Ston Easton Park
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Ston Easton Park is an
English country house An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...
built in the 18th century. It lies near the village of
Ston Easton Ston () is a settlement and a municipality in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia, located at the south of isthmus of the Pelješac peninsula. History Because of its geopolitical and strategic position, Ston has had a rich history since ant ...
,
Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...
. It is a Grade I
listed building 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 ...
and the grounds are listed Grade II 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 ...
. The current house was built around 1750 to 1760 on the site of a Tudor building. The architect may have been
Thomas Paty Thomas Paty (c.1713 – 4 May 1789) was a British surveyor, architect and mason working mainly in Bristol. He worked with his sons John Paty and William Paty. Career Thomas Paty came from a family of builders but little is known of his orig ...
. It was occupied by the descendants of the commissioning owner, John Hippisley-Coxe, until 1956. Since then owners including
William Rees-Mogg William Rees-Mogg, Baron Rees-Mogg (14 July 192829 December 2012) was a British newspaper journalist who was Editor of ''The Times'' from 1967 to 1981. In the late 1970s, he served as High Sheriff of Somerset, and in the 1980s was Chairman of th ...
and Peter Smedley have been involved in restoring the house, which is now in use as a private house for events. The two-storey house has a symmetrical facade with projecting wings either side of the central doorway with a Tuscan
portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...
. The interior of the stone house is decorated with extensive plaster mouldings to ceilings and fireplaces. The grounds and gardens were laid out by
Humphry Repton Humphry Repton (21 April 1752 – 24 March 1818) was the last great English landscape designer of the eighteenth century, often regarded as the successor to Capability Brown; he also sowed the seeds of the more intricate and eclectic styles of ...
, but have since been reduced in size.


History

The Hippisley family had been
lords 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 seigno ...
of
Ston Easton Ston () is a settlement and a municipality in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia, located at the south of isthmus of the Pelješac peninsula. History Because of its geopolitical and strategic position, Ston has had a rich history since ant ...
and surrounding areas since the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the mid-16th century. They acquired several local manors, some in association with William Rosewell. Preston Hippisley bequeathed the manor of Ston Easton to his daughter who married John Coxe of
Leigh, Wiltshire Leigh is a village and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, southeast of Ashton Keynes and west of Cricklade. It is on the edge of the Cotswold Water Park and near to the county border with Gloucestershire. The parish includes the hamlet o ...
, 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 ...
for
Milborne Port Milborne Port is a village, electoral ward and civil parish in Somerset, England, east of Sherborne, and in the South Somerset district. It has a population of 2,802. The parish includes the hamlets of Milborne Wick and Kingsbury Regis. The vill ...
. Her son John Hippisley-Coxe married an heiress, Mary Northliegh of Peamore in the parish of
Exminster Exminster is a village situated on the southern edge of the City of Exeter on the western side of the Exeter ship canal and River Exe in the county of Devon, England. It is around south of the centre of Exeter, and has a population of 3,084 (ce ...
in Devon, and with his increased wealth commenced the building of the present mansion. They moved from the old
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 ...
next to the parish church of St Mary The Virgin, Ston Easton to an ancient gabled Tudor house and started to convert it into a
Palladian Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...
mansion with landscaped parkland and gardens. The identity of the architect is not known, and although the design is reminiscent of the work of
William Kent William Kent (c. 1685 – 12 April 1748) was an English architect, landscape architect, painter and furniture designer of the early 18th century. He began his career as a painter, and became Principal Painter in Ordinary or court painter, but ...
modern research tends to suggest
Thomas Paty Thomas Paty (c.1713 – 4 May 1789) was a British surveyor, architect and mason working mainly in Bristol. He worked with his sons John Paty and William Paty. Career Thomas Paty came from a family of builders but little is known of his orig ...
. It is also not known exactly when the house was built. John Hippisley-Coxe died in 1769 and his sons
Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...
and
Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
further embellished the house and grounds. Henry Hippisley-Coxe employed
Humphry Repton Humphry Repton (21 April 1752 – 24 March 1818) was the last great English landscape designer of the eighteenth century, often regarded as the successor to Capability Brown; he also sowed the seeds of the more intricate and eclectic styles of ...
to landscape the park, including driveways and a viaduct similar to his plans for
Endsleigh Cottage Endsleigh Cottage (now "Endsleigh House") is a country house near Milton Abbot, about 6 miles NW of Tavistock, Devon in England. It is a Grade I listed building. The gardens are Grade I listed in the National Register of Historic Parks and Garde ...
in Devon, although only part of this plan was actually created. Henry's widow Elizabeth Anne Horner, of
Mells Manor Mells Manor at Mells, Somerset, Mells, Somerset, England, was built in the 16th century for Edward Horner, altered in the 17th century, partially demolished around 1780, and restored by Sir Edwin Lutyens in the 20th century. The house, along with ...
, and her second husband
Sir John Hippisley, 1st Baronet Sir John Coxe Hippisley, 1st Baronet (c. February 1746 – 3 May 1825), was a British diplomat and politician who pursued an 'unflagging, though wholly unsuccessful, quest for office' which led King George III of Great Britain to describe him as ...
, further developed the grounds in about 1814. Elizabeth lived in the house until her death in 1843. The house was then left to Henry Hippisley of
Lambourn Lambourn is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. It lies just north of the M4 Motorway between Swindon and Newbury, and borders Wiltshire to the west and Oxfordshire to the north. After Newmarket it is the largest centre of ra ...
, Henry's nephew, whose descendants lived there until the mid-20th century. John Preston Hippisley inherited the house in 1956 on the death of his father Richard John Bayntun Hippisley and in order to settle the liability for
inheritance tax An inheritance tax is a tax paid by a person who inherits money or property of a person who has died, whereas an estate tax is a levy on the estate (money and property) of a person who has died. International tax law distinguishes between an es ...
he sold Ston Easton. Subsequently, maintenance of the building was poor and the fabric decayed. In 1958 a
Preservation Order Preservation may refer to: Heritage and conservation * Preservation (library and archival science), activities aimed at prolonging the life of a record while making as few changes as possible * ''Preservation'' (magazine), published by the Nat ...
was obtained to stop the building being demolished and adding to the growing trend of
destruction of country houses in 20th-century Britain The destruction of country houses in 20th-century Britain was the result of a change in social conditions: many country houses of varying architectural merit were demolished by their owners. Collectively termed by several authors "the lost hous ...
. Restoration was undertaken by
William Rees-Mogg William Rees-Mogg, Baron Rees-Mogg (14 July 192829 December 2012) was a British newspaper journalist who was Editor of ''The Times'' from 1967 to 1981. In the late 1970s, he served as High Sheriff of Somerset, and in the 1980s was Chairman of th ...
who bought the building in 1964. Hotelier Peter Lawrence Smedley bought it from Rees-Mogg in February 1978 and carried out further restoration and converted it into a hotel. The house was sold again in 2001 to
Von Essen Hotels Andrew Davis (born 12 February 1964) is a British businessman who founded the von Essen Group, which included Von Essen Hotels, PremiAir and the London Heliport. Early life and career Davis went to St Bede's Comprehensive School. Reigate Gramm ...
. In June 2020, as a result of the economic disruption caused by the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, the hotel went into administration. The building reverted to the existing owners, who now rent it out for events and weddings. In 2022 Ston Easton Park was on the market for £6 million.


Architecture

The two-storey house has a symmetrical facade with projecting wings either side of the central doorway with a Tuscan
portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...
. The
ashlar Ashlar () is finely dressed (cut, worked) stone, either an individual stone that has been worked until squared, or a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, generally rectangular cuboid, mentioned by Vitruv ...
is dressed with plaster and stone to highlight architectural features. The rear of the building is plainer than the front and is without the plaster dressing. The interior is decorated with plaster mouldings and engravings on the ceilings and fireplaces. The entrance hall leads via
mahogany Mahogany is a straight-grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Unive ...
doors to the by saloon. Further highly decorated rooms include the dining room and library. An octagonal bathroom contains a plunge bath used by Lady Hippisley which is believed to have been designed by Sir
John Soane Sir John Soane (; né Soan; 10 September 1753 – 20 January 1837) was an English architect who specialised in the Neoclassical architecture, Neo-Classical style. The son of a bricklayer, he rose to the top of his profession, becoming professo ...
or one of his pupils such as
George Allen Underwood George Allen Underwood (1793 – 1 November 1829, Bath) was an architect in Cheltenham. He was a pupil of Sir John Soane from 1807 to 1815 and then started his own practice in Cheltenham. He was Surveyor for Somerset, Dorset and the Dean an ...
. Ston Easton has gardens and landscaped grounds, laid out by
Humphry Repton Humphry Repton (21 April 1752 – 24 March 1818) was the last great English landscape designer of the eighteenth century, often regarded as the successor to Capability Brown; he also sowed the seeds of the more intricate and eclectic styles of ...
, of around and the remains of a park of between and . They include terraces and a pleasure ground in a steep sided valley. The grounds are listed Grade II 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 ...
. Some of the earlier parkland is now used for agriculture and the Farrington Golf and Country Club. The single-storey stone stables, which are to the west of the main house, were built around 1769. They are in a similar architectural style to the house and include three carriage openings.


References


Bibliography

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Further reading

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External links

*{{Official, http://www.stoneaston.co.uk Country houses in Somerset Gardens by Humphry Repton Grade I listed buildings in Mendip District Grade I listed houses in Somerset Grade II listed parks and gardens in Somerset Hotels in Somerset Houses completed in the 18th century Country house hotels