Compton Park House (or Compton House) is a Grade I listed

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

Compton Chamberlayne Compton Chamberlayne is a small village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the River Nadder, Nadder Valley in south Wiltshire, England, about west of Salisbury. The Nadder forms the northern boundary of the parish; to the south are ...

, Wiltshire, England, about east of Salisbury.

History

Compton Park House was the seat of the Penruddocke (or Penruddock) family from the mid-16th century until 1930. Much of their initial influence was owed to their patrons, the Earls of Pembroke of nearby

Wilton Abbey Wilton Abbey was a Benedictine convent in Wiltshire, England, three miles from Salisbury, probably on the site now occupied by Wilton House. It was active from the early tenth century until 1539. History Foundation Wilton Abbey is first reco ...

. They were a notable Royalist family, with Colonel

John Penruddock Colonel John Penruddock (or Penruddocke, 1619–1655), of Compton Chamberlayne, was an English Cavalier during the English Civil War and the English Interregnum. He is remembered as the leader of the Penruddock uprising in 1655. The Sealed Kno ...

, an owner of the house, being the namesake for the failed 1655

Penruddock uprising The Penruddock Uprising was a Royalist revolt launched on 11 March 1655, intending to restore Charles II to the throne of England. It was led by John Penruddock, a Wiltshire landowner who fought for Charles I in the First English Civil War; ...

against

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

. For this he was tried and executed at

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

on 16 May 1655. Several other members of the family were local

Members 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 ...

or High Sheriffs of Wiltshire.

Architecture

The present house may occupy the site of a medieval

; Pevsner saw fragments of medieval work. It was refitted internally by Sir Edward Penruddocke in the late 17th century and rebuilt externally in 1780 by Charles Penruddocke. The drawing room from about 1700 has panelling and rich decoration in Grinling Gibbons style, with a plaster ceiling from the same period. In the dining room, part of the 1780 additions, is a plaster ceiling in

Adam style The Adam style (or Adamesque and "Style of the Brothers Adam") is an 18th-century neoclassical style of interior design and architecture, as practised by Scottish architect William Adam and his sons, of whom Robert (1728–1792) and James (173 ...

. The stable block dates from the late 18th century. The house has been a Grade I listed building since 1960.

Compton Park

The house is set in parkland, once a medieval deer park, overlooking a lake formed by damming a stream running north into the River Nadder. The park contains a folly in the form of a

summer house A summer house or summerhouse has traditionally referred to a building or shelter used for relaxation in warm weather. This would often take the form of a small, roofed building on the grounds of a larger one, but could also be built in a garden ...

at .

Notable occupants

* Sir George Penruddock (died 1581), High Sheriff of Wiltshire 1561–2; MP for Salisbury in 1553, Wiltshire in 1558 and 1572, and Downton in 1571 *Sir Edward Penruddock (died 1614), son of Sir George; High Sheriff of Wiltshire 1598–9; MP for Weymouth in 1584 and Wilton in 1586 *Sir Robert Penruddock (died 1615), also son of Sir George; MP for Wilton in 1589 and 1597, and Ludgershall in 1601 *

(died 1601), MP for Wilton and

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

*Sir John Penruddocke (died 1648), High Sheriff in 1643 *Colonel

(1619–1655), a

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

who took part in the failed 1655

against

, was tried and executed at Exeter on 16 May 1655. *

Thomas Penruddocke Thomas Penruddocke DL (about 1648 – before 1695), of Compton Chamberlayne was a Wiltshire landowner and politician, briefly member of parliament for Wilton in 1679 (the 'Habeas Corpus Parliament') and again in 1689 (the famous Convention Pa ...

(died 1698), MP for Wilton in 1679 and 1689, Deputy Lieutenant for Wiltshire in 1683 * Charles Penruddocke (1743–1788), High Sheriff of Wiltshire in 1750–1, MP for Wiltshire from 1770 to 1788 *

John Hungerford Penruddocke John Hungerford Penruddocke (23 January 1770 – 25 December 1841) was a Tory Party, Tory politician in the United Kingdom. Family Penruddocke was the eldest son of Charles Penruddocke (died 1788) of Compton Chamberlayne, Wiltshire, and Anne ...

(1770–1841), High Sheriff, MP for Wilton 1821 to 1837 *Charles Penruddocke (died 1899), High Sheriff in 1861–2 *Charles Penruddocke (died 1929), son of Charles (d. 1899), High Sheriff in 1913–4

References

{{Reflist Country houses in Wiltshire Grade I listed buildings in Wiltshire Grade I listed houses