Top (1) The Lady of Harefield Place
by Iva Howard, Middlesex Quarterly, Winter 1953
Near the banks of the river Colne to the north of Uxbridge squats a country church. It belongs to Harefield, a village not yet caught up in the tentacles of London Transport's railways, but accessible from Uxbridge and Northwood by bus. Inside the church is a monument to Alice, Countess of Derby, who lived near here some 350 years ago, one of the most cultured ladies ever to grace the aristocracy.
She takes her place in our history because, in the course of a long and busy life, Lady Alice, patroness of the arts, knew personally four of the greatest poets of the English tongue, Spenser, Donne, Shakespeare and Milton. In this she is believed to be unique.
Edmund Spenser claimed to be her kinsman and dedicated his "Teares of the Muses" to her. John Donne, foremost of English metaphysical poets, she helped out of a matrimonial scrape. Shakespeare was a member of the theatrical company of which her first husband was patron, while in her later years young John Milton composed "Comus" for the pleasure and delight of herself and her family.
I recently went to Harefield to find out more about this lovely countess, who lived in the far-off days of Elizabethan exploits. And in the ancient church I met her as she really was. The effigy on her painted monument is so lifelike that I expected her to sit up and tell me about that famous visit of the 31st July to the 2nd August, 1602, when Queen Elizabeth came to stay and it rained all the time.
Huge Four-poster Bed
Lady Alice lies on what looks like a huge four-poster bed, its curtains carved to represent folds, tied with cords and tassels. Her clear-cut features, her beautiful complexion, her long golden hair are preserved for all time. Her head rests upon two green cushions trimmed with gold tassels. She wears a farthingale of glowing red, with a ruff and an ermine cloak. She has a necklace, gold earrings and a coronet. Her crest is at her feet and many coats of arms adorn the monument. In three recesses there are kneeling effigies of her daughters, all of whom married early. The whole monument with its bright colours and gilding, gives an impression of life rather than of death.
Youngest daughter of Sir John Spencer of Althorpe, she was born in the year 1561 into a family rapidly rising to eminence, a family which in later years produced the Duke of Marlborough and his stalward ( sic ) descendant, Sir Winston Spencer Churchill.
Over Three Reigns
Her life extended over three reigns. When she was a baby, Queen Elizabeth had only recently come to the throne. By the time she died at the age of 76, James I had come and gone and his brother Charles, his head as yet securely on his shoulders, ruled the country,
In 1579 Alice Spencer married Ferdinando, Lord Strange, who subsequently became the fifth Earl of Derby. In due course they produced the three daughters, Frances, Anne and Elizabeth , who kneel at their mother's feet in Harefield Church. When she was only 33 years of age her beloved young husband died.
However, the Dowager Countess was far too attractive to remain a widow and after several years, she succumbed to the persistent pleading of Sir Thomas Egerton, Lord Keeper to the Queen. On October 20th, 1600 she became his third wife.
It was not altogether a happy marriage and you will notice that there is no mention of her second husband on the monument although they lived together until his death in 1617.
But if their private life was tempestuous, from a literary point of view it was a most interesting period. It was the time moreover when they lived at Harefield.
Overturned candle
Harefield Place was a charming country mansion, which they bought jointly in 1601, shortly after their marriage. Nothing remains of the house today (except a few fragments of its garden wall) owing to a gentleman of the 17th Century who had predilections for reading in bed. He overturned his candle and the whole place was burned to the ground. On the site instead you can see the graves of 110 Australian soldiers, who died of their wounds in the hospital set up here during the first World War.
Less than two years after their marriage, the Egertons entertained the Queen at Harefield Place and met Shakespeare. Extravagant preparations were made for this great occasion and in the end the week-end visit cost the Lord Keeper a quarter of his annual Salary!
The expense accounts make interesting reading, particularly the following entry:
6 Aug. 1602
Rewards to the Vaulters, players and dancers (of this £10 to Bur- bidges Players)
£64 18 10
Behind this laconic item is concealed a wealth of romance. For Richard Burbidge ( sic ) had in his company at that time a 38-year old actor called William Shakespeare. It is almost certain that he helped to enliven this wet week-end. It was formerly believed that the production was "Othello", performed here for the first time, but it has since been established that the play was not published until 1604.
Bill for Butter
Did the hostess take it all calmly? Or do you suppose she didn't sleep a wink, but lay awake worrying about the bill for the butter which came to £33 16s. 8d.?
I wish she would turn over on her monument, lean on her elbow and tell me. I would like to know too about her later friendship with John Milton, who lived for several years at Horton a few miles from Harefield Place.
In 1634 he wrote "Arcades" by which he meant the beautiful Colne Valley. The masque was presented at Harefield with Lady Alice in the seat of honour, and a torchlight procesion wound its way through the park. By this time she was an old lady. Once again a widow, her old age was consoled by the fact that her three daughters were now all countesses and that she had a number of titled grandchildren. Many of them acted in this masque, which was then a favourite form of outdoor entertainment.
Lady Alice, full of vitality still, was delighted by its success and later suggested to John Milton that he write another masque. The young poet thought he could. He wrote that exquisite piece, "Comus", which was performed at Ludlow Castle. This was probably the last occasion of any consequence in her life, for she died on the 26th January, 1637, having made her will only a month before on Christmas Eve, 1636.
Another Monument
As you leave the church and climb the hill back into Harefield village, you will come upon another monument to the Countess of Derby, a reminder of a different side to her versatile character. This is a group of brick almshouses, huddled round a small courtyard, their tall red chimneys pointing fingers to the sky.
Lady Alice had these almshouses built. In her will she left £36 a year to provide for the inhabitants. £30 was to be divided among the six old women who lived there; £1 a year was to be put aside for repairs; and £5 a year paid to the curate to read the service or some prayers to them daily.