Chilham Castle in the Kentish Countryside
The magnificent Chilham Castle is an elegant country seat, set in 300 acres of Kentish countryside.
The 14 bedroom manor home features fine period detail throughout its grand and formal living spaces, and an indoor swimming pool from the 1920s.
The expansive estate comes with a vineyard, 2 tennis courts, a 3-acre lake with boathouse, stables and farm buildings, and 4 cottages for additional accommodation.
Described as one of the finest houses in the south-east of England, the Grade I listed Jacobean manor was built in 1616 on the site of a medieval castle built by Wihtred, King of Kent in 709.
Over the centuries, the prestigious property belonged to various nobles, and even the crown. In 1539, King Henry VIII purchased the estate and granted it to Sir Thomas Cheney, who had 10 years earlier leant his house, Shurland on the Isle of Sheppey, to the King to court Anne Boleyn.
Cheney would dismantle much of the original Chilham Castle, appropriating its stone back at Shurland, and his son sold off what remained of the estate to a neighbour, Sir Thomas Kempe of Olantigh.
With no male heirs, the estate passed to his granddaughter Mary, and her husband, the diplomat and politician Sir Dudley Digges, who built Chilham Castle on the site of the fortress, designed by the classical architect Inigo Jones in 1616.
The property has been expanded over 4 centuries and lived in by 10 families, each who left their mark on the impressive estate.
In the 1700s, the estate was enlarged, and between 1774-1794, lawyer Thomas Heron converted the property into a fine Georgian residence, and hired famed landscape architect Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown to redesign its grounds.
In the late 19th century, the house was further updated by the Scottish gothic architect David Brandon, and in the 1920s the property was further updated by the great British architect Sir Herbert Baker.
In 1949, the property was purchased by the politician, Hon. John Whyte-Melville Skeffington and then passed to his son, a politician and racing driver, the 13th Viscount Massereene and 6th Viscount Ferrard, who was known to host lavish banquets and jousting displays at Chilham Castle.
The estate was purchased by Gambling tycoon Stuart Wheeler in the early 2000s, and further restored and updated with interior designer, Christopher Gibbs. The castle once again became a destination for lavish parties and equestrian events.
In 2020, Stuart Wheeler passed away at 85, leaving the house to be sold with all proceeds being donated to anti-torture charities.
All photos belong to the listing agency.
