Lady Dorina Lockhart Neave

http://www.friendsofdagnampark.org.uk/Neave%20Portraits.htm

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ON November 26th, 1908,1 was married by the Bishop of London at St. Jameses Church, Piccadilly, to my mother's relative. Sir Thomas Neave.

We settled down at his lovely home, Dagnam Park in Essex, where I learnt to love every brick of the dear old Georgian family mansion, with its beautiful Charles II walled gardens, and great cedar and elm trees, and one magnificent monarch among trees with such a spread of its immense branches that it required twenty-six supports to hold them up. It was a "cork ilex' and of its kind, the Kew Gardens' tree expert told us, there were only two others in Great Britain of its date, height and circumference; it was the pride of our lawn. After the birth of two daughters and two sons we spent the shooting season every year at Llysdulas in the Isle of Anglesey, which on her death in 1915 my mother-in-law left to my husband, and there, up to the time of the Second World War, we annually spent the autumn months. Much as we wished to visit Constantinople together we never found an opportunity of doing so, as in April, 1909, when we had intended to go to Turkey, a bloodless revolution took place there.

When Dagnam Park was commandeered for the occupation of our troops during the winter of 1940, I packed up my belongings, as furniture removers stored our pictures, furniture, and china in one part of the house.

Many of the treasures had not been moved for 200 years and now lay huddled on the floors.

That night the Luftwaffe had switched off its bombing attacks on aerodromes and industrial targets, and made London its objective. |

Bombers in successive waves flew up the Thames and as they | passed over our house they scattered an avalanche of incendiary bombs and fourteen delayed-action bombs.

It was amazing that none fell on the house or on any of the outdoor buildings, as by 2 a.m. Noak Hill village and the whole countryside was brilliantly illuminated by a blaze of flames. It was a most spectacular scene.

The noble facade of the Mansion was flood-lit by the incendiary bombs' flames, and the leaves and branches of the great elm tree gleamed from the light of the leaping flames; the skies glowed, crimsoned by the burning docks, factories and churches in London. One hundred and three German planes were shot down by our valiant pilots that night.

After such a night of violence, it was a surprise when I looked out of my boudoir window next morning not to see a visible sign of the terrifying vicissitudes we had experienced. Peacefully the reflection of the Mansion was to be seen in the placid waters of the lake, and beyond the scattered leaves from the grand old Cork ilex tree on the lawn, (One of the three largest trees in England. Age unknown) all that remained of the worst raid we had so far been through were the black, scorched patches made by the incendiary bombs.

It dated back to Charles II's time, and through the wrought-iron gates could be seen a vision of pink roses, growing in profusion. At sunset, as the sun sank behind the trees, it seemed to me a sign of farewell as it faded out of sight; while the frogs croaked good-bye', and the bats at dusk swept down as if to give a parting salute

It was with a sad feeling of finality that I bade farewell to my dearly-loved home and garden, though I little knew that after the War, when I hoped to return to live at Dagnam Park with my sons, I was to have, instead, the shock of hearing on the evening wireless News: "Dagnam Park is to be taken by the Town and Country Planning Scheme as a Monster Satellite Town." That was the first intimation any of us received from the Socialist Government that we were to be robbed for all time of the home the Neave family had owned for 200 years, and which before them had belonged to the Duke of Northumberland.

Three Mansions have been built on the Estate, and the last one was built by Richard Neave, who was the Director of the Bank of England at the time of the Gordon Riots, and who was given a baronetcy for having stayed alone with a friend to lock up the bank after it had been deserted by all the employees.

Dorina Neave in her book 'The Romance of the Bosphorus'

George worked for the Supreme Consular Court in Turkey. (Wikipedia)