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Report No 250 King Charles I Rocking Horse |
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A 17th-century rocking horse which could
have been commissioned as a gift for Charles I is to be unveiled as
the V&A Museum of Childhood’s latest acquisition. Purchased from a
private collector, it will go on public display in the Museum’s new
mezzanine galleries when the Museum reopens to the public on 9
December. The reopening follows an extensive and ambitious £4.7m
transformation by Caruso St. John architects.
Made in softwood and elm, the rocking horse pre-dates the earliest example in the Museum’s collection of 20 rocking horses by 200 years, and is believed to be the oldest in existence in the UK. It has been dated to 1610. Di Lees, Director of the V&A Museum of Childhood said: “This is probably the most important acquisition we’ve made at the Museum to date, and comes at an extremely exciting time as we prepare for our reopening this December. I’m delighted that we’ve played a part in saving such an intriguing British object for the Nation and look forward to seeing it on display in our new galleries.” In 1610, Charles I was ten years old. The second son of James VI and I and Anne of Denmark, he was a delicate child with well-documented poor health, walking and speech difficulties. The household accounts list the making of a type of wheelchair for his use and Sir Robert and Lady Carey, his guardians between 1605 and 1611, arranged remedial treatment for him. There is apparently no contemporary record of a rocking horse for Charles, but intriguingly, a plaque attached to the base records that this horse was ‘Purchased on June 18th 1906 at Cheshunt House, Hertfordshire’. If the horse belonged to any of the royal children, it may have been kept at Theobalds Palace, which is less than two miles away. Theobalds was a favourite residence of James VI and I, particularly for hunting, and it was there that he died and Charles was proclaimed king. In 1650, towards the end of the English Civil Wars, Theobalds was sold and largely demolished for rebuilding in the early 18th century. It is very likely that items from the palace found their way into the other large houses in the area, of which Cheshunt Great House was one.
Noreen Marshall, Curator at the Museum of Childhood has surveyed the
horse’s history and said:
Although it is impossible to prove the object’s association with
Charles I, there has been well-intentioned speculation throughout
its history that it was a gift or purchase intended to help his weak
legs recover from rickets. If indeed the horse belonged to Charles,
it would probably date from 1605-08 as by 1610 he was ten years of
age and had made significant improvements with his mobility.
Courtesy of Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood |
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