The Parish Magazine June 2021

feature — 6
Holman Hunt's joyousness
and love for Sonning
Burial grounds, particularly those around many of the historic churches in the
country such as St Andrew's Sonning, can be both sorrowful and fascinating
places. Sorrowful, because they are reminders of our human frailty and
fascinating because each grave, headstone and monument has a story to tell.
Sometimes, even the lack of a grave, headstone or monument can add to the
fascination, as it does with the famous Victorian and Edwardian artist, William
Holman Hunt (1827-1910).
William Holman Hunt was co-founder
of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood
and was known for his naturalistic
works depicting modern urban and
rural life, and religious subjects. The
'Brotherhood' was formed in 1848
when Dante Gabriel Rossetti, an
English poet, illustrator, painter and
translator, joined with Holman Hunt
and John Everett Millais to start a new
movement which 'sought a return to
the abundant detail, intense colours and
complex compositions of Quattrocento
Italian art'.
In his latter years of life, Holman
Hunt came to live in Sonning where,
according to Angela Perkins in The
Book of Sonning he 'frequently sat with
his many friends, leading men of art and
letters. Sonning lock (see page 31) was
a favourite meeting place for many
Victorian and Edwardian celebrities.
The Light of the World
Public domain
William lived with his wife, in a
Thames Street cottage called 'The Acre'
— now two properties — that their
daughter had built for them. Other
members of the Holman Hunt family
appear to have been residents in
Sonning, although, none bearing the
name 'Holman Hunt' are buried in the
St Andrew's churchyard.
According to the archives of this
magazine, the Holman Hunt family
were regular benefactors and their
donations are often recorded in the
accounts of different village groups
and events.
ENVIRONMENT
William loved living in Sonning
and did not hold back when he felt
the village environment he enjoyed
was threatened. He was particularly
concerned when the bridge was to be
replaced and wrote: 'it is obvious that
the traffic that bridges are intended to
carry would be put forward as argument
for demolishing the exquisite old bridge
over the main river which is the glory of
this picturesque and well ordered village;
even the most utilitarian would see the
evil in the diminished attraction of the
river not only to Englishmen, but to
colonials and Americans who have read
widely of its beauty ...' and he was one of
several residents who opposed to the
introduction of gas lighting in 1910
on the grounds that it would 'spoil the
beauty of the village ... and increase the
already ruinous rates.'
We can only wonder what Holman
Hunt and his neighbours would think
of the traffic and pollution — and
rates — in their peaceful village today!
His love for the village extended,
he hoped, into his afterlife which led
him to choosing a burial site in the
St Andrew's churchyard. However, in
October 1910 we read: 'It is an honour
for Sonning that it should have had even
the chance of competing with St Paul’s
The Parish Magazine - June 2021 27
Holman Hunt's self portrait
for becoming the resting place of the ashes
of the great artist. Some years ago Mr
Holman Hunt expressed to Canon Holmes
his desire that his body should be laid to
rest in a certain spot of our churchyard,
and immediately upon his death, the vicar
was asked to allow the use of this spot for
that purpose, but the offer of burial in St
Paul’s naturally deprived Sonning of the
possibility of receiving the remains of the
distinguished man who had been for some
time a parishioner.'
Preaching in St Paul’s on the
Sunday after his death. Canon Holland
explained that Holman Hunt had been:
'Born within a stone’s throw of St Paul’s,
a lover of the City of London, of which he
knew every nook and every corner' and
that in St Paul's he could be 'venerated
by generations and honoured by his King.'
YOUTHFULNESS
Public domain
Also in St Paul's Cathedral is a
replica of Holman Hunt's celebrated
work, The Light of the World that he
worked on in Sonning — his original
painting is in Keble College, Oxford.
Although William was born in
Cheapside his greatest love seems
to have been Sonning. In a footnote,
added by his wife, to his book Pre-
Raphaelitism and the Pre-Raphaelite
Brotherhood, she writes about 'his
belief in joyousness in life, and his love
of humour ... at the Sonning cottage
many a friend carrying weight of years
bravely with himself, came to visit him,
and infected by his youthfulness of heart
almost forgot they had grown old.'