A Trip to Edensor

Norman Villa in Edensor

After a flurry of activity that coincided with the Heritage Open Days event, which saw me visit Wath-upon-Dearne, Braithwell and Dore, I looked forward to the next outing of the Sheffield U3A Geology Group to Chrome Hill - a fault bound Carboniferous limestone apron reef that, together with the neighbouring Parkhouse Hill, forms one of the most spectacular landforms in the Peak District National Park. 

The geology around Chrome Hill and Parkhouse Hill

Having last visited more than 20 years ago, whilst surveying the RIGS (Regionally Important Geological Sites) in the Peak District National Park to determine their tourism potential, I wanted to have a good look at the geology here; however, due to the arrival of Storm Ali, with predicted wind speeds of up to 125 kmph, the event was cancelled – much to my great disappointment. 

A view of Edensor on Google Earth

Waking up early in Treeton to a bright sunny day, with only moderate wind, I decided to catch the 218 bus from Sheffield and have a day out in the Peak District anyway – to take a good look at the village of Edensor and then walk around Chatsworth Park. 

A general view along Edensor Lane

The original village of Edensor, mentioned in the Domesday Book, was demolished by the 6th Duke of Devonshire in the 19th century because, having spent a considerable sum of money on Chatsworth House and its grounds, it spoiled his view of the estate. 

Various architectural styles in Edensor

Joseph Paxton, who remodelled and landscaped the gardens at Chatsworth, was responsible for overseeing the project and the new site was developed in 1838 – 1842, with John Robertson - a draughtsman employed by J.C. Loudon and responsible for several designs in Loudon’s Encyclopedia of Cottage, Farm and Villa Architecture - being employed in 1840 as his assistant. 

A pair of cottages on Edensor Lane

Legend has it that, when presented with a set of designs by Robertson, the Duke was too busy with other things to properly address the matter in hand and, not being able to make up his mind on his preferred design, he chose one of each. 

Houses on Edensor Lane

Although some of the original buildings were retained, the result was the building of 33 new houses, all of which are completely different in design and include Norman, Italianate, Swiss, Tudor and Jacobean architectural styles. 

A detail of Norman Villa

All of the houses, like Chatsworth House itself, are built using coarse grained sandstone from the Ashover Grit, supplied from quarries within the estate. Although the precise source of the stone is not known to me, this geological formation has been widely exploited in the area for high quality building stone and at the back of one of the houses in Edensor – Rock Villa – an exposure of rock that is presumed to be an old quarry face can still be seen. 

Rock Villa

The new village was completed in 1842 with the building of Castle Lodge and, about 30 years later, the mediaeval church at the centre of the village – which was retained by John Robertson - was replaced by a much larger one built by Sir George Gilbert Scott and whose spire was considered by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner to "spoil the scale of the village".

Castle Lodge