The Shakespeare Tour part two: The road to Heythrop Park

Day 1: Stratford to Walton

Not long after leaving Stratford, we passed through the village of Hampton Lucy, once part of the Lucy family estate at Charlecote Park, which has been their home since the 12th century. The house was built in 1588 and although now managed by the National Trust, members of the Lucy family are still in residence. Legend has it that the young Shakespeare was caught poaching on the estate and there was no love lost between him and the then head of the family, Sir Thomas Lucy. Amusingly, a bust of the bard is now proudly displayed in the great hall, as the National Trust feels the link to the great wordsmith attracts more visitors.

Nearing the end of day one, we passed through Wellesbourne en route to Walton Hall, where we would spend our first night. Like many of the other surrounding villages, Wellesbourne has an ancient past. It was first recorded in 862 and is listed in the Domesday Book of 1086. Walton Hall is built on the site of several old manor houses and its cellars date back to the time of Elizabeth I. It was a private home until the 1970s, when the house was sold to the entertainer, Danny La Rue; who had the intention of converting it in to a luxury hotel. He signed over management to a pair of Canadian conmen, who, rather than promoting the hotel as promised, only bankrupted the celebrity performer. It led to a police investigation which cleared the entertainer of any wrong doing. To his credit, La Rue insisted on working well past his retirement age to pay off the debts incurred.

Day 2: Walton to Moreton in Marsh

Sixteen miles were planned for the second day and ensured a timely departure at 10am. Coach travel may trace its earliest roots back to the 13th century, but the countryside through which we passed that day has a history that stretches back much earlier still. After three miles we passed Pillerton Priors, just one mile from its sister village, Pillerton Hersey; jointly known as the ‘Pillertons‘. The villages date back to before the 11th century. The Fosse Way, from Exeter in the south west, to Lincoln in the north east, cuts across the northern end of the village and was built by the Romans during the first and second centuries AD. For the first decades after their invasion of Britain, (43 AD), it marked the western frontier of Roman rule in Iron Age Britain.

Visits to two special houses were highlights of the day. Having heard that we were recreating history to support UK cancer charities, their owners had invited us to stop by for coffee and some strengthening cordial: Idlecote House became the home of the Underhill family in the 16th century. William Underhill sold his house in Stratford to William Shakespeare in
1597, where the bard and his family lived until his death in 1616. Apparently, Underhill’s son, Fulke was so incensed that the property had been sold that he poisoned and killed his father. The detail surrounding his guilt is a little unclear, but one source claims he was prosecuted and subsequently hanged in 1599; certainly the stuff of Shakespearian tragedy.

The Manor of Honington can trace its origins back to 1540. Like many other estates it was owned by the church until the dissolution of the monasteries. The crown then granted it to Robert Gibbes, whose family sold it to Sir Henry Parker 130 years later. He built the current house in 1682 and it is considered to be one of the country’s most perfect homes of the period. Honington Hall has been privately owned since then and comprises the 17th century house, gardens and a landscaped park of about 80 hectares. Today it is the private home of Benjamin Wiggin, who you can see standing proudly between our two coaches.

The horses took us on to their home for the evening at Cotswold Riding and the coaching tourists spent the night at the Redesdale Arms, Moreton in Marsh. The hotel was first recorded as a public house in 1661 and for more than 200 years it was known as the Unicorn. By 1830 it had become an important coaching inn. The name was changed in 1886 in memory of John Freeman Mitford; Earl Redesdale of nearby Batsford Park. When the sixth Duke of Beaufort gave up hunting the Oxfordshire country in 1835, the Heythrop Hunt was established and the Earl had the distinction of being its first Master. The hotel overlooks the grade I listed town hall, an interesting building which was also built in memory of the Earl of Redesdale. He died unmarried and left the entirety of his estate to a distant cousin, who, in turn, decided to build the town hall in memory of his generous relative in 1887. The hall has two other claims to fame, it was captured on canvas by LS Lowry, and used as a flamboyant party venue by Elton John to help launch a record label in 1973.

Day 3: Moreton in Marsh to Heythrop Park

At 10.30am, the horses made their way from the stables into Moreton in Marsh; allowing the town’s residents to enjoy the authentic sight of passengers being collected from a historic coaching inn, whilst providing them with the opportunity to donate to our charities. Route planning takes into account the area’s topography, striking a balance between what is comfortable for the horses and countryside that is pleasant and attractive to drive through. Whenever possible, historic places of interest and original coaching roads are included and the route is sometimes even changed to allow Monarch and Nimrod to stop somewhere special. This applied to the route out of Moreton in Marsh, when it was discovered that the Four Shire Stone stands just off the A44, a mile and a half east of the village.

The stone marks the point where the counties of Warwickshire, Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire once met, until Evenlode became part of Gloucestershire in 1931. Thomas Habington, wrote of the “stone which toucheth four sheeres” in the 1600s, when it was four-feet tall. By 1779, it was 12ft, and today it is an imposing 15ft pillar made of locally quarried Cotswold stone. Historically it was a favourite venue for prize fighters. Boxing was then illegal, but by jumping into the next county the fighters could avoid arrest. Tolkien taught at nearby Oxford and some claim the stone inspired the, Three Farthing Stone of the Shire, in The Lord of the Rings. The stone needed to be rebuilt in the 1950s after being hit by a lorry.

We did not undertake the most direct route – the ability to include places of historic interest is important, especially if there is a coaching connection of some sort. We know that even after the train had replaced the coach as the country’s fastest mode of transport, sporting coachmen ran coaches to places of interest in the summer season. In 1850, Stratford-upon-Avon and the surrounding villages were serviced by: the Queen, the Star, the Regulator and the ‘Shakspere’, and these summer coaches were still seen for many years. Edward Boyce Podmore ran the Star from Kenilworth to Stratford for four seasons, 1894-97, sharing the driving with his wife, an accomplished whip. In the same year he was joined by Captain Stringer and drove the Star from Stratford to London, a distance of 120 miles in 12 hours, using 13 teams of horses.

Tally Ho coach at Park Gate, Charlecote

In 1906 E. Macgregor ran the Tally Ho, from Stratford to Leamington Spa; with the Charlecote Park gates proving once again to be a favourite spot for a photograph. By making a small route adjustment, we were able to recreate the scene, some 127 years after the first of these two images was captured. This was, without doubt, a particular highlight of the tour.

The villages we passed through that day are certainly worthy of mention: Broadwell, where we lunched at the Fox, overlooking the Cotswolds’ largest village green, with a tributary of the Evenlode running gently beside it. Then on to Kingham, judged by a Country Life panel in 2004 to be the country’s favourite village. Always mindful that the horses have plenty of rest stops, we stopped for a drink at the Plough; you will never die of thirst on one of our tours!

Appalled by the number of disadvantaged children in the area, Charles Baring Young, of Barings Bank fame, established Kingham Hill School here in 1886; with a farm, workshops and various boarding houses. The founder had a visionary approach to education and made sure that every Kingham child could read, write, and gained a trade. Charles also established a trust to secure the school’s future, which still manages the school’s affairs today.

Just a mile further on and we were shaking our collecting buckets outside the Chequers Inn, Churchill, recorded in the Domesday Book as ‘Cercelle’. The village was originally sited at the foot of Hastings Hill, but, in 1684, a fire destroyed 20 houses, killing four people. Apparently, the village baker tried to avoid chimney tax by knocking through the wall into her neighbour’s chimney, with disastrous consequences. The village was then rebuilt higher up the hill, using local stone rather than timber frame and thatch. Endorsing Charles Baring’s opinion as to the value of a good education, it is interesting to note that two people born in the village rose to positions of influence and status thanks to attending their parish school: Warren Hastings, (1732-1818) who became the first Governor of India, and William Smith, (1769-1839), who, despite lowly beginnings as son of a blacksmith, became an expert in his field and is regarded by many as the “father of English geology”. More recently, the foodies amongst us may be interested to know that celebrity chef Rick Stein was born here in 1947. The last five miles of the day saw us to our final destination, Heythrop Park Hotel.

As coaching enthusiasts we normally choose a coaching inn for our accommodation, so the choice of the imposing Heythrop Park might seem unexpected. Given the Park’s historical and sporting connections, we did not want to miss the opportunity of staying in what was once the country seat of the Talbot family. Heythrop Hall was built for Charles Talbot, the 12th Earl of Shrewsbury. It was never finished in his lifetime and after being gutted by fire it remained derelict until the family sold it in 1870. In 1926 it stopped being a family home and was subsequently a Jesuit College and then a Natwest Bank training centre. The bank sold the property to Firoz Kassam who turned it into a hotel in 1999. Bourne Leisure acquired it in 2018, reopening Heythrop Park as part of its Warner Leisure chain in 2022.

Today’s sports fan is likely to be devoted to football, rugby, or cricket, but turn the clock back to the 19th century, and the sporting gentleman would have been a devotee of hunting with hounds, horse racing, or coaching; if not all three. The appetite for these very English pursuits was so great that sporting writer Nimrod penned, The Chase, the Turf and the Road in 1837; discussing all three in some detail. Although the passion for these sports spread nationwide, the area, “which touches the four sheeres” was a hotbed of sporting activity; driven in no small part by the Dukes of Beaufort and other members of the English sporting gentry, including the Talbots.

The first Earl of Shrewsbury was John Talbot, (1390-1453). He was a fine huntsman, a true royalist and a remarkable soldier; victorious in 40 battles before dying on the battlefield, aged 63. He was regarded as King Henry VI’s best general and was referred to by him as, ‘Talbott our Goode Dogge’ and his character is lavishly praised in Shakespeare’s plays. It is interesting that the Talbots and Beauforts were related by marriage at that time and the connection was an influential one; Edmund Beaufort was not only Talbot’s brother in law, but a cousin of both Richard of York and King Henry VI.

In the generations that followed, many Talbots proved their loyalty to the crown, both in battle and politically. Charles Talbot, the 12th Earl of Shrewsbury, was made Marquis of Alton in 1694. He was responsible for building Heythrop Hall, which would be the family seat until it was moved to Alton Towers in 1831.

Just like the iconic 8th Duke of Beaufort, Charles Chetwynd Talbot, the 20th Earl, was a fine all round sportsman. He bred his own racehorses, hunters and coach horses and rode with three different hunts. His colours, yellow and red hoops, yellow sleeves and cap were well known on the turf and as a rider he could hold his own, either between the flags, or on the flat.

His lordship was a fine whip, (coachman), a member of the Four-in-Hand Club and one of the only English members of the Reunion Road Club of Paris. His team was always looked upon as one of the finest and in the early 1890s he put the Greyhound on the road between Buxton and Alton Towers, with a stable of over 50 horses.

The Beaufort Hunt hounds have been kennelled at Badminton since 1640. The Dukes of Beaufort hunted two packs: one for the Gloucester country, kept at Badminton, and one for Oxfordshire, kept at Heythrop Hall. The sixth Duke gave up the Oxfordshire country in 1835, whereupon it became the Heythrop Hunt and hounds have been kept here and hunted ever since.

For nearly 500 years, the British have demonstrated an abiding passion for riding to hounds. Hunting’s legacy is far reaching, as the sport forms the foundation of National Hunt racing, showjumping and three day eventing as we know and enjoy it today. We continue to breed and produce some of the world’s finest hunters, racehorses, and hounds, thanks in no small part to the likes of the Beaufort and Talbot families. The Hunter, Hackney and Yorkshire Coach Horse, helped this country gain its reputation as the world’s best breeders of coach and carriage horses in the 19th century.

This was the last night of the tour and we knew that by choosing to staying at Heythrop Park, we were surrounded on all sides by the history and romance of the “Chase, the Turf and the Road”. Excitement was running high. After months of careful planning, Nimrod and Monarch would arrive at Blenheim Palace, where, just two weeks earlier, the International Horse Trials took place and Heythrop’s hounds were proudly paraded in front of thousands of spectators. Tomorrow it was our turn and we relished the opportunity to present coaching at such a historic venue and play our part in maintaining the traditions of this very English sport alongside those of riding to hounds and eventing.

In the next issue of Coachlines: Part 3. Blenheim Palace