Built / Designed For: William Moulsoe

House & Family History: In the 17th century Gayhurst was the seat of Sir Everard Digby, one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot. During the Civil War Parliamentary troops were billeted at Gayhurst; they left behind an inscription in the porch showing an X and the date 1649, said to have been scratched into the stone to mark the execution of King Charles I. Gayhurst was a virtual ruin in the 1850s when Robert John Carrington, 2nd Baron Carrington, hired William Burges to restore the house at a cost of £30,000 (approximately £20 million in 2016 inflation-adjusted values using the labour value commodity index). Lord Carrington was Burges's first major patron and, in the rebuilding of Gayhurst, Burges had his first large-scale domestic commission. A large volume of Burges's drawings for Gayhurst was auctioned by Sotheby's for £18,000 (against a high estimate of £3,000) in May of 2005 as part of the sale of the contents of Easton Neston. The volume had long been considered lost; it came to the library at Easton Neston when the Hesketh family came into possession of Gayhurst in the mid-20th century. The Gayhurst Estate was broken up in the 20th century and the house was converted into flats between 1971 and 1979.

Garden & Outbuildings: Gayhurst has an exceptional collection of outbuildings, including the turreted stables, the 17th century dovecote, the kennels, the brewhouse, the bakehouse and, most significantly, the male servants' lavatory. This astonishing survival is a large, circular privy based on the Abbot's Kitchen at Glastonbury and is topped by a statue of Cerberus.

John Bernard (J.B.) Burke, published under the title of A Visitation of the Seats and Arms of the Noblemen and Gentlemen of Great Britain and Ireland, among other titles: Vol. I, p. 7, 1852.

John Preston (J.P.) Neale, published under the title of Views of the Seats of Noblemen and Gentlemen in England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, among other titles: Vol. I, 1818.

House Listed: Grade I

Park Listed: Grade II

Past Seat / Home of: William Moulsoe, 16th century. Sir Everard Digby, 17th century; Sir Kenelm Digby, 17th century. Sir Nathan Wrighte, 18th century; George Wright, 18th century. Robert John Carrington, 2nd Baron Carrington, 19th century. J.W. Carlisle, late 19th century. Hesketh family, mid-20th century.

Current Ownership Type: Flat Owners Company / Condo Association

Primary Current Ownership Use: Flats / Multi Family

House Open to Public: No

Historic Houses Member: No