Clouds House

Clouds House stands in a valley near East Knoyle in Wiltshire. The Arts and Crafts architect Philip Webb designed it for Percy and Madeline Wyndham in the late 19th century. A smaller house once occupied the site, but Webb’s grand design replaced it after a fire in 1889. The rebuilt house was completed in 1891 and became a gathering place for the intellectual group called The Souls. Artists such as Edward Burne-Jones and politicians like Arthur Balfour often visited. The house also witnessed the birth of Lady Cynthia Asquith in 1887. The house’s interiors reflect the work of William Morris and his firm Morris & Co. The drawing room once held a carpet designed by Morris, now in the Fitzwilliam Museum. A large tapestry called Greenery, woven by J. H. Dearle, hung in the hall until it was moved to Boston. Cartoons by Burne-Jones, including Poesis and Musica, adorned the walls before the fire. The Wyndham Sisters portrait by John Singer Sargent was displayed in the billiards room. The living hall featured an inglenook fireplace and a glazed gallery above. Today the house serves as a treatment centre for drug and alcohol dependence. The centre was founded in 1983 and later merged with other organisations to form Action on Addiction. The charity’s headquarters remains nearby in East Knoyle. Original features like the two-storey living hall and the south-facing drawing rooms can still be seen. The terrace where dancing once took place overlooks the valley below. The house’s history and architecture continue to shape its present purpose.