Sir William Sharington 1495 - 1553 |
Sir William Sharington; If you saw 'Wolf Hall', the book was written by Hilary Mantel, but the television adaption with Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell, you will have fallen under the spell of the dark Shakespearean time of Henry Vlll. Velvet robes, intrigues, ghastly deaths and the slow corruption that befalls all high office.
Lacock Abbey with its rather attractive Oriel window |
The old cloisters |
Lacock though had a different fate, it was redeveloped from an Abbey into a house by Sharington, with the living quarters above the great cloisters the monks used to walk around, but through all this, it kept its great beauty and stateliness.
But like many courtiers of the time intrigue and devilry were also part of his game. put in charge of the Bristol Mint, he did not exactly 'clip or shave the coin' but coins were considerably lighter than they should be. He also minted more than was declared which went into his own pocket, to help with the building of his home, He was forgiven. But when a plot against the king (young boy king Edward Vl) by Lord Thomas Seymour, then he found himself in trouble. The execution of Seymour helped him in his plea for mercy and he carried on working for the government.
His role in the plot centred on his ability to make money, Seymour wanted £10,000 to keep a standing army for a month, which Sharington promised him that he could find the money.
He had a varied life, he was also Sheriff of Wiltshire, had three wives but no children but his treatment of the abbey left us with a legacy of great beauty. He stilled his hand and allowed the natural balance of the stone and long length of the house to settle into the countryside around.
More Harry Potter!
ReplyDeleteThe house? I like it, though it has never featured in a film like the village.
DeleteOh yes it has!
DeleteWell the cloisters was the only place mentioned, Harry Potter freed Dobby the elf and also a brief glimpse in 'Pride and Prejudice'
ReplyDeleteYes, I was thinking of the cloisters - also the old kitchen, which was the set for the magic mirror scene.
ReplyDelete