Stagenhoe is a

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 ...

stately home and surrounding gardens located in the village of

St Paul's Walden St Paul's Walden is a village about south of Hitchin in Hertfordshire, England. The civil parish of St Paul's Walden also includes the village of Whitwell and the hamlet of Bendish. At the 2011 Census the population of the civil parish was 1,29 ...

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 ...

. It is approximately south of

Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town and unparished area in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 35,842. History Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce peopl ...

. It was the family seat of the

Earl of Caithness Earl of Caithness is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland, and it has a very complex history. Its first grant, in the modern sense as to have been counted in strict lists of peerages, is now generally held to have ...

. Socialite

Lady Euphemia Sinclair Lady Euphemia Meredith Sinclair (22 June 1915 – 2005) was a British aristocrat and socialite. She was usually known by her middle name: Meredith. She was the daughter of Rev. The Hon. Charles Augustus Sinclair, son of the 16th Earl of Caithnes ...

spent her childhood there and became a friend of

Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was the l ...

, whose family were neighbours. It is one of two large manors with fine grounds in the village, the other being the historic home of the

Bowes-Lyon The Bowes-Lyon family descends from George Bowes of Gibside and Streatlam Castle ''(1701–1760)'', a County Durham landowner and politician, through John Bowes, 9th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, chief of the Clan Lyon. Following the marriage ...

family,

St Paul's Walden Bury St. Paul's Walden Bury is an English country house and surrounding gardens in the village of St Paul's Walden in Hertfordshire. The house is a Grade II* listed, and the gardens Grade I. A home of the Bowes-Lyon family, it is possibly the site of ...

History

Records about the manor of Stagenhoe date back to before the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...

, when it was one 'hide' (approximately 120 acres). In 1595 (37th Eliz.), the manor of Stagenhoe was conveyed to William Hale, of King's Walden. His seventh son and eleventh child, John Hale, was knighted in 1660, built Stagenhoe Manor House about that time, was sheriff of the county in 1663, and died in 1672. Dame Elizabeth was the wife of this John Hale, and died one year after him. They were the last of the Hales of Stagenhoe; their daughter, Rose, who died 1695, carried the property to Sir John Austen, of Hall Place, Bexley, he died 1689. His son, Sir Robert Austen (died 1706) sold it to the Heyshams. The house of 1650 or 1660 was burnt in 1737, and a new house was built by Mr. G. T. Heysham, about 1740. In 1703, the manor and surrounding park was sold to Robert Heynsham, a

Member of parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

and it remained within his family until 1833. In about 1869, it was sold to another parliamentarian

James Sinclair, 14th Earl of Caithness James Sinclair, 14th Earl of Caithness, (16 August 1821 – 28 March 1881), styled Lord Berriedale from 1823 to 1855, was a Scotland, Scottish Liberal Party (UK), Liberal politician, scientist and inventor. Life Caithness was the son of Alexand ...

The House

The current manor was built in the 18th century, after a fire in about 1737. It has many 19th-century and later additions, including extensions to the rear and a porch on the west side. The main feature is the stuccoed south facade. The property was listed in 1968. Having passed out of private hands, the house is much altered internally. It is now used as a

Sue Ryder Care Sue Ryder is a British palliative, neurological and bereavement support charity based in the United Kingdom. Formed as The Sue Ryder Foundation in 1953 by World War II Special Operations Executive volunteer Sue Ryder, the organisation provides c ...

home. The grounds contain a registered campsite with five caravan pitches.

References

External links

Sue Ryder Care - Stagenhoe

{{coord , 51, 53, 27, N, 0, 16, 45, W, display=title Grade II listed buildings in Hertfordshire Grade II listed houses Houses in Hertfordshire