Historic Hotel
Questionnaire
Year erected: 1890
What is the history of the property?
Mr Howarth, a businessman from Manchester, buys the site but sadly passes away the same year. His widow, Edna, takes the reins and decides to build a larger house called Langdale Chase. Her daughter, Lily, lays the first stone of this permanent residence on 8th April 1890.
The house takes five years to build and becomes the proud bearer of a number of accolades. The landscape architect Thomas Hayton Mawson — who was behind the Peace Palace Gardens in the Hague — plans and lays out the gardens. Langdale Chase will also be the first Windermere residence to have electricity installed.
Mrs Howarth herself, who is a Victorian lady, will live in the house from 1894 up until 1914. She has a team of 16 staff and lives in a style very much in keeping with the Victorian era. Eight of the staff look after the gardens, carriages and boats, and the other eight staff members work as indoor servants.
Are there any elements of particular historical importance at the building?
The old oak fireplace in the hall has the date of 1664 and bears the impressive inscription ‘Nicholas Tufton, Earl of Thanet and Elizabeth, Countess of Thanet’. Elizabeth herself was the daughter of Lady Anne Clifford, who was born at Skipton castle in 1590 and owned several castles in Westmorland.
The fireplace is of special interest within the house. The Latin motto on the fireplace, ‘Alis volat propriis Honor virtuis prӕmium’, translates as ‘A bird flies by its own wings; honour flies by the rewards of valour’, but the true interpretation of the carved scene is still to be traced.
The fireplace tiles are likely to be the work of the potter William de Morgan, who lived from 1832 to 1917. Byzantine, Spanish and Persian styles and glazes all influence De Morgan’s pottery style. The private sitting room boasts a unique, dark oak Gothic fire piece which depicts the return of the Prodigal Son. This consists of carvings that Mr Willows picks up from Beverley Minster.
The original dining room — now a lounge — features an overmantle which bears the crest of the Howarth family and the date 1892. The Grasmere Hermit, who lived on the island in the middle of Grasmere, carved the overmantle and is thought to have done his carving in Easdale.
The man behind the oak staircase and the carving around the hall is Arthur Jackson Smith. He travels to Windermere specially to carry out this work and later settles with his wife and family in Coniston. One of his grandsons still lives there and has built an outstanding reputation for his work as a violin maker.
Are there any important guests or previous owners worth mentioning?
The Paradine Case starring Gregory Peck was filmed at the Hotel in 1947.
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