1676 Inventory of Middleton Hall #13: The Parlour and Dining Room

This post, the thirteenth in the series detailing the rooms and contents of Middleton Hall as described in the 1676 inventory, focuses on the entertaining rooms called “The Parlour” and “The Dining Room”.

Before the 15th century, the great hall chamber had been where everyone within the household ate and was entertained. However, in the 15th century the parlour emerged. At that time, parlours were a private reception room, a place where a few guests would be entertained and also where the family would eat. The great hall remained but was only used for special occasions. However, by the 17th century, the great hall designation had largely fallen out of use and was generally re-categorised as one of the parlours.

It was also in the 17th century that the special designation of dining room began. This normally involved the conversion of one of the parlours to focus entirely on the dining aspect. However, it was not until the 19th century that a permanent, fixed table was a piece of furniture in this room. It was not unusual in the 17th century for dining rooms to be located on a first floor and some distance away from the kitchen.

What is certain is that either the Parlour or the Dining Room on the 1676 inventory was the Great Hall at Middleton Hall. At that time, the Great Hall was stone flagged and had the fireplace present today but was smaller than the current form and was open from the ground floor to the lofty rafters. The Parlour was the first room on the inventory and was followed by The Hall (hallway). Therefore, the general assumption is that it refers to the Great Hall, but this is not absolutely certain.

If the Great Hall was the Parlour and not the Dining Room, then the location of the Dining Room is very puzzling. On the inventory, it was listed directly between The Best Chamber and The Stair Head. From the contents, it suggests a good-sized room with a chimney and fireplace. There are no known first floor rooms in the area to the east of the Great Hall, which would have been near the bedchambers and Stair Head that match that profile. Hence, given the proximity in the list to the Stair Head, one possibility that cannot be discounted is the ground floor room of the John Ray Building. The only other known area that might fit the fireplace requirement would be a West Wing room.

However, one final theory relates to the suggestion of the presence of a squarish notable structure, dating to the early 13th century, located between the Great Hall and the South Wing. It was thought to have been the original banqueting hall. This structure was definitely not present after the 18th century renovations. Nevertheless, if the existence of this structure was correct and it was still present in the 17th century, it could either have been the Parlour or the Dining Room.

Although the inventory is a useful illustration of the household at Middleton Hall, two caveats must be taken into account when considering the items. First, many items listed in the inventory are just being stored in rooms, rather than being in their proper place. Second, this inventory was taken when the house was closed, not in its lived-in fully-furnished fine state.

Many of the items in the Parlour have been described in previous posts, these were:

• Seven turkey work cushions. In the post on the Still Chamber, turkey work was described as a luxury English textile that mimicked Middle Eastern carpets.

• Kidderminster stuff. In the post on John Ray’s Chamber, it was explained that Kidderminster stuff was a durable thick flat-woven patterned woollen fabric.

• 20 cane chairs. In the post on the Master’s Chamber, it was noted that cane chairs were a relatively new type of furniture in England having only been first introduced in about 1660.

• Two little cushions covered with stuff. In the post on the Soldier’s Chamber, it was noted that stuff referred to a simple utilitarian lightweight worsted or mixed-fibre woollen fabric.

The other items listed in the Parlour were: two tables, one round, one oval; and one large geographical map. There was also:

• One large looking glass. As was also explained in the post on the Master’s Chamber, today this is known as a mirror. They were extremely expensive luxury items. In the 17th century, mirrors had uneven glass and a toxic mercury-tin amalgam back. They were composed of small plates of glass and to make a large mirror, many small plates were placed next to each other inside a single large frame, the joints being hidden by wooden bevels, gilt borders or strips of glass.

• Four linen curtains for windows and two iron rods. In the post on Lady Child’s Chamber, it was noted that, in this era, window curtains were not yet a common item and were primarily a luxury, decorative status symbol. As these were specified to be linen, they would have been very light and only suitable for filtering light. Moreover, with two rods to four curtains, it appears that these were the developing symmetrical trend of a pair of curtains rather than the more common single curtain.

• One grate with brass balls, two fire shovels, tongs, two hooks for tongs, irons and brass knobs. In the previous post on the Garret, a grate was described as a raised, free-standing iron basket on legs specifically for the burning of coal rather than wood. In this room the grate was adorned with brass balls, which would have been attached to the front legs. In the previous post on Lady Child’s Chamber, it was noted that irons, known today as andirons or fire-dogs, held up the wood when burning in a fireplace. These were generally forged with flat, rectangular or square posts but the ones in this room had been adorned with brass knobs.

• Two flat smoothing irons. Also in the previous post on the Garret, a flat iron was recorded. Essentially the flat iron and flat smoothing iron were the same item. However, there was a small difference. Flat irons tended to be larger and heavier and in frequent use in the service rooms. On the other hand, flat smoothing irons could even be slightly polished and were used for a quick press to remove creases in parlours or main chambers, heated quickly from the room’s hearth.

• Two set work footstools. Set work was a fabric that was created by hand-stitched needlepoint or tapestry work. The name set work came from the way the design was set into the canvas. The entire canvas would have been completely covered by stitches, predominately either tent stitch or cross-stitch. The finished textile was dense and stiff. A padding layer would have been affixed to the top of the footstool and the set work fabric would have covered it.

• Seven pictures of ancestors. These are one of the most interesting items in the list. Individual portraits of Sir Francis I Willoughby and his wife Elizabeth, Sir Percival Willoughby and his wife Bridget and Sir Francis II Willoughby and his wife Cassandra have survived. These would account for six of the seven pictures of ancestors and it is known that, in 1676, all of these were present at Middleton Hall. Reproductions of these portraits have been acquired by Middleton Hall Trust and were placed on display at Middleton Hall

The items listed in the inventory of the Dining Room were three tables, 24 leather chairs and:

• Three leather carpets. As noted in the previous post on John Ray’s Chamber, a carpet in this era referred to a covering for a table or a chest not the floor.

• One iron back. This was for the chimney and was commonly known as a fireback. It was a thick, heavy, piece of cast iron that was placed against the rear brick wall of the chimney in the fireplace. Firebacks had three purposes. First, they aimed to protect the bricks and lime mortar from heat and smoke damage. Second, whilst both bricks and iron absorb heat, the bricks hold the heat allowing it to escape through the masonry but the iron reflects the heat radiating it back into the room. Finally, third, they were heavily decorated and were thus as much ornamental status symbols as functional.

• One great flower pot for the chimney. This does literally refer to a flower pot. It would refer to a decorative vessel, in ceramic or metal, that would have been used when the fireplace was not being used during the summer months or when the house was closed. Instead of leaving the fireplace empty, the flower pot would have been placed on the hearth floor and filled with fresh flowers, fragrant herbs and green foliage. Beyond being decorative, it also acted as a natural air freshener against the downdraughts from the stagnant chimney.

Author - Debbie Jordan, Middleton Hall Volunteer.

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