for six pairs of shoes for the Children of the Chapel and the amount was 3 shillings 7 pence, which was the equivalent of about £79.06 today. As mentioned in previous po

This post, the fourth in the series detailing the rooms and contents of Middleton Hall as described in the 1676 inventory, focuses on the “The Chapel” and “The Space Into The Chapel”. Although these areas are named with what should have been an easily identifiable title, there is a considerable lack of certainty over their precise locations. Today, it is known that Middleton Hall only ever contained one private chapel, which was located centrally on the north side of the Hall

This post, the third in the series detailing the rooms and contents of Middleton Hall as described in the 1676 inventory, focuses on the room identified as “The Garret”. At this time, Middleton Hall had only one building with a garret. Today, it would be referred to as the attic of the John Ray Building. When the John Ray Building was constructed in 1647, it included a new architectural feature that had only been introduced to England in the mid-17th century. This was the cre

The 17th October is the International Day of Intangible Cultural Heritage. This day aims to raise awareness of protecting “living heritage”, specifically aspects such as: oral traditions and stories; traditional proverbs and sayings; social practices; rituals; performing arts; and traditional crafts. In the spirit of this Day, this post will focus on some of John Ray’s proverbs. In 1670, whilst he was living at Middleton Hall, John Ray published the first edition of A Collect

This post, the second in the series detailing the rooms and contents of Middleton Hall as described in the 1676 inventory, focuses on the three rooms named as “Mr Ray’s Chamber”, “Mr Ray’s Study” and “The Room Betwixt Mr Ray’s and The Still Chamber”. These are the only rooms that specifically mention John Ray by name. The fact that he is named is one of the reasons that the inventory is believed to date from about 1676, which was when he left Middleton Hall. John Ray resided

Over the centuries, many inventories of Middleton Hall have been conducted. These were normally taken upon the death of an owner. One inventory, although being undated, is believed to date to just after Emma, the widow of Francis Willughby, married Sir Josiah Child on 22nd August 1676. It was unquestionably taken before 1687, which was when a further inventory was taken upon the clearance of certain items from Middleton Hall by Francis and Emma’s children. The inventory would

The next four entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 13th October. The first was described as payment for linings, kersey and fustian and costs for Master Draycott, Mistress Alice and the Children of the Chapel. The amount was 14 shillings, which was the equivalent of about £308.89 today. The second was described as a reward to Mr Worth’s son for his going to London and the amount was 2 shillings 4 pence, which was the equivale

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 10th October. It was described as a payment allowed to Sir William for sugar to make conserves. The amount was 12 pence, which was the equivalent of about £22.06 today. The Sir William in this entry is believed to have been Sir William Webster (or Webb), who was the private chaplain of Sir Henry and is thought to have been the Master of the Children of the Chapel. In a previous entry

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 both related to the Children of the Chapel and the first of these was dated 9th October. This first entry was described as a payment for three pairs of shoes for the Children of the Chapel and the amount was 18 pence, which was the equivalent of about £33.10 today. The second was described as a payment for books and combs for the Children of the Chapel and the amount was 9 pence, which w

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 7th October. It was described as a reward to Robert Bertull for his marriage. The amount was 20 pence, which was the equivalent of about £36.77 today. In 1526, that amount would have been the equivalent of about two days’ wages for a skilled tradesman, a week’s work for an unskilled labourer and even more for a domestic worker. Wedding at Middleton Hall, West Lawn. For enquiries abou

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 5th October. The first was described as a payment to the blind woman at Wollaton for her to buy a petticoat and the amount was 2 shillings 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £58.84 today. The second was described as payment to Roger Leech, the surgeon. The amount was 20 pence, which was the equivalent of about £36.77 today or, at that time, the equivalent of about 2 da

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 2nd October. It was described as payment for 4 ells of cloth for smocks for Mistress Jane. The amount was 2 shillings 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £58.84 today. The Mistress Jane referred to in this entry is Jane Harbottle, the widowed daughter of Sir Henry. An ell was an historic unit of measurement, particularly used in the fabric trade. The word ell comes from the Ol

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 1st October. It was described as payment for Master Catesby’s school hire, schoolboard for 15 weeks and the making of gear (clothes). The amount was 20 shillings, which was the equivalent of about £441.28 today. School hire referred to the school fees paid specifically for the provision of basic educational tuition. However, additional charges could be applied for a physical desk spa

The next three entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 30th September. The first was described as payment to Sir Henry’s brotherhood of Our Lady of the Chapel of the Sea and the amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. The second was described as Sir Henry’s reward to the Friars of Nottingham who had held an ale (feast) and the amount was 8 shillings 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £191.22 to