Brayton Hall, Cumberland

Brayton Hall once the ancestral seat of the Lawson family stood in a magnificent park, commanding spectacular views of the surrounding countryside with the mountains of the Lake District in the background, 1.5 miles east by north of the town of Aspatria, and 7 miles south west by west of the market town of Wigton. Greatly enlarged and rebuilt in 1868 it was practically destroyed by fire in 1918.

Brayton, loosely translated as ‘Broad Acres’ is an ancient manorial estate which formed a joint township with Aspatria. After the Norman Conquest it was granted by Alan, son of Waldieve to Ughtred who became the first Lord of the manor in the seignory of Aspatria and barony of Allerdale. An inquisition held in 1578 records a William Bewley owning Brayton by fealty only, sometime the lands of the Bishop of Carlisle in free alms. It was subsequently possessed by a junior member of the Salkeld family, whose three co-heiresses sold it to Sir Wilfrid Lawson, who had previously married the heiress of Isel. At this time the Brayton manorial estate comprised 20 houses, 20 , 20 gardens, 260 acres (110 ha) of land, 100 acres (40 ha) of meadow, 200 acres (81 ha) of pasture and 300 acres (120 ha) of moor.

Although there had been an existing Manor House on the estate for many years, this was greatly improved in 1800 by the tenth baronet; who also developed the adjacent grounds, converted the existing Deer Park into a landscaped park, and in the process laid out extensive botanical gardens. The library, collected at a great expense, held a particularly rich collection of works on the subject of natural history. Among the pictures were many of the best works of contemporary English masters, particularly James Northcote and Philip Reinagle. The baronet also collected books, prints, paintings and suits of armour.

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