Pythouse on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
Pythouse, sometimes spelled Pyt House and pronounced ''pit-house'', is a 
The house remained in the Benett family until the mid-1950s, when death duties forced its sale.
The house was then owned for 46 years by the Country Houses Association, a charity which ran it as a retirement home.
In 1966 the house was designated as 
The House and estate is not open to the public, but to the SE of the House is Pythouse Kitchen Garden Pythouse Kitchen Garden
/ref> with public access to a 3-acre walled garden with parking, restaurant, bar, and an area with plants producing vegetables and fruit for the restaurant.
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 southwest Wiltshire
Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...
, in the west of England. It is about west of the village of Tisbury.
Described as a "fine classical house", Pythouse is set in parkland with a ha-ha
A ha-ha (french: hâ-hâ or ), also known as a sunk fence, blind fence, ditch and fence, deer wall, or foss, is a recessed landscape design element that creates a vertical barrier (particularly on one side) while preserving an uninterrupted view ...
separating the formal house lawn from surrounding parkland on which livestock may graze.
It has an Ionic portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...
, and the front elevation may have inspired the design of Philipps House
Philipps House (until 1916 Dinton House) is an early nineteenth-century Neo-Grecian country house at Dinton, overlooking the Nadder valley about west of Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. The house was built in 1816 by William Wyndham to the de ...
at nearby Dinton, which was begun in 1813 and designed by Sir Jeffry Wyatville
Sir Jeffry Wyatville (3 August 1766 – 18 February 1840) was an English architect and garden designer. Born Jeffry Wyatt into an established dynasty of architects, in 1824 he was allowed by King George IV to change his surname to Wyatville ...
.
Leigh Court in Somerset was later built to the plans used for Pythouse.
History
In about 1225 the land was given to the Pyt family (pronounced ''pit'') by the abbess of Shaftesbury. Until about 1651 the Pyts lived on the estate, until they were forced to sell in order to pay fines levied against them byParliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
following the Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, as they had supported the Royalists in the war. At this time the family name had been changed to Bennett, maybe as homage to the Benedictine Abbey of Shaftesbury.
After the Civil war, the house was bought by the Grove family, friends of the Pyt/Bennett family. In about 1707 the Groves sold it to the Benett family, who were related to the original Bennetts by marriage.
About 1725 the current Pythouse was built, replacing an earlier Elizabethan
The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personifi ...
house.
In 1805 the house was altered by John Benett
John Benett (1773–1852), of Pythouse, Wiltshire, was an English politician.
He was a Member of Parliament, Member (MP) of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Wiltshire (UK Parliament constituency), Wiltshire 1819 to 1832 and for South ...
(1773–1852), the owner and amateur architect, who " Palladianized" it with the help of architect Thomas Hopper. In 1891, rear service wings were added.
20th and 21st centuries
The house remained in the Benett family until the mid-1950s, when death duties forced its sale.
The house was then owned for 46 years by the Country Houses Association, a charity which ran it as a retirement home.
In 1966 the house was designated as Grade II* listed
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 ...
and in 1990 the small chapel in the grounds, built around 1827 by John Benett, received the same designation.
In 2004 Pythouse (together with of land) was sold for £7 million and is once more a private home.
The House and estate is not open to the public, but to the SE of the House is Pythouse Kitchen Garden /ref> with public access to a 3-acre walled garden with parking, restaurant, bar, and an area with plants producing vegetables and fruit for the restaurant.
Bibliography
* * *John Martin Robinson, 2005, "Pythouse, Wiltshire" ''Country Life'' 199:1, 36-41References
External links
* * {{cite book, author=Howard Colvin, title=A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects, 1600-1840, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CSyaO-MqYoAC&pg=PA119, year=2008, publisher=Yale University Press, isbn=978-0-300-12508-5, page=119 - John Benett Country houses in Wiltshire Georgian architecture in Wiltshire Grade II* listed buildings in Wiltshire Grade II* listed houses