First a manor mentioned in the Domesday Book, in 1201 Mottisfont was founded as an Augustinian priory by William Briwere (or Brewer). It held a valuable relic: the forefinger of St John the Baptist, which made the Priory a place of pilgrimage. Important pilgrims include Eleanor of Castile and Edward I.
After dissolution in 1536 by Henry VIII, Mottisfont was granted to the Lord Chancellor, William Sandys, who already owned The Vyne. Sandys converted the priory into a country house: little of the original Tudor priory can now be seen.
Mottisfont was remodelled yet again in the 1740s by the Mills family, adding Georgian wings onto the front facade. Within the facade, only the twin stairwell blocks (within which this window is set) remain as original Tudor elements.
In the 20th century, following a period where the house was unoccupied, the house was bought by Gilbert and Maud Russell who renovated the interiors, including the commissioning of Rex Whistler to redecorate the front drawing room with an entire trompe l'oeil scheme.
The house is now a National Trust property.
Tags: Hampshire Mottisfont National Trust window Tudor
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First a manor mentioned in the Domesday Book, in 1201 Mottisfont was founded as an Augustinian priory by William Briwere (or Brewer). It held a valuable relic: the forefinger of St John the Baptist, which made the Priory a place of pilgrimage. Important pilgrims include Eleanor of Castile and Edward I.
After dissolution in 1536 by Henry VIII, Mottisfont was granted to the Lord Chancellor, William Sandys, who already owned The Vyne. Sandys converted the priory into a country house: little of the original Tudor priory can now be seen.
Mottisfont was remodelled yet again in the 1740s by the Mills family, adding Georgian wings onto the front facade.
In the 20th century, following a period where the house was unoccupied, the house was bought by Gilbert and Maud Russell who renovated the interiors, including the commissioning of Rex Whistler to redecorate the front drawing room with an entire trompe l'oeil scheme.
In this picture, Gilbert and Maud's initials can be seen in the lead guttering, together with a goat which appears on the top of the Russell coat of arms.
The house is now a National Trust property.
Tags: Hampshire lead gutter Russell Mottisfont National Trust GR MR goat
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The Oak Gallery in The Vyne, a 16th-century country house outside Sherborne St John, Basingstoke, Hampshire, England.
It was built for Lord Sandys, King Henry VIII's Lord Chamberlain, and later passed to the Chute family.
The Oak Gallery retains its original Tudor decoration, notably its oak linenfold panelling which is dated about 1521 and which covers the whole of the walls. The panelling is embellished with carved emblems of the senior figures of the court of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon, to symbolise Lord Sandys' close relationship with the Tudor court.
Tags: Hampshire oak gallery Vyne Tudor National Trust
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This bust of the poet John Milton is one of several marble busts in the Oak Gallery at The Vyne, a 16th-century country house outside Sherborne St John, Basingstoke, Hampshire, England. The Oak Gallery is part of the original Tudor building and is decorated throughout with linenfold oak panelling (as seen in the background of this picture).
The Vyne was built for Lord Sandys, King Henry VIII's Lord Chamberlain, and later passed to the Chute family.
Tags: Hampshire Vyne bust marble Milton National Trust John Milton
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The Vyne is a 16th-century country house outside Sherborne St John, Basingstoke, Hampshire, England. The core of the building is Tudor but it has been modified over the following years, notably with a classical staircase and a Palladian portico on the rear facade.
It was built for Lord Sandys, King Henry VIII's Lord Chamberlain, and later passed to the Chute family.
This neoclassical bust of the Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius sits on the left hand side of the staircase that was remodelled in Palladian style in the late 18th century by John Chute. There is a matching bust of Caracalla on the right hand side.
Tags: Hampshire Vyne bust classical marble National Trust Antoninus Pius
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