Party Like It's 1634 - Bolsover Castle's royal feast of food and entertainment inspires artists' installation

The most lavish banquet in the castle’s history has inspired an imaginative creation that showcases the talents of artists from Derbyshire and Yorkshire.

On July 30, 1634, King Charles I and his wife Queen Henrietta Maria arrived in Bolsover for a feast of food and entertainment hosted by William Cavendish whose guests included the gentry of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.

The party feasted on 41 species of birds including 30 swans, 30 peacocks, 30 turkeys, 40 herons 120 geese and 600 domestic fowl.

Chesterfield artist Sylvia Causer said: “It was all about William Cavendish hoping to obtain the position of Master of Horse at court. He wanted to impress the King and Queen through the lavish spectacle. William did this at great cost, a whole year’s rental from the Cavendish estates. He didn’t obtain the position and agreed he had ‘hurt the estate much with the hopes’ of obtaining high office at court. We have no evidence to suggest whether the King found it tasteful, or not.”

The Party Like It’s 1634 art installation opens to the public on Thursday, July 20 and features costume work, small paintings and papier mache items contributed by the seven-strong Oracles group.

Sylvia, who is lead artist in the project, said: “It’s an installation of interesting objects. I’ve painted some Venetian masks, there will be painted oyster shells and some items that look like food.

"We are really excited about getting Bolsover Castle, one of the most visited castles in the UK. We have had exhibitions previously at Sheffield Cathedral and Halifax Minster.

"When people go to an exhibition, they expect to see things hung on the wall but this won’t be. We were offered space within the Riding Hall but we’ve had to come up with an exhibition where we don’t put anything on the walls. You’re not allowed to touch the walls or ceiling because of the heritage of the castle. I didn’t want to put things on easels so the only option I could come up with was to put an installation on a table.”

Visitors will be able to see the installation in the viewing gallery on the first floor of the Riding Hall for six weeks when it will be open daily from 10am to 5pm, apart from one weekend. The art display will be closed to the public on August 12 and 13; Sylvia said: “There is a riding event on and they can’t have people upstairs spooking the horses!”

The idea for showcasing art at Bolsover Castle blossomed after Sylvia’s visit with her friend Sheila Wetton, who lives in Brimington. Sylvia said: “We were at the castle just drawing and I thought it was a really great place to do a project. We approached the castle with an idea but the castle said we’ve got no money. So I said ‘If we fund it ourselves, is that a problem and they said it wasn’t.”

Sylvia, 59, has been focusing on art for a decade since she retired from her job as matron at Chesterfield Royal Hospital where she had worked for 24 years. She said: “I didn’t do it as a subject at school so I didn’t have any natural talent for painting and drawing. I started off at Hunloke Community Centre at an introductory class and then went to Chesterfield College to do the foundation at night which gave the qualification to do a degree. I did a Masters degree in fine art at Sheffield Hallam.

"I’m also a performance artist in a live art duo called Pink and GrAy. I met Andrea Freeman, who lives in Honley, near Holmfirth, at university and we formed the duo then. We describe ourselves as two mature women doing daft things.”