Downton Castle
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Downton_Castle.jpg/220px-Downton_Castle.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Downton_Hall_Shropshire_Morris_1880_edited.jpg/220px-Downton_Hall_Shropshire_Morris_1880_edited.jpg)
Downton Castle is a
Description
The south-facing entrance front has a central square tower, six bays to the left terminating in an octagonal tower and five bays to the right flanked by a square tower, the whole resembling a medieval castle with embattled parapets.[1] Pevsner considered the inspiration to be the French semi-fortified houses in paintings by Claude Lorraine or Gaspard Poussin.[2]
History
The estate of Downton was acquired by
In 1824 the estate was inherited by the horticulturalist
During the Second World War, pupils from Lancing College, a boarding school on the South Coast, were evacuated to Downton Castle as the school was taken over as a naval training facility, HMS King Alfred. The castle remained in the possession of the Payne-Knight family until 1986 when it was sold along with its 5,000 acre (2,000 hectare) estate[5] to the Primat family,[6] co-heirs to the Schlumberger fortune.[7] It remains a private home and is not open to the public.[8]
See also
- Knight v Knight — 1840 legal suit over the inheritance of Downton Castle
References
- ^ a b c d Heritage Gateway: architectural description of listed building
- ^ ISBN 978-0300096095.
- ^ Public Records Office. 1881 Census ref RG11/2613/40/7
- ^ "Estate website". Downton Estate. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
- ^ "Section 31 Deposit". Herefordshire County Council. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
- ^ "Didier Primat obituary, 26 August 2008". Forbes. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
- ^ "History". Downton Estate. Retrieved 24 May 2021.