Cold Overton Hall is a country house in the village of Cold Overton, Leicestershire, England. Built for John St John, it is a

Grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

building. The hall is built in three storeys plus attics with a 5 bay frontage. It is constructed of ironstone with limestone dressings and a hipped Swithland slate roof. The west front has a two-storey flat roofed porch projecting from a pedimented 3 bay centre.

History

John St John,

High Sheriff of Leicestershire This is a list of Sheriffs and High Sheriffs of Leicestershire, United Kingdom. The Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most ...

in 1632, bought the manor of Cold Overton from the

Earl of Northampton Earl of Northampton is a title in the Peerage of England that has been created five times. Earls of Northampton, First Creation (1071) * Waltheof (d. 1076) * Maud, Queen of Scotland (c.1074–1130/31) * Simon II de Senlis (1103–1153) * Simon II ...

c.1620 and built the present hall c.1664. In the early 18th century, it was sold by the St John family to the self-made merchant Turner family, in which it descended to a John Turner. Having no heir, he willed it to his cousin Layton Frewen, who also died childless and left it in 1777 to his own cousin, the Rev Thomas Frewen, who thereupon adopted the additional surname of Turner. The property passed to his son

John Frewen-Turner John Frewen-Turner (1 August 1755 – 1 February 1829), born John Frewen,J.M. Collinge, 'Frewen Turner, John (1755-1829), of Cold Overton, Leics. and Brickwall, Suss.', in R. Thorne (ed.), ''The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1790-18 ...

, who was MP for

Athlone Athlone (; ) is a town on the border of County Roscommon and County Westmeath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located on the River Shannon near the southern shore of Lough Ree. It is the second most populous town in the Midland Region, Ir ...

(1807–1812) and

in 1791. In the mid-19th century, the hall was sold to

Earl Cowley Earl Cowley is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1857 for the diplomat Henry Wellesley, 2nd Baron Cowley. He was Ambassador to France from 1852 to 1867. He was made Viscount Dangan, of Dangan in the County of M ...

, who left his wife to live with another woman in France. The hall was bought in 1912 by James Montagu, who carried out a major refurbishment, introducing 16th and 17th century panelling, ceilings, and fireplaces. It is still privately owned.

References

{{coord, 52.6823, -0.8034, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Country houses in Leicestershire Grade I listed buildings in Leicestershire Grade I listed houses 1664 establishments in England