Kenwood, London's Country Mansion
In Hampstead,UK, This Stately Home Houses A Valuable Art Collection
© Ja Woolf
Kenwood House, in London's Hampstead Heath, is an 18th century country seat now swallowed in the town, and it houses a magnificent collection of Old Masters.
One of London’s hidden treasures is Kenwood House, a large white villa which stands in the middle of the countryside park of Hampstead Heath. Now owned by English Heritage, Kenwood contains a fabulous art collection, and it is completely free to visit. Yet this splendid visitor attraction is little known.
Many Changes
In the days when Kenwood House was built, it stood in the countryside. Just outside its boundaries, on the heath, poor people used to graze their sheep and cattle and washer-women hung their clothes out on the bushes to dry.
Now, things are much changed. Although the Heath is preserved, the surrounding areas are heavily built up for many miles around, and Hampstead village has changed from a minor spa to one of the most affluent parts of London.
Kenwood Becomes a Country Seat
The house was originally quite modest, and dated from the early 17th century. In the 18th century it was sold to the first Earl of Mansfield, William Murray, who was a successful lawyer. He called in the famous architect Robert Adam to extend and renovate the house. Adam added the splendid pillared library, which still exists, and by the end of the 1760s, Kenwood was everything that a country seat should be, with architecture that featured a dazzling stuccoed façade, a pillared portico and many neo-classical details. By the time the century closed, Kenwood’s park had also been laid out by the famous garden designer Humphrey Repton.
Old Masters
In the early twentieth century, Kenwood was let out to the Grand Duke Michael of Russia. Times got harder, and its contents were sold in the early 1920s and some of its surrounding parkland was sold off. London was expanding, building land was needed, and Kenwood was at risk. A preservation group bought some of the surrounding land, and in 1925 the whole property was purchased by Edward Guinness, first Earl of Iveagh. Incredibly, he did not want to live in the house - he bought it to contain his superb collection of Old Master paintings which include works by Rembrandt, Gainsborough, Vermeer, Reynolds, and Turner, among others. Lord Iveagh generously left the house and its contents to the nation in 1927, and admission is free to this day.
Many Attractions
Today, the house is, in many ways, little changed. Its attractions include spectacular views over meadowland and woodland, and a lake ain the distance features an elegant bridge. In fact, the bridge is a fake – created only to provide a pretty view from the house! The terrace next to the house is brilliant with daffodils in early Spring, and in late Spring, the massed coloured azaleas and rhododendrons are spectacular. In summer, there are open air concerts – most people walk across the Heath to attend these, but there is a small car park to the rear of the house, and disabled parking.
In addition, the house is sometimes used as a set for film and TV productions, most notably in the movie “Notting Hill” starring Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts. An excellent café, in the old kitchens, serves food which can be eaten outside in a large, flowery patio garden at any time of year.
