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Woburn Abbey has been home of the Dukes of Bedford for over 300 years and is now
lived in by the present Duke's heir, the Marquess of Tavistock and his family, in the Family Rooms. The house's history began
in 1145 when Hugh deBolebec built an abbey here for Cistercian monks. The abbey was confiscated in 1538 under the orders of
King Henry VIII for 'treasonable utterances' and given to Sir John Russell for services to the crown in 1547. It became the
family seat of the Russell family in 1619. In 1747 it was partially reconstructed and extended by the Palladian architect
Henry Flitcroft who built Woburn Abbey into most of what we see today. The next major building period was in 1786 under the
direction of Henry Holland and although some of Holland's work had to be demolised in 1949 his influence remains in the Canaletto
room and Library. Henry Holland was also closely involved in the design and construction of Broadlands.
Aside from Windsor Castle, the most visited attraction in the Home Counties is
Woburn Abbey, which is so spectacular you should try to visit even if you have to miss all the other historic homes described
in this guide. The great 18th-century Georgian mansion has been the traditional seat of the dukes of Bedford for more than
3 centuries.
Woburn's 3,000 acre deer park was landscaped by Humphry Repton in the early 19th
century, and contains an abundance of wildlife, including nine species of deer. One of these, the Pere David, descended fnum
the Imperial Herd of China, was saved from extinction at Woburn and is now the largest breeding herd in the world.
In 1145 Hugh de Bolebec founded a Cistercian abbey at Woburn. In that year fourteen
monks came from Fountains Abbey to begin the community but this did not flourish and by 1234 had become so poor that it was
disbanded, until the debts were paid off. Yet the abbey remained and from the original village a town developed, granted a
yearly fair and a weekly market
Then, with Henry 8th’s declaration as Supreme Head of the English Church,
at the Dissolution the fate of the Abbey was finally sealed and when Henry’s commissioners came to Woburn they found
twelve monks, the abbot and the sub prior. Eleven monks were freed but the other three were tried, found guilty and hanged
from a tree at the entrance to the priory. Now known as Abbot’s Oak, the tree still remains, some two hundred yards
from the west front of the building and supposedly that of the Abbot, a ghostly figure, in a long brown robe, is said to haunt
the Abbey. Sightings in the crypt and the Sculpture Gallery have been reported. After the Dissolution the interests of the
Abbey were granted - by royal award - to a Dorset squire, John Russell, who was eventually created Earl of Bedford, in 1550.
By marriage, he preferred to live at Chenies, in Buckinghamshire and so the second Earl was quite thrown into a state of near
panic when, in 1572, the neglected property at Woburn received a visit from Queen Elizabeth. After this regal arrival the
Abbey again lay forgotten and in 1585, burdened by debt, the second Earl died. In time it would be left to the fourth Earl
to restore Woburn’s fortunes, having made it’s acquaintance whilst escaping an epidemic of plague in London. Apart
from various restorations he also made plans to construct a ninety room mansion, the largest in the county. Unfortunately
he died from smallpox in 1641 and during those days of the Civil War his son, the 5th. Earl, pledged allegiance to the Parliamentary
cause. However, he later reversed his loyalties and having joined the Royalists had to flee abroad. After the Restoration
he then returned to England and by the restored monarchy was made Duke of Bedford and Marquess of Tavistock. By marriage his
son acquired much property in London and both Russell Square and Bedford Row are two present reminders. Eventually it was
the fourth Duke of Bedford, John, who began the rebuilding of Woburn Abbey. Much had to be demolished but nevertheless the
resulting reconstructions preserved the quadrangular plan. His grandson became the 5th. Duke and although not given to a scholarly
disposition was nevertheless fond of home entertainments, installing his mistress in a wing of the Abbey! Yet he commissioned
the famed Henry Holland to add the east front of the Abbey and in the form of a broad, sweeping semi circle, the main entrance
to the Park. His brother, John, inherited the estate in 1802 and engaged Humphrey Repton to lay out a suitably impressive
approach to the west front. John’s third son, also John, twice became Prime Minister but it was Francis, the eldest
son, who inherited Woburn and a heavy burden of debt, despite which incumberance he still had to provide a ‘lavish entertainment’
when Queen Victoria and Prince Albert came to visit. The 7th. Duke was succeeded in 1861 by his son William who built the
magnificent church of Woburn between 1865/66 at a cost of £40,000. Somewhat of a recluse, William transferred the management
of the estates to his cousin, Francis Charles Hastings. In time he became the 9th. Duke but unfortunately he later went mad
and in 1891 shot himself. Succeeded by his eldest son, George, when he died suddenly, two years later, in the absence of children
the inheritance then passed to his brother Herbrand, rather disrespectfully termed ‘Hatband’ by his fellow associates,
when serving in the Grenadier Guards. In time he became the 11th. Duke and not one for modern improvements, he refused to
install central heating in the Abbey and instead during the winters relied on nearly eighty wood fires. As for other modern
improvements, an early attempt to install electricity came to an abrupt end, when a section of the wiring caught fire, and
at a later attempt, since the Duke would allow no workmen to be seen in his presence, whenever he approached those laying
the cables had to scurry into a cupboard! In poor health, Herbrand died in 1940 and after the war the Abbey had deteriorated
to such a degree that much reconstruction was needed and in fact the eastern wing had to be demolished. Tragically the Duke
died from a gunshot wound whilst out hunting and although he had made provisions to escape estate duties, he died before these
could take effect. As a result his son, the 13th. Duke, inherited a tax bill of 4 million pounds and as for the Abbey, the
whole of the east front had now gone and at least a third of the north and south wings. With everywhere in chaos and disorder,
by sheer determination the Duke organised a clearing up and renovation such that in 1955 the Abbey opened to fare paying visitors
of the public, the first arriving in two cars and a bike! In recent years The Safari Park has been but one added attraction
and on the retirement of his parents, the Marquess and Marchioness of Tavistock, the estate is now under the management of
Lord Howland.
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English noble family. It first appeared prominently in the reign
of Henry VIII when John Russell, 1st earl of Bedford, 1486?–1555, rose to military and diplomatic importance. He was
lord high steward and lord keeper of the privy seal under Henry VIII and Edward VI, was created 1st earl of Bedford in 1550,
and had a part in arranging the marriage of Mary I to Philip II of Spain. He died possessing great wealth and lands, which
have remained in the family until the 20th cent.; these now include Woburn Abbey and large parts of Bloomsbury in London
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John Russell, 4th duke of Bedford, 1710–71, was one of the
politicians who attacked Robert Walpole and served in the cabinets of Henry Pelham, duke of Newcastle, Lord Bute, and George
Grenville. He was the leader of a faction of Whig politicians, known as the Bedford group, which had considerable electoral
power
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FRANCIS, 7th Duke of Bedford (London 13 May 1788-Woburn Abbey 14
May 1861); m.London 8 Aug 1808 Lady Anna Maria Stanhope (3 Sep 1783-London 3 Jul 1857
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Then, with Henry 8th’s declaration as Supreme Head of the English
Church, at the Dissolution the fate of the Abbey was finally sealed and when Henry’s commissioners came to Woburn they
found twelve monks, the abbot and the sub prior. Eleven monks were freed but the other three were tried, found guilty and
hanged from a tree at the entrance to the priory. Now known as Abbot’s Oak, the tree still remains, some two hundred
yards from the west front of the building and supposedly that of the Abbot, a ghostly figure, in a long brown robe, is said
to haunt the Abbey. Sightings in the crypt and the Sculpture Gallery have been reported. After the Dissolution the interests
of the Abbey were granted - by royal award - to a Dorset squire, John Russell, who was eventually created Earl of Bedford,
in 1550.
The house contains one of the most important private collections of furniture,
porcelain, silver and paintings, by many famous craftsmen and artists, including Claude, Cuyp, Gainsborough, Murillo, Rembrandt,
Reynolds and Deniers to name only a few and in one room of the Private Apartments, the magnificent Venetian Room, there are
21 paintings of Venice by Antonio Canale (Canaletto).
Woburn has been home to distinguished visitors in the past, including Queen
Victoria and Prince Albert, who used a suite of rooms here.
Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire was originally a Cistercian abbey and was rebuilt
in the
mid- eighteenth century. It has been the home of the Dukes of Bedford for over
300 years and
is reputedly haunted by a number of ghostly forms .
The most recent haunting to take place in the Abbey is thought to
be the ghost of
a young man who was half strangled and later drowned in the lake. Although he
cannot
be seen, doors open and close for him as he walks through rooms.
Witnesses claim that the door handle would turn
and then open, as if a person
was coming through. In the time it would take for a person to cross the room,
the door at the other end would open and close again for this invisible
figure.
persicution only results in making us stronger
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