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Forthcoming Membership Events

SPRING GATHERING 2012

Our Spring Gathering will be on 12/13th May and will be based at Bakewell, a beautiful old market town in Derbyshire. We will meet for a private buffet lunch at Old Hassop Station and will then be provided with various options for the afternoon including the award winning Museum, the riverside walks along the Wye, the Monsal cycle trail over the famous Monsal Head Viaduct, or nearby Haddon Hall, probably the finest example of a fortified medieval manor house in existence, dating from the 12th Century. In the evening we will relax with Dinner at the Bluebell Inn, Tissington.

On the Sunday we will visit St. Edmunds church at Fenny Bentley,enjoy a picnic lunch at the Beresford Estate and visit the Tower and Fishing Lodge. We will arrange our own local accommodation, as usual. For details and bookings see the January Magazine.

Past Events for Members

SOCIETY VISITS & TOURS: One of the advantages and most popular aspects of membership of the Society are the many family visits which have been arranged to places of interest, often with Beresford connections. In recent years our programme has included Warwick Castle; Tissington Hall (Derbyshire); Blenheim Palace (Oxfordshire); Sulgrave Manor (the home of George Washington's ancestors); the London Eye; Curragmore (home of the Marquis of Waterford); All Saints Church at Hoby; the tomb of Godfrey Beresford (1513) at Crich; Gala Dinner and tour of the Palace of Westminster; the City of Chester; Nether Winchendon House; St Paul's Cathedral; the Heritage Motor Centre in Warwickshire; Waterford Crystal tour; Thames river cruise; Chatsworth House; Greenwich World Heritage site; Fenny Bentley (tomb of Thomas and Agnes); historic Stotfold Mill, Herts; Sudbury Hall (Derbyshire); The Black Country Living Museum, Dudley; Middleton Hall, Staffordshire; Kedleston Hall, Derby; Bedgebury Park, Kilndown, Kent.

AUTUMN GATHERING 15-16 OCTOBER 2011

We enjoyed a warm sunny weekend and a very good attendance at this Autumn Gathering, with members joining us from Australia, Canada, Ireland and USA. It was based on Bedgebury Park in Kent, the imposing five-story mansion and estate set in the beautiful Kent countryside, which was the home of Field Marshal Viscount William Carr Beresford GCB. The weekend began on the Friday evening with an excellent introduction to the history of the house by John Walker, historian and archivist.

On the Saturday we had a tour of the ground floor of this extensive building, followed by lunch and a well attended Annual General Meeting. After returning to the Mercure hotel, Tunbridge Wells, we went by coach back to Bedgebury for our Annual Dinner where Marcus, Lord Decies, gave a fascinating account of the rise of the Marshal’s military career. On the Sunday we attended a family Service at Kilndown Church, built by Marshal Beresford, and visited his memorial tomb and that of his wife Louisa. A very successful and enjoyable weekend.

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Bedgebury Park, Kent The impressive home of Field Marshal Viscount Beresford at Bedgebury, Kent, where we held our AGM and Annual Dinner, and later visited Kilndown Church.

Kedleston Hall, nr. Derby A spectacular Neo-classical mansion framed by extensive historic parkland. The remarkable interior was designed by the famous architect John Adam as his first commission.

Sudbury Hall , Derbyshire This 17th Century Hall has an imposing staircase and a highly decorated Long Gallery. It is also the home of the National Trust’s Museum of Childhood.

Black County Living Museum We spent the whole day visiting this extensive live museum covering 26 acres. It recreates the world of the Black Country, its housing and village streets, its pubs, chapels, shops, canals, coal mines and the first developed steam engine to provide industrial power……. and much more.

Middleton Hall This site covers 750 years of history, with outstanding conservation work having taken place on the Tudor buildings and the Georgian mansion with its elegant double staircase. A fine venue for our AGM.

St. Edmunds, Fenney Bentley, Derbyshire ... containing the Beresford chapel, the shrouded tomb of Thomas (d.1473) and Agnes Beresford, who had 21 children. The church contains family stained glass and memorial panels depicting their descendants and coats of arms.

Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire A World Heritage Site visited by the Society It was a gift by a grateful nation to John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough after his victory at the Battle of Blenheim. Set in 2100 acres of beautiful parkland, it is the home of the 11th Duke of Marlborough and was the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. Lord William Beresford married the widow of the 8th Duke of Marlborough.

Tissington Hall, Derbyshire (near Fenny Bentley) The Jacobean house of the FitzHerbert family, which the Society has visited twice. Two of the children of Humphrey Beresford, the 6th son of Thomas and Agnes, married FitzHerberts

Sulgrave Manor, Oxfordshire An interesting visit was made to the ancestral home of the Washingtons in Britain. John Washington c 1635/6 sailed from here to Virginia in 1656. His son, Lawrence, had a son Augustine who married Mary Ball on 6 March 1730. Their first-born son was George Washington 22 Feb 1732.

The Palace of Westminster, London The Society enjoyed a tour of the Houses of Parliament and held a Gala Dinner on two occasions. Over the years a number of Beresfords have been elected as Members of Parliament, right up to today.

Chatsworth House, Derbyshire Visited in 2007. Its 1000 acre park was landscaped by 'Capability' Brown. The Duke of Devonshire has Beresford connections through Charles Cotton.

Westminster Abbey, London Built around 1045-1065 by King Edward the Confessor who is buried here. King Harold and later William the Conqueror were crowned in 1066, and the Abbey has seen the coronation of nearly every King and Queen of England since then. We included a tour during the London section of our last International Gathering.

Curraghmore House, Portlaw, Waterford, Ireland The magnificent home of our President, the Marquis of Waterford and his ancestors since 1170. The House, with its 2,500 acres estate and gardens, was visited by the Society during the 3rd International Gathering.

The London Eye, Westminster One of the world’s largest observation wheels, with its magnificent views over London, enjoyed by members during the 3rd Beresford International Gathering.

Crich Church, Derbyshire Dates from around 1135 during the Norman era, We visited the table top tomb of Godfrey Beresford showing his incised effigy in plate armour. Godfrey, who died in 1513, was the son of Aden Beresford, the eldest of the sixteen sons of Thomas and Agnes at Fenny Bentley.

Greenwich, London The Old Royal Navy College, with the Queens House in the centre, the Royal Greenwich Observatory (the Greenwich Meridian) on the distant hill and the National Maritime Museum all form the impressive World Heritage Site, which we visited during our 3rd International Gathering.

All Saints Church, Hoby, Leicestershire One of our AGM weekends was held at Melton Mowbray Leicestershire. During the weekend had a tour of the village of Hoby and its church, which has many Beresford connections, illustrated in the decorative panels and stained glass. There were Beresford rectors here continuously for 250 years.

St Pauls Cathederal, London Designed by Sir Christopher Wren and built between 1675 and 1710 on the site of the original cathedral, which was built in 604 AD and destroyed in the Great Fire of London 1666.. We also visited the crypt to see the memorial to Admiral Lord Charles Beresford, close to Nelson’s tomb.

Warwick Castle, Warwickshire The finest mediaeval castle in England, Commenced by Henry de Newburgh, Earl of Warwick, in 1086 after the Norman Conquest. It was visited by the Society during one of our Autumn Gatherings.

River Thames Cruise, London Returning from Greenwich to Westminster by boat on the River Thames and passing the Tower of London during the 2007 International Gathering.

Nether Winchendon House, Buckinghamshire A Medieval and Tudor manor house, with a 12th Century Great Hall. We held our AGM in its high vaulted barn before being taken on a conducted tour of this historic house, once owned by Jane Beresford.

Ashwell & Stotford Mill, Hertfordshire Our tour of the picturesque village of Ashwell, its Museum and the14th Century church of St Mary’s was followed by an AGM held in the award-winning Stotfold Mill in an idyllic setting on the river Ivel.

Shugborough Hall, Staffordshire The historic home of the Earls of Lichfield. The Estate includes the only remaining example of a complete historic estate with its working farm and powerful waterwheel driving the heavy millsones.

The City of Chester A weekend was spent in the historic city of Chester, including walking round the original Roman Walls, and exploring its medieval streets, the River Dee and its magnificent cathedral.