Charlton Park, Wiltshire facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Charlton Park House |
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Charlton Park House
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| Type | Prodigy house |
| Location | Charlton, Wiltshire, England |
| Architectural style(s) | Elizabethan and Jacobean |
| Website | charltonparkestate.com |
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Listed Building – Grade I
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| Official name: Charlton Park House | |
| Designated | 12 December 1951 |
| Reference no. | 1022216 |
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Listed Building – Grade II
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| Official name: Andover House and Estate Office | |
| Designated | 16 July 1987 |
| Reference no. | 1262080 |
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Listed Building – Grade II
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| Official name: Stables at Andover House | |
| Designated | 16 July 1987 |
| Reference no. | 1363923 |
| Reference no. | [1] |
| Reference no. | [2] |
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Charlton Park is a grand country house and estate located in Wiltshire, England. It's about 2 miles northeast of the town of Malmesbury. The main building, Charlton Park House, is a very important historic site. It is known as a 'prodigy house' because it was built to be incredibly large and impressive.
Contents
The Story of Charlton Park House
Early History and Owners
The land where Charlton Park stands was owned by Malmesbury Abbey for a very long time. They had it even before the year 1086. The Abbey kept the land until the Dissolution of the Monasteries. This was when King Henry VIII closed down many monasteries in England.
The building of Charlton Park House began in the 1560s. It was started by a man named Henry Knyvet. His wife, Elizabeth Stumpe, had inherited the land.
In 1598, the estate passed to their daughter, Catherine. She was married to Thomas Howard. He became the Earl of Suffolk in 1603. The estate has been the home of the Earls of Suffolk ever since.
Building and Changes Over Time
The house was made bigger and changed a lot. The second floor and the tall stair towers were added. All this work was finished in 1607.
Many years later, in 1667, a famous writer named John Dryden stayed at the house. While he was there, he wrote a well-known poem called Annus Mirabilis.
More big changes happened in the 1770s. These were done by Matthew Brettingham the Younger for Henry Howard, 12th Earl of Suffolk. The south side of the house was rebuilt. More stair towers were added. The central courtyard was covered with a roof to create a large, domed hall. The inside of this hall wasn't finished when Henry died in 1779. It was finally completed much later, in the early 1900s.
Charlton Park Today
In 1975, Charlton Park House was changed into apartments. Today, the estate is used for different events. Since 2007, it has been the home of the yearly WOMAD Charlton Park music festival. This festival brings together music from all over the world.
There is also a small airfield at the estate. It has two grass runways. Parts of "Piece of Cake" were filmed here. This was a British TV show from 1988 about a Royal Air Force fighter squadron during World War II. The house was used as the officers' mess. Real Spitfire fighter planes even flew from the airfield for the filming!
The small village of Charlton is right next to the estate. The area around the village and the estate is called the civil parish of Charlton.
Images for kids
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Charlton Park from the west, around 1800, by Hendrik Frans de Cort
