FROM Chichester, the road, lying still west, passes in view of the Earl of Scarbrough’s fine seat at Stansted, a house, seeming to be a retreat, being surrounded with thick woods, thro’ which there are the most pleasant, agreeable, vistas cut, that are to be seen anywhere in England… [those that] sit in the dining room of the house… see the town and harbour of Portsmouth, the ships at Spithead, and also at Saint Helens; which, when the royal navy happens to be there, as often happen’d during the late war, is a most glorious sight.’ Much has changed to the setting of Stansted Park since Daniel Defoe visited in 1722, but the richly wooded landscape and spectacular views—which are central to the deep and fascinating history of the site—remain (Fig 1).
The story of the house can be traced back in the documentary record to the 12th century and the death of William d’Albini, Earl of Arundel, in 1176. In that year, the Earl’s landed possessessions, including Stansted, came into the hands of Henry II. There is no previous reference to a residence, but one must have existed because, in 1177, the King spent a week here. He also evidently enjoyed the hunting because, in 1178–81, the Pipe Rolls record the expenses of his falconers at Stansted and, then, between 1181 and 1184, the very substantial expenditure of more than £125 on the King’s ‘new chamber’, kitchen and ‘house’. His sons, Richard I and John, likewise made recorded visits, but, in the 13th century, Stansted reverted to the possession of the Fitzalan Earls of Arundel.
This story is from the April 17, 2024 edition of Country Life UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the April 17, 2024 edition of Country Life UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Put some graphite in your pencil
Once used for daubing sheep, graphite went on to become as valuable as gold and wrote Keswick's place in history. Harry Pearson inhales that freshly sharpened-pencil smell
Dulce et decorum est
Michael Sandle is the Wilfred Owen of art, with his deeply felt sense of the futility of violence. John McEwen traces the career of this extraordinary artist ahead of his 88th birthday
Heaven is a place on earth
For the women of the Bloomsbury group, their country gardens were places of refuge, reflection and inspiration, as well as a means of keeping loved ones close by, discovers Deborah Nicholls-Lee
It's the plants, stupid
I WON my first prize for gardening when I was nine years old at prep school. My grandmother was delighted-it was she who had sent me the seeds of godetia, eschscholtzia and Virginia stock that secured my victory.
Pretty as a picture
The proliferation of honey-coloured stone cottages is part of what makes the Cotswolds so beguiling. Here, we pick some of our favourites currently on the market
How golden was my valley
These four magnificent Cotswold properties enjoy splendid views of hill and dale
The fire within
An occasionally deadly dinner-party addition, this perennial plant would become the first condiment produced by Heinz
Sweet chamomile, good times never seemed so good
Its dainty white flowers add sunshine to the garden and countryside; it will withstand drought and create a sweet-scented lawn that never needs mowing. What's not to love about chamomile
All I need is the air that I breathe
As the 250th anniversary of 'a new pure air' approaches, Cathryn Spence reflects on the 'furious free-thinker' and polymath who discovered oxygen
My art is in the garden
Monet and Turner supplied the colours, Canaletto the structure and Klimt the patterns for the Boodles National Gallery garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.