What could be the connection between Mapperton and sandwiches? It’s all explained in a little illustrated book called ‘Sandwich Man’ which is now available in our shop.
In a word, it was John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, who was the first to be seen eating a ‘Sandwich’ in a coffee house in St James’s Street in 1762. There are many stories about him told during guided tours of Mapperton House, where fine oil portraits of him by Zoffany and Reynolds are on display.
One story is that he was himself sandwiched between two ladies: Dorothy his wife, who became mentally ill; and Martha, a singer who was shot dead by a jealous lover. Both brought him large families to look after, and he lived a full life as a diplomat and politician. As First Lord of the Admiralty, he sponsored Captain Cook’s second voyage to the South Seas.
It’s a lot to find in one sandwich. But it’s all in the book.