![ChesterfieldHouse1799](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/ChesterfieldHouse1799.jpg)
Chesterfield House was
a grand London townhouse built between 1747 and 1752 by
Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield
Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield, (22 September 169424 March 1773) was a British statesman, diplomat, and man of letters, and an acclaimed wit of his time.
Early life
He was born in London to Philip Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Ches ...
(1694–1773), statesman and man of letters. The exterior was in the
Palladian
Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...
style, the interior
Baroque
The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
. It stood in
Mayfair
Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world. ...
on the north side of
Curzon Street
Curzon Street is located within the Mayfair district of London. The street is located entirely within the W1J postcode district; the eastern end is north-east of Green Park underground station. It is within the City of Westminster, running ap ...
, between
South Audley Street
South Audley Street is a major shopping street in Mayfair, London.'South Audley Street: Introduction', in Survey of London: Volume 40, the Grosvenor Estate in Mayfair, Part 2 (The Buildings), ed. F H W Sheppard (London, 1980), pp. 290–291. Bri ...
and what is now
Chesterfield Street
Chesterfield Street is a "virtually intact" Georgian street (except for No. 6, which is a reconstruction) in London's Mayfair district. Several of the buildings are Grade II listed on the National Heritage List for England.
Location
Chesterfield ...
. It was demolished in 1937 and on its site now stands an eponymous block of flats.
The French travel writer
Pierre-Jean Grosley in his 1770 book ''Londres'' (translated as ''Tour to London'') considered the house to be equal to the ''
hotel particuliers'' of the nobility in Paris.
History
![Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/Philip_Stanhope%2C_4th_Earl_of_Chesterfield.PNG)
The house was built on land belonging to
Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe
Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, (8 March 1726 – 5 August 1799) was a British naval officer. After serving throughout the War of the Austrian Succession, he gained a reputation for his role in amphibious operations aga ...
by
Isaac Ware
Isaac Ware (1704—1766) was an English architect and translator of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio.
Early life
Ware was born to a life of poverty, living as a street urchin and working as a chimney sweep, until he was adopted by ...
. In his "Letters to his Son", Chesterfield wrote from "Hotel Chesterfield" on 31 March 1749: "I have yet finished nothing but my ''boudoir'' and my library; the former is the gayest and most cheerful room in England; the latter the best. My garden is now turfed, planted and sown, and will in two months more make a scene of verdure and flowers not common in London."
Library
The ''
Quarterly Review
The ''Quarterly Review'' was a literary and political periodical founded in March 1809 by 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 ...
'' (founded 1809), no. 125, reported:
Staircase
![ChesterfieldHseStair](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/ChesterfieldHseStair.jpg)
The columns of the screen facing the courtyard and the marble staircase with bronze balustrade came from
Cannons
A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during ...
, near
Edgware
Edgware () is a suburban town in northern Greater London, mostly in the London Borough of Barnet but with small parts falling in the London Borough of Harrow and in the London Borough of Brent. Edgware is centred north-northwest of Charing Cros ...
, the mansion of
James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos
James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos, (6 January 16739 August 1744) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons from 1698 until 1714, when he succeeded to the peerage as Baron Chandos, and vacated ...
(d.1744) which was demolished shortly after his death, the materials being sold at auction in 1747. Chesterfield also bought at the auction the portico and railings. Chesterfield also furnished his new mansion with artefacts from the sale at
Houghton Hall
Houghton Hall ( ) is a country house in the parish of Houghton in Norfolk, England. It is the residence of David Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley.
It was commissioned by the ''de facto'' first British Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walp ...
, the
country house
An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...
of
Robert Walpole
Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, (26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745; known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole) was a British statesman and Whig politician who, as First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Leader ...
, including an 18-candle copper-gilt lantern. The library was hung with portraits of the earl's ancestors. As a piece of satire concerning the fashion for boasts of ancient ancestry, he placed amongst these portraits two old portraits which he inscribed "Adam de Stanhope" and "Eve de Stanhope".
Creation of Stanhope St
Chesterfield formed Stanhope Street on adjoining land purchased from the
Dean and Chapter of Westminster
The Dean and Chapter of Westminster are the ecclesiastical governing body of Westminster Abbey, a collegiate church of the Church of England and royal peculiar in Westminster, Greater London. They consist of the dean and several canons meeting in ...
.
Description in 1869
![EMWardDrJohnson](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/EMWardDrJohnson.jpg)
The following description is reproduced in
Edward Walford
Edward Walford (1823–1897) was a British magazine editor and a compiler of educational, biographical, genealogical and touristic works, perhaps best known for his 6 Volumes of ''Old and New London'' (the first two of which were written by Walt ...
's ''Old & New London'':
George Capel-Coningsby, 5th Earl of Essex
George Capel-Coningsby, 5th Earl of Essex FSA (13 November 1757 – 23 April 1839) was an English aristocrat and politician, and styled Viscount Malden until 1799. His surname was Capell until 1781.
Early life
George Capell was the eldest so ...
(d.1839) remembered seeing the earl sitting on a rustic seat in front of his mansion, basking in the sun.
Sale
Faced with the prospect of demolition in 1869, the house was purchased by the
City
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
merchant
Charles Magniac
Charles Magniac (1827 – 23 November 1891) was a British financier and Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons in two periods between 1868 and 1886.
Magniac was the eldest son of Hollingworth Magniac of Colworth, Bedfordshire. Follo ...
, who considerably curtailed the grounds in the rear, and erected a row of buildings overlooking Chesterfield Street, named Chesterfield Gardens.
See also
*
List of demolished buildings and structures in London
This list of demolished buildings and structures in London includes buildings, structures and urban scenes of particular architectural and historical interest, scenic buildings which are preserved in old photographs, prints and paintings, but whic ...
*
Ranger's House
Ranger's House is a medium-sized red brick Georgian mansion in the Palladian style, adjacent to Greenwich Park in the south east of London. It is situated in Blackheath and backs directly onto Greenwich Park. Previously known as Chesterfield ...
is the modern name for the house in Greenwich acquired by the 4th Earl in 1748 and renamed Chesterfield House
*
Bretby Hall
Bretby Hall is a country house at Bretby, Derbyshire, England, north of Swadlincote and east of Burton upon Trent on the border with Staffordshire. It is a Grade II listed building. The name ''Bretby'' means "dwelling place of Britons".
Histor ...
- Derbyshire seat of the Stanhope family
Sources
*
Walford, Edward. Old & New London: A Narrative of Its History, Its People & Its Places, 6 vols., London, 1878, vol 4, pp. 353–359
References
External links
Bowles' map of 1775showing Chesterfield House
{{Coord , 51, 30, 25, N, 0, 9, 0, W, type:landmark_region:GB-WSM, display=title
Former houses in the City of Westminster
Buildings and structures in Mayfair
Buildings and structures demolished in 1937
Demolished buildings and structures in London