Brownsover Hall is a 19th-century

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...

house in the old

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

Brownsover Brownsover is a residential and commercial area of Rugby, Warwickshire in England, about miles north of the town centre. The area is named after the original hamlet of Brownsover. Since 1960, the area has been subsumed by the expansion of Rugby, ...

Rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...

which has been converted for use as a hotel. It is a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Early History (1471–1850)

The manor of

was owned from 1471 by the Boughton family who were created

Boughton Baronets There have been two baronetcies created for members of the Boughton, later Rouse-Boughton family, one in the Baronetage of England and one in the Baronetage of Great Britain. The Boughton Baronetcy, of Lawford in the County of Warwick, was crea ...

in 1642. In 1780 Sir Theodosius Boughton was allegedly murdered by his brother-in-law and the estate passed to his sister Theodosia, and thence to Sir Egerton Leigh, Bt, of the

Leigh Leigh may refer to: Places In England Pronounced : * Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan ** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency) * Leigh-on-Sea, Essex Pronounced : * Leigh, Dorset * Leigh, Gloucestershire * Leigh, Kent * Leigh, Staf ...

of West Hall family. Leigh's daughter and heiress, also Theodosia, married John Ward, who changed his name by

Royal Licence Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

to Ward-Boughton-Leigh.

Nineteenth century

In the mid 19th century the old manor house was replaced with the present mansion, designed in a

Victorian Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

style by architect

Sir ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...

George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he started ...

. William Holland designed a stained glass window and carved tables as frames for Italian marble slabs. He is well known for establishing a Stained Glass and Decorative works at St. John's,

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

. Other contributors to the new manor were Marshall and Snelgrove of

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, and Eld and Chamberlain, of Midland House,

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

relating to the carpets and furnishings that were chosen for the house. The Hall was the home of the Ward-Boughton-Leighs until the 1930s.

Twentieth century

The Brownsover estate was bought by and became the residence (1936–1942) of

Frank Whittle Air Commodore Sir Frank Whittle, (1 June 1907 – 8 August 1996) was an English engineer, inventor and Royal Air Force (RAF) air officer. He is credited with inventing the turbojet engine. A patent was submitted by Maxime Guillaume in 1921 for ...

, credited with the invention of the jet engine. After Whittle moved out, the hall became the temporary residence of

Vernon Henry St John, 6th Viscount Bolingbroke, 7th Viscount St John Vernon Henry St John, 6th Viscount Bolingbroke (1896–1974) was the fourth child of the 5th Viscount and his wife Mary Elizabeth Emily, a former domestic. The couple's secret marriage and the existence of an heir was revealed only after the de ...

. The English Electric Company used the building from 1949 until the late 1960s where they housed the headquarters of their Diesel Division. It was in the 1970s when the Hall was converted into a hotel. Brownsover Hall is now a 3-star hotel including 47 bedrooms, bar and "Wineglass" restaurant offering a "simple food, made special" seasonal menu. The hotel is set within 7-acres of landscaped grounds, with views over the Swift Valley nature reserve. The hotel is a licensed property for civil ceremony weddings and plays host to many special events throughout the year.

References

''A History of the County of Warwick, Volume 6'' (1951) pp. 65–72 from British History Online

Heritage Gateway, listed building description
Actually Located In The Old Village Of Brownsover, Just Aside The New Estate Of Brownsover (Not Clifton)

Notes

External links

Hotel website

Cracroft's Peerage
{{Authority control Grade II* listed buildings in Warwickshire George Gilbert Scott buildings Country houses in Warwickshire Grade II* listed houses Buildings and structures in Rugby, Warwickshire