Addington Palace
Encyclopedia
Addington, London
Addington is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Croydon. It is situated south south-east of Charing Cross.-History:...
near Croydon
Croydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...
, South London
South London
South London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
History
The original manor house called 'Addington Place' was built about the 16th century.The Addington estate was owned by the Leigh family until early 18th century.
Sir John Leigh died without heirs in 1737 and his estates went to distant relatives, who eventually sold to Barlow Trecothick.
Mr Trecothick had been raised in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, and became a merchant there; he then moved to London still trading as a merchant, and later became Lord Mayor
Lord Mayor
The Lord Mayor is the title of the Mayor of a major city, with special recognition.-Commonwealth of Nations:* In Australia it is a political position. Australian cities with Lord Mayors: Adelaide, Brisbane, Darwin, Hobart, Melbourne, Newcastle, Parramatta, Perth, Sydney, and Wollongong...
and then an MP
MP
MP or mp may refer to:*Machine pistol*Malayo-Polynesian languages*Manu propria, a Latin expression for with one's own hand*Martinair IATA airline designator or reservation code*Maximum parsimony, a term used in statistical analyses...
.
He bought the estate for £38,500 and then became Lord Mayor of the City of London in 1770.
He built a new house, designed by Robert Mylne
Robert Mylne
Robert Mylne was a Scottish architect and civil engineer, particularly remembered for his design for Blackfriars Bridge in London. Born and raised in Edinburgh, he travelled to Europe as a young man, studying architecture in Rome under Piranesi...
in the Palladian style; a country mansion with single-storey wings. He died before it was completed in 1774 and it was inherited by his heir, James Ivers, who had to take the surname 'Trecothick' in order to inherit the estate.
James continued the work on the house, having the substantial grounds and gardens landscaped by Lancelot "Capability" Brown
Capability Brown
Lancelot Brown , more commonly known as Capability Brown, was an English landscape architect. He is remembered as "the last of the great English eighteenth-century artists to be accorded his due", and "England's greatest gardener". He designed over 170 parks, many of which still endure...
.
Due to financial difficulties, James Trecothick had to sell the estate in 1802. The estate was sold in lots in 1803.
The next owners (William Coles and Westgarth Snaith) also got into financial trouble and sold it by Act of Parliament in 1807. This enabled the mansion to be purchased for the Archbishops of Canterbury, since nearby Croydon Palace
Croydon Palace
Croydon Palace, in Croydon, now part of south London, was the summer residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury for over 500 years. Regular visitors included Henry III and Queen Elizabeth I...
had become inconvenient. It was now called 'Addington Farm' by the Archbishops. It was the residence for six Archbishops of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
. The archbishops made further changes and enlarged the building; work on the building was overseen by Richard Norman Shaw
Richard Norman Shaw
Richard Norman Shaw RA , was an influential Scottish architect from the 1870s to the 1900s, known for his country houses and for commercial buildings.-Life:...
.
The palace became the official second residence of six archbishops:
- Charles Manners-SuttonCharles Manners-SuttonCharles Manners-Sutton was a priest in the Church of England who served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1805 to 1828.-Life:...
from 1805, - William HowleyWilliam HowleyWilliam Howley was a clergyman in the Church of England. He served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1828 to 1848.-Early Life, education, and interests:...
from 1828, - John Bird SumnerJohn Bird SumnerJohn Bird Sumner was a bishop in the Church of England and Archbishop of Canterbury.-Life:Sumner was the elder brother of Bishop Charles Richard Sumner. He was born at Kenilworth, Warwickshire and educated at Eton College and Cambridge University. In 1802 he became a master at Eton and was...
from 1848, - Charles Thomas LongleyCharles Thomas LongleyCharles Thomas Longley was a bishop in the Church of England. He served as Bishop of Ripon, Bishop of Durham, Archbishop of York and Archbishop of Canterbury from 1862 until his death.-Life:...
from 1862, - Archibald Campbell TaitArchibald Campbell TaitArchibald Campbell Tait was a priest in the Church of England and an Archbishop of Canterbury.-Life:Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, Tait was educated at the Royal High School and at the Edinburgh Academy, where he was twice elected dux. His parents were Presbyterian but he early turned towards the...
from 1868, - Edward White BensonEdward White BensonEdward White Benson was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1883 until his death.-Life:Edward White Benson was born in Highgate, Birmingham, the son of a Birmingham chemical manufacturer. He was educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated BA in 1852...
from 1883.
All except Benson are buried in St Mary's Church and churchyard in Addington
Addington, London
Addington is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Croydon. It is situated south south-east of Charing Cross.-History:...
.
The 'Palace' was sold in 1897 to Mr F.A.English, a diamond merchant from South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
After his death, the house in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
was taken over by the Red Cross
International Committee of the Red Cross
The International Committee of the Red Cross is a private humanitarian institution based in Geneva, Switzerland. States parties to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols of 1977 and 2005, have given the ICRC a mandate to protect the victims of international and...
and became a fever hospital, but eventually it came into the hands of the County Borough of Croydon in 1930.
Current Usage
The house was Grade II listed in 1951.In 1953, it was leased to the Royal School of Church Music
Royal School of Church Music
The largest church music organisation in Britain, the Royal School of Church Music was founded in 1927 by Sir Sydney Nicholson and has 11,000 members worldwide; it was originally named the School of English Church Music. It seeks to enable church music in the present and invest in its future,...
and served as head office for its music publishing operation, as well as serving as a residential college and choir school until 1996, when a private company took it over for development as a conference and banqueting venue, health farm and country club. It is used extensively for wedding
Wedding
A wedding is the ceremony in which two people are united in marriage or a similar institution. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes...
s.
It is surrounded by a park and golf courses, and its gardens are still largely in their original design. Much of the grounds have been leased by golf clubs and the exclusive Bishops Walk housing development was built on Bishops Walk (a private road).
See also
- Croydon PalaceCroydon PalaceCroydon Palace, in Croydon, now part of south London, was the summer residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury for over 500 years. Regular visitors included Henry III and Queen Elizabeth I...
, the summer residence of the Archbishop of CanterburyArchbishop of CanterburyThe Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
for 500 years