Eagle House, Wimbledon

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Eagle House
Eagle House, Wimbledon High Street, London.jpg
Eagle House, Wimbledon
Interactive map of Eagle House
General information
TypeResidential
Architectural style Jacobean
Location Wimbledon, London, England
Coordinates 51°25′33″N0°13′10″W / 51.4259°N 0.2195°W / 51.4259; -0.2195
Completed1613
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official nameEagle House
Designated1 June 1949
Reference no. 1193286

Eagle House is a Grade II* listed [1] house in Wimbledon, London. The house was built in 1613 for Robert Bell who was among the founders of the East India Company. [2] Built in the Jacobean style, much of the original exterior was brick, although little of it is visible on the exterior today.

Contents

History

The house has hosted numerous notable figures throughout its time, in the 17th and 18th centuries passing hands variously between the Marquesses of Bath, William Pitt's foreign ministers, and a Lord Grenville who would frequently host his cousin, the Prime Minister, at the house.

The house's ownership was then transferred to that of a Thomas Lancaster who in 1790 transformed it into a school. In 1860, Dr Huntingford took over the school bringing the stone eagle from his previous school and placing it atop the house, giving it its current name. [3]

In 1887 the house was bought and restored by architect Thomas Graham Jackson who extended the property. [4] The house would further be used as a military academy and cultural centre before falling into disrepair in the 2000s and finally being restored and split into flats. [5]

Other notable residents are said to include Arthur Schopenhauer who is commemorated in a blue plaque there. [6]

References

  1. "The Ancient House, Non Civil Parish – 1190795 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
  2. "Eagle House, Non Civil Parish – 1193286 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 1 January 2026.
  3. Weinreb, Ben; Hibbert, Christopher, eds. (1995). The London encyclopaedia (Rev. ed.). London: Macmillan. p. 246. ISBN   978-0-333-57688-5.
  4. Cherry, Bridget; Pevsner, Nikolaus, eds. (2002), London. 2: South / by Bridget Cherry and Nikolaus Pevsner (1. publ. by Yale Univ. Press ed.), Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, p. 455, ISBN   978-0-300-09651-4
  5. Spittles, David (30 July 2018). "Grand Jacobean manor house in Wimbledon converted into luxury homes". The Standard. Retrieved 1 January 2026.
  6. "Eagle House – Building – London SW19". www.buildington.co.uk. Retrieved 1 January 2026.