This England: Road Trip to Snowshill Manor

I'm a collector. Lots of us are. We pick several (OK, maybe more than several) things that particularly appeal to us and build a collection. In my house you'll find vintage postcards, lots of china and dishes, figurines handed down from my mom, some British royal memorabilia (books, commemorative plates, cups and tins), plenty of Christmas and more than a few books.

Sometimes our houses get a little full.

Charles Paget Wade was more than a collector. Some might call him a hoarder. I call him a unique eccentric who loved to collect. Anything.

No. Everything.

Wade's personal motto was "Let Nothing Perish." And believe me, he didn't. 

Snowshill Manor, located in Gloustershire, is a splendid manor house filled with Wade's collections. But don't look for it to be neatly curated rooms depicting a point in history or the life of the house. Instead, it is a house that is jam-packed with Wade's treasures. Thousands of individual pieces of -- well, everything.

Built in the 1500s of local Cotswold stone, this is a National Trust property. But its pedigree goes back to 821 when it was given to Winchecombe Abbey by Mercia's King Coenwulf. In 1539, Henry VIII confiscated the property as part of the Dissolution of the Monasteries and he later presented it to his wife, Catharine Parr, as part of her wedding dowry. (Catharine did well in the property line from Henry. The Bear Inn, where we stayed in Hungerford and seen in this post, was Catherine's gift from Henry as well.)

Henry's coat of arms, along with Catharine's and his son, Edward's, are on display in one of the rooms of the house. Wade had the shields made and then painted them himself.

Wade, an architect and artist, purchased the home in 1919 as a showcase for his collections, choosing himself to live in the tiny, adjacent Priest's House. The more than 22,000 objects in his collection were also given by him to the National Trust.

You've seen some of them above (and below) in this post and just by looking, you can get an idea that this fellow was very much into quantity. As one wanders through the house, you see clocks. Not just a few. Dozens. Maybe hundreds. 

Dozens of musical instruments were packed into a small alcove.

Beside that was a room filled with spinning wheels.

And as  you may have guessed, Rick found this room exciting.

 

 It was a massive bicycle collection.

 

And there was every kind of bike imaginable! 

His collection of Samurai warrior garb was striking, both for its sheer numbers and for the quality. It dates from the 17th and 19th centuries. (This is only a part of it.)

Wade loved entertaining and when he invited guests to Snowshill, it was mandatory that they dress up in costume. While his entire costume collection is not on display, a significant portion of it was. There were dozens of hats. . . 

. . . Gowns. . . 

 

. . . Even kilts!

. . . and Asian costume. Wade collected clothing partly to celebrate and recognize the role of clothing and textiles in history. But not everyone was amused. Virginia Woolf, for one, found the activity a bit over the top.

 

I learned that the gauntlet was not a runway (as in "running the gauntlet") but a metal glove, worn in armor!

 

This photo (thank you, Jenny Woolf!) gives you an idea of one of the rooms. One gets a feel for the time but also for this unique, eccentric man.

 

But there was more to Snowshill than the house. The gardens were wonderful -- even on  gloomy day. 

Next time we'll check them out!

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