Ormeley Lodge
| Ormeley Lodge | |
|---|---|
Ormeley Lodge in May 2009
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| General information | |
| Type | House |
| Architectural style | Georgian |
| Location | Ham Common |
| Address | Ham Gate Avenue, Ham, TW10 5HB |
| Town or city | Ham, London |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 51°26′07″N 0°18′08″W / 51.43528°N 0.30222°WCoordinates: 51°26′07″N 0°18′08″W / 51.43528°N 0.30222°W |
| Construction started | c. 1715 |
| Owner | Lady Annabel Goldsmith |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 3 |
| Designations | Grade II* |
Ormeley Lodge is an early 18th-century Georgian house set in 6 acres (2 ha) on the edge of Ham Common near to Richmond Park in Ham, London. It is owned by Lady Annabel Goldsmith.
Bridget Cherry and Nikolaus Pevsner describe the house as "exquisite" and point out the "[b]eautiful doorway with Corinthian pilasters and a frieze carved with cherubs' heads and palm leaves" and the "[o]utstandingly fine wrought-iron gatepiers, gates and railings".
The house, together with the gates and railings, has been Grade II* listed since 1950. The grounds include a tennis court and swimming pool. The gardens are occasionally open to the public as part of the National Gardens Scheme.
The house was built on the site of a former cottage in about 1715 by Thomas Hammond, son of a wealthy landowner from Teddington. At about the same time John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll began establishing the neighbouring Sudbrook Lodge and estate. Charles Townshend, second husband to Caroline, one of Campbell's four daughters, bought Ormeley Lodge in 1763 as a country retreat and they lived there until 1767, moving to Sudbrook Lodge on the death of the Dowager Duchess of Argyll.
A claim that the house was the honeymoon destination of George, Prince of Wales and Maria Fitzherbert on 15 December 1785, following their secret marriage, has not been substantiated.
Between 1814 and 1819 the house was one of the homes of Sir John Sinclair, President of the Board of Agriculture and whose fourth daughter, Catherine Sinclair, was a notable writer of children's fiction. In 1817 a footpath was built from the Petersham Road passing in front of the Lodge and leading to Ham Gate Lodge at the entrance to Richmond Park. Named Barnard's Footpath after its benefactor, it was known as Park Road by 1861 and was renamed Ham Gate Avenue in 1945.
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Wikipedia