The Comfort of Guests

Nearly ten years after inheriting the manor of Langley Burrell from his elder brother, Rev. Robert Ashe built a new mansion in the village during the late 1760s. It was quite a statement. Budgetary restraint did not appear to have been a significant concern for Rev Ashe, who was also the rector of the parish church next door. At the time, the Window Tax was still enforced, yet the entire build required 54 windows. The opulence of the three-storied five-windowed main west front was matched by the planned interior. Surviving plans reveal that in the ‘great room’ the accent was on the colour crimson. The voluminous curtains and covers of the chairs, armchairs and footstools were in crimson ‘stuff damask’ silk. The room had a fine Wilton carpet, and its walls were papered. The furniture was mahogany. This included several card tables covered in green cloth, likely provided for the amusement of his guests, as well as family. The room designed to impress, for recreation and pleasure. Likely mindful of comfort, Ashe included in the specification for the space, an item of a more mundane nature, a mahogany ’bucket’ on a stand with a sliding lead drawer beneath to secure ‘waste water’. The commode allowed Ashe’s guests to relieve themselves, discreetly, a few metres from the card tables. Unfortunately, Rev. Ashe was not to enjoy the room or its comforts for long. He died in 1774.

Today, the exterior of the Grade II* listed house is little altered. The mansion is in private ownership, and although I have not visited, I imagine the mahogany commode is no longer being used for the comfort of guests.

~Louise Ryland-Epton

Langely Hall in 2014.

https://landedfamilies.blogspot.com/2016/01/204-ashe-of-freshford-heytesbury_29.html