Mottisfont Abbey

The original building was a priory, founded by William Briwere in 1201. He was a trusted adviser to Richard the Lionheart, King John and Henry III, and he was one of the barons who signed the Magna Carta. At the dissolution of the Monasteries the priory was acquired by William Lord Sandys, who converted it to a house. Mottisfont passed in 1684 to Sir John Mill, nephew of the last Lord Sandys. Sir John's second son, Sir Richard, the 5th Baronet and an MP from 1721-1747, succeeded in 1706. It was he who transformed the Tudor house substantially to the form we see today, at least on the exterior.

In 1938 the Russells engaged Rex Whistler to transform the former entrance hall in the south-west wing into a Gothic drawing room in trompe l'oeil style. Like many country houses, Mottisfont was commandeered during the Second World War, becoming a hospital with 80 patients.

03 April 2006

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