Country House Corner - Howick Hall and Gardens
Delicate, refined and best enjoyed from vintage bone china, Earl Grey Tea is said to have been invented around 1830, by a Chinese mandarin, for Charles, 2nd Earl Grey. The distinctive aroma of bergamot was intended to improve the taste of the water from the spring at Howick Hall, ancestral seat of the Grey family since 1319.
Charles’ daughter Georgina thought of Howick as “paradise on earth” and if beautiful gardens, birdsong and quiet Northumberland countryside are what you need right now, then Howick Hall and Gardens could be for you. The gardens were redesigned in a natural, informal style during the first half of the 20th century by Charles, 5th Earl, his wife Mabel and their daughter Lady Mary. Spring bulbs, summer borders and the bog garden are the horticultural highlights, and there is an extensive arboretum with walking trails linking down to the coastal path. The 18th century Hall, built to impress the powerful, now offers an interesting visitor centre, and the original grand ballroom has become the Earl Grey Tea House.
The Greys were an ancient family, their nobility originating from the violence of the Norman Conquest. Since then, they have remained close to power. Lady Jane was Queen for nine days, Albert, 4th Earl was Governor General of Canada at the height of the British Empire, but perhaps the most famous was Charles, 2nd Earl, immortalised by The Monument at the heart of Toon, and the Tea. But his crowning achievements were the Great Reform Act 1832 which extended the vote to middle class men, and the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 which outlawed slavery in most of the Empire, and “generously” compensated - the slave owners!
The last of the Greys, Charles, 5th Earl, died in 1963, leaving the estate to the Howicks who occupy the west wing, and make the rest of their home and grounds available for our enjoyment and relaxation. Slavery, violence and the idea of empire are still with us, but the history of Howick shows that progress can be made towards a world “in which power wealth and opportunity are in the hands of the many not the few.” [Labour Party Clause 4]
Bob Turner