St John's Lodge is a Grade II* heritage-listed private residence located in

Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the London Borough of Camden, Borough of Camden (and historical ...

, in the

City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a London borough with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in Greater London, England. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It contains a large par ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England. Since 1994 it has been owned by the royal family of Brunei Darussalam and is the London home of Prince Jefri Bolkiah of Brunei. St John's Lodge is located on the Inner Circle of Regent's Park, which until 1965 was in the

Metropolitan Borough of St Marylebone The Metropolitan Borough of St Marylebone was a metropolitan borough of the County of London from 1900 to 1965. It was based directly on the previously existing civil parish of St Marylebone, Middlesex, which was incorporated into the Metropoli ...

and is now part of the

History

St John's Lodge is the first villa to be built in Regent's Park in 1812 and was designed for

Charles Augustus Tulk Charles Augustus Tulk (1786–1849) was an English Swedenborgian and politician. Life The eldest son of John Augustus Tulk, he was born at Richmond, Surrey, on 2 June 1786. His father, a man of independent fortune, was an original member of the ...

by architect John Raffield. The Royal Parks service described St John's Lodge and

The Holme The Holme (Saxon: "river island") is a mansion located on Inner Circle by Regent's Park in the City of Westminster, London, England. It was designed by Decimus Burton, as a residence for the Burton family, and built in 1818, by the company of Ja ...

as the only two villas remaining from John Nash's original conception of Regent's Park, which would have included a royal palace. Other owners of the lodge have included Lord Wellesley, Sir

Isaac Goldsmid Sir Isaac Lyon Goldsmid, 1st Baronet (13 January 1778 – 27 April 1859) was a financier and one of the leading figures in the Jewish emancipation in the United Kingdom, who became the first British Jew to receive a hereditary title. Biography ...

, and

John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute John Patrick Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute, (12 September 1847 – 9 October 1900) was a Scottish landed aristocrat, industrial magnate, antiquarian, scholar, philanthropist, and architectural patron. When Bute succeeded to the marq ...

. The residence was occupied by the University of London's Institute of Archaeology from 1937 to 1959, and by the history and classics departments of Bedford College from 1959 to 1983. The adjoining gardens have been open to the public since 1928. St John's Lodge was bought in 1987 by the development company Messila House for 9 million who doubled it in size to before being sold in 1994 to the royal family of Brunei Darussalam for 40 million, making it the most expensive private house in the UK.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint John's Lodge, London Houses in the City of Westminster Regent's Park Grade II* listed houses Grade II* listed buildings in the City of Westminster Regency architecture in Westminster Houses completed in 1812 Buildings and structures in Regent's Park

History

See also

References

Bibliography