16 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



[January, 



ways excepted, and peradvcnture, some great personages,) but each man made 

 his fire against a rere-dosse in the hall, where he dined and dressed his 

 meat! " In spite, however, of their mean dwellings, their mode of living was 

 not in a similar style, for we find continual expressions of surprise from 

 foreigners of the time at the abundant hospitality exhibited by men who were 

 conlent to live in houses of" sticks and dirt." 



The style of the interior decorations of this period took its character, such 

 as it had, from the architecture of the exteriors ; and, as that gave way be- 

 fore the new fashion introduced from Italy, so the characlcr of ihc interior 

 fittings up was changed with it. The Tudor style of architecture which pre- 

 vailed in the dwellings of the nobility and clergy, was an elaborate alteration 

 of the Gothic, the principal characteristics of which were numberless gables, 

 groups of bulbous turrets, and clusters of chimneys. 



In fact, it is not till the reign of Elizabeth was somewhat advanced, that 

 we need look for anything like an approach to the comforts and conveniences 

 of modern times; but by her practice and example an impulse was given, 

 which spreading through the nobility and gentry, reached at length to the 

 middle classes ; for we are told by Harrison, that farmers and even mechanics 

 were then able to " garnish their cupboards with plate, their beds with tapes- 

 try and silk hangings, and ilheir tables with fine napery." This appears 

 somewhat incredible, and should be taken with some grains of allowance, 

 although Harrison is generally considered a most faithful and trustworihy 

 writer. It cannot, however, be doubted, that the household furniture and do- 

 mestic comforts of the middle classes were now greatly superior in many 

 respects to those of the nobility in the preceding reigns. 



But classical taste in architecture was reviving at this time in Italy, and, 

 spreading as from a centre among the other nations of Europe, was pervading 

 the public mind. The Gothic, however, being more firmly established in those 

 nations, still struggled for supremacy, and the dispute ended in a compromise 

 between the two styles, the Classic and the Gothic, combining in what we call 

 in England the Elizabethan style. 



This blending of the Classic with the national style was attended with better 

 eflect in England than in France and Flanders ; our buildings having escaped 

 the disfigurement of the high pointed roofs, which form so striking a feature 

 in the architecture of their cities. 



The introduction of this new style may be attributed to the desire evinced 

 by our Henry VIII. to rival his contemporaries of the continent. Being him- 

 self in some degree conversant with architecture and the fine arts, with the 

 purpose of embellishing his court and improving the taste of the age, he in- 

 vited several foreign artists i.f eminence ; among others, RaflacUe and Titian. 

 These celebrated men, however, did not choose to exchange the high consi- 

 deration which they had attained at home for the doubtful courtesies of so 

 capricious a monarch : but he obtained several Irom Italy and Flanders. 



It is impossible, in treating the subject of Interior Decoration, to avoid re- 

 curring frecjuently to the architecture of the time, from which it copied its 

 pecMliar character, both as to solidity of structure and elaboration cf orna- 

 ment. A recent author observes, " the characteristic of the scroll ornaments 

 which enter so abundantly into the decoration of this period, has been weli 

 described as an ' intricacy of design which defies explanation ;' but the knobg 

 and bosses, with the fanciful cut work round them, peculiar to the Elizabethan 

 style, Were evidently intended to represent jewels. They are clearly alluded 

 to by Laneham, in his account of Kenilworth Castle, as ' great diamans, 

 rubys, sapphyrs, pointed, tabled rok and round, garnished with their gold, 

 &c. ;' a poor substitute, even with all the help that blazonry could afford, for 

 tlie precious marbles and pieire dure of Italy. In the more sculptureil dcco. 

 rations, the taste of the age displays itself no less in the subjects than the 

 style ; and the staple commodities of armorial bearings and devices are mixed 

 up with figures and allusions, allegorical, mythological, and classical. The 

 chimney-piece, occupying the whole height of the room, and forming part of 

 the general design when it possesses an architectural character, is generally 

 made a focus for the display of decorations of the kind." These were often 

 executed in a grand and imposing style, but more often deformed by extrava- 

 gant allusions and conceits. 



Even in the plans cf the buildings, propriety was often sacrificed to this 

 prevailing folly. Many of the mansions of the time were built with two pro- 

 jecting wings and a porch in the centre, the groimd plan of which was similar 

 in form to the letter E, and is supposed to have been intended as a compli- 

 ment to Queen Elizabeth. Far-fetched as this may appear, it is perfectly in 

 accordance with the taste of the age. John Thorpe, an architect of great 

 eminence during the reigns of Elizabeth and James, left behind him a large 

 and valuable collection of drawings and designs for houses, which have been 

 engraved and copiously illustrated by Mr. J. C. Richardson. Among these is 

 one for his own house, the plan of which forms Ihe initials I T. Philip II. 

 built the Eseurial in the form of a gridiron, in honour of St. Lawrence ; and 

 mystical allusions abound in the plans of churches and castles both at liome 

 and abroad. 



Such absurd fancies as these could not but be prejudicial to the art ; still, 

 however, it flourished, although the encouragement it had received from Henry 

 stems to have been in some measure withdrawn by Elizabeth, whose taste for 



the fine arts may reasonably be doubted, as she appears to have patronized 

 them chiefly when ministering to her vanity, if we may judge from the multi- 

 plicity of her portraits; which, however, she forbade to be executed by any 

 but "special cunning painters," a proclamation to which eflfect she issued in 

 1563. 



Tbe style continued to flourish during the whole of the reign of Elizabeth, 

 and seemed to have reached its utmost point of perfection at the commence- 

 ment of James's reign, from which time we may date its decline ; as the artists 

 of the day, in their search for variety, grafted upon it all manner of incon- 

 gruous ornaments, every one thinking himself privileged to introduce what- 

 ever ideas his wayward fancy might suggest, thus inducing combinations 

 which Walpole, in after times, somewhat harshly stigmatized with the name 

 of " King James's Gothic." 



It is worthy of remark, that while the architectural taste of the time was 

 declining, the domestic fittings-up of the interiors were increasing in comfort 

 and accommodation. It continued in this progressive state till the accession 

 of Charles I., whose well educated mind and refined taste led him to the adop- 

 tion of an entire change. 



Having now arrived at the period when Inigo Jones, by the revival of a 

 classical spirit, and the introduction of the architecture of the Palladian 

 school, had virtually put an end to the Elizabethan, we may conclude this 

 imperfect historical sketch of the progress of the art, and pass on to the de- 

 tail of the fittings-up of Elizabethan interiors. 



Before proceeding to describe the moveable furniture of the time, it may be 

 advisable first to notice the flooring, ceilings, &c. 



Previously to Elizabeth's reign, the floors were of different materials. 

 From a very early date, we find them described as sometimes paved w ith tiles, 

 of various colours, and laid in chequer-work: — the Hall at Hampton Court 

 was " floored with painted tyle :"— they were also of stone ; and when boarded 

 floors were adopted, they were of coarse substantial workmanship ; sometimes, 

 instead of crossing, laid parallel only with the joists, and not depending on 

 them for support. 



The doors also were of a rude character, being seldom framed, as they were 

 usually covered by the arras ;— but, in Elizabeth's time, doors of all kinds 

 were panelled, as well as the ceilings and wainscottingof the walls, and often 

 decorated with painting and devices. The elaborate fretwork of some of the 

 ceilings of Ihe time, ornamented with bosses and pendants, is admirable both 

 in design and execution ; and the framed roofs of the great balls were so well 

 put together, and of so ornamental a character, as to lorm one of the princi- 

 pal features in old houses. The roof of the Great Hall, at Hampton Court, 

 is an admirable specimen (though partaking more of the Gothic than the 

 Elizabethan), and has the advantage of being easily accessible to an enquiring 

 observer. 



Glass windows were another prominent feature in these dwellings. This 

 material, though early introduced into England, was so costly, that it was 

 not unusual to take out the window-lights on the departure of the master of 

 the house, and lay them up for safety ; but in Elizabeth's time it was in gene- 

 ral use, and was sometimes carried to great excess. " You shall have," says 

 Lord Bacon, " fair houses so full of glass, that one cannot tell wheru to be 

 come to be out of the sun or cold." And Lysons mentions a window, at C'ol- 

 lacombe, in Devonshire, containing 3200 panes of glass. 



Stained glass, also, was a favourite ornament of the superior rooms of man- 

 sions and palaces, adorned with figures in the most splendid clours. It 

 was known as early as the thirteenth century, and was much cultivated in Ihe 

 reign of Henry HI. 



Carpets not having at this time come into use in England, except as the 

 coverings of tables, or occasionally as foot cloths for the throne, &c , rushes 

 and sweet herbs apiwar to have been tbe substitute, both in public and private 

 houses. Though the private rooms and rooms of state were sometimes matted 

 yet rushes were the general strewing ; Queen Elizabeth's Presence Chamber 

 even was strewed w ith them ; and we meet with constant reference to them in 

 old authors. Footing must have been very insecure on such floors, though 

 it appears they were used even in ball rooms. 



One of tbe principal articles of furniture among our forefathers was the 

 " hangings" of the walls, or tapestry or arras, some varieties of which had 

 been known in early times. The Bayeux tapestry is considered the earliest in 

 existence, illustrative of William the Conqueror's descent upon England. 

 The title of arras was derived from the town of that name, which was the 

 principal seat of its manufacture in Flanders. The weaving of tapesty was 

 known in this country at an early period. .Sirutt says that in Alfred'sreign, 

 and before, York and Canterbury were adorned with pictures and tapestry ; 

 but the art seems to have been lost during Ihe civil wars of York and Lan- 

 caster. It was afterwards revived by Wni. Sheldon, in the reign of Henry 

 VIII., and became of considerable importance under James I., when a manu- 

 factory was established at Mortlake, the king himself taking such interest in 

 it, as to .advance £2000 towards the undertaking, and an artist named Francis 

 Cheyne was engaged to furnish original designs. 



The tapestry appears to have been simply hung upon the walls. " The 

 usual manner," says Percy, in his preface to the Northumberland Household 



