Yarborough Monument, Bembridge

The Yarborough Monument

High on the ridge of Culver Down, overlooking Culver Cliff, stands a slender 19th-century obelisk in honour of Charles Anderson Pelman, 1st Earl of Yarborough (1780-1846). Pelman, who was named Earl of Yarborough and Baron Worsley in 1837, owned nearby Appuldurcombe House and served as commodore of the Royal Yacht Squadron for over 20 years.

History

Lord Yarborough was a native of Lincolnshire but he had a second home at Appuldurcombe House, inherited through his wife, Henrietta Worsley. He was known for his patronage of yachting, and was named the first commodore of the Royal Yacht Squadron at Cowes in 1825, a post he held until his death in 1846.

When Yarborough died suddenly in 1846, the Royal Yacht Squadron's committee proposed a memorial in his honour, and gave £200 towards the cost. The remainder was provided by public subscription.

The family coat of arms

The monument is carved from pale yellow granite and takes the shape of a four-sided obelisk rising from a stepped ashlar base. Family coats of arms are carved into the north and south sides of the base, with epitaphs on the remaining two sides.

The inscription on the west face reads thusly:

TO THE MEMORY
OF
CHARLES ANDERSON PELHAM
EARL OF YARBOROUGH
BARON YARBOROUGH
OF YARBOROUGH IN THE COUNTY OF LINCOLN
BARON WORSLEY
OF APPULDURCOMBE IN THE ISLE OF WIGHT
D.C.L. F.R.S. F.S.A.
WHOSE BENEVOLENCE KINDNESS, HEART
AND
MANY VIRTUES
ENDEARED HIM TO ALL WHO KNEW HIM
THIS MONUMENT
WAS ERECTED
AS TESTIMONY AFFECTION AND RESPECT
BY PUBLIC SUBSCRIPTION

Lord Yarborough's epitaph, south face

The inscription on the west face reads as follows:

AS THE OWNER OF LARGE ESTATES
HE WAS ONE OF THOSE MOST CONSPICUOUS
FOR THE QUALITIES
WHICH PECULIARLY ADORN THAT STATION
AND
AS THE FIRST COMMODORE
OF THE ROYAL YACHT SQUADRON
HE WAS EMINENT
IN FOSTERING AND ENCOURAGING
BY HIS EXAMPLE AND LIBERALITY
ALL THAT WAS CALCULATED
TO IMPROVE
THE SCIENCE OF NAVAL ARCHITECTURE
AND TO ADVANCE
THE MARITIME INT[E]RESTS OF HIS COUNTRY
HE DIED ON BOARD HIS YACHT
THE KESTREL
IN THE PORT OF VIGO IN SPAIN
SEPTEMBER 5TH 1846
AGED 65

Did you catch it? The stonemason who crafted the epitaph made a spelling mistake, and 'MARITIME INTERESTS' is mistakenly carved as 'MARITIME INTRESTS'.

The Yarborough Monument was built in 1849 and was originally erected a half-mile to the west on Bembridge Down, but it had to be moved when that site was taken over by Bembridge Fort in 1867.

The monument from the south-east

Visiting

The Yarborough Monument is almost at the eastern end of Culver Down Road, accessed off the B3359 east of Brading. You pass Bembridge Fort on your left before reaching the monument, also on your left, just before a small parking area. The area is criss-crossed with public footpaths and is extremely easy to reach. It is also directly on the Isle of Wight Coastal Path. The monument is accessible at any time.