Waverley Abbey
House, near Farnham, Surrey
The house is now the headquarters of the Crusade for World Revival, a Christian charity. This photograph (which I'm afraid I 'borrowed' from their website) really doesn't do it justice, particularly the setting, with the lake in front of the house and the ruins of Waverley Abbey beyond. Earlier this year I stumbled across this house quite by accident - I was early for a meeting nearby and decided to go for a short walk. I had never heard of the place and certainly had no idea of any connection. I thought it was one of the most beautiful houses I had ever seen, although, as you can see, it has been disfigured by the addition of what looks like an 'executive flat' to one of the wings*. A few months later I discovered, again quite by accident, that it was once owned by my great-great-great-great grandfather, John Poulett Thompson! His son, Lord Sydenham, was Governor of Canada.
Waverley Abbey was demolished during the dissolution of the monastaries.
* Waverley Abbey House is attributed to the architect, Colin Campbell (d. 1729), who built what is unquestionably the most beautiful house in England, namely Mereworth Castle in Kent. Mereworth Castle, now owned by an Arab gentleman, is not actually a castle at all but a faithful interpretation of Palladio's Villa Capra (also called the 'Villa Rotunda'). Permitting this addition to Waverley Abbey House is therefore an architectural crime of stunning proportions.
The main entrance
The Villa Capra (also called the 'Villa Rotunda'), near Vicenza, by Andrea Palladio,
the most important, and beautiful, building in the world.
Mereworth Castle
