Little Thakeham South Front and Pergola Lutyens Houses and Gardens 1913 Page150

Little Thakeham House Plans Lutyens Houses and Gardens 1913 Page148

Little Thakeham is an Arts and Crafts style, Grade I

listed Listed may refer to: * Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm * Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic * Endangered species in biology * Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...

private house in the parish of

Thakeham Thakeham's History Thakeham is a village and civil parish located north of the South Downs in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. The village is situated approximately 12 miles south-west of Horsham and 11 miles north of the sea-s ...

, near the village of

Storrington Storrington is a small town in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England, and one of two in the civil parish of Storrington and Sullington. Storrington lies at the foot of the north side of the South Downs. it has a population of around 4,60 ...

, in the

Horsham Horsham is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...

district of West Sussex, England. Designed by architect

Edwin Lutyens Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens ( ; 29 March 1869 – 1 January 1944) was an English architect known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era. He designed many English country houses, war memori ...

in 1902, the house was one of the first in which Lutyens mixed

neoclassical architecture Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...

into his previously

vernacular A vernacular or vernacular language is in contrast with a "standard language". It refers to the language or dialect that is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The vernacular is typically the native language, n ...

style. The exterior of the house is vernacular, but the interior has classical features, particularly in its large hall. The gardens, also designed by Lutyens, are Grade II* listed in the

National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens The Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England provides a listing and classification system for historic parks and gardens similar to that used for listed buildings. The register is managed by Historic England ...

House

Lutyens' client was Ernest Blackburn, formerly the headmaster of a preparatory school in Southborough, Kent, who had retired on receiving an inheritance from his father, a wine merchant. His main interest was gardening. Over 1901–2 he made a series of land purchases, creating an estate of , and devoted himself to landscaping it. He commissioned the architect F. Hatchard Smith to build a house on the site, but by April 1902 Blackburn was dissatisfied with the half-built brick villa. He brought in Lutyens, who advised him to demolish it, which he did. Hatchard Smith accused Lutyens of poaching his client, and the dispute was played out in the pages of ''Building News'', which supported Hatchard Smith, and '' Country Life'', which supported Lutyens. Little Thakeham the Hall and Screen Lutyens Houses and Gardens 1913 Page148

Completed in 1903, the 12,480 sf house is considered one of Lutyens' best private houses. Laid out in an H-shape using locally mined coarse-stone, the exterior has weathered quickly to give the house a 16th-century,

Cotswold The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale. The area is defined by the bedrock of Juras ...

s manor look. It consists of two storeys plus an attic, with two wings. The central bar of the H runs west to east, and contains the south-facing hall. Further to the east, continuing the line of the central bar, is an additional wing, originally the

service Service may refer to: Activities * Administrative service, a required part of the workload of university faculty * Civil service, the body of employees of a government * Community service, volunteer service for the benefit of a community or a pu ...

quarters, which contains the only remaining walls of Hatchard Smith's demolished villa. The south, garden front of the house has four

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

s, one on each wing and two in the middle; at the centre is a two-storey,

mullion A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid supp ...

ed, polygonal

bay window A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room. Types Bay window is a generic term for all protruding window constructions, regardless of whether they are curved or angular, or r ...

. The north, entrance front of the house has a central porch giving access to an east–west corridor, south of which are the main staircase and the two-storey hall, separated by a stone screen. The hall is lit through a classical arch by the two-storey bay window. The ground floor of the hall is lined with classically decorated stonework, with plaster walls above, and is overlooked by

wrought iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag Inclusion (mineral), inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a ...

balconies.

Gardens

Southwards from the house's garden front there are three descending

terrace garden In gardening, a terrace is an element where a raised flat paved or gravelled section overlooks a prospect. A raised terrace keeps a house dry and provides a transition between the hardscape and the softscape. History ;Persia Since a level si ...

s, supported by

retaining wall Retaining walls are relatively rigid walls used for supporting soil laterally so that it can be retained at different levels on the two sides. Retaining walls are structures designed to restrain soil to a slope that it would not naturally keep to ...

s. The top terrace contains a rose garden. To its east are a lily pool and water garden. The third terrace is the main lawn. On its western side, a large, oak-beamed

pergola A pergola is most commonly an outdoor garden feature forming a shaded walkway, passageway, or sitting area of vertical posts or pillars that usually support cross-beams and a sturdy open lattice, often upon which woody vines are trained. The ...

on a raised bank projects out from the second terrace. There is also a Grade II listed garden house, originally a

coach house Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

with stables, designed by Lutyens. The gardens are surrounded by apple, pear and cherry orchards.

References

External links

*
''Country Life'' photo galleryImages at Lavishlocations.comFlickr.com photo album
{{coord, 50, 55, 49, N, 0, 25, 24, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Country houses in West Sussex Grade I listed buildings in West Sussex Grade I listed houses Works of Edwin Lutyens in England Arts and Crafts architecture in England Houses completed in 1903 Arts and Crafts gardens Grade II* listed parks and gardens in West Sussex