If you’ve ever read Charlotte Brontë’s novel Jane
Eyre (or seen the film) you’ll know about Mrs Rochester who was the mad
woman in the attic. In the book she was the violently insane first wife of
Edward Rochester. She was moved to Thornfield Hall
and was locked in a room on the third floor.
Here I am at Norton Conyers House which Charlotte
visited in 1839 (at the time she was governess for another family.) She
probably got the idea for Mrs Rochester having heard about the mad woman
confined in the large attic in the previous century. The mad woman became Mrs
Rochester and Norton Conyers House became 'Thornfield
Hall'. Wood panelling on the first
floor conceals a hidden door which leads up to the attic space above. In 2004 a
blocked staircase connecting the first floor to the attics was found and this
is probably what Charlotte saw on her visit.
On the way home from Scarborough I ensured I took
the scenic (and much longer) route through Wensleydale
in North Yorkshire. I drove into the walled grounds, parked up and, having not
eaten for hours, fried myself a veggie burger (with a fried egg on top of it)
before doing anything. A few other cars started turning up and a beige-coloured
beige-wearing couple said there was a guided tour starting in ten minutes. I
didn’t join them but took a stroll around the gardens.
The house is a grade II listed medieval manor
boasting an impressive frontage and a bloody past. It belonged to Richard
Norton who was executed with his sons for rebellion in 1569. Since 1624 and the
Graham family have owned it. Charles 1st stayed in 1633 and James II and his
wife stayed in 1679 - you can see the bed where they snogged (and probably
logged.)
I had a stroll round the walled garden and got a
few odd looks from the coffin-dodgers as I waited for the camera timer. Had
Charlotte’s visit in 1839 soaked into her imagination and manifested itself
within a few years? Jane Eyre was
published eight years after her visit here so it’s pretty likely.
Had Charlotte walkered
through this door?
The stairs and attic room where the
woman was thought to be confined…
Strolling around the walled garden…