Farleigh House, or Farleigh Castle, sometimes called Farleigh New Castle, is a large

English 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 ...

in the county of

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, formerly the centre of the

Farleigh Hungerford Farleigh Hungerford () is a village within the civil parish of Norton St Philip in the Mendip District, Mendip district, in Somerset, England, 9 miles southeast of Bath, Somerset, Bath, 3½ miles west of Trowbridge on A366 road, A366, between Trow ...

estate. Much of the stone to build it came from the nearby

Farleigh Hungerford Castle Farleigh Hungerford Castle, sometimes called Farleigh Castle or Farley Castle, is a medieval castle in Farleigh Hungerford, Somerset, England. The castle was built in two phases: the inner court was constructed between 1377 and 1383 by Sir T ...

and the house is now 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 ...

. Farleigh House was built and extended during the 18th and 19th centuries and until 1970 served as the centre of a country estate owned by the Houlton family until 1899, then by others. In 1970 it was sold to be used as a prep school called Ravenscroft School. After this closed in 1996, the house was leased from the last owners of the school by the new Farleigh College until 2001, and it was then sold to Inspecs, a manufacturer of optical instruments. In 2010 a 99-year lease was acquired by

Bath Rugby Club Bath Rugby is a professional rugby union club in Bath, Somerset, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. Founded in 1865 as Bath Football Club, since 1894 the club has played at the Recreation Ground in the ...

, which now occupies it as its headquarters and training centre.

Houlton family

The house was largely built with stone taken from the ruins of the mediaeval

Farleigh Castle Farleigh Hungerford Castle, sometimes called Farleigh Castle or Farley Castle, is a medieval castle in Farleigh Hungerford, Somerset, England. The castle was built in two phases: the inner court was constructed between 1377 and 1383 by Sir T ...

. A Trowbridge clothier, Joseph Houlton, bought the Farleigh Hungerford estate in 1702, and his son, Joseph Houlton the Younger, lived at Church Farm on the estate. He completely rebuilt and turned an old gabled house into Farleigh House, a modest gentleman's residence complete with a deer park. In 1806, Colonel John Houlton inherited the estate. He enlarged and altered the house in the fashionable

Gothic Revival 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, spending £40,000 - several million in today's values — on extensions to the main house, a chapel, hot houses, conservatories, stables and six lodges. Most of the present house dates from that period. One of the lodges was called the Castle Lodge and was known as the Bath Lodge Castle Hotel until its closure in June 2022. The Houlton family remained at Farleigh Hungerford until 1899, when Sir Edward Houlton died with no male heir.

Later owners

The estate was sold in 1906 to

Lord Cairns Hugh McCalmont Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns (27 December 1819 – 2 April 1885), was an Irish-born British statesman who served as Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain during the first two ministries of Benjamin Disraeli. He was one of the most p ...

and later passed through several hands. In the 1950s and 1960s, Farleigh House and its estate were owned by the Hely-Hutchinson family, a cadet branch of the Earls of Donoughmore.

Ravenscroft School

In 1970, the main house and a number of cottages were sold to Mr John F. R. Gillam, the Headmaster and owner of Ravenscroft School, which had previously been based in nearby

Beckington Castle Beckington Castle is a historic house in the village of Beckington, Somerset, England. It is a Grade II* listed building. It was built in the early 17th century on the site of a medieval building. It has been home to various nobility and local bu ...

. In about 1980, John Gillam also bought much of the Farleigh Hungerford estate. In July 1996, Ravenscroft School was closed and the house was leased to Farleigh College, a

Special Needs In clinical diagnostic and functional development, special needs (or additional needs) refers to individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. Guidelines for clinical diagnosis are given in ...

school educating children with

autism spectrum disorder The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental disorder, neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) ...

s and

dyslexia Dyslexia, also known until the 1960s as word blindness, is a disorder characterized by reading below the expected level for one's age. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, r ...

, but which subsequently moved to new premises near Mells. The Gillam family continued to own the house until 2002, when it was sold to an optical company called ''Inspecs'' to serve as the firm's headquarters.

Inspecs

In 2002, the London-based company Inspecs, owned by Robin Totterman and Chris Smith, purchased the house and grounds and reinstated the old name of 'Farleigh House'. They spent eight years and significant amounts of money bringing the house back to its former glory. A complete refurbishment was carried out during this time, including the replacement of most of the flat lead roof. A medieval fortified tower to the west of Farleigh House, known as 'Drakes' and now called the Tower House or Castle Court, was saved from ruin through an extensive restoration project. Estate Manager David Reed (the brother of the late actor

Oliver Reed Robert Oliver Reed (13 February 1938 – 2 May 1999) was an English actor known for his well-to-do, macho image and "hellraiser" lifestyle. After making his first significant screen appearances in Hammer Horror films in the early 1960s, his ...

) also carried out significant groundworks to reinstate the traditional formal gardens.

Bath Rugby Club

In April 2010, it was announced that

Bruce Craig Bruce Craig (born December 1962) is a businessperson, entrepreneur and owner of Bath Rugby club. As of 2017, Craig has a net worth of £300 million, according to ''The Sunday Times Rich List''. Early life Born in Bristol, Craig's father ...

, a local businessman, had bought a 99-year lease of Farleigh House to use it as

's new administrative headquarters and training ground, following his acquisition of the Club. The house is now Bath Rugby's training centre. The property now has two rugby pitches as well as an all weather playing surface.

References

{{coord, 51.31715, N, 2.28836, W, type:landmark, display=title Grade II listed buildings in Mendip District Houses completed in 1820 Country houses in Somerset Gothic Revival architecture in Somerset