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     Photo Submitted by, and Copyright of :- Richard Cutts of Bolton.

Rockingham Mausoleum must surely be the 'Jewel in the Crown' of all the Wentworth follies. The idea of a 90 foot tall structure which is a mix of three different styles of architecture, sounds on the face of it, a recipe for a visual disaster. Fortunately the architect John Carr, who was also a one time Lord Mayor of nearby York, placed four full sized obelisks at each corner, and this to my mind is what makes the arrangement work.
Even were you not to know that it is called a Mausoleum, you would no doubt agree that it has a slightly eerie air about it, emphasized no doubt by the imitation sarcophagus in the middle section. In fact the structure is not, nor ever has been, used as a tomb. Although the structure was dedicated to Lord Rockingham, his Lordship is actually laying, hopefully in peace, at York Cathedral some 50 miles away to the NE.
It was erected on the orders of William, 1st Earl Fitzwilliam, who was Rockingham's successor, some three years after his death.

The circular interior with its handsome domed ceiling is dominated by an intricately carved statue of Rockingham by the sculptor Joseph Nollekens, who was the fashionable English portrait sculptor of that time.
Nollekens work was always of an incredibly high standard, and because of this a tale has evolved regarding the Rockingham statue.
It seems that some of the stitching on Rockingham's left boot is missing and it is said that Nollekens was so upset at the oversight that he went and hung himself.
History however tells us that Nollekens in fact lived to the ripe old age of 86, so it seems he was not as upset as the tale suggests. The cost of the statue incidentally was said to be in the order of £3000, which was a substantial amount of money in 1788.

Unfortunately the structure has suffered from mining subsidence and has had to be repaired in recent years, as is evident by the lighter coloured stone.


     View the Nollekens Statue.             

     View the Interior's Busts.               

     Close up Monument's inscriptions.  

Co-Ords: 441350 397030 / SK 413970  

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