Kirtling, near Newmarket
Cambridgeshire
England
Circa Date: Medieval core w/16th, 17th & 18th century additions and alterations
Status: Partially Extant
Mostly demolished by 1801; the extant Grade I-listed medieval Gatehouse was renamed Kirtling Tower.
House Open to Public: No
Country House: Yes
The House in the background, with the extant Gatehouse in the foreground, from "Morris's Views of Seats," circa 1875.
Earlier Houses: The medieval house was demolished in 1801 by Lord North. Elizabeth I visited the earlier house in 1578.
House & Family History: In the mid-17th century Kirtling was the largest country house in Cambridgeshire; by the early 18th century it entered a long decline, ending in the demolition of the vast majority of the house in 1748. In 1801 the remaining house was declared inhabitable and demolished. In 1872 the 11th Lord North, a Catholic, hired Joseph Aloysius Hansom to rebuild the medieval Gatehouse as a new house. In 1877 Lord North hired Charles Alban Buckler to build the Catholic Church of Our Lady Immaculate and St. Philip. Both architects were Catholics.
Chapel & Church: n 1877 Charles Alban Buckler designed and built the Catholic church of Our Lady Immaculate and St. Philip.
Architect: Joseph Aloysius Hansom
Date: 1872Architect: Charles Alban Buckler
Date: 1877Country Life: LXIX, 102, 1931.
Title: Burke's & Savills Guide to Country Houses, Volume III: East Anglia
Author: Kenworthy-Browne, John; Reid, Peter; Sayer, Michael; Watkin, David
Year Published: 1981
Publisher: London: Burke's Peerage
ISBN: 0850110351
Book Type: Hardback
House Listed: Grade I
Park Listed: Not Listed
Current Seat / Home of: Ailwyn Broughton, 3rd Baron Fairhaven.
Past Seat / Home of: Richard de Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick, 15th century. Edward North, 16th century. Patrick Murray, 5th Lord Elibank, 18th century. George Augustus North, 3rd Earl of Guilford, 19th century.
Current Ownership Type: Individual / Family Trust
Primary Current Ownership Use: Private Home
House Open to Public: No
Historic Houses Member: No