Reconstructing an Ascendancy world: the material culture of Frederick Hervey, the Earl Bishop of Derry (1730-1803) Two volumes by Rebecca Margaret Ricardo Campion THESIS FOR THE DEGREE OF PHD DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND MAYNOOTH Supervisor of Research: Dr Alison FitzGerald October 2012 VOLUME ONE Table of Contents VOLUME ONE List of tables iv List of illustrations in volume two v Acknowledgments xiii Abbreviations xiv Introduction p. 1 Chapter 1 - Architecture and landscaping 1.1 Introduction p. 16 1.2 Three country houses p. 17 1.2.1 Downhill: the political house in a radical landscape p. 20 1.2.2 Ballyscullion: the cultural house p. 34 1.2.3 Ickworth: the dynastic house p. 40 1.3 Townhouses p. 46 1.4 The improving bishop: Hervey’s church building p. 50 1.4.1 Architecture as a common language p. 54 1.4.2 Case study one: Hervey’s offer to Bishop MacDevitt p. 55 1.4.2 Case study two: Hervey’s offer to Rosemary Street First Presbyterian Church, Belfast p. 63 1.5 Conclusion p. 65 Chapter 2 - Interiors and goods 2.1 Introduction p. 67 2.2 Living within the house: the interiors at Downhill and comparison with contemporary houses p. 68 2.3 The craftsmen p. 76 2.4 Sources of inspiration p. 87 2.4.1 Sources of inspiration: prints and books p. 88 2.4.2 Sources of inspiration: the Villa Negroni frescoes p. 90 2.4.3 Sources of inspiration: Neoclassicism and Sir John Soane p. 95 2.5 Wall papers, fabric, upholstery and chinoiserie p. 97 2.6 Chimney-pieces p. 103 2.7 Moveable goods p. 111 2.7.1 Furniture p. 111 2.7.2 Silver p. 117 2.8 Gift giving p. 119 2.9 Conclusion p. 125 Chapter 3 - Case study of Michael Shanahan (c.1731-1811) 3.1 Introduction p. 127 3.2 Michael Shanahan’s Grand Tour 1770-1772 p. 128 3.3 The professional and the patron p. 138 3.4 Michael Shanahan’s collections p. 149 3.5 Michael Shanahan and his Cork stone-yard p. 152 3.6 Conclusion p. 159 Chapter 4 - Art: collecting, displaying and viewing 4.1 Introduction p. 161 4.2 Displaying art in an eighteenth-century house p. 163 4.2.1 Portraiture p. 163 4.2.2 Sculpture p. 171 4.2.3 The art collection p. 179 4.2.4 Hervey’s method of display p. 194 4.3 Viewing art in an eighteenth-century house p. 196 4.3.1 Visitors to the houses p. 196 4.3.2 Viewing the rooms p. 204 4.3.3 Reception of the image: the overlap between viewing a public figure and viewing his public display p. 212 4.4 Conclusion p. 216 Chapter 5 - The Grand Tour 5.1 Introduction p. 218 5.2 Motives for travel p. 221 5.3 Destinations p. 223 5.3.1 Health tourism p. 223 5.3.2 Cultural tourism p. 225 5.3.3 Political tourism p. 227 5.3.4 Scientific tourism p. 231 5.3.5 Exploratory tourism p. 233 5.4 The logistics of travel p. 236 5.5 The influence of travel p. 244 5.5.1 The question of nationality and nationalism p. 244 5.5.2 A contradictory record: portraits and clothing p. 248 5.6 Conclusion p. 254 Conclusion p. 255 Postscript ‘Herveyana’: the reception of the Earl Bishop’s possessions p. 262 Bibliography p. 266 VOLUME TWO Illustrations p. 1 List of Tables Table 1 Selected expenses of Robert Stewart, Lord Londonderry, at Mount Stewart (1781-1789) p. 140 Table 2 Comparison of the costs of the Mussenden Temple (Downhill) and the Temple of the Winds (Mount Stewart) p. 144 Table 3 Nationality of artists in the Downhill picture collection p. 180 Table 4 Percentage of pictures imported from Italy, France and Holland p. 181 Table 5 Origin of pictures imported into Ireland p. 182 Table 6 Number of pictures of historical, landscape and portrait genres at Russborough and Downhill p. 185 Table 7 Comparison of pictures by genre at Downhill, Ballyscullion and Rome collection (intended for Ickworth) p. 190 Table 8 Distribution of painting genres by room at Downhill p. 207 Volume 2: List of Illustrations Figure 1.1 Map to show the dioceses of Cloyne and Derry, houses Downhill and Ballyscullion and cities of Derry, Belfast, Dublin and Cork. Figure 1.2a Downhill Castle, County Londonderry, begun 1776 (Sampson, 1802). Figure 1.2b Ballyscullion House, County Londonderry, begun 1787 (Sampson, 1802). Figure 1.2c Ickworth House, 1795-c.1830, Suffolk. Figure 1.3 Probable sequence of building at Downhill (Eccles, 1996, p. 13). Figure 1.4 Coleraine Battalion Gate, Downhill, Castlerock. Figure 1.5 Aerial view of Downhill and the Mussenden Temple, photograph by Gordon 2009, picasaweb.google.com. Figure 1.6 Ordnance Survey map of the Downhill demesne, 1834. Figure 1.7a Downhill (Neale, 1823). Figure 1.7b View of Downhill (Neale, 1823). Figure 1.8a The Pantheon, 118-125A.D., Rome. Figure 1.8b Villa Rotonda la Capra, 1567-1571, Vicenza. Figure 1.8c Belle Isle House, 1774, Belle Isle, Lake Windermere. Figure 1.9 James Sayers, A whisper across the Channel, 1785, National Portrait Gallery, London. Figure 1.10 Ickworth rotunda in 1818, 1818, Ickworth House, Suffolk. Figure 1.11 Ickworth Lodge, c.1780, Ickworth House, Suffolk. Figure 1.12 Mario Asprucci, First design for Ickworth House, Suffolk, c.1800, Cooper Hewitt Museum, New York. Figure 1.13 Armagh palace and chapel (Stuart, 1819). Figure 1.14 Tamlaghtfinlagan Church of Ireland, 1793. Figure 1.15 J. Thomson, First Presbyterian Church, Rosemary Street designed by Roger Mulholland. Figure 2.1 Digital reconstruction of the gallery at Downhill, Northern Regional College/National Trust 3-D Project. Figure 2.2 Digital reconstruction of the Mussenden Temple, Northern Regional College/National Trust 3-D Project. Figure 2.3 Ground plan of Downhill (Eccles, 1996, p. 15) Figure 2.4 William Dent, Hibernia in the character of charity, 1784-5, British Museum, London. Figure 2.5 Robert Adam, Design for great drawing room for Admiral Boscawen, 1759, Sir John Soane Museum, London. Figure 2.6 Robert Adam, Design for the saloon at Kedleston, 1761, Sir John Soane Museum, London. Figure 2.7 Medallions used by Michael Stapleton (Lucey, 2007). Figure 2.8 McBlain monument, Dunboe churchyard, county Londonderry. Figure 2.9 Placido Columbani, Record drawing of the Little Drawing Room at Audley End, 1786, Audley End, Saffron Walden. Figure 2.10 Thomas Piroli after John Flaxman, The Odyssey of Homer (Piroli, 1793) and friezes at Ickworth House, Suffolk. Figure 2.11 Frieze, Ickworth House, Suffolk. Figure 2.12 Thomas Jones, An Excavation of an antique building in a cava in the Villa Negroni, Rome, c.1779, Tate Britain, London. Figure 2.13a Angelo Campanella after Anton Mengs, Venus with putti (Buti, 1778). Figure 2.13b Angelo Campanella after Anton von Maron, Mars, Venus and Cupid (Buti, 1793). Figure 2.14 Sketch of triclinium, 1778-9, Sir John Soane Museum, London. Figure 2.15 Sketch of proposals for Downhill, 1780-1, Sir John Soane Museum, London. Figure 2.16 Sir John Soane, Bath house at Taverham Hall, 1784, Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Figure 2.17 Sir John Soane, ‘Last’ presentation design for dining room at Downhill, 1778-79, Sir John Soane Museum, London. Figure 2.18 Downhill drawing room, c.1900, National Trust collection. Figure 2.19a Chinese drawing room at Carlton House (Sheraton, 1794, plate 31). Figure 2.19b Chinese drawing room at Carlton House (Sheraton, 1794, plate 32). Figure 2.20 Palazzo Cinese, c.1799, Palermo. Figure 2.21 Pagoda at Chanteloup, 1775, Amboise. Figure 2.22 Lorenzo Cardelli, Marble chimney-piece with rosso antico relief plaques and micro mosaic attributed to Cesare Aguati, c.1778, Private collection. Figure 2.23 Lorenzo Cardelli, A carved statuary marble chimneypiece, c.1778, Private collection. Figure 2.24 Carlo Albacini, Marble chimney-piece with free standing statuary groups, c.1770, Private collection. Figure 2.25 Chimney-piece in bedroom at Downhill. Photograph c.1900, National Trust collection. Figure 2.26 Sketch of a chimney-piece for Downhill, Journal of Daniel Beaufort, 9 December 1788, Trinity College Dublin Library, Dublin. Figure 2.27 Henry Clay, Pair of George III black and gilt-japanned and polychrome-decorated pier-tables, c.1780, Private collection. Figure 2.28a Benjamin Stokes, Gold freedom box, 1767, Ulster Museum, Belfast. Figure 2.28b Benjamin Stokes, Gold freedom box, 1767, Ulster Museum, Belfast. Figure 3.1 After Michael Shanahan, Bridge at Schaffhausen, c.1779, Ickworth House, Suffolk. Figure 3.2 After Michael Shanahan, Proposed bridge at Derry, c.1779, Ickworth House, Suffolk. Figure 3.3a Cristoro Dall’Acqua after Michael Shanahan, Pont du Gard, c.1772, Museo Civico, Vicenza. Figure 3.3b Cristoro Dall’Acqua after Michael Shanahan, detail from Pont du Gard, c.1772, Museo Civico, Vicenza. Figure 3.4 Villa Thiene, Quinto (Ware, 1738, plate 47). Figure 3.5 Cristoro Dall’Acqua after Michael Shanahan, Villa Thiene at Quinto, c.1772, Castello Sforzesco, Milan. Figure 3.6 Cristoro Dall’Acqua after Michael Shanahan, Section of the Villa Thiene at Quinto, c.1772, Castello Sforzesco, Milan. Figure 3.7 Villa Pisani at Bagnolo (Ware, 1738, plate 30). Figure 3.8 Villa Pisani at Bagnolo (Scamozzi, 1776-83, plate 6). Figure 3.9 Villa Pisani at Bagnolo (Scamozzi, 1776-83, plate 5). Figure 3.10 Cristoro Dall’Acqua after Michael Shanahan, Plan of Villa Pisani at Bagnolo, c.1772, Museo Civico, Vicenza. Figure 3.11 Palazzo Iseppo Porto (Ware, 1738, plate 6).