Glympton Park
Encyclopedia
Glympton Park is a former deer park
at Glympton
, 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of Woodstock, Oxfordshire
, England
. It includes Glympton House (an 18th century country house
) and has a 2000 acres (809.4 ha) estate including the village of Glympton, its Norman parish church of St. Mary, 21 stone cottages and 167 acres (67.6 ha) of parkland.
that had occupied the site since the 16th century or earlier. The property was owned by John Cupper and his wife, Audrey Peyto, and their descendants from 1547 to 1632. William Wheate bought the manor in 1633 and either he or one of his successors had the house remodelled later in the 17th century. By the early part of the 18th century it had an H-shaped plan with north and south courtyards each flanked on three sides by wings of the house.
In the first half of the 18th century either Sir Thomas Wheate, 1st Baronet
or Sir Thomas Wheate, 2nd Baronet
had the house remodelled with a Georgian
elevation of seven bays
. By the early part of the 19th century the western range of the old house had been demolished. When the 2nd Baronet died without a male heir in 1746, the baronetcy passed to his brother Sir George Wheate, 3rd Baronet but Glympton Park became the dower house
of his widow Mary.
George Henry Barnett, the nephew of Sir Jacob Wheate, 5th Baronet, inherited Glympton Park in 1846. Barnett removed the east and west wings from the main front, re-faced the main front in mid-18th century style
and added an Italianate
kitchen block on the east side. Barnett moved the main entrance to the west side, and gave the new entrance a Tuscan
porch. Glympton Park remained in the Barnett family until Benjamin Barnett sold it in 1944.
. Prince Bandar bin Sultan, the nephew to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
and long-time Saudi ambassador to the US, bought the estate at its lowered price of £8 million in 1992. Prince Bandar is said to have spent £42 million in restoring Glympton House. The driveway has obstacles and bulletproof glass to stop terrorists. He has transformed the house and estate since that date, buying another 500 acres (202.3 ha) of land and various houses within the estate, including the old rectory and Ludwell, reconstructing the house, laying out new gardens, replanting the park, establishing a pheasant shoot and developing the farm.
Medieval deer park
A medieval deer park was an enclosed area containing deer. It was bounded by a ditch and bank with a wooden park pale on top of the bank. The ditch was typically on the inside, thus allowing deer to enter the park but preventing them from leaving.-History:...
at Glympton
Glympton
Glympton is a village and civil parish on the River Glyme about north of Woodstock, Oxfordshire.-Prehistory:Grim's Ditch in the southern part of the parish, just north of Grim's Dyke Farm, was dug in the 1st century. The surviving section is about long....
, 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of Woodstock, Oxfordshire
Woodstock, Oxfordshire
Woodstock is a small town northwest of Oxford in Oxfordshire, England. It is the location of Blenheim Palace, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.Winston Churchill was born in Blenheim Palace in 1874 and is buried in the nearby village of Bladon....
, 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...
. It includes Glympton House (an 18th century country house
English country house
The English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a London house. This allowed to them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these people, the term distinguished between town and country...
) and has a 2000 acres (809.4 ha) estate including the village of Glympton, its Norman parish church of St. Mary, 21 stone cottages and 167 acres (67.6 ha) of parkland.
History
Glympton House is the successor to a manor houseManor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
that had occupied the site since the 16th century or earlier. The property was owned by John Cupper and his wife, Audrey Peyto, and their descendants from 1547 to 1632. William Wheate bought the manor in 1633 and either he or one of his successors had the house remodelled later in the 17th century. By the early part of the 18th century it had an H-shaped plan with north and south courtyards each flanked on three sides by wings of the house.
In the first half of the 18th century either Sir Thomas Wheate, 1st Baronet
Sir Thomas Wheate, 1st Baronet
Sir Thomas Wheate, 1st Baronet was an English politician who was the Member of Parliament for Woodstock from 1690 to 1695 and from 1708 to 1721.He lived at Glympton Park, near Woodstock...
or Sir Thomas Wheate, 2nd Baronet
Sir Thomas Wheate, 2nd Baronet
Sir Thomas Wheate, 2nd Baronet was an English politician who was the Member of Parliament for Woodstock from 1722 to 1727.Son of Sir Thomas Wheate, 1st Baronet, whom he succeeded in the baronetcy in 1721...
had the house remodelled with a Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
elevation of seven bays
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
. By the early part of the 19th century the western range of the old house had been demolished. When the 2nd Baronet died without a male heir in 1746, the baronetcy passed to his brother Sir George Wheate, 3rd Baronet but Glympton Park became the dower house
Dower house
On an estate, a dower house is usually a moderately large house available for use by the widow of the estate-owner. The widow, often known as the "dowager" usually moves into the dower house from the larger family house on the death of her husband if the heir is married, and upon his marriage if he...
of his widow Mary.
George Henry Barnett, the nephew of Sir Jacob Wheate, 5th Baronet, inherited Glympton Park in 1846. Barnett removed the east and west wings from the main front, re-faced the main front in mid-18th century style
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
and added an Italianate
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
kitchen block on the east side. Barnett moved the main entrance to the west side, and gave the new entrance a Tuscan
Tuscan order
Among canon of classical orders of classical architecture, the Tuscan order's place is due to the influence of the Italian Sebastiano Serlio, who meticulously described the five orders including a "Tuscan order", "the solidest and least ornate", in his fourth book of Regole generalii di...
porch. Glympton Park remained in the Barnett family until Benjamin Barnett sold it in 1944.
Current owner
Glympton Park's current owner is a trust created by Prince Bandar of Saudi ArabiaBandar bin Sultan
Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud is a prince of the Saudi royal family and was Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States from 1983 to 2005. He was appointed Secretary-General of the National Security Council by King Abdullah on 16 October 2005...
. Prince Bandar bin Sultan, the nephew to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, is the King of Saudi Arabia. He succeeded to the throne on 1 August 2005 upon the death of his half-brother, King Fahd. When Crown Prince, he governed Saudi Arabia as regent from 1998 to 2005...
and long-time Saudi ambassador to the US, bought the estate at its lowered price of £8 million in 1992. Prince Bandar is said to have spent £42 million in restoring Glympton House. The driveway has obstacles and bulletproof glass to stop terrorists. He has transformed the house and estate since that date, buying another 500 acres (202.3 ha) of land and various houses within the estate, including the old rectory and Ludwell, reconstructing the house, laying out new gardens, replanting the park, establishing a pheasant shoot and developing the farm.