Wrotham Park

Wrotham Park is a neo-Palladian country house in Hertfordshire, twelve miles north of central London. The estate covers two thousand five hundred acres and the house remains in the Byng family. Isaac Ware designed the building in 1754 for Admiral John Byng, fourth son of Admiral George Byng. The park and gardens are Grade II listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. Over sixty films and television series have used the exterior as a location. The house began as an estate called Pinchbank, first recorded in 1310. The Howkins family owned it in the 17th and early 18th centuries before Thomas Reynolds acquired it. His son Francis sold the property to Admiral Byng, who renamed it Wrotham Park after the family home in Kent. Byng was executed in 1757 after a court martial, an event Voltaire satirised in Candide. A fire in 1883 destroyed the interior but the house was rebuilt exactly as before. Inside, visitors find a grand staircase and reception rooms arranged around a central dome. The landscaped park includes sweeping lawns, mature trees and a lake. The Grade II listed gardens feature formal terraces and a walled garden. Views stretch across the Hertfordshire countryside from the south front. The house’s Palladian style and long association with the Byng family give it a quiet authority.