Bedfordshire Archives Service Catalogue

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Reference
Z449/1/21
Title
Illustrated sale catalogue for Luton Hoo, including floor plans with dimensions; agents: Bidwells and Knight Frank International
Date free text
Sep 1997
Production date
From: 1767 To: 1997
Scope and Content
Sale catalogue of Luton Hoo. - agents: Bidwells Chartered Surveyors of Trumpington Road, Cambridge; Knight Frank International of 20 Hanover Square, London; - description: "In the late 18th century Luton Hoo was the seat of the 3rd Earl of Bute who was the then Prime Minister to George III. Lord Bute commissioned Sir Robert Adam to alter the house which was originally built by the Napier family. Work began in 1767, at about the same time Capability Brown was engaged to create a suitably grand parkland setting that included a vast lake, created by damming the River Lea. Much of Adam's influence remains in the exterior of the Mansion and in the Library (140 feet long) now the Ballroom. the interiors were extensively re-modelled at the turn of the century when the Mansion and Estate were sold by the Leigh family to Sir Julius Wernher in 1903. Sir Julius, reputedly one of the richest men in the world at that time, had amassed a vast fortune in the diamond fields of South Africa from 1871 onwards. Moving from Kimberley he settled in England in 1881 initially living in Bath House, Piccadilly, before acquiring a country estate. Sir Julius embarked on a very extensive upgrading of the Mansion and engaged the services of Mewes and Davis who also worked on the Ritz Hotel. The great splendour of many of the rooms at Luton Hoo us due to the work of Mewes and Davis including the State Dining room which is perhaps the most spectacular of all the rooms. As Sir Nikolaus Pevsner comments "The Oval staircase hall, French Beaux Arts at its most convincing and indeed its most splendid…and the staircase rising in a dashing sweep…are the very highest quality". Sir Julius, perhaps the greatest collector of his generation built up an exceptional collection in the European style. On the death of Sir Julius in 1912, the house was occupied by his widow, Lady Ludlow until the outbreak of the 2nd World War. During the war it was taken over by the army as the Eastern Command HQ. After it was decommissioned in 1948 Sir Harold Wernher inherited the estate and the Baronetcy on the death of his elder brother. Sir Harold extended the collection bringing his own rather more English style to bear together with the Russian influence of his wife, Lady Zia. Lady Zia inherited many notable pieces from her Russian parents - Grand Duke Michael (Grandson of Tsar Nicholas I and cousin of Tsar Nicholas II - the last Tsar who was murdered in 1918) which helped to broaden the Wernher's great family collection. In 1973 Sir Harold died, followed by Lady Zia in 1977. Their son Alex had been killed in the Second World War and in 1951 the Wernher Collection was put on display at Luton Hoo in his memory. The Estate then passed to Nicholas Phillips, the only son of their eldest daughter Georgiana. In 1981 the Luton Hoo Foundation was established in Alex's memory by Nicholas Phillips and his cousins. The Foundation then carried out a programme of restoration of the Mansion. During this time he and his family decided to live elsewhere on the estate and therefore released a large part of the Mansion enabling corporate events and functions to be held in the most spectacular rooms. In 1991 Nicholas Phillips died before all his plans for the future could be fulfilled. There have been many famous and important visitors to Luton Hoo during this century including Edward VII, Sir Winston Churchill, European Royalty and Heads of State"; - photographs [colour]: exterior front and rear of mansion; aerial view of mansion; Warren Drive; Lime Tree Avenue; Marble Staircase Hall; Blue Hall; State Dining Room; Pillared Hall; Ballroom; Queen's Bedroom; Drawing Room; Lady Zia's Boudoir; Chapel; Italian Garden; exterior of stables; grounds; lake; Home Farm units; New Lodge; 1 Home Farmhouse; Head Gardener's House; 2 an 3 Home Farm Cottages; The Bothy; Head Keeper's House; Lady Bute's Lodge; The Hermitage; 117 West Hyde; The Gables; The East Façade; - schedule of properties noting property, description, occupant, tenure and rent; properties include: The Gables; 1-2 Stable yard Cottages; Garage Flat; 1-2 Coach House; The Engineer's House; The Dairy House; The Head Gardener's House; The Bothy; 1-2 Home Farmhouse; The Bungalow; Honeysuckle Cottage; 1-7 Home Farm Cottages; The Hermitage; New Lodge; Lady Bute's Lodge; 1-2 Lime Tree Lodge; 51-56 West Hyde; 117-124 West Hyde; 49-50 Birchwood; Hillside; Head Keeper's House; 1-2 Warren Lodge; 1-2 Park Street; - site layout plan; - floor plans of mansion and stables; - no price
Level of description
item