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Revision as of 18:02, 6 March 2007 by Rodw (talk | contribs) (→Gardens: reword to overcome dates problem discussed on talk page)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)| Hestercombe House | |
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 Gatehouse of Hestercombe House | |
| General information | |
| Town or city | Taunton |
| Country | England |
| Completed | 16th Century |
| Client | Richard Warre |
Hestercombe House (grid reference ST242287) is a historic country house in Cheddon Fitzpaine, near Taunton in Somerset, England, which is visited by approximately 70,000 people per year,
The site also includes a 0.08 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Somerset, notified in 2000. The site is used as a roost site by Lesser Horseshoe Bats.
The building has been in the possession of Somerset County Council since 1951 with the Somerset Fire and Rescue Service in residence since 1953, as well as being an administrative centre.
House
The house is a Grade II* Listed Country House which was originally built in the 16th Century for the Warre family. Richard Warre (-1601) bequeathed it to his son Roger who married Elinor, daughter of Sir John Popham. It was enlarged and altered in the 18th Century, this work now no longer being visible beneath the refronting and enlargement works carried out around 1875 for the then owner Viscount Portman, who had acquired it in 1873 and it remained in the Portman family until 1944.
World War II
During the early years of World War II the house and gardens were used by the British Army as part of the headquarters for the 8th Corps which was formed to command the defence of Somerset, Devon, Cornwall and Bristol. The 8th Corps HQ was at nearby Pyrland Hall, with the Rear HQ was established at Hestercombe House, with Personnel and Logistics staff.
In July 1943 the American army 398th General Service Engineer Regiment moved into Hestercombe, and it became their HQ. On March 18th 1944 Eisenhower visited Hestercombe to meet with General Gerow, and an inspection of the troops.
On the night of March 27/28th 1944 at 00.05am, a Junkers Ju88 was brought down by cannon fire from a de Havilland Mosquito of 219 squadron Royal Air Force, and crashed on the drive to the house.
After D-Day, Hestercombe became the American 801 Hospital Centre, until the end of the War.
A total of 33 barrack huts were constructed at Hestercombe during the war, of which only one is left standing in Rook Wood.
Gardens
The house and gardens were inherited by Coplestone Warre Bamfylde in the 18th Century. The gardens were laid out by Gertrude Jekyll and Edwin Lutyens. Lutyens also designed the orangery about 50m east of the main house in 1904-1909, which is now Grade I listed, as are the garden walls, paving and steps on the south front of the house.
Since October 2003 the landscape and gardens, extending to over 100 acres, have been managed by the Hestercombe Gardens Trust, a charity set up to restore and preserve this site with a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £3.7M.
The gardens featured on BBC TV's ‘Gardens Through Time' series, and cover more than 40 acres and with three different styles of garden ranging from woodland walks to lakes and ponds to formal gardens. The Georgian landscape, Victorian shrubbery and terrace and the formal Edwardian gardens combine to create biodiversity and interest for visitors.
Biological Site of Special Scientific Interest
| Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
 | |
| Location | Somerset |
|---|---|
| Grid reference | ST242287 |
| Interest | Biological |
| Area | 0.08 hectare |
| Notification | 2000 |
| Location map | English Nature |
The site is used by Lesser horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus hipposideros) as both a breeding and wintering roost site. Numbers of Lesser Horseshoes at this site are only exceeded by one other site in Southwest England. The bats use roofspaces in a former stable block as a maternity site. It has been designated as a Special Area of Conservation (SAC).
References
- "Hestercombe House". Images of England. Retrieved 2007-03-03.
- "The Army's Part in Hestercombe's History". Hetsrecombe Gardens. Retrieved 2007-03-03.
- "The Army's Part in Hestercombe's History". Hetsrecombe Gardens. Retrieved 2007-03-03.
- "Orangery, about 50 metres East of Hestercombe House". Images of England. Retrieved 2007-03-03.
- "Garden walls, paving and steps on the South front of Hestercombe House". Images of England. Retrieved 2007-03-03.
- "citation sheet for Hestercombe House" (PDF). English Nature. Retrieved 2007-03-03.
- "Hestercombe House". Joint NatureConservation Committee. Retrieved 2007-03-03.
External links
- YouTube video — commemoration of WW2 activity, views of gardens.
- Hestercombe Gardens
- Hestercombe House