Author: Daniel Smith
Next stop directions: Once you have listened to the audio, head down the passageway towards the Dining Room. Staff at the cash desk will point you in the right direction.
Transcript
Welcome to the Entrance Hall of Preston Manor.
I want to take you back to a time when Preston Manor was a private residence. It’s the height of the Edwardian era and the Stanford family call Preston Manor home. Ellen Stanford resides here with her second husband, Charles Thomas-Stanford.
It’s not hard to imagine this, and that’s because the room you see today is largely unchanged from when it was refurbished in 1905 by Charles Stanley Peach. The majority of the portraits, furniture, and ornaments remain untouched from this time.
It’s worth noting, however, that the chimney piece you see over in the left hand side of the room dates back to the 1600s and may even have been saved from the old house when it was remodelled in 1738.
And so you are one of many guests who have visited through the years. Even royalty have passed through the same entrance that you did, and have been greeted by this same magnificent view. Princess Beatrice, youngest daughter of Queen Victoria, visited Preston Manor regularly and we know that she stayed here for five nights the week before Christmas in 1915.
The Entrance Hall doubled as a second sitting room that family and guests could use in a more informal setting. Here they could relax, mix and socialise without the stricter etiquette of the drawing rooms.
Edwardians were big on first impressions, and an entrance hall is a great way to make the right kind of first impression. Here, families could showcase everything they wanted to show you through portraits. Everything you see in this room is here because the family wanted you to see it. To the left of the room you have portraits of Ellen and Charles, the last of the Stanford family to reside here. There are also portraits of the Stanford lineage and, to the far right of the room above the doorway to the west wing, you’ll see a portrait of Anne of Cleves. She was believed to have stayed at Preston Manor before retiring to a convent. Whether this is true or not, it certainly adds to the Edwardian pomp and ceremony of showcasing their status. Take some time to look around the room, at its portraits and ornament collections – what impression of the Stanford family do you get, and what do you think they are trying to portray to you?