Rossway Park Estate is a country estate located about 0.5 kilometers south of

Berkhamsted Berkhamsted ( ) is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, in the Bulbourne valley, north-west of London. The town is a civil parish with a town council within the borough of Dacorum which is based in the neighbouring large new town ...

in Hertfordshire, England. The house at the centre of the estate is a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

The Rossway Park estate, which dates from the 17th century and was then known as Rothway, was bought by Robert Sutton from

Highgate Highgate ( ) is a suburban area of north London at the northeastern corner of Hampstead Heath, north-northwest of Charing Cross. Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has two active conservation organisat ...

in 1802. Charles Stanton Hadden, a coffee planter operating in Ceylon, acquired the estate in 1863, demolished the original mansion and built a new house which was completed in 1867. In 1903 the property passed to Major-General

Charles Hadden Sir Charles Frederick Hadden (2 June 1854 – 13 September 1924) was a British Army officer who served as Master-General of the Ordnance. Early life and education Hadden was born in Nottingham, the son of Charles Stanton Hadden, a Ceylon coffe ...

, a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

officer who became

Master-General of the Ordnance The Master-General of the Ordnance (MGO) was a very senior British military position from 1415 to 2013 (except 1855–1895 and 1939–1958) with some changes to the name, usually held by a serving general. The Master-General of the Ordnance was ...

. It then passed to the general's son, Major Adrian Hadden Paton, in 1949 and remained in the hands of the Hadden Paton family until 1998 when it was acquired by

Khoo Kay Peng Tan Sri Khoo Kay Peng (; born December 1939) is a Malaysian Chinese businessman. He is the chairman and a major shareholder of Laura Ashley plc, and the owner of MUI Group. Early life Khoo Kay Peng was born in December 1939. Career Khoo was men ...

, chairman of

MUI Group Malayan United Industries Berhad (MUI; ) was founded in 1960, and owned by Khoo Kay Peng. The main businesses of the group includes retailing, hotels, food and confectionery, financial services, property, travel and tourism. The group has business ...

, which owned a majority stake in the retail chain

Laura Ashley Laura Ashley (née Mountney; 7 September 1925 – 17 September 1985) was a Welsh fashion designer and businesswoman. She originally made furnishing materials in the 1950s, expanding the business into clothing design and manufacture in the 1960s ...

House and estate buildings

At the centre of the estate is Rossway, a large,

Grade II-listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

English country house. The present building dates from 1867 and was designed by the English architect

Robert Evans Robert Evans (born Robert J. Shapera; June 29, 1930October 26, 2019) was an American film producer, studio executive, and actor, best known for his work on '' Rosemary's Baby'' (1968), ''Love Story'' (1970), ''The Godfather'' (1972), and ''Chi ...

in the

Palladian Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...

style. The frontage features a central stone portico supported by columns with foliated capitals. The interior is richly decorated with large marble columns in the entrance hall, several marble

fireplace A fireplace or hearth is a structure made of brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used for the relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, depending on the design ...

s and foliated cornicing in the main rooms. A number of wooden fireplaces have been retained from the earlier 17th-century house. A number of ancillary buildings are also listed for their historic significance, such as the 16th-century farmhouse and 18th-century stable block. Marlin Chapel Farm, also on the estate, has been listed as a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

; beneath the farm buildings, a double-moated site has been identified, possibly 13th century in origin, indicating the former presence of a prestigious aristocratic

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

. It is thought that the provision of a moat served as a status symbol rather than as a military defence. The farm is named after a 13th-century

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

building, Marlin Chapel, which once stood on the periphery of the moated site, ''Marlin'' being a corruption of Mary Magdalene, to whom the chapel is dedicated. The chapel ruins are now grade II listed.

References

{{Listed buildings in Hertfordshire Country houses in Hertfordshire Grade II listed buildings in Hertfordshire Country estates in England Buildings and structures in Dacorum