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Shedfield House (also known as Shidfield House)

Introduction

The site has a late-18th-century and early-19th-century picturesque small park. The house was built during the 16th century, and has had many additions. The construction of the adjacent Country Club and Golf Course in 1976 incorporated the fishpond and the north-east boundary of the estate. However, the walled garden and the gardens to the south of the house appear to have been little altered since the 1870s. Evidence of Roman occupation has been found on the estate.

In 1976 a Country Club and a golf course were opened to the north-east of the property,, which incorporated the fishpond. In 2004 the house and 3 hectares (7.4 acres) were offered for sale. This included a walled kitchen garden, the site of a former grass tennis court and a paddock; a small arboretum, laid out as a Peace Garden after the World War 1, and the south lawn that has some fine specimen trees planted in Victorian times. The former stables are to be retained for two years, and used as offices.
Visitor Access, Directions & Contacts
History

The course of an old Roman road runs through the estate. Excavations in 1874 revealed 23 Roman kilns; and in 1982, the Phillimore family uncovered a Romano-British site. Shidfield House was built during the 16th century and is noted on the 1575 Saxton map as Shidfelde. Over the years there have been many alterations and additions to the house.

The 1837 sales notice referred to the residence as situated in ‘a small, well-timbered park...and surrounded by a lawn and beautiful pleasure grounds and shrubberies'. The sales notice of 1866 referred to ‘a Well-Appointed Residence....presenting a Picturesque Appearance in a Small Park'. The sales map of 1866 gives the name as Shedfield, and shows a sweeping entrance drive from the southern road (now the A334), a fishpond and a walled kitchen garden. The parkland extends from the road, around the house and to the north-east of the property.

At this time Admiral Phillimore purchased the 405 acre (164 hectare) estate, but did not take up residence for some time. It was let to various tenants. Correspondence between the Admiral and one of his tenants indicate that a gardener was employed, and the lawns and plants in the greenhouses were well-kept.

The 1870s Ordnance Survey maps show a belt of trees had been planted to the south and west of the property immediately adjoining the A334 and the minor road to Waltham Chase (Sandy Lane). The roads formed the southern boundary of the parkland that extended north to the fishpond.

Alterations to the house and garden took place in the early-20th-century when the Phillimore family was in residence. The 1910 Ordnance Survey map shows that the parkland had reverted to the 1866 sales map boundary, and many trees had been planted to the south and west of the house. Campion noted in 1923 that the house stood in 45 acres (18.2 hectares) of grounds.

Period

  • 18th Century (1701 to 1800)
  • Late 18th Century (1767 to 1800)
Features & Designations

Designations

  • The National Heritage List for England: Listed Building

  • Reference: Shedfield House
  • Grade: II

Features

  • Garden Wall
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  • Kitchen Garden
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  • Tennis Lawn
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  • Fishpond
  • Description: The construction of the adjacent Country Club and Golf Course in 1976 incorporated the fishpond.
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  • House (featured building)
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  • Tree Belt
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Key Information

Type

Park

Purpose

Ornamental

Principal Building

Commercial

Period

18th Century (1701 to 1800)

Survival

Part: standing remains

Open to the public

Yes

Civil Parish

Shedfield

References

Contributors

  • Hampshire Gardens Trust

  • Chris & Diane Richardson