Chillesford Lodge, Sudbourne, Suffolk.
Visiting Chillesford Lodge and some history that enfolded by Karen Davison-White
It never ceases to amaze me, I visit a place, meet some interesting people and then get inspired for another story. On one of my little jollities out in the Suffolk countryside and a visit to see the Easton Harriers at the home of George Watson on the Chillesford estate (7th October 2017), prompted me to share this little snippet with you.
George who is a retired Naval Officer and was fortunate to serve on HMY Britannia. Was Royal Barge Officer for the late HMY Britannia’s Royal Barge brought out of retirement for the Diamond Jubilee pageant that went down the Thames on Sunday 3rd June, 2012. He served for two years on Britannia before his duties which were in attendance to Her Majesty at all the social engagements including cruising round the Western Isles.
The neighbouring estate of Sir Edward Greenwell, Sudbourne Park – I learnt, that George’s Great Grandfather, Joseph Watson (Lord Manton) an English industrialist used to own Sudbourne Park from 1918 to 1922.
This indeed sounds such a short period of time, but tragically Joseph Watson died at the very young age of forty nine years from a hunting accident with the Warwickshire Foxhounds and merely two months into his peerage.
At this time he had retired from the soap manufacturing business in Leeds he had pioneered (Joseph Watson and Sons) and purchased four estates totalling some 20,000 acres. One at Selby in Yorkshire, Kennett in Wiltshire, Sudbourne in Suffolk and Offchurch in Warwickshire until his death in March 1922. Spurred on by wartime food shortages he funded the Agricultural Research Department at Leamington Spa. The Olympia Agricultural Co. Ltd and turned his attention to the pioneering of industrialised agriculture.
During the First World War, Joseph Watson’s expertise was called on by the government for his industrial and organisational qualities to assist in the establishment and operation of national munitions factories. Artillery shells were in short supply, Watson at his own expense set aside one of his factories for the filling shells with explosives. Beginning with twenty to thirty of his production staff. By the time the armistice was signed, he was in charge of several thousand workers at the No. 1 National Shell Filling Factory . He was raised to the peerage for his war services as Baron Manton of Compton Venery in the County of Warwick.
He had purchased the neo-classical mansion Compton Verney estate in 1921 from Lord Willoughby de Broke, intending to make his seat there which was not realised due to his sudden death.
My ears pricked – reflecting on a book I have called “The Masters of Manton” by Paul Mathieu. Which catalogues the four racehorse training legends of that great racing stable Manton in Marlborough.
Joseph Watson was a lover of the English Turf. He purchased Manton in 1918 for £130,000. and was thought to be the perfect owner which would be hard pressed to improve on. He set about racehorse ownership and stable management with the same single mindedness he gave to his former businesses. Transforming the lads dormitories. He built a hostel and he brought in electricity.
At the race horse sales his Champion trainer Alec Taylor was bidding to levels no one had ever seen before, his first season was immensely successful, and his second exceeded the first. In his short ownership of this racing empire he won several of the Classics, the Grand Prix de Paris and won the Oaks with a horse called Love in Idleness ridden by Joe Childs.
His loss of life would be felt far beyond racing, a loss to his family and friends and considering what he had achieved in his relatively short life – a great loss to the Country.