Life of an 18th century ‘lady of the house’ and her struggles to fit in are explored for the first time at National Trust’s Nostell

Behind the Walls explores, for the first time, the life of Sabine Winn (1734-1798), lady of the house from 1765 until her death. Portraits in the mansion depict domestic happiness, but in reality she faced challenges, including language barriers, strained family relationships, and worries around physical and mental health, that resonate with many today.

Swiss-born Sabine met Sir Rowland Winn while he was on his Grand Tour. The couple married, despite his family’s misgivings about a ‘foreigner’ running an English house, and after several years in London they moved to Yorkshire, where Sabine’s troubles began.

In the 18th century, country houses were not just homes but public displays of wealth, taste and status, and there was a burden of expectation on women to manage their households impeccably. But there is evidence that Sabine was inexperienced at household management and struggled emotionally under the pressure of running the large house.

Simon McCormack, Nostell’s Property Curator explained: “Despite incredible efforts, Sabine never mastered English. In London’s elite circles she had been able to converse in French, but in Yorkshire the language barrier caused relationships to deteriorate.

“It stymied her interactions with her English household staff, Rowland’s relatives and wider society and almost certainly contributed to her loneliness and isolation. This was all at a time when being a good household mistress was vital to projecting the family’s status.

“The inner lives of country house inhabitants, and women like Sabine especially, are often not deeply explored. We wanted to shine a spotlight on her and share more about the challenges she faced but also the ways she found to cope with her situation.”

To deal with her sense of isolation and the challenges facing her, Sabine retreated to her Dressing Room, a private sanctuary where she could surround herself with prized objects and personal belongings. The team at Nostell has redisplayed this room to bring the story of its most important past occupant to life in a way that will be thought-provoking for visitors, drawing on objects relating to her story.

A key piece here is Sabine's Thomas Chippendale ‘secretary’ (desk and bookcase), which reflects the countless letters Sabine wrote to Rowland during what was a long-distance relationship. In one, penned in 1769, she wrote: ‘I want to live only for you, and yet I am always without you.’ Poignantly, some of the drawers are stained with ink.

A set of cherished engravings, embellished with fabric by Sabine, has also been returned to the room. Rowland gave these to Sabine to work on as a reminder of their relationship during his frequent absences.

The Dressing Room also includes new film projections that portray Sabine’s mental and physical health struggles. The installation blends images of the house, its collections, and Sabine’s letters with the voices and stories of Mindful Movers, a local wellbeing group who have reflected on how Sabine’s story connects to positive mental health and wellbeing today.

Simon continued: “Working with community groups has helped us tell Sabine’s story through a contemporary lens, as well as adding modern day stories of struggle to the narrative. Our community groups have their own experience of mental health struggles and have responded with real passion and connection to Sabine’s story."

In other rooms, visitors can explore Sabine’s heartfelt letters, on loan from the West Yorkshire Archive. These letters, alongside her personal books and a newly acquired miniature portrait of Rowland Winn – probably given by him to Sabine as a love token – offer an intimate insight into her emotional world.

The letters express her affection for her husband and children but also frustration when Rowland was away on business. In one fiery exchange, she writes: ‘I shall no longer act tactfully if you do not come back this week…In the name of God return to your senses and show that you have feelings of your own….the truth is that you love London a good deal more than you do your wife.’

Sabine’s struggle to acclimatise to British Georgian culture is also explored, along with her love for French fashions, cherished pastimes and her interests in apothecary and herbal remedies. An exquisite mahogany apothecary’s counter, supplied by Chippendale, reflects Sabine and Rowland’s struggles with health conditions and Sabine’s active interest in sickness remedies and cosmetics.

This theme continues in Nostell’s grounds, where a new trail explores some of the medicinal plants she knew and next year an apothecary garden – which Sabine had hoped to create – is due to be planted. In the free-to-enter parkland, visitors can follow a Mindfulness Trail, created with assistance from the Mindful Movers group.

Ten new benches, located in tranquil areas by lakes and under tree canopies, feature plaques that invite people to be present and connect with their surroundings.

Wakefield-based Rachel Hale, who co-founded Mindful Movers in 2018, said: “Being in green space is a key thing for mental and physical wellbeing. I’d be lost without it.

“You see it time and again. People are head down, moving from A to B, thinking about their next meeting, not what’s around them. It’s about shifting that mindset. Look at the leaves, and how the light comes through them. It’s quite transformative when you start to notice these things. We miss too many wonders!”