THE GRAFT
Under the terms of Robert Austen's Will, Joan Austen, his widow, inherited his estate for life, with remainder to her nephews, Henry and Robert Stoffold who at once took the name of Austen in accordance with their benefactor’s wishes. Joan was a capable business woman, and as she had taken an active part in the management of the Austen property for many years, she proved a faithful steward, keeping it in high order and neglecting no means of increasing its revenues. She died in 1769 and her Will may be quoted as it contains interesting details and states without reservation that Henry and Robert Stoffold Austen were her nephews.
Her first bequest is an annuity of £30 a year to Frances Austen in the Strand, London, to be paid from her personal estate in equal half yearly payments. I have not been able to trace the parentage of Frances Austen. She may have been an illegitimate daughter of George Austen, or she may have been the widow or daughter of John Austen, her husbands disinherited elder brother. Her other bequests read as follows –
I give to my servant Sarah Marsh £20. I give to the poor of the parishes of Shalford and Bramley £53 to be distributed to them in bread by my executors. I give to my servant William Piggott £5 and a suit of mourning. I give to Mary, the wif e of Thomas Upton, £5. I give to my sister Stoffold the use of my gold watch, chain and seales and all my rings for her life, and after her decease I give the same to my executors. I give to my nephew Henry Austen, my silver bread basket and pair of small silver tea candlesticks. I give to my friend Mrs. Martyr, of Guildford, my diamond ring which I had lately new set in the form of three leaves. And subject to the said yearly payment to Frances Austen for her life, I give my personal estate to my nephews Henry and Robert Austen equally to be divided between them, except the specific legacies above mentioned they paying my pecuniary legacies, debts, and funeral expenses. I appoint them joint Executors of this my Will.
Dated 30th January 1769 and proved on 27th February of the same year.
In a pedigree of the Austen family which is in the writing of Robert Alfred Cloyne Austen, grandson of Robert Stoffold Austen, there is the following remark in regard to the marriage of Robert Austen to Joan Street.
This marriage was kept secret during the life of Robert Austen. It is mentioned in his Will and took place at Bath about the year [blank]. Mrs. Joan Austen, before her death, acknowledged that Henry and Robert were her sons, but that Henry had been born before the marriage.
There is, so far as can be ascertained, no authority for this assertion, and it can hardly be accepted as true in the face of the positive statements in the Wills of Robert and Joan Austen that Henry and Robert were the sons of William and Mary Stoffold - statements which were confirmed on oath in 1821 by William Bray, a contemporary of the brothers and a friend both of them and of their parents. One is inclined to regard the story as one inspired by wishful thinking. Robert Alfred Cloyne Godwin Austen, its author, took pride in the thought that the Austens could claim descent from Henry Austen of Albrighton, Salop, temp: William Rufus, and it must have been a shattering blow to him to find that he was not an Austen of the original stock, but only one by adoption and change of name. Until about 1840 he does not seem to have known that there had been a break in the direct line; for it was not until after he had quarrelled with his father that the latter thought fit to reveal to him the true position as regards his ancestry. Before passing on to other subjects, it seems desirable to test the possibility of this strange story on the supposition that Robert Alfred Cloyne Austens remark can be accepted as a correct statement of the case.
We know that Henry Stoffold or Henry Austen as he afterwards was called, was born in 1735. Consequently, and assuming that he was illegitimate, the alleged liaison between Joan Street and Robert Austen that resulted in his birth, must have dated from before that year, while she was acting as housekeeper and companion to his sister Elizabeth. As no scandal has attached to her name, we must presume that Joan was able to conceal her condition and that she placed Henry in the care of her sister Mary Stoffold, to be brought up by her as her own son. The need for secrecy would be obvious, not only for Joan's own reputation, but also for that of Robert Austen, who was held in the highest respect for his ability, probity and fair-mindedness; and who would have suffered in popular esteem had it been known that he had seduced his sister's companion. Later we must suppose that he repaired the wrong by marrying Joan Street, but that the marriage for some reason was kept secret. It is said to have taken place at Bath, and if Joan's second son Robert was born in wedlock in 1739, it must have taken place between 1735 and 1738. The birth of Robert would have placed Robert and Joan Austen in a difficult position, as it would have put Henry, their first-born, at a serious disadvantage; for owing to his illegitimacy, the right of succession would have passed to his younger brother. To solve this difficulty, and assuming that their marriage had still to be kept secret, they presumably decided that Robert, as in the case of Henry, should be brought up by the Stoffolds as their son. By this expedient Robert Austen would be able to treat the brothers alike, and keep up the fiction that they were his wife's nephews, adopted by him and made his heirs in default of direct issue. Against this theory, which is pure supposition, are the positive statements in the Wills of Robert and Joan Austen that Henry and Robert were the sons of William and Mary Stoffold, statements which were confirmed on oath in 1821 by William Bray. Robert Austen's insistence that Henry and Robert Stoffold should assume the name and arms of Austen seems to be the only argument that can be adduced in support of this fantastically improbable theory. I give it for what it is worth, for as an item of family tradition it is too important to be ignored. I am bound to add, however, that though I would like to believe it to be true, I consider it to be merely an example of wishful thinking inspired by a desire to prove that the line of descent had not been broken.
But for her sex, Joan Austen would rank as the eighth squire of Shalford. She could not act as Lay Rector, but as the owner of the Shalford property and Lady of the Manor of Smithbrook, she is entitled to a place in the line of succession. She was succeeded by Henry Austen who, as the elder of the Stoffold Austen brothers, may be reckoned as the ninth Squire of Shalford.
About Henry Austen we know very little. We learn from his monumental tablet in Shalford Church that he died in 1786, deeply lamented by all who knew him. He was a typical country gentleman of the period, not particularly intellectual, but much interested in the management of his estate which consisted of half of what had belonged to Robert Austen, for in 1774 thebrothers Henry and Robert Austen executed a deed of partition in which their respective moieties were clearly defined. Roughly speaking, Henry took the Rectory, the tithes and all lands and hereditaments in and about Shalford, while Robert took Nore, Smithbrook and all lands and hereditaments in and about Bramley. Henry was a Captain in the Surrey Militia and there is a portrait of him. executed by some obscure country limner, which depicts him as a rubicund and jovial looking individual attired in a red coat and green waistcoat.
Ofhis youth little is known. He was probably educated at the Guildford Grammar School and when he grew up he entered as a student at Lincoln's Inn, and after eating the requisite number of dinners in Hall became a Barrister at Law. He does not appear however, to have ever practised at the Bar. To be a Barrister gave a man a definite social status, and as most country gentlemen served as Justices of the Peace, an elementary knowledge of law was considered a useful accomplishment. Henry Austen never married, and as he died intestate in 1786, the whole of his property passed to his brother Robert who thus became the owner of the whole of the Austen estates and tenth Squire of Shalford.
As in the case of Henry, Robert Austen was probably educated at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford. As soon as he was old enough, he was articled to Mr. John Martyr, a prominent Guildford solicitor. He applied himself diligently to the study of Law, and being a fair classical scholar, good looking, and of agreeable manners, he made many friends and got a footing in social circles not usually open to young men of his standing. His training as a solicitor had taught him law, but he was ambitious and desirous of obtaining the status of a Barrister; so when about twenty-eight years of age he entered himself' as a student at the Middle Temple and in due course was called to the bar as a Barrister at Law of Lincoln's Inn. It is significant that the record of his admission to Lincoln's Inn which is dated Novr. 3rd. 1767, describes him as:
Robert Austen of the Middle Temple gent: second son of William Stotfold (sic) of Albury Sussex (sic) gent:
In spite of the obvious errors in the record, this shows that Robert Austen, who had assumed that name in 1760, was described officially in 1767 as the son of William Stoffold.
Under the terms of Robert Austen's Will, Joan Austen, his widow, inherited his estate for life, with remainder to her nephews, Henry and Robert Stoffold who at once took the name of Austen in accordance with their benefactor’s wishes. Joan was a capable business woman, and as she had taken an active part in the management of the Austen property for many years, she proved a faithful steward, keeping it in high order and neglecting no means of increasing its revenues. She died in 1769 and her Will may be quoted as it contains interesting details and states without reservation that Henry and Robert Stoffold Austen were her nephews.
Her first bequest is an annuity of £30 a year to Frances Austen in the Strand, London, to be paid from her personal estate in equal half yearly payments. I have not been able to trace the parentage of Frances Austen. She may have been an illegitimate daughter of George Austen, or she may have been the widow or daughter of John Austen, her husbands disinherited elder brother. Her other bequests read as follows –
I give to my servant Sarah Marsh £20. I give to the poor of the parishes of Shalford and Bramley £53 to be distributed to them in bread by my executors. I give to my servant William Piggott £5 and a suit of mourning. I give to Mary, the wif e of Thomas Upton, £5. I give to my sister Stoffold the use of my gold watch, chain and seales and all my rings for her life, and after her decease I give the same to my executors. I give to my nephew Henry Austen, my silver bread basket and pair of small silver tea candlesticks. I give to my friend Mrs. Martyr, of Guildford, my diamond ring which I had lately new set in the form of three leaves. And subject to the said yearly payment to Frances Austen for her life, I give my personal estate to my nephews Henry and Robert Austen equally to be divided between them, except the specific legacies above mentioned they paying my pecuniary legacies, debts, and funeral expenses. I appoint them joint Executors of this my Will.
Dated 30th January 1769 and proved on 27th February of the same year.
In a pedigree of the Austen family which is in the writing of Robert Alfred Cloyne Austen, grandson of Robert Stoffold Austen, there is the following remark in regard to the marriage of Robert Austen to Joan Street.
This marriage was kept secret during the life of Robert Austen. It is mentioned in his Will and took place at Bath about the year [blank]. Mrs. Joan Austen, before her death, acknowledged that Henry and Robert were her sons, but that Henry had been born before the marriage.
There is, so far as can be ascertained, no authority for this assertion, and it can hardly be accepted as true in the face of the positive statements in the Wills of Robert and Joan Austen that Henry and Robert were the sons of William and Mary Stoffold - statements which were confirmed on oath in 1821 by William Bray, a contemporary of the brothers and a friend both of them and of their parents. One is inclined to regard the story as one inspired by wishful thinking. Robert Alfred Cloyne Godwin Austen, its author, took pride in the thought that the Austens could claim descent from Henry Austen of Albrighton, Salop, temp: William Rufus, and it must have been a shattering blow to him to find that he was not an Austen of the original stock, but only one by adoption and change of name. Until about 1840 he does not seem to have known that there had been a break in the direct line; for it was not until after he had quarrelled with his father that the latter thought fit to reveal to him the true position as regards his ancestry. Before passing on to other subjects, it seems desirable to test the possibility of this strange story on the supposition that Robert Alfred Cloyne Austens remark can be accepted as a correct statement of the case.
We know that Henry Stoffold or Henry Austen as he afterwards was called, was born in 1735. Consequently, and assuming that he was illegitimate, the alleged liaison between Joan Street and Robert Austen that resulted in his birth, must have dated from before that year, while she was acting as housekeeper and companion to his sister Elizabeth. As no scandal has attached to her name, we must presume that Joan was able to conceal her condition and that she placed Henry in the care of her sister Mary Stoffold, to be brought up by her as her own son. The need for secrecy would be obvious, not only for Joan's own reputation, but also for that of Robert Austen, who was held in the highest respect for his ability, probity and fair-mindedness; and who would have suffered in popular esteem had it been known that he had seduced his sister's companion. Later we must suppose that he repaired the wrong by marrying Joan Street, but that the marriage for some reason was kept secret. It is said to have taken place at Bath, and if Joan's second son Robert was born in wedlock in 1739, it must have taken place between 1735 and 1738. The birth of Robert would have placed Robert and Joan Austen in a difficult position, as it would have put Henry, their first-born, at a serious disadvantage; for owing to his illegitimacy, the right of succession would have passed to his younger brother. To solve this difficulty, and assuming that their marriage had still to be kept secret, they presumably decided that Robert, as in the case of Henry, should be brought up by the Stoffolds as their son. By this expedient Robert Austen would be able to treat the brothers alike, and keep up the fiction that they were his wife's nephews, adopted by him and made his heirs in default of direct issue. Against this theory, which is pure supposition, are the positive statements in the Wills of Robert and Joan Austen that Henry and Robert were the sons of William and Mary Stoffold, statements which were confirmed on oath in 1821 by William Bray. Robert Austen's insistence that Henry and Robert Stoffold should assume the name and arms of Austen seems to be the only argument that can be adduced in support of this fantastically improbable theory. I give it for what it is worth, for as an item of family tradition it is too important to be ignored. I am bound to add, however, that though I would like to believe it to be true, I consider it to be merely an example of wishful thinking inspired by a desire to prove that the line of descent had not been broken.
But for her sex, Joan Austen would rank as the eighth squire of Shalford. She could not act as Lay Rector, but as the owner of the Shalford property and Lady of the Manor of Smithbrook, she is entitled to a place in the line of succession. She was succeeded by Henry Austen who, as the elder of the Stoffold Austen brothers, may be reckoned as the ninth Squire of Shalford.
About Henry Austen we know very little. We learn from his monumental tablet in Shalford Church that he died in 1786, deeply lamented by all who knew him. He was a typical country gentleman of the period, not particularly intellectual, but much interested in the management of his estate which consisted of half of what had belonged to Robert Austen, for in 1774 thebrothers Henry and Robert Austen executed a deed of partition in which their respective moieties were clearly defined. Roughly speaking, Henry took the Rectory, the tithes and all lands and hereditaments in and about Shalford, while Robert took Nore, Smithbrook and all lands and hereditaments in and about Bramley. Henry was a Captain in the Surrey Militia and there is a portrait of him. executed by some obscure country limner, which depicts him as a rubicund and jovial looking individual attired in a red coat and green waistcoat.
Ofhis youth little is known. He was probably educated at the Guildford Grammar School and when he grew up he entered as a student at Lincoln's Inn, and after eating the requisite number of dinners in Hall became a Barrister at Law. He does not appear however, to have ever practised at the Bar. To be a Barrister gave a man a definite social status, and as most country gentlemen served as Justices of the Peace, an elementary knowledge of law was considered a useful accomplishment. Henry Austen never married, and as he died intestate in 1786, the whole of his property passed to his brother Robert who thus became the owner of the whole of the Austen estates and tenth Squire of Shalford.
As in the case of Henry, Robert Austen was probably educated at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford. As soon as he was old enough, he was articled to Mr. John Martyr, a prominent Guildford solicitor. He applied himself diligently to the study of Law, and being a fair classical scholar, good looking, and of agreeable manners, he made many friends and got a footing in social circles not usually open to young men of his standing. His training as a solicitor had taught him law, but he was ambitious and desirous of obtaining the status of a Barrister; so when about twenty-eight years of age he entered himself' as a student at the Middle Temple and in due course was called to the bar as a Barrister at Law of Lincoln's Inn. It is significant that the record of his admission to Lincoln's Inn which is dated Novr. 3rd. 1767, describes him as:
Robert Austen of the Middle Temple gent: second son of William Stotfold (sic) of Albury Sussex (sic) gent:
In spite of the obvious errors in the record, this shows that Robert Austen, who had assumed that name in 1760, was described officially in 1767 as the son of William Stoffold.
While serving his Articles under Mr. Martyr, Robert Austen had as his fellow pupil and friend William Bray, a younger son of Mr. Bray of Shere, and a member of one of the oldest landed families of Surrey. The Brays claimed descent from a brother of Sir Reginald Bray, Chancellor of Margaret Countess of Richmond, mother of Henry VII., upon whose head he placed Richard III.'s crown which was found under a hawthorn bush after the Battle of Bosworth.
Robert Austen and William Bray were lifelong friends. Bray's diaries contain many references to Robert Austen and throw interesting sidelights on the life of a sprightly but prudent youth in a country town in the 18th century. It tells of long walks with attractive girls, generally winding up at some local inn, where they regaled themselves on syllabub. A pretty milkmaid would in their presence milk a cow decorated with ribbons and rosettes and hand the milk, all hot, to her clients, who would drink it sweetened with sugar and perhaps laced with a dash of rum or gin. Towards the end of the 18th century the 'Green Man' at Ripley was a favourite rendez-vous for the smart young people of Guildford on Sundays after Mattins. Another favourite meeting place was the Velvet Walk at Shalford, now known as the Pilgrim's Way.
Robert Austen's next step was to purchase the reversion to a post which he afterwards filled as one of the Six Clerks in Chancery of the Court-of King's Bench. This gave him an official status and was the nucleus of a small but lucrative legal practice. In his early days at the Bar he seems to have acted occasionally as junior to the Solicitor General, and as such was concerned in several-Crown cases and State trials. Copies of the briefs relating to these cases were found among the family papers, and some proved to be of historical interest. There were, for instance, the papers relating to the impeachment of Lord Clive, and among them a statement showing the sums paid in bribes or gifts by Jafar Khan, to each Member of the Governor General's Council. Another lot of papers was the summary of evidence taken in the case of Admiral Byng, who was tried by General Court Martial and shot on his own Quarter Deck for having failed to relieve the British garrison besieged by the French in Minorca. Yet another batch of papers was found to relate to the misconduct of Lord George Sackville at the battle of Minden. As these papers bore no relation to the family history, it was decided by the Trustees of the Godwin-Austen estates that they should be handed over to the Authorities or individuals who were judged to be their proper custodians. The Clive papers were accordingly made over at Major R. A. Godwin-Austen's request to the Depot of his former corps the Dorsetshire Regiment, which as the 39th Foot had fought under Clive at Plassey and bore the proud motto 'Primus in Indis'. They had previously been offered to the India Office which had no use for them however, as it already possessed the originals. The papers relating to Admiral Byng were presented to the Maritime Museum Greenwich, and those relating to Lord George Sackville to his kinsman, Lord Sackville.
Robert Austen married on 8th March 1772, Frances Annesley Gregory, only daughter and heiress of Wentworth Gregory, described as an eminent Surgeon of Rood Lane, London. Gregory was well connected, his father, the Reverend Thomas Gregory, M.A., Rector of Toddington, Beds., having married the Honble Helena Thomson, eldest daughter of John Thomson, Lord Haversham, by Lady Frances Windham, ne Annesley, daughter of Arthur Annesley, Earl of Anglesey. The Gregorys lived in Lamb's Conduit Street, but had a small estate at Boxsted, near Hemel Hempstead, Herts. Wentworth Gregory's wife was Frances Allen, daughter of Captain Bennett Allen, R.N. She also was well born, being descended maternally from the ancient Buckinghamshire family of Hampden. Moreover Frances Annesley Gregory could claim through her paternal and maternal ancestors a double descent from Edward I.
In the course of his career Robert Austen acquired considerable house property in London and he lived there generally until he became sole owner of the Shalford estate. His home was at 10 Upper Gower Street, near Bedford Square, and as his work at the Bar and his social and antiquarian interests were all in London, he did not come into regular residence in Surrey until 1786, when, through his brother Henry's death, he became the owner of Shalford House. He was elected a F.S.A. in 1779 and was then living in James Street, Bedford Row, which presumably was one of his other London houses.
The modernisation of Shalford House in the latter half of the eighteenth century, and possibly its enlargement by the addition of an upper storey, seems to have been the work of Henry Austen. He was a bachelor of simple tastes and little learning, and it is somewhat surprising that he should have undertaken this seemingly unnecessary work. It must have been at the instigation and under the advice of his artistic and cultured brother George, for whom he had a great affection. He probably realised that being unmarried himself, the latter would be his heir; he must therefore have built for posterity rather than for his own personal needs.
It was the age of the classical craze - the age of friezes, porticos and columns - so Shalford house was given an additional storey, its Tudor brickwork was plastered over and whitewashed, the front entrance was ornamented with pillars, and the whole ensemble given the typical characteristics of the Georgian period. One of' the most pleasing alterations was the addition of a semicircular bow window to the drawing room and to the room above it called the Music Room. At a later period Robert Austen made further improvements such as the building of the stables, the entrance lodges, and the summer house in the Monks Walk. From the latter he had a fine view of St. Catherine's, the ruins of which he preserved from destruction. The laying out of the garden and the planting of trees in the Park and of the Avenue of Limes forming the side entrance along the churchyard wall, was his work. In planting this avenue, it is said that quantities of human remains were discovered, the churchyard having formerly extended towards the river in order to keep the space immediately near the Church free for the booths of the annual fair that used o take place there in the Middle Ages. The Monk's Walk, so called because the Augustinian Canons or their secular Vicars are supposed to have used it as a promenade when telling their beads or reading their breviaries, was cleared and largely replanted by Robert Austen who was also responsible for planting trees on the bare Chantry Downs. These are now represented by the beautiful woods recently sold to the Corporation of Guildford for preservation as part of the Green Belt of London. His son Sir Henry Austen was also a great planter of trees which became later a source of considerable profit to the estate.
The Adam cieling, fireplace and doors of the drawing room were among the improvements for which Robert Austen must be give credit. The panelled Oak Room, then the Dining Room, with its fine armorial fireplace and overmantel, he left untouched. The North East Room, then the Library, with its overmantel containing the carved effigies of saints, was also left by him in its original condition, except that it was lined with bookshelves. His library was extensive and particularly rich in books on coins and medals. It also contained some good engravings mostly on classical subjects. Robert Austen had the orderly mind and antiquarian interests of George Austen the famous Mayor of Guildford who compiled the Terrier or Family Record Book, previously mentioned. This was brought up to date by Robert Austen and completed with historical and personal information of great interests together with a pedigree illustrated by armorial bearings showing the alliances of early generations of Austens.
Robert Austen was one of the best known numismatists of his day. He directed in his Will that his coin collection should be treated as an heirloom; he also restricted the felling of timber on his estate, presumably to allow of the development of the woods be had planted. These restrictions proved so embarrassing later on that his son Henry had to obtain the authority of a private Act of Parliament to enable him to sell the coins and fell the timber from time to time, the proceeds being applied to a fund for the benefit of his younger children. The coins were sold for £4000 and became the nucleus of the collection at the Royal Mint. The timber produced a fund which in 1844 amounted to £11,000, and rose to a considerably greater sum in later years.
Robert Austen had many friends among the literary and scientific celebrities of his day. Besides William Bray, there was Joseph Planta the librarian of the British Museum, and Dr. D. C. Solander the well known Swedish Botanist who accompanied captain Cook on his voyage of exploration in the Pacific. Among the curiosities at Shalford House were a number of canoe paddles, spears and arrows, collected in the South Sea Islands and presented to Robert Austen by Dr. Solander. These were sold and dispersed at the sale of the contents of Shalford house in 1899 but one or two items were bought in by Mr. C. D. Hodgson of the Hallams, Shamley Green, where they now are.
Besides his interest in coins and books, Robert Austen was aconnoisseur of art and made a collection of pictures. He purchased some of the pictures of the Orleans Collection so called because they had belonged to Philippe ‘Egalite’, Duke of Orleans, who sold them to provide funds for the revolutionary party in France whose support he sought for the overthrow of the Royalist cause and the ruin of his unfortunate cousin Louis XVI. His Sans Culotte supporters turned on him later, and his own execution at their hands followed not long after that of the King - the kinsman whom he had treacherously betrayed. Many of Robert Austen's pictures were sold by his grandson Robert Alfred Cloyne Godwin-Austen, and the remainder were disposed of by the Trustees of the Godwin-Austen Estates when Shalford House wassold to the Borough of Guildford, the proceeds being used for the restoration of the family portraits.
An interesting anecdote is told about one of Robert Austen's pictures. Looking out of his bedroom one morning, he saw apacking case on the circular grass plot in front of Shalford House. No one had any idea how it had got there. It had been placed there secretly by some unknown person during the night. The case was found to contain a picture of the Grand Canal at Venice by Canaletto, and with it was a note stating that it wasthe gift of a grateful admirer. The donor was never identified.
About Robert Austen's family I have been able to collect a few details. He had one son Henry, and two daughters Frances and Elizabeth. The girls were educated at home by a Governess and had special teachers for Drawing Music and Dancing. Their childhood was spent mostly in London. Frances married the Honble(sic) John Bedford, Judge of the Admiralty Court, Barbados, West Indies. He died there in 1807and she died in 1808 while on the voyage to England, leaving two sons Edward Henry and Paul Austen Bedford, who were brought up by their grandmother Mrs. Austen and their aunt Elizabeth Austen who remained unmarried. There is a tablet to the memory of Frances Bedford in Shalford Church.
Robert Austen, to judge from his portrait by Dance, was good looking, and agreeable manners supplemented his good looks. He seems to have been a zealous Churchman, for finding that the ancient Church of St. Mary the Virgin of Shalford had fallen into a ruinous condition and was in danger of collapsing, he pulled it down and rebuilt it at his own expense, most of the stone used being quarried at Nore. The new church was an exceedingly ugly example of Georgian architecture, and in place of a spire he crowned its squat tower with an ugly copper dome. The new church was unsightly and quite out of keeping withits surroundings. This came to be realised about 1846 - the time of the neo-Gothic revival of Pugin and other ecclesiastical architects - with the result that the church was again pulled down and rebuilt, more or less on the lines of the original Norman structure.
But though a good Churchman or perhaps because of hisstrict orthodoxy Robert Austen was intolerant and viewed any form of dissent with abhorrence. The Church of England in the eighteenth century had fallen into a state of slothfulness and neglect and was being roused into activity by the fervent preaching of John and Charles Wesley who, though Anglican clergymen, were of the earnest evangelical type which strove by outdoor addresses and singing to revive the spirit of religion and kindle religious fervour in the hearts of the common folk, especially those of the towns who were generally neglected by the clergy. Mrs. Austen, who was of an emotional temperament, fell under the spell of Wesley's preaching and became one of his devoted admirers. The followers of Wesley were generally known as Methodists. They were so-called because their fellowship was started by a number of Oxford undergraduates who pledged themselves to pray and study the Scriptures methodically, devoting a fixed time every day to that purpose.
Robert Austen and William Bray were lifelong friends. Bray's diaries contain many references to Robert Austen and throw interesting sidelights on the life of a sprightly but prudent youth in a country town in the 18th century. It tells of long walks with attractive girls, generally winding up at some local inn, where they regaled themselves on syllabub. A pretty milkmaid would in their presence milk a cow decorated with ribbons and rosettes and hand the milk, all hot, to her clients, who would drink it sweetened with sugar and perhaps laced with a dash of rum or gin. Towards the end of the 18th century the 'Green Man' at Ripley was a favourite rendez-vous for the smart young people of Guildford on Sundays after Mattins. Another favourite meeting place was the Velvet Walk at Shalford, now known as the Pilgrim's Way.
Robert Austen's next step was to purchase the reversion to a post which he afterwards filled as one of the Six Clerks in Chancery of the Court-of King's Bench. This gave him an official status and was the nucleus of a small but lucrative legal practice. In his early days at the Bar he seems to have acted occasionally as junior to the Solicitor General, and as such was concerned in several-Crown cases and State trials. Copies of the briefs relating to these cases were found among the family papers, and some proved to be of historical interest. There were, for instance, the papers relating to the impeachment of Lord Clive, and among them a statement showing the sums paid in bribes or gifts by Jafar Khan, to each Member of the Governor General's Council. Another lot of papers was the summary of evidence taken in the case of Admiral Byng, who was tried by General Court Martial and shot on his own Quarter Deck for having failed to relieve the British garrison besieged by the French in Minorca. Yet another batch of papers was found to relate to the misconduct of Lord George Sackville at the battle of Minden. As these papers bore no relation to the family history, it was decided by the Trustees of the Godwin-Austen estates that they should be handed over to the Authorities or individuals who were judged to be their proper custodians. The Clive papers were accordingly made over at Major R. A. Godwin-Austen's request to the Depot of his former corps the Dorsetshire Regiment, which as the 39th Foot had fought under Clive at Plassey and bore the proud motto 'Primus in Indis'. They had previously been offered to the India Office which had no use for them however, as it already possessed the originals. The papers relating to Admiral Byng were presented to the Maritime Museum Greenwich, and those relating to Lord George Sackville to his kinsman, Lord Sackville.
Robert Austen married on 8th March 1772, Frances Annesley Gregory, only daughter and heiress of Wentworth Gregory, described as an eminent Surgeon of Rood Lane, London. Gregory was well connected, his father, the Reverend Thomas Gregory, M.A., Rector of Toddington, Beds., having married the Honble Helena Thomson, eldest daughter of John Thomson, Lord Haversham, by Lady Frances Windham, ne Annesley, daughter of Arthur Annesley, Earl of Anglesey. The Gregorys lived in Lamb's Conduit Street, but had a small estate at Boxsted, near Hemel Hempstead, Herts. Wentworth Gregory's wife was Frances Allen, daughter of Captain Bennett Allen, R.N. She also was well born, being descended maternally from the ancient Buckinghamshire family of Hampden. Moreover Frances Annesley Gregory could claim through her paternal and maternal ancestors a double descent from Edward I.
In the course of his career Robert Austen acquired considerable house property in London and he lived there generally until he became sole owner of the Shalford estate. His home was at 10 Upper Gower Street, near Bedford Square, and as his work at the Bar and his social and antiquarian interests were all in London, he did not come into regular residence in Surrey until 1786, when, through his brother Henry's death, he became the owner of Shalford House. He was elected a F.S.A. in 1779 and was then living in James Street, Bedford Row, which presumably was one of his other London houses.
The modernisation of Shalford House in the latter half of the eighteenth century, and possibly its enlargement by the addition of an upper storey, seems to have been the work of Henry Austen. He was a bachelor of simple tastes and little learning, and it is somewhat surprising that he should have undertaken this seemingly unnecessary work. It must have been at the instigation and under the advice of his artistic and cultured brother George, for whom he had a great affection. He probably realised that being unmarried himself, the latter would be his heir; he must therefore have built for posterity rather than for his own personal needs.
It was the age of the classical craze - the age of friezes, porticos and columns - so Shalford house was given an additional storey, its Tudor brickwork was plastered over and whitewashed, the front entrance was ornamented with pillars, and the whole ensemble given the typical characteristics of the Georgian period. One of' the most pleasing alterations was the addition of a semicircular bow window to the drawing room and to the room above it called the Music Room. At a later period Robert Austen made further improvements such as the building of the stables, the entrance lodges, and the summer house in the Monks Walk. From the latter he had a fine view of St. Catherine's, the ruins of which he preserved from destruction. The laying out of the garden and the planting of trees in the Park and of the Avenue of Limes forming the side entrance along the churchyard wall, was his work. In planting this avenue, it is said that quantities of human remains were discovered, the churchyard having formerly extended towards the river in order to keep the space immediately near the Church free for the booths of the annual fair that used o take place there in the Middle Ages. The Monk's Walk, so called because the Augustinian Canons or their secular Vicars are supposed to have used it as a promenade when telling their beads or reading their breviaries, was cleared and largely replanted by Robert Austen who was also responsible for planting trees on the bare Chantry Downs. These are now represented by the beautiful woods recently sold to the Corporation of Guildford for preservation as part of the Green Belt of London. His son Sir Henry Austen was also a great planter of trees which became later a source of considerable profit to the estate.
The Adam cieling, fireplace and doors of the drawing room were among the improvements for which Robert Austen must be give credit. The panelled Oak Room, then the Dining Room, with its fine armorial fireplace and overmantel, he left untouched. The North East Room, then the Library, with its overmantel containing the carved effigies of saints, was also left by him in its original condition, except that it was lined with bookshelves. His library was extensive and particularly rich in books on coins and medals. It also contained some good engravings mostly on classical subjects. Robert Austen had the orderly mind and antiquarian interests of George Austen the famous Mayor of Guildford who compiled the Terrier or Family Record Book, previously mentioned. This was brought up to date by Robert Austen and completed with historical and personal information of great interests together with a pedigree illustrated by armorial bearings showing the alliances of early generations of Austens.
Robert Austen was one of the best known numismatists of his day. He directed in his Will that his coin collection should be treated as an heirloom; he also restricted the felling of timber on his estate, presumably to allow of the development of the woods be had planted. These restrictions proved so embarrassing later on that his son Henry had to obtain the authority of a private Act of Parliament to enable him to sell the coins and fell the timber from time to time, the proceeds being applied to a fund for the benefit of his younger children. The coins were sold for £4000 and became the nucleus of the collection at the Royal Mint. The timber produced a fund which in 1844 amounted to £11,000, and rose to a considerably greater sum in later years.
Robert Austen had many friends among the literary and scientific celebrities of his day. Besides William Bray, there was Joseph Planta the librarian of the British Museum, and Dr. D. C. Solander the well known Swedish Botanist who accompanied captain Cook on his voyage of exploration in the Pacific. Among the curiosities at Shalford House were a number of canoe paddles, spears and arrows, collected in the South Sea Islands and presented to Robert Austen by Dr. Solander. These were sold and dispersed at the sale of the contents of Shalford house in 1899 but one or two items were bought in by Mr. C. D. Hodgson of the Hallams, Shamley Green, where they now are.
Besides his interest in coins and books, Robert Austen was aconnoisseur of art and made a collection of pictures. He purchased some of the pictures of the Orleans Collection so called because they had belonged to Philippe ‘Egalite’, Duke of Orleans, who sold them to provide funds for the revolutionary party in France whose support he sought for the overthrow of the Royalist cause and the ruin of his unfortunate cousin Louis XVI. His Sans Culotte supporters turned on him later, and his own execution at their hands followed not long after that of the King - the kinsman whom he had treacherously betrayed. Many of Robert Austen's pictures were sold by his grandson Robert Alfred Cloyne Godwin-Austen, and the remainder were disposed of by the Trustees of the Godwin-Austen Estates when Shalford House wassold to the Borough of Guildford, the proceeds being used for the restoration of the family portraits.
An interesting anecdote is told about one of Robert Austen's pictures. Looking out of his bedroom one morning, he saw apacking case on the circular grass plot in front of Shalford House. No one had any idea how it had got there. It had been placed there secretly by some unknown person during the night. The case was found to contain a picture of the Grand Canal at Venice by Canaletto, and with it was a note stating that it wasthe gift of a grateful admirer. The donor was never identified.
About Robert Austen's family I have been able to collect a few details. He had one son Henry, and two daughters Frances and Elizabeth. The girls were educated at home by a Governess and had special teachers for Drawing Music and Dancing. Their childhood was spent mostly in London. Frances married the Honble(sic) John Bedford, Judge of the Admiralty Court, Barbados, West Indies. He died there in 1807and she died in 1808 while on the voyage to England, leaving two sons Edward Henry and Paul Austen Bedford, who were brought up by their grandmother Mrs. Austen and their aunt Elizabeth Austen who remained unmarried. There is a tablet to the memory of Frances Bedford in Shalford Church.
Robert Austen, to judge from his portrait by Dance, was good looking, and agreeable manners supplemented his good looks. He seems to have been a zealous Churchman, for finding that the ancient Church of St. Mary the Virgin of Shalford had fallen into a ruinous condition and was in danger of collapsing, he pulled it down and rebuilt it at his own expense, most of the stone used being quarried at Nore. The new church was an exceedingly ugly example of Georgian architecture, and in place of a spire he crowned its squat tower with an ugly copper dome. The new church was unsightly and quite out of keeping withits surroundings. This came to be realised about 1846 - the time of the neo-Gothic revival of Pugin and other ecclesiastical architects - with the result that the church was again pulled down and rebuilt, more or less on the lines of the original Norman structure.
But though a good Churchman or perhaps because of hisstrict orthodoxy Robert Austen was intolerant and viewed any form of dissent with abhorrence. The Church of England in the eighteenth century had fallen into a state of slothfulness and neglect and was being roused into activity by the fervent preaching of John and Charles Wesley who, though Anglican clergymen, were of the earnest evangelical type which strove by outdoor addresses and singing to revive the spirit of religion and kindle religious fervour in the hearts of the common folk, especially those of the towns who were generally neglected by the clergy. Mrs. Austen, who was of an emotional temperament, fell under the spell of Wesley's preaching and became one of his devoted admirers. The followers of Wesley were generally known as Methodists. They were so-called because their fellowship was started by a number of Oxford undergraduates who pledged themselves to pray and study the Scriptures methodically, devoting a fixed time every day to that purpose.
Robert Austen took such strong exception to his wife's religious views which probably took an exaggerated and irritating form, that he went so far as to take Counsel's opinion as to whether they could be made grounds for a judicial separation. His death, soon after, put an end to this unreasonable project which in any case would have had little prospect of success. He seems to have considered his wife rather weak and irresponsible, for by his Will he left her little or no authority in the administration of his property, which was vested in trustees for her benefit and that of his children, guardians being appointed to supervise the education of his son.
Robert Austen was always adding to his estate, his last purchase which was not actually completed until after his death, being Tyting, the ancient farm house near St. Martha's Church. This house had been the home of Samuel Austen, eldest son of the Elizabethan George Austen by his first marriage, who died there during his father's life time. The chalk stone fireplace now in the Dining Room of Shalford House, built by Robert Alfred Cloyne Godwin-Austen in 1872, was originally in Tyting and was removed from there when it was sold. It is inscribed S.A. and J.A., the initials of Samuel and Jane Austen his wife, with the date.
Robert Austen died in 1797. His Will directs that he should be buried in the vault he had made below the chancel of Shalford Church (this was the ugly Georgian structure previously mentioned) and that 'his coffin should be enclosed in one of black marble engraved with his name, arms and date of decease'. He also directs that 'a small but elegant monument of marble be affixed to the north wall of the chancel within a year of his decease'. He left £150 to his trustees to erect a stained glass window in the church by Jarvis or Pearson, and £10 to be distributed in bread to the poor of Shalford and Bramley. He left £20 to his footman William Davis and £10 to each of his servants, exclusive of the cost of their mourning. To his daughters Frances and Elizabeth he left £3000 apiece. To Elizabeth, daughter of Charles Franklyn of Polton, Beds, Surgeon. be left £1000. He authorised his trustees to pay such sums as might be necessary for the maintenance and education of his children out of profits etc. accruing from his real and personal estate. He bequeathed the rest of his property not in settlement, except his diamond ring, his books, MSS., pictures ' drawings., medals and coins, to Henry Halsey of Henley Park, Surrey, Richard Lannoy Coussmaker of Upper Gower Street, and William Bray of' Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London, in trust for his son Henry Edmund Austen and his heirs, and failing them to his daughter Frances and her heirs, and failing them to his daughter Elizabeth. If his son died before the age of 21, his property should be divided between his two daughters.
In order that the unsettled portion of the estate should not be separated from the settled portion under the terms of his marriage settlement, he willed that if his son should predecease his daughters without issue, then his younger daughter Elizabeth should receive an additional £2000, being, the value of her share in the settled estates.
His diamond ring 'containing some of the hair of his late and much honoured uncle Robert Austen Esquire' and also all his books, manuscripts, pictures, drawings. medals and coins were to be considered as heirlooms and go with Shalford House. If all his children died without issue, his printed books, pictures and drawings were to be given to William Bray and the manuscripts and coins to the Trustees of the British Museum, to be deposited and made part thereof, except those found to be duplicates which should be given to William Bray. He directed that a catalogue of his books, medals and coins should be made out in triplicate and a copy given to each of his trustees.
He concludes his Will with the following pious directions –
I hereby commit the guardianship of the persons of my said dear children, on whom may the Universal Parent and Author of all good bestow his choicest blessings unto Henry Halsey, Lannoy Richard Coussmaker and William Bray until they attain the age of 21, and if any of these trustees shall die during their minority then such child or children to be made wards in Chancery.
He bequeathed £100 to each of his trustees, requesting that 'their friendship and kind attention may be shewn to my aforesaid dear children' and he appointed his trustees his executors. The Will was signed on 26th December 1796. A codicil dated lst November 1797 directed his executors to complete the purchase of Tyting from his personal estate.
Robert Austen's character is reflected in his Will. It shows him to have been a prudent and industrious lawyer, a kind and far seeing father, and a cultured man of literary, artistic and antiquarian tastes. To these qualities should be added his sound judgement as a landowner and the care with which he improved, extended and managed his estate. He died at the comparatively early age of 58. Had he lived longer, his ability would doubtless have secured him an important place among the Magistrates of Surrey. It is significant, with reference to his grandson's suggestion that he was really a son of Robert Austen who died in1759, that he refers to the latter as his late and much honoured uncle. This seems to confirm the view that the story of Robert and Joan Austen's secret marriage mentioned on pages 25 to 27, had no foundation of fact, and that it should now be regarded a myth. There is a tablet with a Latin inscription to the memory of Robert Austen in Shalford Church, also a hatchment displaying the arms of Austen, with an inescutcheon blazoning those of Gregory.
The Austens have all been paper hoarders, and in going through the family archives I found all the Shalford household bills for 1790 onwards. They give interesting information in regard to the price of provisions, materials and labour at the end of the 18th century. They also throw a sidelight on the conditions of life at that time - the poverty of the labouring classes and their low standard of living, mainly owing to the high cost of fuel and food during the wars of the 18th century. There are references to payments of taxes, tolls and carriage of goods from London by river and canal, to the cost of building and repairs, to journeys to London on horseback and charges at Inns en route, for master, groom, and horses. The household and bailiff's accounts have been preserved, the former in Robert Austen's own neat and precise handwriting. Most of these papers have been deposited in the Muniment of the Guildford Museum, where they available for examination by students of political economy. They constitute an interesting record of the household expenses of a country gentleman of moderate income in the days of the French Revolution. Napoleon was then striving, like his modern imitator Hitler, to enslave Europe; while Great Britain, then as now, was battling, generally single-handed and at incredible cost to preserve its liberties.
Robert Austen was always adding to his estate, his last purchase which was not actually completed until after his death, being Tyting, the ancient farm house near St. Martha's Church. This house had been the home of Samuel Austen, eldest son of the Elizabethan George Austen by his first marriage, who died there during his father's life time. The chalk stone fireplace now in the Dining Room of Shalford House, built by Robert Alfred Cloyne Godwin-Austen in 1872, was originally in Tyting and was removed from there when it was sold. It is inscribed S.A. and J.A., the initials of Samuel and Jane Austen his wife, with the date.
Robert Austen died in 1797. His Will directs that he should be buried in the vault he had made below the chancel of Shalford Church (this was the ugly Georgian structure previously mentioned) and that 'his coffin should be enclosed in one of black marble engraved with his name, arms and date of decease'. He also directs that 'a small but elegant monument of marble be affixed to the north wall of the chancel within a year of his decease'. He left £150 to his trustees to erect a stained glass window in the church by Jarvis or Pearson, and £10 to be distributed in bread to the poor of Shalford and Bramley. He left £20 to his footman William Davis and £10 to each of his servants, exclusive of the cost of their mourning. To his daughters Frances and Elizabeth he left £3000 apiece. To Elizabeth, daughter of Charles Franklyn of Polton, Beds, Surgeon. be left £1000. He authorised his trustees to pay such sums as might be necessary for the maintenance and education of his children out of profits etc. accruing from his real and personal estate. He bequeathed the rest of his property not in settlement, except his diamond ring, his books, MSS., pictures ' drawings., medals and coins, to Henry Halsey of Henley Park, Surrey, Richard Lannoy Coussmaker of Upper Gower Street, and William Bray of' Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London, in trust for his son Henry Edmund Austen and his heirs, and failing them to his daughter Frances and her heirs, and failing them to his daughter Elizabeth. If his son died before the age of 21, his property should be divided between his two daughters.
In order that the unsettled portion of the estate should not be separated from the settled portion under the terms of his marriage settlement, he willed that if his son should predecease his daughters without issue, then his younger daughter Elizabeth should receive an additional £2000, being, the value of her share in the settled estates.
His diamond ring 'containing some of the hair of his late and much honoured uncle Robert Austen Esquire' and also all his books, manuscripts, pictures, drawings. medals and coins were to be considered as heirlooms and go with Shalford House. If all his children died without issue, his printed books, pictures and drawings were to be given to William Bray and the manuscripts and coins to the Trustees of the British Museum, to be deposited and made part thereof, except those found to be duplicates which should be given to William Bray. He directed that a catalogue of his books, medals and coins should be made out in triplicate and a copy given to each of his trustees.
He concludes his Will with the following pious directions –
I hereby commit the guardianship of the persons of my said dear children, on whom may the Universal Parent and Author of all good bestow his choicest blessings unto Henry Halsey, Lannoy Richard Coussmaker and William Bray until they attain the age of 21, and if any of these trustees shall die during their minority then such child or children to be made wards in Chancery.
He bequeathed £100 to each of his trustees, requesting that 'their friendship and kind attention may be shewn to my aforesaid dear children' and he appointed his trustees his executors. The Will was signed on 26th December 1796. A codicil dated lst November 1797 directed his executors to complete the purchase of Tyting from his personal estate.
Robert Austen's character is reflected in his Will. It shows him to have been a prudent and industrious lawyer, a kind and far seeing father, and a cultured man of literary, artistic and antiquarian tastes. To these qualities should be added his sound judgement as a landowner and the care with which he improved, extended and managed his estate. He died at the comparatively early age of 58. Had he lived longer, his ability would doubtless have secured him an important place among the Magistrates of Surrey. It is significant, with reference to his grandson's suggestion that he was really a son of Robert Austen who died in1759, that he refers to the latter as his late and much honoured uncle. This seems to confirm the view that the story of Robert and Joan Austen's secret marriage mentioned on pages 25 to 27, had no foundation of fact, and that it should now be regarded a myth. There is a tablet with a Latin inscription to the memory of Robert Austen in Shalford Church, also a hatchment displaying the arms of Austen, with an inescutcheon blazoning those of Gregory.
The Austens have all been paper hoarders, and in going through the family archives I found all the Shalford household bills for 1790 onwards. They give interesting information in regard to the price of provisions, materials and labour at the end of the 18th century. They also throw a sidelight on the conditions of life at that time - the poverty of the labouring classes and their low standard of living, mainly owing to the high cost of fuel and food during the wars of the 18th century. There are references to payments of taxes, tolls and carriage of goods from London by river and canal, to the cost of building and repairs, to journeys to London on horseback and charges at Inns en route, for master, groom, and horses. The household and bailiff's accounts have been preserved, the former in Robert Austen's own neat and precise handwriting. Most of these papers have been deposited in the Muniment of the Guildford Museum, where they available for examination by students of political economy. They constitute an interesting record of the household expenses of a country gentleman of moderate income in the days of the French Revolution. Napoleon was then striving, like his modern imitator Hitler, to enslave Europe; while Great Britain, then as now, was battling, generally single-handed and at incredible cost to preserve its liberties.