Icehouse situated in the Wilderness to the east of the former kitchen garden, Parlington Estate, Parlington, Leeds

Summary

Former icehouse to Parlington Hall, probably late C18

Description

Former icehouse to Parlington Hall, probably late C18

MATERIALS: brick and limestone

DESCRIPTION: the icehouse, which is set into an earth mound and is mostly below ground level, is a large brick structure that is several metres deep and circular in plan with a domed roof. The true depth of the icehouse is not known, as the base of the icehouse is filled with rubble. A modern metal grille covers the south-east facing angled entrance opening, which has an ashlar surround and is flanked by coursed-limestone and brick walls.

History

The history of the Parlington estate is intertwined with that of the Gascoignes, a family of Catholic landed gentry based in Yorkshire. Land at Parlington, including the medieval village of Parlington and probably also a manorial complex, was bought by John Gascoigne (1520-1602) from Thomas Lord Wentworth in March 1545. The remains of the village are believed to have been removed in the C18 when the landscape was gentrified and mineral extraction was also exploited. Parlington became the seat of the Gascoignes in the early 1720s when they moved from nearby Barnbow Hall (now demolished).

Parlington Hall (now - 2018 - largely demolished) is believed to have been remodelled in the 1730s for Sir Edward Gascoigne (1697-1750), and again in around 1800 for his son Sir Thomas. Sir Thomas Gascoigne (1745-1810), who was born and raised in Cambrai, northern France and was the youngest son of Sir Edward and Mary Gascoigne, inherited the Parlington estate in 1762 after his elder brother's sudden death. He settled in England in 1765, interspersing his residence with two Grand Tours where he mixed in court society, including with Marie Antoinette and Charles III, King of Spain. In 1780 Gascoigne abjured his Catholic faith to become an Anglican and a Member of Parliament, becoming a close ally of the Marquis of Rockingham. However, in 1784 Sir Thomas married Lady Mary Turner, a widow with two young children, and he resigned from politics to concentrate on his family and improving the Parlington estate, although he returned to politics several years later following Mary's early death from childbirth complications. Sir Thomas was an advocate of agricultural reform like his father Sir Edward, and a coal mine and quarry owner interested in developing technologies and innovation. He also had a keen interest in horse racing and breeding, developing a stud at Parlington. Gascoigne was elected Honorary Member of the Board of Agriculture in 1796 and his expertise and opinions on agricultural reform were sought by the board and his contemporaries.

New parkland was created in the early 1760s whilst Sir Thomas was away on his first Grand Tour and was overseen by one of his guardians Stephen Tempest, as recorded in letters between Tempest and Gascoigne. In 1771 Sir Thomas employed the gardener John Kennedy (1719-1790) who had been employed and recommended by Gascoigne's brother-in-law William Salvin of Croxdale Hall, County Durham. Kennedy was from a notable family of C18 gardeners and horticulturalists and in 1776 he published an account of the aboricultural methods he employed at Parlington in a book entitled 'A Treatise Upon Planting, Gardening, and the Management of the Hot-House' where he pioneered new techniques, such as the use of artificial fertilisers. The book sold to subscribers including members of the peerage and earned the estate an international reputation for pioneering techniques in cultivation and agriculture. Some of the methods pioneered by Kennedy were employed by Thomas Blaikie, the gardener to the Comte d'Artois at the Chateau de Bagatelle in the Bois de Boulogne, northern France, and the methods employed at Parlington were discussed in the North American 'The Farmer's Almanac' of 1794. One of Kennedy's specialisms was trees and woodland, and he planted and developed a considerable amount of woodland at Parlington, which was not only a valuable resource, but also a symbol of patriotism for Gascoigne, with some of the wood specifically grown for the Royal Navy. Letters sent by Jarrard Strickland to Sir Thomas reveal that the estate was visited by 'garden seers' (garden tourists) in the late C18 who came to view the landscape.

Sir Thomas Gascoigne died in 1810 shortly after his only son and heir, Thomas Charles (1786-1809) had died in a hunting accident. The estate subsequently passed to his step-daughter Mary (c1783-1819) who had married Captain Richard Oliver (1762-1842); her husband taking the name Gascoigne as stipulated by Sir Thomas' will. Richard Oliver Gascoigne maintained the estate's agricultural and horse racing interests developed by Sir Thomas at Parlington, and built new stables in 1813 to the designs of Watson & Pritchett of York (now demolished). He also further developed mineral assets on the estate, constructing the Dark Arch in 1813 on the coal wagonway of Parlington Lane that cut through the estate just to the south of the hall.

Richard Oliver's two sons Thomas and Richard pre-deceased him and thus upon his death his two daughters Mary Isabella (1810-1891) and Elizabeth (1812-1893) inherited. Mary Isabella and her husband lived at Parlington, and Elizabeth and her husband lived at the family's other estate, Castle Oliver in County Limerick, Ireland. After the death of his parents Parlington passed to Isabella's son Colonel Frederick Richard Thomas Trench-Gascoigne in 1905. Frederick, who had already inherited nearby Lotherton Hall from his aunt Elizabeth and had made that his family residence, focused on a military career, leaving the running of the Parlington estate to employees. Frederick removed many of the contents from the hall, along with a number of architectural features, including the hall's porte cochere, which became a garden feature at Lotherton. Parlington Hall was subsequently abandoned and in 1919 the estate's mines were sold.

During the Second World War the Parlington Estate was occupied by the Royal Army Ordnance Corps No 3 Vehicle Reserve Depot and a number of temporary buildings were constructed, all of which have since been demolished, but tank inspection ramps survive. During the war German and Russian prisoners of war were also hired from the West Riding War Agricultural Executive Committee to work in the woods of the estate.

The majority of the hall was demolished in 1952, leaving only part of the service wing surviving, which is now a private house. The entire estate was sold in the 1960s and is now owned by an institutional property investment fund.

The icehouse located in the Wilderness, an area of mixed woodland interspersed with walks and yew-lined rides, at Parlington is believed to have probably been constructed in the late C18 and would have been used to supply Parlington Hall with ice throughout the year to help keep perishable goods cool.

Reasons for Listing

The icehouse situated in the Wilderness to the east of the former kitchen garden on the Parlington Estate is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Historic interest:

* it is a good example of an C18 icehouse that reflects the historic evolution and development of the Parlington Estate, and also illustrates past practices of estate and country house management.

Architectural interest:

* it is a substantial structure reflective of the size and status of the estate and which utilises limestone quarried on the estate in its construction;
* it survives well, particularly the internal brick structure, which has an impressive domed roof.

Group value:

* it has strong group value with the other listed buildings and structures on the Parlington Estate and the Grade II-registered landscape.

External Links

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