Levens Hall Owner Offers Personal Tours of His Historic House and Home

 As the Battle of Waterloo’s 210th anniversary approaches on June 18, the owner of Levens Hall and Gardens, in the South Lakes, is breathing life into a ‘One Hall; Two Adversaries’ experience, and offering unique insights through personally led tours.

Richard Bagot is, for the first time, this year offering guided tours that allow him to convey all the knowledge of items on display that he has acquired through his years growing up and living at the Elizabethan house.  This is supplemented with stories from anecdotal family history and facts gleaned from a huge library of historical documents and records.

Central to all is the opportunity to view items once belonging to both the Duke of Wellington and Napoleon Bonaparte. That is by virtue of the Iron Duke having had a favoured niece – Lady Mary Charlotte Ann Wellesley – who married Charles Bagot, one of Richard’s ancestors, in 1806.

When the Duke passed away – something Queen Victoria described as an “irreparable” loss to the country -  he bequeathed several precious items to his niece, all of which are now on display at Levens Hall.  There are the gloves he wore at Waterloo, taken off his hands, post-battle, by Lady Mornington, displayed with his spectacles and case.

Other items belonging to “the greatest man (the United Kingdom) ever produced”, include his campaign bed, locks of his hair and those of his acclaimed horse, Copenhagen, and a bottle of port wine presented by the people of Oporto after the Peninsular War.

Visitors can also see a copy of The Times newspaper, from June 22, 1815, giving details of the Battle of Waterloo.

Whilst these items are personal to Wellington, the Duke also acquired items belonging to Napoleon. Some were left behind when Napoleon hurriedly fled and ran back to Paris, only to abdicate four days later.  The reason for Wellington having had other possessions, owned by the man he called “a fraud” is less clear.

As a result, Levens Hall is home to Napoleon’s writing blotter, taken from a captured Napoleonic coach after Waterloo, and a small book, seized from the carriage of Joseph Bonaparte at the Battle of Vitoria. There is also a set of French porcelain figures depicting the Emperor and his marshals.

Visitors’ eyes are also often drawn to the Arabian saddle, presented to Napoleon by Elphi, the Bey of Cairo, during the French leader’s campaign in Egypt.  

Then there is the bee clasp Napoleon proudly wore on his cloak, as the oldest emblem of French sovereigns and a symbol of immortality and resurrection.  This was adorning his cloak before Waterloo and found at the battleground by the Duke of Wellington’s Aide de Camp.  

Not to be missed is the special green porcelain Sèvres chocolate service Napoleon had ordered as a gift for his mother Laetitia (Letizia) or Madame Mère.  Luxury breakfast services were manufactured by Sèvres for the serving of coffee, tea and hot chocolate, all exotic beverages at the time, and intended for royals and those in noble families.  It is said the chocolate service, already packed up and waiting to be presented by Napoleon, was seized at the porcelain factory, by Wellington or his aides. This exquisite item, depicts hunting scenes in the park of Vincennes and portrait-like figures of Napoleon and his generals.

Richard has recently recorded an Instagram reel, in which, when asked about the most interesting thing in Levens Hall, he rushes to Napoleon’s saddle and then highlights a copy of a Delacroix painting, showing Napoleon riding on that very saddle.  The original of that artwork is in the Louvre but the original saddle is in Richard’s family home.

Through the tours, Richard can provide unique insights into all the possessions with a Waterloo connection. He also offers a fascinating interpretation for many other things on display.  That could be the Constable glasses once used at the raucous Radish Feast held annually at Levens Hall in May time, or just as easily be an artwork. 

Richard can talk visitors through exquisite Elizabethan plasterwork and carvings, unique Cordova leather wallpaper, the earliest English patchwork, fabulous furniture, including Chippendale items, and much more.  He can also try to answer any questions.

The option to tour the house on a self-guided basis is still there, with entrance for that from 11am and last admission at 3pm, half an hour before closure at 3.30pm.  But it is the private tours with Richard that could be a real draw for visitors in 2025, particularly special interest groups and groups made up of overseas visitors.

Richard says, “We wanted to try something new this year, particularly as we have also opened for seven days a week for the first time.  I am looking forward to meeting people from many backgrounds, whether their interest is Wellington and Napoleon, furniture, clocks, Elizabethan history or something else.”

To discuss booking a tour with Richard, call the Levens Hall office on 015395 60321, extension 211. More information about Levens Hall and Gardens is available at www.levenshall.co.uk

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Editors notes

Levens Hall & Gardens is a historic house in the South Lakes, Cumbria, close to Kendal and home to the world's oldest topiary gardens, dating from 1694, created by French garden designer, Guillaume Beaumont. The Hall is a stunning Elizabethan house built around a 13th century pele tower and has close links to the Duke of Wellington, as well as various items which once belonged to him and Napoleon Bonaparte. Levens Park is home to the rare Bagot goats gifted to the Bagot family and a place in which to stroll and enjoy nature. Levens Kitchen is the contemporary new cafe, full of delights for cake lovers and foodies alike.