Thorpe Hall at Longthorpe in the city of

Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...

, Cambridgeshire, is a Grade I

listed building 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 ...

, built by Peter Mills between 1653 and 1656, for the

Lord Chief Justice The Lord or Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary of England and Wales and the president of the courts of England and Wales. Until 2005 the lord chief justice was the second-most senior judge of the English a ...

Oliver St John Sir Oliver St John (; c. 1598 – 31 December 1673) was an English barrister, judge and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640-53. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War. Early life St John was the son o ...

. The house is unusual in being one of the very few mansions built during the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

period. After a period as a hospital, it is currently used as a

Sue Ryder Margaret Susan Cheshire, Baroness Ryder of Warsaw, Baroness Cheshire, (; 3 July 1924 – 2 November 2000), commonly known as Sue Ryder, was a British volunteer with Special Operations Executive in the Second World War, and a member of th ...

hospice Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life b ...

. While parliamentary soldiers were in Peterborough in 1643 during the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

, they ransacked the

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

. Parliament disposed of Church property to raise money for the army and navy and the parliamentarian Oliver St John bought the lease to the manor of Longthorpe and built Thorpe Hall. In 1654 it was described by the author

John Evelyn John Evelyn (31 October 162027 February 1706) was an English writer, landowner, gardener, courtier and minor government official, who is now best known as a diary, diarist. He was a founding Fellow of the Royal Society. John Evelyn's Diary, ...

as "a stately place...built out of the ruins of the Bishop's

Palace A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

and

cloisters A cloister (from Latin , "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a warm southe ...

." A symmetrical composition in

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

, rusticated

quoins Quoins ( or ) are masonry blocks at the corner of a wall. Some are structural, providing strength for a wall made with inferior stone or rubble, while others merely add aesthetic detail to a corner. According to one 19th-century encyclopedia, ...

, with square, groups of rusticated chimney shafts; the north and south elevations are identical, three

dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a Roof pitch, pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the ...

s, casements under

pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...

s, the centre one semi-circular. A stone slate roof overhangs on

modillion A modillion is an ornate bracket, more horizontal in shape and less imposing than a corbel. They are often seen underneath a Cornice (architecture), cornice which helps to support them. Modillions are more elaborate than dentils (literally transl ...

s. There are seven windows, with plain stone surrounds to top and ground floors. The porch with Tuscan columns supports a balcony. The balcony window on the first floor has a segmental pediment and shouldered

architrave In classical architecture, an architrave (; , also called an epistyle; ) is the lintel or beam, typically made of wood or stone, that rests on the capitals of columns. The term can also apply to all sides, including the vertical members, ...

. The windows of the second and sixth bays have pediments, while the others have

frieze In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic order, Ionic or Corinthian order, Corinthian orders, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Patera (architecture), Paterae are also ...

and moulded

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative Moulding (decorative), moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, ar ...

. A band marks first-floor height. There is a flight of eight steps with

balustrade A baluster () is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its ...

supporting two

urns An urn is a vase, often with a cover, with a typically narrowed neck above a rounded body and a footed pedestal. Describing a vessel as an "urn", as opposed to a vase or other terms, generally reflects its use rather than any particular shape ...

. The interior is complete, except for library or Great Parlour panelling now at

Leeds Castle Leeds Castle is a castle in Kent, England, southeast of Maidstone. It is built on islands in a lake formed by the River Len to the east of the village of Leeds and is a historic Grade I listed estate. A castle has existed on the site s ...

. There may have been two designers, Mills and John Stone, a French-trained son of

Nicholas Stone Nicholas Stone (1586/87 – 24 August 1647) was an England, English sculpture, sculptor and architect. In 1619 he was appointed master-mason to James I of England, James I, and in 1626 to Charles I of England, Charles I. During his ca ...

. Principal rooms have richly decorated fireplaces and plaster ceilings by Peter Mills. The principal staircase has heavily carved foliated open panels to broad balustrade. A stone screen on the landing was added in 1850 by Francis Ruddle of Peterborough. Thorpe Hall is situated in a Grade II listed garden that is open to members of the public throughout the year. The curved walls forming the entrance courtyard, gatepiers and entrance gates, former stables to the right, and a shouldered stone architrave gateway flanked by vertically halved

pilaster In architecture, a pilaster is both a load-bearing section of thickened wall or column integrated into a wall, and a purely decorative element in classical architecture which gives the appearance of a supporting column and articulates an ext ...

s with

volute A volute is a spiral, scroll-like ornament that forms the basis of the Ionic order, found in the capital of the Ionic column. It was later incorporated into Corinthian order and Composite column capitals. Four are normally to be found on an ...

s are also Grade I listed buildings. The late 19th-century lodge, octagonal summerhouse in red brick with fish scale slate roof, and a free-standing archway resembling a Venetian window in design are Grade II listed buildings. A maternity hospital from 1943 to 1970, it was transferred to the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the term for the publicly funded health care, publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom: the National Health Service (England), NHS Scotland, NHS Wales, and Health and Social Care (Northern ...

in 1948, coming under No. 12 Group (Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals Management Committee) of the

East Anglia East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...

n Regional Hospital Board.Beatty, Gwendoline "Peterborough and District War Memorial Hospital 1928–1968" in ''Peterborough's Past'' Vol. 3 (pp. 45–56) Peterborough Museum Society, 1988 In 1986 it was acquired by the Sue Ryder Foundation and is currently in use as a

References

External links

Thorpe Hall Hospice
{{coord, 52, 34, 21.5, N, 0, 16, 27.5, W, type:landmark, display=title Country houses in Cambridgeshire Buildings and structures in Peterborough Grade I listed buildings in Peterborough Grade I listed buildings in Cambridgeshire Grade I listed houses Houses completed in 1656 Grade II* listed parks and gardens in Cambridgeshire

See also

References

External links