Thursley Lodge at Witley Park - geograph

Witley Park, formerly known as Lea Park, is an estate dating from the 19th-century between

Godalming Godalming is a market town and civil parish in southwest Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, at the confluence of the Rivers Wey and Ock. The civil parish covers and includes the settleme ...

and

Haslemere The town of Haslemere () and the villages of Shottermill and Grayswood are in south west Surrey, England, around south west of London. Together with the settlements of Hindhead and Beacon Hill, they comprise the civil parish of Haslemere i ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

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 ...

. Its landscaped grounds include three artificial lakes, one of which conceals an underwater conservatory and smoking room. Neptune at Witley park

In 1890, the swindler

Whitaker Wright James Whitaker Wright (9 February 1846 – 26 January 1904) was a company promoter and swindler, who committed suicide at the Royal Courts of Justice in London immediately following his conviction for fraud. Early life The eldest of five childr ...

purchased Lea Park, and the adjacent South Park Farm, from the

Earl of Derby Earl of Derby ( ) is a title in the Peerage of England. The title was first adopted by Robert de Ferrers, 1st Earl of Derby, under a creation of 1139. It continued with the Ferrers family until the 6th Earl forfeited his property toward the end ...

. The title to the estate included the titular

Lordship of the Manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...

and control of

Hindhead Hindhead is a village in Surrey, England. It is the highest village in Surrey, with buildings at between 185 and 253 metres above sea level. It is best known as the location of the Devil's Punch Bowl, a beauty spot and site of special scientific ...

Common and the

Devil's Punch Bowl The Devil's Punch Bowl is a visitor attraction and biological Site of Special Scientific Interest situated just to the east of the village of Hindhead in the England, English county of Surrey. It is part of the Wealden Heaths Phase II Special P ...

. He then developed it as part of an extensive set of real estate holdings, approximately , that he purchased in the Haslemere and

area. Wright developed the pre-existing house into a 32-bedroom mansion adjacent to one of three artificial lakes, and within the landscaped grounds. Underneath an adjacent lake Wright built an underwater conservatory and smoking room, with aquarium windows, upon which a statue of Neptune stands, giving the appearance it is floating on the water. After Wright committed suicide upon conviction for fraud, his properties were auctioned off. Much of Hindhead Common,

Witley Common Witley Common is an area of woodland and heath, close to Witley, Surrey, in the United Kingdom. It is part of a much larger Site of Special Scientific Interest. The land has been occupied since the Bronze Age — it features ancient burial ...

and Thursley Common was passed on to the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

. The remnants of Lea Park were sold to

William Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie William James Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie, KP, PC, PC (Ire) (31 May 1847 – 7 June 1924) was a leading British shipbuilder and businessman. He was chairman of Harland and Wolff, shipbuilders, between 1895 and 1924, and also served as Lor ...

, who was involved in the building of RMS ''Titanic''. The letter P with a crown above can be seen on metal gates in the estate and previously-owned lands. The 32-bedroom mansion burned down in 1952. The estate was renamed Witley Park by the Leigh family. Witley Park House, a

Modern movement Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

home designed by

Patrick Gwynne (Alban) Patrick Gwynne (1913 – 2003) was a British modernist architect with Welsh roots, best known for designing and building The Homewood, which he left to the National Trust in 2003. Early life and work Gwynne was born in Portchester, Hamps ...

, was built elsewhere on the estate in 1961. The landscaped park remained. In 1982 the estate, now comprising some 1,300 acres, was purchased by Sir Raymond and Lady Brown. In 2002 the Brown family sold the 450 acres of walled-off Parkland, Gate Lodges and Cottages, retaining Witley Park Farm to the south. Permission for a new house on the site of the old mansion was granted around 2004 and the house is now completed.

References

External links

Article on Witley Park on bbc.co.uk

Atlas Obscura entry

Godalming Museum entry
{{Waverley Country houses in Surrey Gardens in Surrey English gardens in English Landscape Garden style