Stansted Park
Encyclopedia
Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
, West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
, 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...
. It lies within the parish of Stoughton
Stoughton, West Sussex
Stoughton is a village and civil parish in the District of Chichester in West Sussex, England located nine kilometres north west of Chichester east of the B2146 road, on a lane leading to East Marden....
, near the village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
of Rowland's Castle
Rowland's Castle
Rowland's Castle is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 2.9 miles north of Havant, on the Hampshire/West Sussex border....
over the border in Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
.
The Grade II listed Edwardian country house is set in the 1750 acres (7.1 km²) park, with woodland and open land grazed by deer. Stansted House has Carolean
Restoration style
Restoration style, also known as Carolean style Restoration style, also known as Carolean style Restoration style, also known as Carolean style (from the Latin Carolus (Charles), refers to the decorative arts popular in England from the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 to the late 1680s after...
revival decor and a lavishly decorated Chapel of St Paul, that was an inspiration to the poet John Keats
John Keats
John Keats was an English Romantic poet. Along with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley, he was one of the key figures in the second generation of the Romantic movement, despite the fact that his work had been in publication for only four years before his death.Although his poems were not...
.
The house began as a hunting lodge in the 11th century. It was built on the present site in 1688 for Richard Lumley
Richard Lumley, 1st Earl of Scarbrough
Richard Lumley, 1st Earl of Scarbrough was an English soldier and statesman best known for his role in the Glorious Revolution.-Origins:...
, probably to a design by William Talman
William Talman (architect)
William Talman was an English architect and landscape designer. A pupil of Sir Christopher Wren, in 1678 he and Thomas Apprice gained the office of King's Waiter in the Port of London...
.
Earl of Bessborough
Earl of Bessborough is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1739 for Brabazon Ponsonby, 2nd Viscount Duncannon, who had previously represented Newtownards and County Kildare in the Irish House of Commons...
family in 1924 and owned by the 9th and 10th Earls throughout their lifetimes. The history of Stansted Park since the 12th century is told in Lord Bessborough's book "The Enchanted Forest".
Since 1983 the House and Estate have been owned by Stansted Park Foundation, a charitable trust
Charitable trust
A charitable trust is an irrevocable trust established for charitable purposes, and is a more specific term than "charitable organization".-United States:...
charged with the preservation of the estate for the benefit of the nation, which was the wish of the last owner, Frederick Ponsonby, 10th Earl of Bessborough
Frederick Ponsonby, 10th Earl of Bessborough
Frederick Edward de Neuflize "Eric" Ponsonby, 10th Earl of Bessborough , known as Viscount Duncannon from 1920 to 1956, was a British diplomat, businessman, playwright, Conservative politician, and peer....
.
Stansted is open to the public from Easter to September. The park is crossed from west to east by the Monarch's Way
Monarch's Way
The Monarch's Way is a long-distance footpath in England that approximates the escape route taken by King Charles II in 1651 after being defeated in the Battle of Worcester.Most of the footpath is waymarked...
long distance footpath.