Knowlton Court
Encyclopedia
Knowlton Court is a country estate in Kent
, England
, with a Grade I listed manor house that dates back to the Elizabethan period.
, during which time it belonged to Bishop Odo of Bayeux, the half-brother of William the Conqueror.http://www.knowltoncourt.co.uk
in 1585, with some rebuilding in 1785.http://www.fylde.demon.co.uk/TV/knowlton.htm The front façade is in the Queen Anne style, completed in 1715.http://www.knowltoncourt.co.uk
In the 17th century, Knowlton Court was home to the Royalist lieutenant-general Sir Thomas Peyton, born in 1619. He was MP for Sandwich from 1640 to 1644,http://www.citizendia.org/Sandwich_(UK_Parliament_constituency) removed from Parliament after a spell in prison in 1643 charged with, among other things,
being a “malignant”.http://www.fullbooks.com/The-Love-Letters-of-Dorothy-Osborne-to-Sir2.html After heading a failed Royalist rising in Kent in May 1648, Sir Thomas was taken prisoner near Bury St Edmunds and committed to the Tower – and Knowlton Court was ransacked. He regained his status after the Restoration and again became an MP.http://www.fullbooks.com/The-Love-Letters-of-Dorothy-Osborne-to-Sir2.html Sir Thomas as well as his wives and Knowlton Court are mentioned in the published love letters of Dorothy Osborne
to Sir William Temple, 1st Baronet (1652 to 1654).http://www.fullbooks.com/The-Love-Letters-of-Dorothy-Osborne-to-Sir2.html
who died at sea, leaving a widow and two sons. Lady Narborough then married Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell
, who died along with his two Narborough stepsons in the Scilly naval disaster of 1707
, when his flagship HMS Association
and three other ships were lost, claiming the lives of nearly 2,000 sailors. Shovell's stepsons, Sir John Narborough, 1st Baronet, and his brother James are commemorated in Knowlton Church. Their memorial displays an incredible rendition of the grounding of the Association.
Knowlton Court is privately owned but the main house is hired out for weddings and other events.http://www.knowltoncourt.co.uk The estate includes a number of other buildings including the Grade II listed Elizabethan dower house
and a gatehouse designed by Edwin Landseer Lutyens in 1912.
Francesco Cordani, who helped to smuggle British officers out of Italy during World War II
, worked on the estate as a gardener, landscaping the gardens at the dower house, including the creation of an Italian walled garden.http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/francesco-cordani-549564.html He secured the job, as well as work for his two sisters, through Colonel Rudolph de Salis, one of the officers he had helped to escape and the brother-in-law of Brigadier Jack Speed who, at that time, lived in the dower house with his wife.
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, with a Grade I listed manor house that dates back to the Elizabethan period.
Early history
The Knowlton Court estate is recorded in the Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, during which time it belonged to Bishop Odo of Bayeux, the half-brother of William the Conqueror.http://www.knowltoncourt.co.uk
Elizabethan and Stuart period
The current manor house was built by Sir Thomas PeytonPeyton Baronets
There have been five Baronetcies created for members of the old established family of Peyton of Peyton Hall, all of whom were descended from Sir Robert Peyton of Isleham who died in 1518. All the Baronetcies are extinct....
in 1585, with some rebuilding in 1785.http://www.fylde.demon.co.uk/TV/knowlton.htm The front façade is in the Queen Anne style, completed in 1715.http://www.knowltoncourt.co.uk
In the 17th century, Knowlton Court was home to the Royalist lieutenant-general Sir Thomas Peyton, born in 1619. He was MP for Sandwich from 1640 to 1644,http://www.citizendia.org/Sandwich_(UK_Parliament_constituency) removed from Parliament after a spell in prison in 1643 charged with, among other things,
being a “malignant”.http://www.fullbooks.com/The-Love-Letters-of-Dorothy-Osborne-to-Sir2.html After heading a failed Royalist rising in Kent in May 1648, Sir Thomas was taken prisoner near Bury St Edmunds and committed to the Tower – and Knowlton Court was ransacked. He regained his status after the Restoration and again became an MP.http://www.fullbooks.com/The-Love-Letters-of-Dorothy-Osborne-to-Sir2.html Sir Thomas as well as his wives and Knowlton Court are mentioned in the published love letters of Dorothy Osborne
Dorothy Osborne
Dorothy Osborne, Lady Temple was a British writer of letters and wife of Sir William Temple, 1st Baronet.-Life:Osborne was born at Chicksands Priory, Bedfordshire, England, the youngest of ten children born to a staunchly Royalist family. Her father was the nobleman Sir Peter Osborne, who was the...
to Sir William Temple, 1st Baronet (1652 to 1654).http://www.fullbooks.com/The-Love-Letters-of-Dorothy-Osborne-to-Sir2.html
18th century
In the late 17th century, the Knowlton Court estate became the property of Admiral Sir John NarboroughJohn Narborough
Rear-Admiral Sir John Narborough or Narbrough was an English naval commander of the 17th century. He served with distinction during the Anglo-Dutch Wars and against the Barbary Coast pirates.-Early life:...
who died at sea, leaving a widow and two sons. Lady Narborough then married Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell
Cloudesley Shovell
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Cloudesley Shovell , was an English naval officer. Rising through the ranks and fighting in many of the important battles of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, he became a popular British hero, whose celebrated career was brought to an end in a disastrous shipwreck in...
, who died along with his two Narborough stepsons in the Scilly naval disaster of 1707
Scilly naval disaster of 1707
Scilly naval disaster of 1707 is an umbrella term for the events of 22 October 1707 that led to the sinking of a British naval fleet off the Isles of Scilly. With four large ships and more than 1,400 sailors lost in stormy weather, it was one of the greatest maritime disasters in the history of...
, when his flagship HMS Association
HMS Association
HMS Association was a 90-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Portsmouth Dockyard in 1697. She served with distinction at the capture of Gibraltar, and was lost in 1707 by grounding on the Isles of Scilly in the greatest maritime disaster of the age.-Service:Association...
and three other ships were lost, claiming the lives of nearly 2,000 sailors. Shovell's stepsons, Sir John Narborough, 1st Baronet, and his brother James are commemorated in Knowlton Church. Their memorial displays an incredible rendition of the grounding of the Association.
19th Century to the present
The estate passed to the D'Aeth family in 1707, including Sir Thomas D'Aeth. http://www.r-alston.co.uk/ch_eng.htm The D’Aeth family owned it until 1904 when it was bought by Major Francis Elmer Speed (February 28, 1859 - August 23, 1928).http://www.cricket-online.com/player.php?player_id=38842 He was High Sheriff of Kent and had two sons, John and Douglas.http://www.fylde.demon.co.uk/TV/knowlton.htmKnowlton Court is privately owned but the main house is hired out for weddings and other events.http://www.knowltoncourt.co.uk The estate includes a number of other buildings including the Grade II listed Elizabethan dower house
Dower house
On an estate, a dower house is usually a moderately large house available for use by the widow of the estate-owner. The widow, often known as the "dowager" usually moves into the dower house from the larger family house on the death of her husband if the heir is married, and upon his marriage if he...
and a gatehouse designed by Edwin Landseer Lutyens in 1912.
Francesco Cordani, who helped to smuggle British officers out of Italy during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, worked on the estate as a gardener, landscaping the gardens at the dower house, including the creation of an Italian walled garden.http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/francesco-cordani-549564.html He secured the job, as well as work for his two sisters, through Colonel Rudolph de Salis, one of the officers he had helped to escape and the brother-in-law of Brigadier Jack Speed who, at that time, lived in the dower house with his wife.