The Who's Who of Ashdown House

One of the highlights of a visit to Ashdown House is the opportunity to view the portrait collection that adorns the walls of the hallway and stair. The portraits are a small part of the collection that Elizabeth the Winter Queen bequeathed to William Craven on her death. If every picture tells a story then these have a whole host of tales to tell. They are members of Elizabeth's family and her court, the people who formed an important part of her daily life, each with a story of their own.

The hallway itself is dominated by a large picture of William Craven, painted in

full armour, flanked by Frederick of Bohemia on the left and Elizabeth on the right. Also featured in the hall are Elizabeth's daughter Princess Louise Hollandine (pictured), the artist of two of the paintings in the collection, and her cousin Mary, Princess Royal, the daughter of Charles I. Mary married the Dutch ruler William of Orange and went to live in The Hague with her mother Henrietta Maria in the 1640s. To complete this family ensemble, there is also a portrait of Mary's mother-in-law Amelia, who was at one time Elizabeth of Bohemia's lady in waiting!

The first flight of steps introduces us to three of Elizabeth and Frederick's sons; Charles Louis, the heir to Frederick's princedom, the dashing Prince Rupert of the Rhine (pictured), whose life Craven saved in battle, and Edward, who made an advantageous marriage to one of the richest women in France. There is also an early portrait of their cousin Charles II, painted when he was only nineteen.

On the first landing are portraits of three of Elizabeth and Frederick's daughters; Elizabeth, the eldest, the "philosophical princess," a great scholar, Henrietta Maria, the tragic bride of Prince Sigismund of Transylvania, and Sophie,the mother of King George I, "the best queen we never had."

As you climb higher you pass soldiers and statesmen, Prince Christian of Anhalt, Elizabeth's cousin, who rode into battle with her glove as his talisman, and Frances Coke, the runaway bride.

The huge painting on the second landing of Prince Rupert, Colonel Murray and Colonel Russell is a story in itself, painted by William Dobson, court painter to Charles I, and richly decorated with symbols of loyalty. I've blogged about the Dobson painting before - like all the others in the collection it is well worth a view. Come and take a tour of Ashdown and step into the history of the house and the people connected to it!

The Mystery of the "lost King."

First it was King Richard III who was discovered under a car park in Leicester. Then part of King Alfred’s pelvis (or possibly that of his son Edward) was found in a box in a museum in Winchester. There is a sudden interest in “lost” kings.

Here at Ashdown we have a connection to two “lost kings,” Alfred himself, who fought at the Battle of Ashdown, and also the unfortunate Frederick, King of Bohemia.

There is something intriguing about the idea that the burial place of a historical figure is not known. In the case of Richard III the contested nature of his reputation gave the discovery of his burial site an extra dimension. Perhaps that is why it seems no one has gone looking for Frederick of Bohemia; his was a tragic and unsuccessful role in a bigger history. Perhaps it was felt he was best forgotten.

Frederick was born in 1596, and from 1614 ruled over the County Palatinate of the Rhine, a historical territory of the Holy Roman Empire. Frederick married Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of King James I in 1613 and they made their home in Heidelberg where Frederick transformed the castle and its gardens into a palace worthy of the daughter of a king. In 1618 the kingdom of Bohemia rebelled against its catholic ruler and invited Frederick to take the throne. Perceiving it to be his holy duty, Frederick did so, putting himself in opposition to the Holy Roman Empire and losing his throne a scant year and four days later at the Battle of the White Mountain. He, Elizabeth and their young family forced to flee into exile in Holland.

In 1632 Frederick had his best chance of regaining his ancestral Palatine lands. The Swedish King Gustavus

Adolphus had entered the Thirty Years War with significant success. In January 1632 Frederick travelled to Mainz to join the Swedish king’s forces. William Craven of Ashdown went with him and shortly after his arrival fought alongside the Swedish forces at the taking of Kreuznach Castle. This was the famous occasion on which Gustavus praised Craven for his courage in battle. Sadly Gustavus had less of a good opinion of Frederick’s abilities and refused to give him a command.  Instead, Frederick went to visit his Palatinate lands, which had been devastated during the ongoing conflict, with towns burned and ruined.

It was still Frederick’s hope that the Swedes would take the rest of the German lands from the forces of the Holy Roman Emperor and that after this he would be restored as ruler of the Palatine. In November Gustavus Adolphus won the decisive victory at Lutzen, but it was at the cost of his own life. Frederick wrote to Elizabeth telling her that he would be coming to fetch her now that his German lands would be restored to him. Alas it never happened. On November 19^th 1632 Frederick died of plague in Mainz in Germany.

It was another sixteen years before Charles Louis, Frederick’s heir, finally succeeded to the Palatinate. In 1632 he was only 15 and his uncle, the Duke of Simmern, was appointed administrator of the Palatine lands on his behalf. Meanwhile Elizabeth corresponded with her brother Charles I about a suitable place for Frederick to be buried. His embalmed body lay in Mainz for many months before it was taken to the town of Frankenthal and interred.

Peace did not last long.  In 1635 Frankenthal was threatened by enemy troops and the Duke of Simmern felt it would be wise to move Frederick’s body for fear it might be dug up and desecrated. Simmern fled to Metz, in France, taking Frederick’s coffin with him. From there the intention was to take him to Sedan for reburial in the mausoleum of his uncle, the Duke de Bouillon.  With an increase in hostilities, however, it was deemed to dangerous to travel.

Reports vary as to what happened next. Some historians suggest that Simmern arranged for Frederick’s burial secretly in Metz. Others suggest that he finally took the body to Sedan in September 1637. However when the mausoleum at Sedan was opened in the early 20^th century, Frederick’s body was not there. Where Frederick’s tomb is we do not know. Elizabeth made no reference to her husband's burial in any of her correspondence and thus preserved the mystery of the final resting place of this “lost king.”

Welcome to the 2014 season at Ashdown House

The Ashdown House blog will re-open next month in preparation for the new season, which starts on 2nd April.  We'll be featuring new photographs and new articles for 2014 including stories from our visitors and guest blogs. A very Happy Spring to everyone!