Parnham House
Parnham House in 2011
TypeStately home
Coordinates50°47′56″N 2°44′34″W / 50.7987858°N 2.742879°W / 50.7987858; -2.742879
Built1552 (original)
1810 (renovation)
ArchitectJohn Nash
Listed Building – Grade I
Official nameParnham House
Designated12 June 1953
Reference no.1221178
Parnham House is located in Dorset
Parnham House
Location of Parnham House in Dorset

Parnham House is a sixteenth-century Grade I listed house located about 1 mile (1.6 km) from Beaminster in Dorset, England.[1] Historic England describes the house as "exceptionally important".[2] In April 2017 the house was badly damaged by fire.[3]

History

The drive leading up to Parnham House.

The original house on the site was built in the 1400s[4] and completely rebuilt in 1552 for Robert Strode and his wife, Elizabeth Gerad.[5] It is one of Dorset's oldest stately homes, and the 16th-century hall and kitchen wing remained until 2017.[6] The house covers an area of 37,000 square feet (0.85 acres).[7] The house belonged to the Strodes for more than 200 years.[8] During the English Civil War Sir John Strode's widow, Lady Ann Strode, mother of junior Lord John Strode, was killed while trying to protect the house from Roundheads under the authority of Thomas Fairfax.[9][10] In 1810 the house was remodelled by John Nash. His renovations included winding staircases and stone-mullioned windows.[8][9]

After his death in the Royal Flying Corps during the 1915 Second Battle of Ypres William Barnard Rhodes-Moorhouse was buried in the grounds of Parnham House, the house he and his wife had bought just a few years previously to be their family home.[11] Rhodes-Moorhouse was the first airman to receive the Victoria Cross.[12][13][14] His son, William Henry Rhodes-Moorhouse, a pilot in the Royal Air Force, was killed in the Battle of Britain and is buried near his father[15][16]

In the 1920s the house was used as a country club and it was used by the American army during the Second World War.[5][10]

After the War the house was used as a country club and nursing home.[8] The house was purchased by John Makepeace for £90,000 in 1976,[17] and he used it for his School for Craftsmanship in Wood, which focused on teaching woodworking and business skills.[2][18] Fred Baier was a teacher at the school.[18] The grounds at the southern end of the house were landscaped in 1978 under a job creation scheme, to mark a visit to the school by the Duke of Edinburgh.[19] In 2001 Makepeace sold the house to an Austrian hedge fund manager.[2][8][5][6][10]

The house became a Grade I listed building on the National Heritage List for England in 1953.[20] Its gardens were landscaped by Inigo Thomas,[1] and were Grade II* listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens in 1986.[21] In addition to the main house, the lodge, ice house, and kitchen garden walls are Grade II listed,[22][23][24] and the front courtyard, south terrace walls and gazebos, and stable block are listed Grade II*.[25][26] The house has been used as the venue for the annual Eat Dorset Food Fair.[5][27]

In April 2017 the house was badly damaged by fire, the cause of which is still undetermined. The entire interior and contents were lost.[2][9][8][5] The house's owner, Michael Treichl, was arrested on suspicion of arson. In June 2017 Treichl was found dead in Switzerland, and the police investigation was concluded in October 2017 with no other suspects.[28] In 2018 Historic England said that the house was "at risk of collapse".[29] In 2018 the house was put up for sale for £3 million.[30] The house was sold in 2020 [7][31] for £2.5 million to James Perkins to be developed as "a base for 'adventure' stays and visits".[32] In September 2021, the house was given an events licence. The money raised was expected to be used towards the house's renovation, which is estimated to cost around £40 million.[33] On 5 August 2022, plans for the site's restoration were approved by authorities.[34]

In popular culture

Parnham House was used for an episode of The Goodies which features a giant version of the character Dougal from The Magic Roundabout.[5][35]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Great Houses & Manors of Dorsetshire". Dorsetshire. Archived from the original on 27 December 2016. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d "Police investigating after fire ravages Grade I-listed Dorset mansion". The Guardian. 15 April 2017. Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  3. ^ "Parnham House fire: Owner dies months after suspected arson attack". BBC News. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  4. ^ "An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Dorset, Volume 1, West". Her Majesty's Stationery Office. 1952. pp. 17–27. Archived from the original on 2 September 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017 – via British History Online.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Da Silva, Chantal (15 April 2017). "16th century stately home in Dorset gutted by 'suspicious' fire". The Independent. Archived from the original on 16 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  6. ^ a b "Stately home gutted by fire". ITV. 15 April 2017. Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  7. ^ a b Wharton, Jane (17 March 2020). "Stately home destroyed in fire has finally been bought". Metro. Archived from the original on 14 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  8. ^ a b c d e Boult, Adam; Parker, Fiona (15 April 2017). "Huge fire at Grade I listed stately home in Dorset leaves 'just the walls standing'". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  9. ^ a b c "Parnham House in Beaminster ravaged by 'suspicious' fire". BBC News. 15 April 2017. Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  10. ^ a b c Moseley, Sophia (2009). "Parnham House, a family home again". Dorset Life. Archived from the original on 16 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  11. ^ latitude and longitude of gravesite: 50°48'2.11"N 2°44'58.59"W
  12. ^ O'Connor, Michael (23 December 2008). Airfields and Airmen: Ypres: Ypres. Pen and Sword Books. pp. 91–92. ISBN 9780850527537. Archived from the original on 16 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  13. ^ "CWGC entry". Archived from the original on 12 August 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  14. ^ "Rhodes-Moorhouse". The Times. 6 May 1915. p. 27. Archived from the original on 16 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ " F/Lt. W H Rhodes-Moorhouse," in The Battle of Britain Archive, http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Rhodes-Moorhouse.htm Archived 13 February 2019 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ latitude and longitude: 50°48'2.11"N 2°44'58.59"W
  17. ^ "Architecture branches out". The Guardian. 27 January 1989. p. 30. Archived from the original on 28 February 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ a b "Turning the tables". The Guardian. 23 February 1980. p. 15. Archived from the original on 28 February 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ Gant, Roland (1980). Dorset Villages. Robert Hale Ltd. p. 128. ISBN 0-7091-8135-3.
  20. ^ Historic England, "Parnham House (1221178)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 15 April 2017
  21. ^ Historic England, "Parnham House (1000722)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 15 April 2017
  22. ^ Historic England, "Ice House, 100 yards, north north west of Parnham House (1221184)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 15 April 2017
  23. ^ Historic England, "The Lodge, 300 meters south east of Parnham House (1221182)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 15 April 2017
  24. ^ Historic England, "Kitchen garden walls north of Parnham House (1290612)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 15 April 2017
  25. ^ Historic England, "Front courtyard and south terrace walls and gazebos, at Parnham (1221181)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 15 April 2017
  26. ^ Historic England, "Stable block north of Parnham House (workshops and offices) (1221179)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 15 April 2017
  27. ^ "Eat Dorset Food Fair". Eat Dorset Food Fair. Archived from the original on 17 May 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  28. ^ "Parnham House fire: Police end arson investigation". BBC News. 3 October 2017. Archived from the original on 14 December 2017. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  29. ^ "Parnham House 'at risk of collapse' after arson". BBC News. 23 May 2018. Archived from the original on 7 October 2018. Retrieved 21 August 2018.
  30. ^ "Parnham House goes on the market after devastating fire (and it will cost you £3m)". Dorset Echo. 13 September 2018. Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  31. ^ "Parnham House: Arson attack stately home sold to mystery buyer". BBC News. 12 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  32. ^ "Parnham House: 'Adventure stays' plan for arson attack estate". BBC News. 26 September 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  33. ^ "Parnham House: Arson-hit stately home wins events licence". BBC News. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  34. ^ "Parnham House: Masterplan plea for stately home restoration". BBC News. 5 August 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  35. ^ "Dorset in the movies". BBC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
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