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MINADAB
COTTAGE HISTORY
Minadab Cottage was built in 1820 for Robert Benjamin Young. Young, born on 15th September 1773 on the Isle of Man, rose through the ranks of the Royal Navy to that of commander. The Minadab was a French ship but the significance of the ship is not recorded. During the Battle of Trafalgar, Young was given the command of HMS Entreprenante, a small 10 gun cutter, and charged with the duty of dispatch vessel to Admiral Nelson's HMS Victory . Following the battle action and subsequent death of Admiral Nelson, Young heroically acted as messenger and rescued 161 survivors by taking his little craft close to the blazing French battleship Achille before escaping just as the ship's magazines exploded. According to Young, he had been given the great honour of carrying the news of the victory back to England by Admiral Nelson himself. No written record has survived of such an order and accounts can be found that, in fact, it was John Lapenotiere, commander of HMS Pickle ,who delivered the dispatches. Other accounts record that Lord Collingwood sent Young to Faro, Portugal, with dispatches announcing the death of Nelson and the victory at Trafalgar. For this, Young received the gold medal, the thanks of Parliament, a sword of Honour from the Patriotic Fund and an honorary augmentation to his arms. Minadab was built in the "cottage ornee" style based on Horace Walpole's Thames-side villa at Strawberry Hill, Twickenham. Walpole set the a fashion for rural Gothic-style retreats. A number were built by active and retired colonial administrators and military men who liked verandahs, spacious lawns and the sunny climate of Devon. Commander Young designed Minadab to resemble a ship as much as possible, the east side being the fore , and the west side the aft . The upper floor was reached by the means of a rope ladder. The round cobbled cellar has niches for the storage of rum casks, and larger alcoves for general storage. It is said that a secret tunnel ran from the cobbled cellar to the beach and it was means though which, many years ago, a previous owner returned home from sea unexpectedly and caught his wife with her lover! Minadab Cottage is grade II listed - buildings under this grading are considered to be "nationally important and of special interest". |