Houghton Lodge, Hampshire, England

Built in 1793 by the Bearnards (Motto=bear)

Only recently have we discovered that the architect was John Plaw, a disciple of Nash, who designed the Brighton Pavilion.

The house, originally symmetrical on all four sides (unlike many later buildings in the vernacular) stood apart from the stables and was originally thatched. It is, in fact, timber framed and the walls are made of chalk cobb to resemble the cob cottages of the district.

Built from soft wood, all hardwoods having been requisitioned to build boats for Nelson’s fleet during the Napoloeonic wars. It has honeypot chimneys, extra tall to avoid the thatch. It was symmetrical on all four sides and separate from the stables. The thatch was replaced with tiles after the walls began to sink under the weight of the thatch. The kitchen, once in the cellars, were transferred during the time of Lord Arundel or Wardour in the early part of the nineteenth century (1810) to part of the stables and a linking block built between them. Thus making the task of bringing hot food to the dining-room a daily challenge for all subsequent generations!

Very few of these houses have survived which makes ours a great rarity and a building of great architectural interest making it a Grade II* listed building– one of only 12 in that category in Hampshire. It would be Grade I if it had not been added to on the South side following the demolition of the conservatory, following the discovery of dry rot in that wall after the second world war.

The Bernards did not have many years to enjoy their pretty creation and it was put up for sale in 1799 as a dwelling “suitable for a family of distinction” and a later advertisement suggests it would be perfect for a family “of the first respectability.” We owe the discovery of this advertisement of 1799 to one of our guests and we love having people to see the house because so often they can add to our knowledge, and perhaps someone will come across a sketch of the house among their family papers. Only the other day someone found a Sun Fire Insurance Policy dated 1802 proving that it was indeed originally thatched.

The house passed through many families who came and went taking their memories and their records with them, until my Father in law, Martin Busk’s Great Uncle and Aunt, Lionel and Ida Wells, bought it in 1910 when the advertisement proclaimed it to be “a centre for field sports with two nearby railway stations (now both long gone: Horsebridge and Stockbridge) and a bathroom with hot and cold!”

Lionel Wells had joined the Navy in early youth and only left when he married and became Chief Officer of the London Fire Brigade. Lionel and Ida had a daughter, Iris, named after one of his ships. The choice was not great, most had names like Inflexible and Defiance!

Lionel introduced many improvements to the way the Brigade was run and really cared for the lives of all the men under his command. Almost all recruited from the Navy as most of the fires were in warehouses along the Thames. Iris recorded that they were going in their carriage to a party all dressed in their best when a fireman galloped up to say that her father was needed urgently for a fire which was getting out of control. They set off at a break neck speed through the London traffic, which aged about 8, she found very exciting. [All thought of the party forgotten!]. Iris gave her father’s brass helmet to the Fireman’s Museum. It had a dent in it from a flaming beam. She was born in 1900.

Martin inherited Houghton Lodge in 1977 from Iris, his Godmother and Aunt. It began to dawn on Martin and Anthea, that the house was not in good condition and finally on a cold winter’s night when their daughter Camilla was having her birthday party the last person to arrive rang the doorbell. All the lights failed not just in the house but the entire village supply too!

Murder at The Vicarage is a good indication of what Houghton used to look like before restoration began-dark, overbearing and full of menace! The films made here have saved the day allowing the restoration of Houghton Lodge to its current, exquisite form.