On Thursday 2nd October the group, together with some guests from the Gardens Group travelled to Harewood House near Leeds making forty in the party. Good weather, good visibility, comfortable coach and the added attraction of a special exhibition focussed upon J W M Turner and Jane Austen. What more could we seek? But why should I report the highlights of the day? Ask a colleague who attended what they felt were their lasting memories, while I recall some quirky features drawn to my attention mainly by the house guides.

Firstly, I was told the House holds an execution warrant for a George Lascelles, Earl of Harewood, who at that time was sixth in the line to the throne. The warrant was signed by Hitler, as the then George Lascelles, a serving officer, captured during the Italian campaign, imprisoned in Colditz, and held as a hostage, should Germany be required to surrender. It is only rarely put on show.

There was also the admirable reference to the current Earl of Harewood and David Harewood, the actor, in their television programme reflecting upon their personal backgrounds as heir of a slave owner and descendant of one of the slaves of the very same slave owner. Their encounter and subsequent friendship resulted in the displays in the House addressing this unique relationship and its wider implications: a most moving feature of the exhibits.

One room examined the final unfinished novel of Jane Austen, subsequently titled “Sanditon”, which as its heroine had one Miss Lambe, an Antiguan-English heiress of significant wealth. Jane Austen’s family has associations which allowed them to benefit financially from slavery: a feature which reviewers have suggested allowed Jane to challenge the then existing acceptance, as revealed in Mansfield Park and Northanger Abbey. It has also encouraged the creation of a drawing of Miss Lambe: from a distance a delightful but insignificant portrait. But on close examination, the painting is not on high quality paper but rather on scraps of headed writing paper of Harewood House! Causes one to stop and reflect.

I was also advised that the painting of Lady Worsley, by Sir Joshua Reynolds, was sold earlier this year for £25 million. Lady Worsley was the step daughter of the first Earl of Harewood. She was married at 17, was rumoured to have had at least 27 lovers, one of whom was sued by her husband for “criminal conversations”. The benefit for her husband: compensation of 1 shilling! Apparently there was a most entertaining television series about these affairs about 10 years ago but no longer available on catch-up!

But now to the visit proper and the delightful photographs obtained.........

Left: John Carr of York's Magnificent Harewood House; the North Front. Right: The Library, One of Robert Adam's Many Interiors.

Left: The Formal Garden Designed by Sir Charles Barry. Right: The House; the South or Garden Front.

Left: A View of the Lake. Centre: The Stable Arch. Right: A Red Kite; a Frequent Sight over the Grounds.

Left: Jane Austen's Unfinished Manuscript for 'Sanditon' - Complete with Alterations. Right: A Watercolour of Fountains Abbey by J M W Turner

Left and Centre:: All Saint's Church; Resting Place of the Earls of Harewood and their Predecessors. Right: One of the Many Alabaster Tombs in the Church

The Formal Garden with Capability Brown's Landscape Beyond.