Countess Pillar

The Countess Pillar is a 17th-century monument near Brougham, Cumbria, England, between Penrith and Appleby. It is two miles east of Penrith on the A66. The square top of the pillar is brightly painted and carries sundials on its sides. It was erected by Lady Anne Clifford in 1656 to mark the place where she said goodbye for the last time to her mother, Margaret Clifford, Countess of Cumberland.[2][3]

Countess Pillar
Countess Pillar, Brougham
Coordinates54°39′13″N 2°42′18″W
LocationBrougham
TypeColumn[1]
MaterialStone
Completion date1656
Dedicated toMargaret Clifford, Countess of Cumberland

Anne Clifford, countess of Pembroke, Dorset and Montgomery (1590–1676), spent much of her life in a long and complex legal battle to obtain the rights of her inheritance. Her mother was one of the few people who supported Anne's claim to the family estates. In 1616 Anne travelled north to see "her" estates and visit her mother at Brougham Castle. On her departure from the castle, Anne travelled with her mother a quarter of a mile to where the castle drive meets the main road, where they had "a grievous and heavy parting". Margaret died a month later.[4]

The inscription on the pillar describes Anne as "Sole Heire" of her father, George Earl of Cumberland. It also refers to a bequest in memory of Margaret which was made to the poor of the parish of Brougham.[5] This is commemorated annually on 2 April.[6][7]

In literature

Felicia Hemans's poem "The Memorial Pillar", on the circumstances surrounding the erection of this monument, forms a part of her Records of Woman.[8]

See also

References
  1. "Countess Pillar". Pastscape. Retrieved 16 August 2014.
  2. "History of Countess Pillar, Brougham". English Heritage. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  3. Wilson, Jean (July 1998). "The Countess' Pillar, Westmoreland [sic]". History Today. 48.
  4. "Lady Anne Clifford's story". English Heritage. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  5. "Countess Pillar". Visit Cumbria. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  6. "Benefice Profile: Clifton & Brougham and Lowther & Askham in the Diocese of Carlisle". Archived from the original on 19 August 2014. Retrieved 16 August 2014.
  7. "Annual dole ceremony". Cumberland and Westmorland Herald. 4 April 2014. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  8. Hemans, Felicia (1827). "The Memorial Pillar" . The New Monthly Magazine. Vol. 19. pp. 522–23 – via Wikisource.
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