54 Parkside
| 54 Parkside | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Type | House |
| Location | Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton |
| Built | 1898 |
| Governing body | Catholic Church of England and Wales |
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Listed Building – Grade II
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| Official name: Apostolic Nunciature | |
| Designated | 2 September 1988 |
| Reference no. | 1080911 |
54 Parkside (presently known as the Apostolic Nunciature and formally known as Winkfield Lodge) is a large detached house in Wimbledon, London, SW19, overlooking Wimbledon Common. It was designed in c.1897 by architect C.W. Stephens. It has been listed Grade II on the National Heritage List for England since September 1988.
In 1896 the house had six bedrooms and a ha-ha divided the house from its neighbour, Wressil Lodge. The house was owned by a Charles Anthony Mills in 1896; Mills named the house Winkfield Lodge after winning £20,000 on a horse named Winkfield's Pride that had been a 200 to one gamble at a race at Newmarket. Prior to Mills's renaming it had been known as Tudor House. The Wimbledon Borough News later described Mills in 1908 as 'the great turf man who lives in splendid style in Parkside'.
Mills sold the house to an Arthur Sutton who leased the house to Captain Edward Tighe and his family in 1917. Tighe was a wealthy Irish landowner and British Army officer who had served in the Anglo-Burmese Wars. On 13 November Tighe was found by his wife with severe head wounds in his bedroom at the lodge. A bloodied poker was found nearby, and some small objects had been stolen, including a pocket watch. Tighe died a few days later on 17 November having never regained consciousness; his body was identified by Francis Younghusband. A burglar, Arthur Henry de Stamir, was later found with Tighe's possessions at his lodgings. Stamir was found guilty of Tighe's murder and was hanged at Wandsworth Prison on 18 February 1918.
Following Tighe's death the house was owned by the British businessman and politician Joseph Hood. Hood served as the member of parliament for Wimbledon from 1918 to 1924 and as Mayor of Wimbledon from 1930 until his death in 1931.
The house has been the home of the Apostolic Nunciature to Great Britain, the diplomatic representative of the Vatican City to Great Britain, since 1938. It is the only diplomatic residence south of the River Thames. Pope John Paul II once stayed at the house and Pope Benedict XVI stayed at the house from 17-19 September 2010 during his visit to the United Kingdom. He celebrated a private mass in the Apostolic Nunciature's chapel on the morning of 17 September. Benedict also privately met five victims of Catholic clerical sexual abuse during his stay at the house.
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