Mrs Theresa Parker
(Artist unknown)
This story starts at the end in that it was the obituary written by Sir Joshua Reynolds that started me thinking was she really the paragon of virtue that emerges from his eloquent words? Could anyone be that perfect, so caring of everyone so immaculate in her taste? Having asked these questions I looked at the copious amounts of correspondence written by the Robinson family to see if there were any flaws or imperfections in her character which would disprove his obvious admiration for his friend's wife.
Before her marriage to John Parker II she was known as the Honourable Theresa Robinson, the youngest daughter of Thomas Robinson, 1st Baron Grantham. 
Thomas Robinson
1st Baron Grantham
She therefore had to relinquish her title which, in the society she frequented, potentially put her at a disadvantage. Very little is known about her early life, the family home of the Robinsons was Newby Park (now known as Baldersby Park) near Ripon in Yorkshire. The house reflects the Robinson family's early wealth and tastes since it was designed in 1718 by the renowned architect Colen Campbell and is almost a carbon copy of his other famous house, Stourhead in Wiltshire. It is considered to be the 1st Palladian villa in the country.
Theresa's father was MP for Thirsk from 1727 to 1734, he gradually worked his way up and after several years as Secretary to the British Embassy in Paris he was sent to Vienna as initially British Envoy in 1730, and remained there as British Ambassador until 1748. During this time he returned home to marry Frances Worsley of Hovingham in 1737 and their four surviving children were born and spent their early years at the Viennese court. Theresa was their third child born in 1744 she was four years old when her father was summoned back to Britain. However, her name bears testament to the fact that Empress Maria Theresa agreed to stand as her Godmother, which suggests the family were favourably thought of and honoured in this way.
Empress Maria Theresa of Austria 1759
Martin van Meytens
Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna
Hon Thomas Robinson, 1781
Gilbert Stuart
Library, Saltram House
Hon Frederick (Fritz) Robinson 1785
Gilbert Stuart
Library, Saltram House
This then was Theresa's background, her family was held in high regard in society and she was exposed to the sophistication and culture of the aristocracy. Her style and tastes were heavily influenced by her brother Thomas, who like many sophisticated gentleman of the time considered himself to be a proficient amateur architect; he was also a member of the Dilettanti Society and the Royal Academy of Arts. Theresa herself was a competent artist and examples of her work survive, she also liked to design objects with the help and advice of her brothers. In the early 1770's there is a whole series of letters regarding her design for a wine cooler made from three silver trophies won by her husband's racehorse Skim.
"I shall soon submit for your judgement a design for a large piece of plate to be made out of the three Cornish bowls won by Skim, which I have at present in my head, but have not had time to put upon paper...….."
Theresa Parker to Thomas Parker, 20th October 1772
(BL/48218/121/122)
The wine cooler remained in the family for many decades and the book from which she took the illustration for the engraving remains in the library today. Her interest in art and patronage of the Swiss artist Angelica Kauffman is demonstrated by the number of paintings bought especially for Saltram House from this artist which can still be seen in situ today. Sir Joshua Reynolds confirms she had a natural eye for colour and style and he had an open admiration for her and she had a fondness for him, she declared that she would cure him of his deafness a determination that was doomed to failure.
Sir Joshua Reynolds
Angelica Kauffman
Saltram House
It is not clear how John Parker II and Theresa met, they did of course have mutual friends such as Lord Shelburne who is also thought to have been instrumental in introducing John to his first wife, Frances Hort. John had been a widower for five years following the untimely death of Frances, during the first year of their marriage. John and Theresa were married by special licence in Twickenham on the 18th May 1769. He was in fact 10 years her senior and on the face of it they did not seem to have too much in common. John Parker was MP for the whole of Devon and owned Saltram a large country estate just outside Plymouth. He loved nothing more than being out in all weathers hunting and riding, and caring nothing for the mud and rain.
John Parker II
Sir Joshua Reynolds
Saltram House
He was also a much respected breeder of fine pedigree race horses and his stud was in demand by other owners in this burgeoning sport. His Devon friends were fellow country squires fond of country pursuits like John which included cock fighting and shooting, their conversation was limited to their sporting achievements and the management of their country estates. All these occupations led naturally to wagering on all manner of outcomes, breeding race horses was also a very expensive hobby and coupled with laying bets whenever they were taken to the racecourse meant heavy losses and small gains for John. Finally the Government demanded that local aristocracy should contribute to the security of the country, therefore John was also a Colonel in the North Devon Militia and as such he was required to set up camp, drill and inspect his men during the summer months. Given the often wet Devon weather this could be a very cold, muddy time with several days having to be spent under canvas in exposed moorland locations.
Set against her husband's background Theresa seems to be a square peg in a round hole, there is no doubt that she was an urban lady of fashion, used to solid pavements beneath her feet. Nor is there any doubt that she was in love with shopping, this was the age of early consumerism, for those with disposable incomes the 'shops' and warehouses were crammed with luxury goods. Great manufacturers were vying for business amongst the fashion conscious aristocracy; those whose businesses were based outside of London were opening up showrooms in the capital to make it easier to display their wares to the wealthy. Her letters tell us that she was entirely up to date with the latest designs from Wedgwood and she remained a great fan of his early work including the black basalt ware which was highly fashionable.
Wedgwood Black Basalt Vases
Library Saltram House
Wedgwood Black Basalt Ware
Red Room, Saltram House
This ware was sold decorated and undecorated and in Saltram today a spectacular undecorated pair of lamps, which are copies of Roman originals, remain for us to enjoy in the Red Room. There are even more decorated pieces currently displayed in the library. These are painted with Etruscan figures also a fashionable theme in the early 1770's, and along with other pieces of early Wedgwood would be entirely recognisable to Theresa today.
The year before John Parker's marriage to Theresa his father commissioned Robert Adam to design a new library and, best of all, a great entertaining space. Sadly John Parker senior died in 1768 and was destined never to see the rooms finished. However, as a new bride coming to Saltram, a lady with taste, style and lots of enthusiasm, Theresa was the perfect person to take over the scheme and finish the task which she did with a fine eye for colour and details.
Her first task was to embellish the Red Velvet drawing room which she considered rather dull, she set about ordering a gilded papier mache border to run around the room which was complimented by gilding of the ceiling and adding further glitter to the pillars which framed the entrance to the new Great Drawing Room. It was very important to have an entrance which gave a clue to the wonders to be found on the other side of the double doors. Robert Adam therefore designed a pair of spectacular pier glasses and mirrors which, together with the newly decorated pillars, did just that. One can only imagine the thrill they must have felt when the Great Room was finally finished and they ushered their guests through the door, their pleasure at hearing the intake of breath as they had that 'wow' moment which even today visitors to Saltram still experience on seeing the room for the first. time.
Red Velvet Drawing Room,
Saltram House
The Saloon,
Saltram House
Gilded torchere with blue john candelabra
The Saloon, Saltram House
At the time of the early years of her marriage her brother Thomas was in Madrid serving in the British Embassy, and Frederick was soon to join him as his secretary, they were both gentlemen of great taste so it was natural for Theresa to seek their help and advice. Her letters remind them to look out for anything they considered suitable for the new room, and she also ordered silk for the walls from Genoa on their recommendation. They were keen to contribute to the adornment of the new room and Thomas commissioned four ormolu candelabra from Matthew Boulton a master craftsman producing luxury items for the aristocracy in Birmingham. These were destined for the four gilded torcheres which, together produced a stunning partnership for the new room and were probably a wedding present, the timing of the order suggests this.
Six branch blue john candelabra
Matthew Boulton 1769
Saloon, Saltram House
Continuing the tradition of using only the best craftsmen and materials, Adam designed a great suite of furniture to compliment his scheme and commissioned Thomas Chippendale to make the sofas and chairs. The carpet was ordered from Thomas Whitty in Axminster, the colours were vibrant and in keeping with the rest of the scheme, its design echoes the shape of the plasterwork of the ceiling creating a feeling of cohesion and completeness to the whole room. This is an enormous space, a double cube, it was intended to be used as a room where spectacular entertainments could be held, perhaps Theresa used this project to ease her boredom with country life and imagined hosting glittering balls to rival those held in London by her sophisticated acquaintances. To enhance the lighting in the room, four large mirrors were destined for the East wall, whilst Theresa and her brothers sought suitable artwork for the remaining walls, with the help of Sir Joshua Reynolds who insisted that only original works should be displayed here. They already had a painting of Sir Thomas Parker and Theresa was anxious to have a painting to hang pendant to that and she urged Sir Joshua to complete her own portrait, complaining that he was lazy. Unfortunately she was seven months pregnant and it was slightly shocking for a lady to be painted whilst in this condition, however, she was not to be denied and her expanded waistline was discretely covered with drapery and the family all waited impatiently for the portrait to be completed. When it was finally finished they agreed that it was a good likeness, she wrote to her brothers to tell them that Mr Parker says it is very like her usual pose of holding her wrist as if taking her pulse.
Mrs Theresa Parker 1772
Sir Joshua Reynolds
The Saloon, Saltram House
Detail from Mrs Theresa Parker 1772
She purchased some large paintings by Angelica Kauffman, a family friend and one of only two women artists given the honour of joining the newly formed Royal Academy of Art, to fill in some of the remaining spaces, but impatient to complete the scheme two of the mirrors were moved to the Western wall to fill the remaining gaps and finally the room was finished.
In those early years of their marriage this unlikely pair seem to be happy and content, Theresa's brother Frederick on visits to Saltram writes to their brother Thomas:
"I think Therese spoke her real sentiment when she agreed with me in thinking she had never seen anybody in a situation of life that could contribute more to making her happy" (Referring to John Parker)
L30/14/333/48, 18th October, 1869
"I cannot imagine two people more perfectly happy in one another nor with just such reason as Mr P and Therese seem to be"
L30/14/333/61, 11th September, 1770
These enthusiastic early years of their marriage were temporarily overshadowed a little when Theresa suffered a miscarriage within the first few months. It did not seem to trouble her, although her brother Frederick who was staying with them at Saltram, became very anxious when he was discretely told by their sister Anne of the reason for Theresa's non appearance at dinner, She recovered quickly much to everyone's relief but it must have been a disappointment to both her and her husband. Existing correspondence clearly shows that not only was she physically very beautiful for her time, she was also very good at getting her own way, she had the knack of persuading her husband to go with her ideas whilst making him believe it was his own suggestion in the first place. She was also expert in getting her own way with other people particularly when it came to the commissioning of family portraits. She was determined to resurrect her own portrait started by Sir Joshua Reynolds shortly after her marriage, he had not been happy with the result and the painting languished on his studio floor for a number of years. Theresa came up with a new idea for the painting just after the birth of her first child and suggested that he be put into the painting with her, sadly after a disastrous attempt at achieving this new approach John junior was not prepared to pose prettily and the portrait was abandoned once again Not to be beaten Theresa urged Sir Joshua to give it another try when John junior was nearly three years old, this time it worked perfectly and sister Anne remarked that it was a very good likeness of Jack, but Theresa looked 'sick and melancholy'. However, Theresa did not stop at getting John included in her portrait, in the initial painting she was dressed in a yellow gown, which she felt did nothing to flatter her complexion so she managed to persuade Sir Joshua to repaint the dress in the white and blue we see today. She was then dogged and determined, liked to see a project through to the bitter end, was persuasive and presumably had the ability to charm everyone when it came to getting her own way.
Mrs Theresa Parker c 1774
Sir Joshua Reynolds
Red Velvet Drawing Room, Saltram House
There are many surviving letters written from both Theresa and particularly her sister Anne with their brothers, both during their time in Madrid and when they returned home and were living in London.
Honourable Anne Robinson
(Artist Unknown)
Sitting Room, Saltram House
These letters exude warmth and strong family affection; they worry about each other and are anxious to know what they have been doing, who they have seen and where they have been. They tease each other, have family sayings, seek each other's advice, demonstrate that, particularly Theresa and Fritz, have a lively sense of humour, much that we would recognise in today. Therefore these letters give us a unique insight into their daily lives during the late 18th century, given what we know about this period in history it would appear that the Robinsons were unusual in their family loyalty and closeness particularly when it came to the care of children.
John junior or Jack as he was known was born in May 1772, Theresa was both relieved and delighted that not only was the child strong and healthy but she had produced a son and heir at the first attempt. On this occasion however, she did not get her own way as to who the Godfather should be, a later letter reveals she wanted her brother Thomas but was overruled in favour of her brother in law Montagu. The subsequent letters demonstrate her anxieties when she had to leave the baby in the care of servants when she and John went off on their travels or when Jack had to travel alone. In much of her correspondence she has the child close by her and one letter even has his scribble on the paper. Kisses are blown to his uncles in Spain, and she writes little anecdotes which she thinks they would find amusing about Jack's progress. These letters really reveal the difficulties of keeping in touch with relatives, the huge distances that kept families apart, the heavy reliance of the written word to communicate family news. How different from today when communication is instantaneous not only in words but in pictures, how she would have loved this technology. It is clearly very important to Theresa that she brought Jack up knowing who his uncles were even though it was unlikely that he would actually see them in the flesh for many years.
The Parkers had two addresses, the main residence was in Sackville Street in fashionable St James and Saltram House in Devon.
29 Sackville Street, St James (2017)
Saltram House (Prior to 1819)
John Parker's year was governed by a variety of commitments; number one being his role of Member of Parliament for Devon which kept him tied to the capital during the time the House was sitting. This routine gave rise to the 'season', anyone who was anyone gravitated to London early in the year and remained there until early summer when, at some point, they would retreat to their country houses during the recess returning when Parliament recommenced in the Autumn. The Autumn sitting could see families remaining in the country with the Master returning to London alone, however, the Parkers in general travelled back to their London home after the summer break. Theresa's letters reveal much about her feelings on travel, entertainment and preference for town over country.
As part of the withdrawal to the country the couple would include a series of visits to friends and relatives which also co-incided with race meetings which John was keen to attend. His great passion was his thoroughbred race horses and he was moderately successful. This was his second most important commitment, he regularly travelled to Newmarket sometimes with Theresa and sometimes alone, to see his stud and discuss his breeding programme with his trainer Richard Vernon. The race meetings were also social events with balls and assemblies included in the programme, this was where the local gentry could mix with the real aristocracy, there is an underlying feeling that this was not top of Theresa's list of her most enjoyable social gatherings. The visits were also somewhat contentious, there were definite favourite places to stay and people to see, they seemed to have a prescribed annual route which extended up into North Devon where she really enjoyed Tapeley Park at Instow, the home of the Cleveland family. She was always anxious to finally arrive at Saltram primarily to be re-united with Jack and looked forward to some family time for a while.
It was necessary for important figures in the local community like the Parkers to entertain at Saltram this would include not just the local landowners, bankers and merchants but senior Army and Naval Officers who were based or passing through Plymouth. John Parker had his personal friends and sadly Theresa definitely did not share her husband's fondness for these gentlemen. Their conversation was severely limited to country pursuits which did not suit her taste at all, her disgust is clear at finding herself having to listen to a discussion about cock fighting! One of the worst offenders was her brother in law Montagu, he had a very short temper, was a poor conversationalist and was certainly not someone she would have chosen as a dinner companion.
Montagu Parker c 1770
Sir Joshua Reynolds
In contrast she was always ready to entertain Sir Joshua Reynolds, he was much more cosmopolitan and willing to share gossip about his clients which she and her sister were pleased to pass on to their brothers in Spain. Sir Joshua was a frequent visitor to both Saltram and Sackville Street and his visits include hunting expeditions as well as more refined pastimes enjoyed with Theresa and her sister. Another favourite was Mr Waddilove, he was her brother's chaplain and visited the sisters on his return trips to London, their excitement at his arrival was also because he brought news of Thomas and Fritz and to actually speak to someone who had recently seen them was better than all the letters.
Very Rev Robert Waddilove
Dean of Ripon
Entertainment in London took a completely different form when compared with the very limited variety on offer in Plymouth. The most sought after and prestigious location for the aristocracy to be seen was Almacks and tickets were closely guarded by the patronesses, Theresa tells us that she went early in the 1772 season, on this occasion fancy dress was required. However, there is a note of disapproval when describing riotous masquerades at the Haymarket and the Pantheon. She does attend the Pantheon, however, and new dresses were required for herself and sister Anne which were much admired. The Pantheon was opened in 1772 and was located in Oxford Street, although it was demolished early in the 20th century its name goes on in the Marks and Spencer Pantheon branch.
The 1774 season saw her attending Almacks twice and in the same letter she gives a small clue as to how her evenings were spent when not entertaining guests. She describes how Mr Parker visits Boodles (a Gentleman's Club) for whist most evenings, sometimes he is tempted to play quinze which "sometimes uses him well and sometimes ill". She waits up for him to return but has nothing else to do apart from eating a sandwich but if he is too late goes on to bed. She also remarks about a new club, the Savoir Vivre, this was established in the building which now houses the current Boodles, and had a reputation for heavy wagering on the card game Hazard.
Boodles Club, St James today
There were also unscrupulous card sharps and gentlemen could easily be ruined in an evening. Cards feature highly in entertainment for ladies and sister Anne hosts Loo parties which Theresa attends, vingt et un (21's) was particularly popular. However, she tells a cautionary tale of Miss Pelham who was apparently addicted to gambling and lost large sums of money and brought herself into disrepute, she entreats her brother not to repeat this piece of gossip.
There is no doubt Theresa was completely au fait with who did what, where and when, she set herself a task to find her brother Frederick a wife, she seemed to know who was available and how much money they would bring to the table!
"There is little Miss Cross with a large fortune that is very pretty but I know no further. There is a Miss Duncomb to spare, a daughter of Lady Radnor...….."
There are a number of letters where she expresses her preference for town over country A certain reluctance to go to Saltram before the end of the season or where she encourages Mr Parker to go down to Devon to review the troops or inspect his stud alone and return to London in order that they can continue to enjoy their London life. In the event over the six short years of their marriage she probably only visited Saltram five or six times, in that time, however, she left her mark on the house and garden. It would seem the only time she was really happy to seek the peace and quiet of Saltram was when she was pregnant and at these times it was the 'Greenhouse' or Orangery as it is known today where she liked to sit to write her letters or draw.
 
The letters written at the time of her pregnancies reveal that Theresa certainly had strong opinions on marriage and children. Broken marriages she declares are usually the fault of the husband. In 1775 when pregnant with her second child she assures Lady Pelham that she will be equally happy if the new baby should turn out to be boy or girl. She muses on the advantages of having daughters and expresses her disapproval of mothers pushing their daughters into marrying the first man who comes along not to mention marrying for money which she completely condemns. Even her expression of strong opinions on these subjects is unusual, most women of this era were subject to a passive agreement of their husband's views and opinions and would not consider they could have opinions of their own let alone voice them. These views seem to be at odds with our vision of the rather loose morals and voracious marriage market of the late 18th century.
Her tone is always gentle, but that does not stop her being quick to criticise where she feels somewhat offended by the behaviour or attitudes of others. Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire is a perfect example of this, Theresa has not a good word to say about her whether it is her opinions, appearance, clothes or jewels. Her obvious disapproval of this grand lady would suggest that she considered it vulgar to be ostentatious and vocal in public, something she never would consider doing herself. This begs the question of whether she herself was better or more respected that the Duchess, I suspect this was the case, she was certainly more modest and less self promoting. Her husband on the other hand was something of a fan of the Duchess, it would have been good to have been a fly on the wall when these two ladies were brought together at a social occasion. After Theresa's death Georgiana visited Saltram on a number of occasions when staying at nearby Plympton, one wonders what she would have thought of that had she still been alive.
Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire
Sir Thomas Gainsborough 1785
Her letters clearly demonstrate her knowledge of who was marrying who, public affairs and general news. She talks of a particularly infamous trial for fraud and writes at great length to her brother about the details of the case. She has great sympathy for those members of the aristocracy who had fallen on hard times or were experiencing difficulties with their marriages and although she does not seem to be a leading light in society is extremely well informed and a confidante to the most respected of London's titled inhabitants.
She died suddenly a few weeks after the birth of her daughter Theresa on the 21st December 1775. We can glean a flavour of that moment from the correspondence. A surviving letter written to her brother Frederick just a few days before her death skates over the difficulties of giving birth and her subsequent illness and is full of delight, hopes and dreams for the future. It is not hard to imagine her sitting up in bed having been barred from reading or writing for the first month after the birth, asking for pen and paper eager to tell her brothers about her new daughter and how happy she was, never imagining that, in just a few short days, those hopes and dreams would never come true. Her husband was devastated by her death, filled with remorse about leaving her to return to London convinced she was on her way to a complete recovery, he retreats to his property in Somerset to grieve and it is many weeks before he finds the strength to return to Saltram.
Can we conclude then that she was in reality just as she was portrayed by Sir Joshua Reynolds who wrote such a glowing obituary? She was kind and thoughtful, she had a unique ability to charm and get her own way without being petulant or strident and was just a little bit spoilt and indulged by her family. She was without doubt a city girl who liked the occasional visit to the country to recharge her batteries and perhaps just a little bit of a snob when it came to country folk. She liked a project and had a great eye for colour and design, coupled with a dogged determination to finish what she started. However, perhaps her most endearing quality was her total devotion to family life, and the amount of energy and enthusiasm she applied to keeping the ties of her family tightly drawn around her. She would have found modern family life very difficult to understand given her devotion to her children and her siblings. There is perhaps, just the smallest hint that perhaps Mr Parker did not have the same attraction a few years into her marriage as he had the beginning, but she never would openly express those feelings. Overall she was just as Sir Joshua described:
'……. one of the most valuable of women. Her amiable disposition, her softness and gentleness of manners endeared her to every person that had the happiness of knowing her......'
Mrs Theresa Parker, Nee Robinson
(Private Collection, Artist Unknown)
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