Barham Court is an
English country house
image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire
An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...
in the village of
Teston
Teston The Place Names of Kent,Judith Glover,1976,Batsford. or BBC Pronouncing Dictionary of British Names — is a is a village and civil parish in the Maidstone (borough), Maidstone District of Kent, England. It is located on the A26 r ...
,
Kent
Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
.
History
It was once the home of
Reginald Fitz Urse, one of the knights who murdered
Thomas Becket
Thomas Becket (), also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London and later Thomas à Becket (21 December 1119 or 1120 – 29 December 1170), served as Lord Chancellor from 1155 to 1162, and then as Archbishop of Canterbury fr ...
in
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral is the cathedral of the archbishop of Canterbury, the spiritual leader of the Church of England and symbolic leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Located in Canterbury, Kent, it is one of the oldest Christianity, Ch ...
in 1170.
As a result of that deed, Fitz Urse fled to Ireland and the manor passed into the ownership of his kinsman, Robert de Berham. The de Berham family (now called Barhams) became one of the great families in Kent.
[
At the end of Elizabeth I's reign, the property passed to Sir Oliver Boteler and his wife, Anne. The Botelers (later spelled Butler) were Royalists and Barham Court was sacked by Cromwell's New Army during the Civil War. William Butler, their son, was imprisoned in London for his support of the Kentish Royalist Petition of 1642, which indirectly led to the Battle of Maidstone 1648.]Maidstone
Maidstone is the largest Town status in the United Kingdom, town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town, l ...
. He had the road moved 'some hundred rods' (say five hundred and fifty yards) to the south. When Edward Hasted
Edward Hasted (20 December 1732 OS (31 December 1732 NS) – 14 January 1812) was an English antiquarian and pioneering historian of his ancestral home county of Kent. As such, he was the author of a major county history, ''The History and ...
visited the house in the 18th century, then owned by the Bouverie family, he described it as the greatest ornament of this part of the county.[ After that it passed to the ]Charles Middleton, 1st Baron Barham
Admiral Charles Middleton, 1st Baron Barham, PC (14 October 172617 June 1813) was a Royal Navy officer and politician. As a junior officer he saw action during the Seven Years' War. Middleton was given command of a guardship at the Nore, a Roy ...
[ and it was the birthplace of his daughter and heir Diana, later Diana Noel, 2nd Baroness Barham.]William Wilberforce
William Wilberforce (24 August 1759 – 29 July 1833) was a British politician, philanthropist, and a leader of the movement to abolish the Atlantic slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780 ...
was a frequent house guest of the first Lady Barham, who is said to have inspired and supported him in his fight against slavery. He loved the place and once wrote that 'for the charm of softness and elegance I never beheld a superior to Barham Court'.[ It was subsequently refurbished by Holloway Brothers.][ Today the house itself has been converted into offices, with apartments attached.][
]
References
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Country houses in Kent
Noel family