Stowe House, Kilkhampton

Stowe House, Kilkhampton is a 17th-century English country house built of brick with stone dressings across three floors topped by a hipped roof. The main structure measured approximately eleven bays wide and seven bays deep.

John Grenville, 1st Earl of Bath, built the house in 1679, making it a statement of aristocratic power in the area. When the last heir died in 1711, the estate lost its purpose and was demolished in 1739.

The house was more than a residence; it served as a center for aristocratic leisure and entertainment. A real tennis court, chapel, formal gardens with fountains, and a deer park reflected the social life and status of the nobility who lived here.

What remains of the original mansion can be seen at Stowe Barton farmhouse today, where garden walls and foundations are still visible among the modern farm buildings. Visiting requires prior arrangement since the site is on private farmland.

After demolition, parts of the building were given new life elsewhere, including cedar wood from the chapel that was reused at Stowe House in Buckinghamshire. The grand staircase was relocated to Cross House in Devon, where it survives today.

GPS coordinates: 50.87290,-4.54000

Latest update: December 11, 2025 11:08