Stained glass window containing the arms of William Perry-Herrick, Nephew of William Herrick (VI).
Herrick quartering Perry, for William Perry-Herrick, esquire; to whom the quartering of Perry was granted by the College of Arms in 1853, pursuant to the will of his uncle Thomas Perry, esquire, of Eardisley Park, Herefordshire.
"William Herrick (VII) (1794 - 1876), Nephew of William Herrick (VI), he inherited the second Beaumanor house in 1832. He was born in 1794 and lived near Wolverhampton till he was 38. He only inherited the Beaumanor estates because his uncle, William Herrick (VI), had two daughters but no sons. The law in pre- Victorian times was such that women, upon marrying, lost all of their money and property to their husbands. (The “Married Women’s Property Act” was passed in 1882.)
He moved to Beaumanor in 1832, but obviously didn't like the house because he immediately started planning to build a new house on the same site. The old house was demolished and the new house started in 1842. He eventually moved into the new house in 1848, along with his sister Mary Ann. At the time, they were both unmarried, and lived a very quiet life with a small staff of servants.
He was very proud of his house and his family history and celebrated it in various ways. At the head of the main staircase, he built a magnificent stained glass window showing his family tree. The wood and stone carvings all over the house also show heraldic details from the window.
He bought "King Dick's Bed" and built a whole bedroom, with antechamber, for it. According to legend, this bed was slept in by King Richard III, in the Blue Boar Inn in Leicester, on the night before he died at the Battle of Bosworth.
After a while (1852), his uncle Thomas Perry died. He was a coal mine owner in Wales and very rich. William inherited his fortune but he had to change his name to Perry-Herrick to comply with the will.
In 1862, William, now Perry-Herrick, married Sophia Christie. This was presumably for reasons of succession because he was 68 years old and 37 years older than Sophia. It didn't work, however, for they remained childless.
He eventually died in February 1876 after falling off his horse while out hunting. According to a letter written by his land agent, Henry Humphreys, he managed to return to Beaumanor, where he went into his study (the present day bar). His wife Sophia went to help him sit down but he died almost immediately, in her arms.
William's Sisters -
When William moved to Beaumanor, in 1832, he brought his two sisters and his mother as well. One sister, Lucy died almost immediately and his mother died in 1836, but his other sister, Mary-Ann, lived there for 39 years, eventually dying on Christmas day, 1871. She also did lots of good works, including paying for an 'Old Servant's Home', opposite St. Mary's Church in Woodhouse.
William's Wife -
Sophia Christie came from Chelsea in London. She was born the same year (1832) that the Herrick family moved to Beaumanor and when they were married in 1862, their combined ages totalled 98. They had no children and she lived on for nearly 40 years after his death, apparently, well liked by all the servants and local villagers. She was strictly teetotal and would not allow any public houses any where under her control. She eventually died in 1915 and the estate passed out of Herrick hands."
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