LOCAL author, Mick Davis, has written a book about local aristocrat, Sir Thomas Swymmer Mostyn-Champneys, who lived from 1769-1839 at his mansion in the spacious park of Orchardleigh.
“The last in a long line of minor aristocrats, Sir Thomas Swymmer Mostyn-Champneys dated his family history back to the Norman invasion of 1066 and his family had occupied Orchardleigh since at least late mediaeval times,” explains Mick. “Despite the noble pedigree, a series of bad judgements and misfortunes by his predecessors meant that he was the inheritor of three generations of debt.
“Seemingly oblivious to this he spent freely on parties, balls and building projects but mainly on litigation. In 1806 he became involved and a serious legal dispute over the right to appoint the sexton at St John’s church. He won the case but not content with that he wrote a long and libellous poem lampooning the opposition which resulted in the publisher going to jail. The poem contained a footnote regarding a document that he had seen allegedly written by William Shakespeare which contained a reference to the bard having spent a night in Frome during 1583. The full story of this is told in a new book by local historian and author Mick Davis.
“His debts got him into serious trouble and at one point he was kidnapped at knifepoint by some of his debtors at the Black Dog Inn at Standerwick. He narrowly avoided the debtor’s prison on that occasion but was not so lucky in future, spending years imprisoned by order of the Kings Bench in London.
“His magnificent house at Orchardleigh was raided repeatedly by bailiffs and possessions which had been in the family for generations were carted off to auction. Although upset by this loss of history it didn’t stop him spending and as the furniture went out the front door it’s replacement came in the back door – all purchased on credit. Things got so bad that he was reduced to buying goods on credit and selling them off very cheaply to gain some ready cash with which to pay off previous debts.
“When not in court he was spending lavishly on entertaining and became close to the Prince of Wales, the future George IV which involved him in huge expense – he even built an impressive gothic gatehouse, Gloucester Lodge, which fronted onto Lullington Lane in honour of a visit from Prince William the Duke of Gloucester in 1808.
“Perhaps his darkest hour came in 1820 when solicitor George Messiter started spreading rumours that he had attempted to have homosexual relations with some of his tenants, a very grave offence at the time. He took to Messiter to court for slander and won but received very little in compensation. Despised by Frome’s middle-class he seems to have been greatly respected by the working population of the town, possibly due to his fairness in his long-standing role as a magistrate.
“After the Great Reform Act of 1832 Sir Thomas stood as the Tory candidate for Frome on a platform more radical than his Whig opponent. The campaign was bitterly fought and voting took place amid three days of rioting during which the local militia fired into the crowd. Despite the reforms very few people were allowed to vote and he lost by 100 votes to 163.
“He was never able pay the vast amount he owed and seem to find his debts a very trivial matter despite the huge effect they had on his life. By the time he died in 1839 he had become a tenant in his own mansion; there are no known portraits of him or family documents so there is nothing left that can be positively identified as having come from Orchardleigh; everything having fallen under the auctioneer’s hammer years before. Even the grand old house was demolished in the 1850s leaving just a small pillar of stones to mark where it had been.”
Champneys amazing life is told in a new biography by Mick Davis, ‘A Surfeit of Magnificence’ published by Hobnob Press and available at the Hunting Raven bookshop in Cheap Street.
