Sopwell House is a historic Georgian country house, now a luxury 128 bedroom hotel, country club & spa located south of

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It gained fame as the gathering place for the

England national football team The England national football team has represented England in international Association football, football since the first international match in 1872. It is controlled by The Football Association (FA), the governing body for football in Engl ...

before international football events. It has also hosted other club and international football teams. The facilities include a conference & banqueting centre, 2 restaurants, 2 bars, gym, dance studio, and spa .

History

Though mention of buildings on the site goes back to 1604, it was not developed as a country house until the

master mason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

Edward Strong built his home here in the 18th century. Strong's career included work on

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

and

Blenheim Palace Blenheim Palace (pronounced ) is a country house in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Dukes of Marlborough and the only non-royal, non- episcopal country house in England to hold the title of palace. The palace, on ...

. During the mid-19th century Sopwell House known then as New Barnes (or New Barns) was the seat of the philanthropist Mrs. Isabella Worley. Amongst the many donations to St Albans from this benefactor were Christ Church on Verulam Road and the Wooden Room in Lattimore Road. The house was extended in Victorian times and in 1900 was leased to

Prince Louis of Battenberg Admiral of the Fleet Louis Alexander Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford Haven, (24 May 185411 September 1921), formerly Prince Louis Alexander of Battenberg, was a British naval officer and German prince related by marriage to the British ...

, an

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

who made it his family home. His 4 children grew up here, Alice Mountbatten,

Louise Mountbatten Louise Alexandra Marie Irene Mountbatten (born Princess Louise of Battenberg; 13 July 1889 – 7 March 1965) was Queen of Sweden from 29 October 1950 until her death in 1965 as the wife of King Gustaf VI Adolf. Born a princess of the German ...

, George Mountbatten and

Louis Mountbatten Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (25 June 1900 – 27 August 1979) was a British naval officer, colonial administrator and close relative of the British royal family. Mountbatten, who was of German ...

. They all had notable lives. The young Louis, like his father, had a distinguished Royal Navy career and was to become the last British

Viceroy of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (25 June 1900 – 27 August 1979) was a British naval officer, colonial administrator and close relative of the British royal family. Mountbatten, who was of German ...

. Alice married Prince Andrew of Greece and their son is

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from El ...

. The proposal of marriage was made in the grounds of the house. Louise Mountbatten went on to marry and become

Queen of Sweden The monarchy of Sweden is the monarchical head of state of Sweden,See the #IOG, Instrument of Government, Chapter 1, Article 5. which is a constitutional monarchy, constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system.Parliamentary ...

. The home passed to the Verulam family after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and was sold to become a hotel in 1969.

Hotel

The hotel was bought by a family in 1986 and is still run as a family business today. It is part of the AB Hotels group consisting of 2 hotels in the South East of England (Sopwell House and Five Lakes Resort.

Other uses of the name 'Sopwell'

It should not be confused with an earlier 16th century Sopwell House, the ruins of which remain today along Cottonmill Lane near the centre of St Albans. This was built on the site of

Sopwell Priory Sopwell Priory (also known as Sopwell Nunnery) was a Benedictine nunnery founded around 1140 on the site of an ancient hermitage in Sopwell, Hertfordshire, England. After the Dissolution, the priory was torn down and a Tudor manor house construct ...

following the dissolution of the monasteries. For the Georgian country house Sopwell Hall in North Tipperary, Ireland see

Sopwell, North Tipperary Sopwell (''Coill na Lathach'' in Irish) is a townland in the historical Barony of Ormond Lower, County Tipperary, Ireland. Location Sopwell is located east of the N52 road between Ballingarry, North Tipperary and Borrisokane. Places of note Sopw ...

External links

The Sopwell House Hotel website
{{coord , 51, 44, 06, N, 0, 19, 37, W, display=title Hotels in Hertfordshire Country houses in Hertfordshire Buildings and structures in St Albans Grade II listed buildings in Hertfordshire Country house hotels Hotel spas