Hackwood Park is a large country estate that primarily consists of an early 18th-century ornamental woodland and formal lawn garden and a large detached house. It is within the boundaries of

Winslade Winslade is a hamlet and civil parish in the Basingstoke and Deane district of Hampshire, England. It lies south of Basingstoke, just off the A339 road. The hamlet covers an area of and has an average elevation of . Its nearest railway statio ...

, an overwhelmingly rural parish immediately south of

Basingstoke Basingstoke ( ) is the largest town in the county of Hampshire. It is situated in south-central England and lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon, at the far western edge of The North Downs. It is located north-east of Southa ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

. In its grounds contain 23 separately listed structures including a teahouse pavilion, an ornamental bridge, statue of

George I of Great Britain George I (George Louis; ; 28 May 1660 – 11 June 1727) was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 and ruler of the Electorate of Hanover within the Holy Roman Empire from 23 January 1698 until his death in 1727. He was the first ...

, three dispersed stone

tōrō are a type of traditional East Asian lantern made of stone, wood, or metal. Originating in China, stone lanterns spread to Japan, Korea and Vietnam, though they are most commonly found in both China – extant in Buddhist temples and traditional ...

s, five urns and two fountains, a coach house and stables. Sheep and deer are tended to on grounds behind a variously arc-shaped and straight

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 ...

wall. The park and gardens are Grade I listed on the

Register of Historic Parks and Gardens The Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England provides a listing and classification system for historic parks and gardens similar to that used for listed buildings. The register is managed by Historic England ...

and the main house is

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 ...

on the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, a ...

History

The estate was owned by the manor or rectory of Eastrop until 1223, when it became a noble's deer park in its own right. It was acquired by

William Paulet, 1st Marquess of Winchester William Paulet, 1st Marquess of Winchester (c. 1483/1485 – 10 March 1572), styled Lord St John between 1539 and 1550 and Earl of Wiltshire between 1550 and 1551, was an English Lord High Treasurer, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal, and statesma ...

in the sixteenth century. The bulk of the structure of the house currently standing was built from 1683 to 1687 for a son of the fifth Marquess, Charles Paulet, created Duke of Bolton. It currently has 24 bedrooms and 20 bathrooms. The estate was inherited by his son,

Charles Paulet, 2nd Duke of Bolton Charles Paulet, 2nd Duke of Bolton (1661 – 21 January 1722) was Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Member of Parliament for Hampshire and a supporter of William III of Orange. Life He was the son of Charles Paulet, 1st Duke of Bolton, and Mary S ...

in 1699, followed by his grandson, Charles Powlett, 3rd Duke of Bolton in 1772. The estate was painted by

Paul Sandby Paul Sandby (1731 – 7 November 1809) was an English map-maker turned landscape painter in watercolours, who, along with his older brother Thomas, became one of the founding members of the Royal Academy in 1768. Life and work Sandby was ...

in 1764.

Lord Curzon George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, (11 January 1859 – 20 March 1925), styled Lord Curzon of Kedleston between 1898 and 1911 and then Earl Curzon of Kedleston between 1911 and 1921, was a British Conservative statesman ...

was a tenant from 1906 until his death in 1925, and it was he who had restored the ancient open-air cockpit, “a hollow, grass-sown cup with sloping bank surrounded by a row of yews and with a flight of steps leading down to the floor of the arena.” uote from “The Life of Lord Curzon,” volume 3, by Ronaldshay, 1928 The estate was sold in 1936 to

William Berry, 1st Viscount Camrose William Ewart Berry, 1st Viscount Camrose DL (23 June 1879 – 15 June 1954) was a British peer and newspaper publisher. Life and career Berry was born in Merthyr Tydfil in Wales, the second of three sons of Mary Ann (Rowe) and John Mathias Ber ...

. During

World War II 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 ...

it served as a psychiatric hospital for the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also res ...

. When Lord Camrose died in 1954 the property was inherited by his son,

Seymour Berry, 2nd Viscount Camrose John Seymour Berry, 2nd Viscount Camrose (12 July 1909 – 15 February 1995) was a British nobleman, politician, and newspaper proprietor. Early life Berry was born in Surrey on 12 July 1909, the eldest son of William Berry, later first Viscoun ...

, who remained its owner until his death in 1995. His wife, Lady Camrose, the mother of

Aga Khan IV Shāh Karim al-Husayni (born 13 December 1936), known by the religious title Mawlānā Hazar Imam by his Ismaili followers and elsewhere as Aga Khan IV, is the 49th and current Imam of Nizari Ismailis, a denomination within Shia Islam. He ha ...

, lived there until her death in 1997. The property was put on the market in 2016 for offers in the region of £65 million since which the asking price is available on application.

Gardens

The grounds, outside of the focal lawn known as Spring Wood, were designed by

Charles Bridgeman Charles Bridgeman (1690–1738) was an English garden designer who helped pioneer the naturalistic landscape style. Although he was a key figure in the transition of English garden design from the Anglo-Dutch formality of patterned parterres an ...

, with additional buildings designed by

James Gibbs James Gibbs (23 December 1682 – 5 August 1754) was one of Britain's most influential architects. Born in Aberdeen, he trained as an architect in Rome, and practised mainly in England. He is an important figure whose work spanned the transi ...

. Spring Wood is of academic interest as may be the sole surviving garden wood laid out in the French style. It has eight sectors divided by walkways, many of which the listed features such as the temple, a fountain and amphitheatre. In the spring, the woodland is colour-filled with bulbs and wild flowers.

References

{{Reflist 1687 establishments in England Basingstoke and Deane Country houses in Hampshire Grade I listed parks and gardens in Hampshire Grade II listed buildings in Hampshire Grade II* listed buildings in Hampshire Grade II* listed houses Houses completed in 1687

History

Gardens

See also

References