Brightwell Manor
| Brightwell Manor | |
| Berkshire | |
|---|---|
 Brightwell Manor, Berkshire | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SU57809075 |
| Location: | 51°36’45"N, 1°9’60"W |
| Village: | Brightwell-cum-Sotwell |
| History | |
| Country house | |
| Information | |
| Owned by: | Boris Johnson |
Brightwell Manor is a country house in the village of Brightwell-cum-Sotwell in Berkshire, in the meadows that stretch far out from the south bank of the River Thames. It is a Grade II listed building.[1]
The back part of the house dates from around the mid-seventeenth century, or possibly earlier as there is a date of '1605' on the rear. The front was built in the mid-eighteenth century.[1]
In 2023, the house was bought by Boris Johnson, the journalist and former Prime Minister.[2][3]
History
In 1933, the house was purchased by William Inge, a theologian thrice-nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature.[4] Inge, known as the 'Gloomy Dean' on account of his pessimistic views, including supporting eugenics and opposing democracy, served as Dean of St Paul's Cathedral from 1911 to 1934.[5][6] His wife wrote in her diary "It is a most attractive house but rather small." and that she had written to Paul Edward Paget and his business partner John Seely (later John Seely, 2nd Baron Mottistone) about adding to it.[7] They wanted £2,000, and she wrote that "We really must try to cut them down a bit."[7]
William Inge died there in 1954 (and is buried next door in the churchyard), and the family owned the house until 1971, when his sons sold it. From 1971, it had been owned by the same family, until former Prime Minister Boris Johnson agreed to buy it in February 2023 for a reported £4 million.[8]
Appearance
Brightwell Manor is a Grade II listed building. It probably dates back to the mid-17th century, and the front is mid-18th century.[1]
An extension was added by Inge in the 1950s.[8] Pevsner describes Brightwell as a "plain late 18th century brick box", but notes the dating of 1605 on the earlier, rear portion of the house.[9]
Brightwell Manor has nine bedrooms and is 8128 square feet in total.[8] The house sits in five acres of grounds, with a moat fed by a natural spring surrounding it on three sides.[8] The study includes a mural painted by the neo-Romanticist George Warner Allen.[8]
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Brightwell Manor) |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 National Heritage List 1368887: Brightwell Manor (Grade II listing)
- ↑ "Boris and Carrie Johnson move into new £3.8m moated mansion – see inside" (in en-GB). 2023-05-17. https://www.houseandgarden.co.uk/article/boris-johnson-house-mansion-oxfordshire.
- ↑ Low, Joseph (2023-03-27). "Boris Johnson Is the New Owner of a 400-Year-Old Manor" (in en-US). https://www.luxuo.com/properties/boris-johnson-is-the-new-owner-of-a-400-year-old-manor.html.
- ↑ 'Dr. Inge buys a house:' Gloomy Dean' Acquires Brightwell Manor Dating From 1603': New York Times 15 October 1933
- ↑ Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- ↑ Dekel-Daks, Tal (17 May 2023). "Boris and Carrie Johnson move into £3.8m moated mansion in Oxfordshire". House & Garden. https://www.houseandgarden.co.uk/article/boris-johnson-house-mansion-oxfordshire.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Fox, Adam (1960) (in en). Dean Inge. J. Murray. pp. 236–237. https://archive.org/details/deaninge0000foxa/page/236/mode/1up?view=theater.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Churchill, Penny (7 November 2019). "A country house so beautiful that one famous visitor whipped out his cheque book and tried to buy it on the spot". Country Life. https://www.countrylife.co.uk/property/country-house-beautiful-one-famous-visitor-whipped-cheque-book-tried-buy-spot-207264.
- ↑ Nikolaus Pevsner: The Buildings of England: Berkshire, 1966; 2010 Penguin Books ISBN 978-0-300-12662-4page 210