Quendon Hall and Park (also known as Quendon Hall)

The following is from the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest. For the most up-to-date Register entry, please visit the The National Heritage List for England (NHLE):

www.historicengland.org.uk/lis...

Formal gardens of 17th century origin with early 20th century additions, set within a 17th century deer park which was expanded during the late 18th century.

DESCRIPTION

LOCATION, AREA, BOUNDARIES, LANDFORM, SETTING

Quendon Hall lies c 8km to the north of Bishop's Stortford, on the northern edge of Quendon village and to the west of the B1383 Saffron Walden to Bishop's Stortford road. The c 60ha site occupies a rural location, bounded to the north-east and west by farmland and to the south and south-east by the village of Quendon. The M11, built in the 1970s, cuts across the eastern edge of the estate (just beyond the boundary of the site here registered). The ground at Quendon falls gently from the west and south towards the course of the River Cam, c 1km east of the Hall.

ENTRANCES AND APPROACHES

The Hall is approached from the village to the south, through wrought-iron gates hung on red- brick gate piers. The drive runs north-north-west for c 300m to Parkgate or South Lodge (listed grade II), a mid C18 cottage with later picturesque details. Up until the early C20 the drive continued north along a straight oak-lined avenue to a hexagonal courtyard below the south front of the Hall, but now (2000) turns west at the Lodge and then north to run along the outside of the western boundary before re-entering the park c 250m south-west of the Hall. The drive passes the early C20 thatched cricket pavilion and runs north-east, past the Cowman's Cottage (listed grade II), to arrive at the west entrance front, which was created in the early C20 by Sir William Foot Mitchell. A second drive enters the park midway along the eastern boundary, beside a pair of early C20 lodge cottages which are reached from the B 1380 to the south by an estate track running along the eastern boundary of the park. From the lodges the drive runs west, then north-west to skirt the northern edge of the walled gardens before turning south to arrive at the west front. This entrance, known as Newport Drive, has also changed during the C20. Access to the lodges was altered following the construction of the Mll which runs parallel and close to the eastern boundary, while the route of the drive once inside the park was changed from its original C19 route which ran due west to join the south drive c50m south of the Hall.

PRINCIPAL BUILDING

Quendon Hall (listed grade I) is a large red-brick mansion, built in two storeys with stucco bands at window level under a roof of red tiles. The irregular west entrance front has a porch with Doric columns added in the early C20. The south front, originally the entrance front, has a range of eleven double-hung sashes, divided into six sections by stuccoed pilasters. Up until the early C20, the front door was located in the third bay, which still retains a flat moulded hood. Quendon was built by Thomas Newman and his son, also Thomas, in the middle of the C16 as a timber-framed house and was remodelled and refaced with brick by Thomas Turner in 1670/80. A new south-west wing was added in the early C20, at which time the entrance was moved onto the west front. A fire in the mid 1950s destroyed the attic storey, which was not replaced during the restoration of the rest of the Hall. The stabling and service buildings lie c 100m to the west of the Hall. These include a C17 timber-framed barn (listed grade II), partly modernised and now (2000) used for garaging, and a large C17 octagonal dovecote (listed grade II*) built of red and blue bricks under a tiled roof. Late C20 stable buildings have been added to this area.

GARDENS AND PLEASURE GROUNDS

The gardens at Quendon lie to the south, east, and north of the Hall. Below the south front is a gravel terrace edged with box hedging which looks onto a hexagonal courtyard laid to lawn and enclosed to the east and west by C 17 red-brick walls with stone dressings (listed grade II*), each with an arched alcove with gabled pediment and a set of gates hung on gate piers surmounted by ball finials. In the centre of the lawn, which is bounded to the south by a late C20 ha-ha and low stone balustrade, is a circular stone fountain pool. This area was the main entrance forecourt to the Hall up until the early C20. The gate in the east wall of the south garden leads to the east garden, which is laid to grass between the Hall and a small canal c 40m east of the Hall. The canal is all that survives of the moat of the C17 house and was, until the mid C20, spanned by a small footbridge. Beyond the canal is a further lawn, planted with shrub borders and enclosed to north, south, and east by red-brick walls. In the centre of the north wall is an ornamental glasshouse with a central gable and brick corner niches, facing south onto the lawn (shown in this position on the 1876 OS 6" map). The outline of the east garden is little changed from that shown on the 1702 survey although the detail of its layout has altered. Beyond a small enclosed, box-hedged terrace on the north-east corner of the Hall is the north lawn, planted with a variety of trees and shrubs. It is divided from the drive and service buildings to the west by a high red-brick wall and to the north by a low terrace wall with shallow steps leading to an upper lawn. This lawn is bounded by a lower red-brick wall c lOOm north of the Hall, with central wrought-iron rails and gates aligned on the north avenue. A paved cross terrace at the base of the shallow steps runs east from an early C20 brick and tile summerhouse in front of the west wall, along a pleached lime avenue for c 150m to a further walled enclosure containing a swimming pool and tennis court (see Kitchen Garden below).

PARK

Quendon Park is enclosed by perimeter woodlands to the north, east, and south, with the Hall occupying a position towards the centre of the western boundary .The north park is a mixture of arable land and woodland, within which the north avenue, shown on the 1702 survey, still survives, extending from the Newport Drive for c 750m as far as Northcroft Spring Wood. In 1702 it extended further north and framed a view of Newport church although this view has now been lost. To the east and south of the Hall, the gently undulating ground in the park has been retained under pasture and is scattered with mature trees including oak and horse chestnut. Running south from the Hall and aligned on the south front are the remains of an oak avenue, planted in the C17 to line the south drive.

KITCHEN GARDEN

The kitchen garden, walled on three sides, lies c lOOm to the north-east of the Hall. It is now (2000) laid to grass and contains a swimming pool with brick surround and a hard tennis court. A row of brick workshops is attached to the north wall. The 1702 survey shows this area and the lawn to the south laid out as a bowling green, with the kitchen garden south of this in what became part of the park in the mid C20. Since the late C18 different parts of the enclosures to the north and south of the ornamental glasshouse have been cultivated, but by 1923 (OS) the area to the south had been laid to lawn and that to the north planted as an orchard.

REFERENCES

P Morant, The History and Antiquities of the County of Essex (1763-1768)

P Muilman, A New and Complete History of Essex II, (1769)

N Pevsner and E Radcliffe, The Buildings of England: Essex (1979), pp 317-318

J Kenworthy-Browne et al, Burke's and Savills Guide to Country Houses III, (1981), p 69

Maps

T Holmes, An exact ...survey and view of the mannor of Quendon, 1702 (Essex Record Office)

J Chapman and P Andre, A map of the county of Essex .from an actual survey ..., 1777 (Essex Record Office )

OS 6" to 1 mile: 1st edition published 1876

2nd edition published 1897

3rd edition published 1923

OS 25" to 1 mile: 2nd edition published 1897

Description written: December 2000

Edited: September 2001