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Kedleston Hall is an oasis of quiet in a glorious park, with groves and plantations and a stream of many waterfalls all making a lovely setting for the Hall.
On the road from Quarndon and Derby visitors will have a splendid view of the great house, with its fine background of trees and the beautiful Adam bridge with its cascades. When the house was built the whole of the village, except for the church, was moved some distance away to allow the land to be brought into the park. The turnpike road was given a bend,a nd the Cutler Brook fould itself filling a lake among the trees.
Undoubtedly, Kedleston Hall is one of the stately homes of Britain. It was built during the years 1761-1770 by James Paine and Robert Adam for the first Lord Scarsdale in the classical style, after the fashion of the time, with massive Greek columns and fine statuary, together with beautiful rooms abounding with ‘treasure’. Its north front, designed by Paine, is 360 feet long, a central block and two wings connected by corridors. A double flight of stairs leads to a rather austere portico with six Corinthian pillars 30 feet high, supporting a pediment with large sculptured figures on the top. The south front, by Robert Adam, is much more elegant; it has graceful curved staircases and the heavy pediment is here replaced by lively classical figures.
The great Marble Hall has a vaulted ceiling supported by 20 huge Corinthian columns and pilasters, each 25 feet high, made of alabaster from the Curzon estates. The floor is of Hopton Wood stone from Derbyshire and the graceful ceiling was plastered by Joseph Rose, who worked extensively with Robert Adam. The whole of the interior, in fact, was designed by Adam and the state rooms are a wonderful example of the style of decoration associated with this Scottish architect.
Perhaps the handsomest room is the round Saloon or Rotunda, 62 feet high to the top of the dome. In the rooms are the many vases of ‘blue john’ from Castleton. Yet Boswell tells us that Dr Johnson described the house as being more suitable for a town hall, and that he was more than delighted in finding his ‘Dictionary’ here than in all its treasures.
The story of Kedleston is that of the Curzons, an illustrious family whose home it has been for nine centuries, of father and son without a break until the 19th century, when a nephew came into this noble heritage. The first of them was Richard de Curzon, whose father came over with the Conqueror, two of his grandsons divided their estates, Richard settling at Croxall, Thomas at Kedleston.
The most distinguished of the Curzon ‘clan’ has to be George Nathaniel Curzon, know to all in the gereration of the Great War. Born at Kedleston, he became Viceroy of India and Foreign Secretary, and was leader of the House of Lords until he died as Marquess Curzon of Kedleston in 1925.
In the grounds can be seen the Boathouse and graceful bridge, both designed by Adam,and the 13th and 14th century Church of All Saints which contains a remarkable collection of Curzon monuments.
Kedleston Park is unique in being created largely to Robert Adam’s own designs at the same time as the Hall itself was built.
At one time the public road to Derby once passed within 150 yards of the previous house, but when Adam was commissioned the road was diverted to the outer edge of the park and Kedleston village was demolished and rebuilt to the west. At the same time Robert Adam and the 1st Lord Scarsdale began to lay out the park, many features of which can still be seen to this day. Trees were planted whilst others were felled, lakes were formed from ornamental canals, walks were laid out around the park and eye-catching features such as the Fishing Pavilion and Sulphure Bath-House were built. So although the classical landscape of Kedleston Park with its sweeping views across open grassland and stretches of water may appear completely natural, it is, in fact, entirely man-made.
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