Gennings Park (sometimes spelt Jennings, and referred to as Gennings House or Gennings Court), located on Lughorse Lane near Hunton, Kent, is a Grade II listed house which was built between 1727 and 1745.[1] The home was listed on 5 December 1984 (English Heritage Legacy ID: 432086). The document indicates that the house "possibly incorporating part of a late C16 or C17 house" was extensively modified in the subsequent years, and was "thought to be the setting for Pride and Prejudice,[2] although this claim remains unverified.[3][4][5] The house was seriously damaged by fire in March 2024.[6]
In the mid to late 18th century, the house was purchased by Sir Walter Roberts, 6th Bt. His only child, Jane Roberts, inherited the house upon his death. Jane Roberts married George Beauclerk, 3rd Duke of St Albans (a great-grandson of Charles II of England). The 3rd Duke and Duchess of St Albans had no children, and the Duchess died in 1778.[7] The Duchess bequeathed the property to a Miss Davies, who in turn sold it to the Dowager Lady Twysden, who was recorded as the owner of the property in 1797.[8]
Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman
In 1871 the Liberal politician Henry Campbell-Bannerman inherited the estate from his uncle, Henry Bannerman, and the Campbell-Bannermans kept the house as their country residence until 1887.[9] (In fact, Campbell-Bannerman inherited the entire estate of Hunton Court Lodge but did not occupy the mansion until the 1894 death of the aunt who was living there. He and his wife used Gennings Park during some of that time.)[10][11]
Upon his death in 1908, newspapers reported that the Gennings Park Estate was inherited by his nephew James Campbell-Bannerman inherited the estate in 1908.[12] Sir Henry and Lady Campbell-Bannerman vacated the property in 1887.[13] Following Sir Henry's death in 1908 newspaper reports suggested that the Gennings Park Estate formed part of his estate; however, other modern sources suggest that the house was first leased in 1888, then sold to the tenant in 1890.[14] At least one biography of Sir Henry states that he disposed of the property in 1887.[15]
Tenants: 1887 - 1901
The House was listed to be let in November 1887; the description of the house in The Daily Telegraph included the description: Hall, three reception rooms, billiard room, smoking room, eight principal bed roomns, three dressing rooms, 10 secondary bed roomns, kitchen, scullery, panty, butler's room, &c. Stabling for seven horses, carriage houses, coachman's house, &c. Walled-in gardens, containing greenhosuse, vinvery, peach and melon houses, &c. Hay barn, cowhouse, stable, &c., There are also pleasure grounds and about 37 acres of land, with shooting over 800 acres. FURNISHED.[16]
Following the Campbell-Bannermans' departure in 1887, the house was lived in by John Bazley White,[17] who lived in the house until at least 1893.[18] In 1895 the occupants of the house were Conservative MP and distiller Sir Frederick Seager Hunt, 1st Bt and his wife.[19] In June 1901 the Evening Standard Newspaper reported that Gennings Park, near Maidstone, has been sold via private treaty by Messrs. Hamptons.[20]
The House of Ormonde: 1901 - 1955
The identities of the purchasers of the property in 1901 were likely Lord Arthur Butler and Lady Arthur Butler, who occupied the house from at least 1902.[21] Lord Arthur was the younger brother and heir to James Butler, 3rd Marquess of Ormonde. Lady Arthur Butler (nee Ellen Stager) was an American Heiress.[22] Arthur and Ellen continued to live at Gennings after Lord Arthur inherited the title Marquess of Ormonde in 1919; the family's ancestral seat Kilkenny Castle had been left to Arthur's son George Butler, Earl of Ossory with Arthur's blessing in the Will of Arthur's older brother James Butler, 3rd Marquess of Ormonde. Lord Ormonde died in 1943, and Ellen (now the Dowager Marchioness of Ormonde) retained ownership of Gennings, where she continued to live Gennings with her younger son, also named Lord Arthur Butler (who would later become Arthur Butler, 6th Marquess of Ormonde in 1949), his wife Jesse and their daughter, Lady Martha, until Ellen's death in 1951.[23]
In 1955 their second son, Arthur Butler, 6th Marquess of Ormonde, sold Gennings and much of its contents.[24] The house was reported as sold by Country Life on 28 April 1955, and described as "a house with 20 bedrooms, a period farm-house and model farm, 16 cottages and 173 acres."[25]
1955 to present
The House was later listed for sale in May 1982, with the estate described as being 166 acres, with valuable orchards.[26]
In 1987 a development application was approved to subdivide the Main House into two self-contained dwellings. The submission recorded that the eastern side of the house dated from the 17th century, with an 18th-century western extension and a late-19th-century Jacobean-style re-fronting. Internally, the whole house had been “Georgianized” when the west wing was added, and substantial masonry walls and a lightwell already separated the two halves. Only two non-historic doorways linked them, so conversion simply involved blocking those openings and inserting discreet fire-break walls, with no further changes to existing staircases, kitchens or bathrooms.[27]
The applicant also stressed that running and maintaining a house of this size—particularly the cost of heating its vast interior in winter—had become prohibitively expensive, and that a recent outbreak of dry rot in the western half had compounded the difficulty. By bringing the under‐used western wing back into economic use as a separate dwelling, the works would help secure the long-term upkeep of this Grade II–listed building.[28]
2024 Fire damage
On the evening of 8 March 2024 a major fire broke out at Gennings Park which caused substantial damage to the main house. The blaze, which began around 21:00 GMT in the first floor and roof space, led to the collapse of the roof and a partial structural collapse. Up to 50 firefighters and 16 fire engines attended; crews later worked through 9 March to bring it under control and prevent reignition. No injuries were reported. The house's owner was quoted as saying that a smoke alarm sounded before flames were seen through the roof, noting the house’s old timber and wind conditions.[6]
↑ MacColl, Gail; Wallace, Carol McD (2012). To Marry an English Lord: Tales of Wealth and Marriage, Sex and Snobbery. Workman Publishing. p.299. ISBN978-0-7611-7195-9.
↑ The Times (London, England), Wednesday, Aug 15, 1945; pg. 3; Issue 50221
↑ The Times (London, England), Tuesday, Mar 15, 1955; pg. 14; Issue 53190
↑ "THE ESTATE MARKET: TIME TO PAY". Country Life. Vol.117, no.3041. 28 April 1955. p.1135. ProQuest1757653165.
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