Fonthill Splendens

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Site of the grand Palladian mansion built by William Beckford's father. William senior had amassed a huge fortune as a London merchant and having achieved the position of Lord Mayor of London set about acquiring a country estate in the approved manner of the period. In 1744 he purchased this land and following a fire in 1755 which destroyed the Elizabethan house he set about building one of the grendest classical houses of the age, which he named Fonthill Splendens.

His heir succeeded to the family fortune at the age of 10 and spent a great deal of time abroad and purchased vast numbers of artworks and objects to add to the considerable collection put together by his late parent.

In his typically grandiose fashion William swept away the comparatively new and expensive house built by his parents and created the remarkable and unique gothic pile which was once located further up the hill.
How Beckford spent his wealth is well documented but what is less well known, perhaps, is the story behind the source of the family's fortune. In fact the wealth, that made the Beckford family a force to be reckoned with in 18th century politics and enabled the great Beckford collection to be formed, actually came from numerous sugar plantations in Jamaica and the hard labour of the African slaves who worked them.
By the early 1800,s income from the sugar plantations is not only on the decline because of poor management but as a result of the 1807 abolition of the transatlantic slave trade. This, coupled with Beckford's lack of interest in the plantations means that by 1822 he is seriously in debt. Selling up in Wiltshire he moves to Bath where he builds a neo-classical tower to house his collection.
www.bbc.co.uk/wiltshire/content/articles/2007/03/06/abo...