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BRITISH PRIME MINISTERS' HOMES: THEN AND NOW

Prime Ministers

PMs listed in order of 1st becoming PM

1. Robert Walpole 

Houghton Hall:  Built for Walpole,in the mid-1720s probably by Colen Campbell, this Palladian house is now home to the 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley, a direct descendant of Walpole. The Hall is set in 1,000 acres of parkland inhabited by white fallow deer, surrounded by a Walled Garden and decorated with a collection of contemporary sculptures. Inside is some of the Walpole Collection of fine art and a Model Soldier Museum. Houghton Hall and Gardens is open to the public.

2. Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington 

Compton Place: Compton Place was originally a Jacobian mansion. Compton rebuilt it from about 1726 to the original design of Colen Campbell; it was completed after Campbell's death by William Kent. The 24 acre park and gardens are open the public. In 1954, the house itself was rented to the English Language Centre which operates the English School in Eastbourne.

Compton Wynyates:   The Compton family has lived at Compton Wynyates since the early thirteenth century. There is evidence of a house on the site in 1386. This medieval house was probably dismantled and replaced in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. By the nineteenth century, the house had fallen into disrepair but was saved from demolition and completely restored. Compton Wynyates is considered one of the finest surviving examples of extant Tudor architecture. Since the 1960’s it has been closed to the public.

3. Henry Pelham 

22 Arlington Street (better known today as either the Wimborne House or the William Kent House): Designed in the Palladian style by William Kent, it was built between 1743 and 1754, In the the 18th century, Arlington Street was known as the 'ministerial street' because of the number of government ministers who lived there, including Walpole at #5.  In the 1770’s, #22 was occupied by Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton., another Prime Minister. In 1880, ownership passed to Baron Wimborne. In 2005, The Ritz Hotel acquired the house and carefully restored it.  The renovation won a Royal Institute of British Architects national gold medal in 2007. It is now part of the Ritz, used as a venue for meetings, weddings, and corporate events.

Esher Place, Surrey:  This was originally a medieval and Tudor era manor house. In 1729 ownership passed to Pelham. He hired William Kent to demolish much of the medieval and Tudor portions and build a new one.   This house was also demolished.  The current house dates mostly from the 1890's with only a few structures remaining that date from Pelham's time and earlier.  Since 1953 Esher Place has been used as a college by the British and Irish trade union Unite.

4. Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle 

Claremont House:  The first house on the Claremont estate was built in 1708 by John Vanbrugh for his own use. In 1714, Newcastle purchased it.  After Newcastle died, his widow sold it in 1769 to Lord Robert Clive, who demolished it and hired Capability Brown to build the existing Palladian mansion.  For one hundred and fifty years, Claremont was primarily a royal estate.  In 1930, the house was scheduled for demolition when the governors of a London school purchased it and renamed it the Claremont Fan Court School, an independent school for boys and girls 2 to 18 years old.  Its landscaped gardens are owned by the National Trust. 

Newcastle House:  Located in Lincoln’s Inn Fields in central London, this was Newcastle's primary home.  After his death, the house was sold and divided in two. In 1790 the southern half was purchased by the legal firm of Farrer and Co.  Early in the 20th century, the company purchased the other half and restored it.  Farrer and Co. has advised many high-profile clients including royalty such as the Duke of Wellington, King Edward VIII during the abdication crisis and Queen Elizabeth II.

5. William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire 

Chatsworth House:  Chatsworth House is a stately home that has belonged to the Cavendish family since 1549. Devonshire commissioned Capability Brown to make substantial changes to the house and gardens. Outside of the house and stables, are a 105-acre garden, a 1,822-acre park, a farmyard and adventure playground. Inside, is one of Europe’s most significant private art collections. In 1981, the 11th Duke created the Chatsworth House Trust, an independent charitable foundation which manages the house on behalf of the Cavendish family. Chatsworth is open to the public

Chiswick House: After a fire burn done the original house, the present Palladian style villa was constructed between 1726 and 1729 by Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington. In 1758, the house passed to Devonshire by marriage. From 1892 to 1928, the Devonshire family rented the villa as a mental hospital, the Chiswick Asylum. During WWII V-2 rockets and bombs damaged some of the house. Nevertheless, much of the original villa remains.  Chiswick House and Gardens is now open to the public.  

Bolton Abbey, Yorkshire:  Bolton Abbey takes it name from a 12th century monastery, Bolton Priory, In 1748 Devonshire acquired Bolton Abby by marriage. It remained in the Devonshire family until the 11th Duke turning the Abbey over to Chatsworth House Trust. Open to the public.

Lismore Castle, Ireland:  Devonshire acquired Lismore Castle in 1753 when he married Charlotte Boyle,the sole heiress of Richard Boyle, In 1850 the 6th Duke engaged Sir Joseph Paxton to carry out improvements and additions to the castle. The present skyline is largely Paxton's work. Gardens open to the public. The castle is available to rent for special occasions.

6. John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute 

Mount Stuart House:  Stuart was a habitual collector of books, paintings and other works of art, scientific instruments. His descendants have continued adding to the collection.  Today Mount Stuart houses a large collection of 6,000 objects of art, 27,000 books on topics including theology, botany, agriculture and Scottish history and literature, and 3,500 boxes of significant legal documents.  The house is now open to the public.

Luton Hoo:  In 1763, Bute bought this estate for £94,700 and decided to redesign it according to plans by the architect Robert Adam. The plan was never fully executed and much of the work was a remodelling of the older house. In about 1830, the 2nd Marquess of Bute, transformed the house, to the designs of the architect Robert Smirk  In 2007, Luton Hoo became a five-star luxury hotel, spa and golf course.

7. George Grenville 

Wotton House:  Wotton was the home of the Grenville family as early as the 11th century. Around 1704 the current house was built in English Baroque style by Richard Grenville. Later in the 18th century, the grounds were redesigned by Capability Brown and William Pitt, creating a lawn and garden stretching to 200 acres.The Grenville line died out and the house was sold several times. By 1957 it was in near-derelict condition and was scheduled for demolition when it was purchased and restored. The nearby Coach House was also restored as a separate property, and purchased by Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife Cherie. The house is normally closed to the public but the grounds are open on specified days throughout the summer months.  

8. Charles Watson – Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham 

Wentworth – Woodhouse:  The home is now open to the public. In 2023, there were 95,000 visitors.  The estate is now open to the public.  The official website is here

9. William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham 

Hayes Place:  In 1756, Pitt purchase this house with 23 bedrooms. He entertained many famous guests here, including General Wolfe and Benjamin Franklin. His son, William Pitt the Younger, was born here in 1759. He died here In 1778. In 1933, Hayes Place was demolished to make way for a housing development.  A local reporter said, “Where statesmen once met to discuss state matters, builders’ men now eat their lunches. Hayes Place, the historic mansion of the Pitts, is now used as a store for building materials.”.

Burton Pynsent House:  William Pynsent, the original owner of Burton House, bequeathed it and his entire fortune to Pitt.  Pitt renamed it Burton Pynsent in his honour.  His wife, Hester Grenville, died at Burton Pynsent in 1803.  The house is privately owned.  Only the gardens are open to the public.

10 St James Sq. London (now known as Chatham House): Pitt rented this house in 1759.  later, two other Prime Ministers would also live there: Derby and Gladstone. In 1923 the building was donated to the Royal Institute of International Affairs (a.k.a Chatham House), a “think tank” on foreign affairs.

Mawarden Court: Pitt spent several years as a boy at Mawarden Court located in the constituency of Old Sarum.  Several generations of the family sat in the Commons for Old Sarum, including Pitt himself from 1735 to 1747. The house still stands but is not open to the public.

10.      Augustus Henry Fitzroy, 3rd Duke of Grafton 

Euston Hall:  The estate is now open to the public.

Wakefield Lodge:  This was Grafton’s hunting lodge.  He loved hunting and horse racing.  His horses won the Derby three times and the Oaks twice. Pictures and history of this hunting lodge are here

11.      Frederick North 

Wroxton Abbey: Wroxton Abbey is a 17th-century Jacobean manor house built on the foundations of a 13th-century Augustinian priory that was destroyed by Henry VIII in 1536.  In 1677, the property became the family home of the North family.  Lord North is buried at Saints' Church near the estate.  The Abbey has been the English campus of Fairleigh Dickinson University (of New Jersey U.S.A.) since 1965.  Fairleigh uses it for American and Canadian students studying abroad under the British tutorial system of higher education. The Wroxton college website is here

Dillington House:  In September 2023 the house closed permanently and the contents were sold at auction.  The website for the now defunct college and events venue is here.  A local newspaper article about the auction at Dillington House and pictures of some of the items for sale is here

12.      William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne 

Bowood House:  The estate is now open to the public.  The official website is here An article about the estate with pictures of the interior is here.

Bowood was originally two houses (“Big” and “Little”) joined by an enormous drawing room.   In the 1950’s Lloyd’s of London purchased the drawing room (the “Adam Room” named after Robert Adam who designed it) and reassembled it for the conference room of its previous London offices.  The room was subsequently moved again in 1986 to the 11th floor of its current building on Lime St. 

Wycombe Abbey:  Originally called Loakes House, Shelburne sold it to Robert Smith, 1st Baron Carrington, in 1798 who employed James Wyatt to create the mansion seen today.  Wycombe Abbey has been an independent girls' boarding and day school since 1896.

13.     William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland 

Welbeck Abbey:   The abbey is now a multi-functional estate offering “an inspiring environment in which to work, live and stay . . .”   

Burlington House:  In 1854, the British government purchased the house and allocated it to the use of learned societies at substantially reduced rent.  Today five societies occupy the building.  In 2014-15 the government announced that the societies would shortly have to begin paying rents commensurate with the fair market rate.  The issue has been to court and is unresolved.  The history of Burlington House and its association with learned societies is here

Bulstrode Park:  This was Portland’s preferred home where he kept his collection of fine marble and glass artifacts, including the Roman era “Portland Vase” The original mansion was replaced in 1865 by the present one.  In 1958, the mansion and woodland were bought by the Bruderhof community an Anabaptist Christian movement.  In 1966, the estate was bought by WEC International, a Christian evangelical mission agency.  WEC International sold the mansion to a private owner in 2016 for £13 million. It was sold again in 2023 for £6 million.    The estate still exists but is not open to the public.

16.      William Wyndham Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville 

Boconnoc House:  Boconnoc House is one of the estates Thomas “Diamond” Pitt acquired early in the 18^th century to gain influence in the House of Commons for himself and his family. The property passed down through the Pitt family until in 1804 when it was inherited by Ann Pitt, Grenville’s wife.  In 1864, the estate passed from the Grenville family into the Fortescue family which has owned it since.  It is now a privately owned estate available for weddings, corporate and other special events. 

Dropmore Park  Grenville was a landscape architect, gardener and arborist.  He planted at least 2,500 cedar and other conifer trees in the park.  At his death, the pinetum contained the biggest collection of conifer species in Britain.  The majority of the house burnt down in 1990, and has not been rebuilt, although there have been numerous plans to do so.  

17.      Spencer Percival 

Elm Grove Little Ealing:  In 1908, Percival purchased this large mansion.  After his assassination, the Government granted a pension of £2,000 per annum for life and lump sum (£50,000) to his wife Jane and their 12 children.  The house remained in the Percival family for most of the 19^th century.  In 1905, All Saints’ Church was built on the site.   

18.      Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool 

Fife House, Whitehall:  During his Premiership, Fife House was a centre of political life.  The house was demolished in 1869.

Coombe House:  Liverpool died here 4 December 1828. The house was demolished 1933

Conduit Street, London,

19.      George Canning 

South Hill Park:  South Hill Park is a mansion built in 1760 for Lord Liverpool’s grandparents. Canning bought it in 1807.  In 1972, the mansion was converted to an arts centre called the South Hill Park Arts Centre.  The centre’s website is here

50 Berkely Square, London; 4492 - 4592 Burbage Church St., Burbage; Castle Hill House; 2 Paper Buildings, Inner Temple; Charles Street, St James Square; 37 Conduit Street, London; 24 Bruton Street, London; Hinckley, Leicestershire; Gloucester Lodge, Old Brompton Middlesex, (more about Gloucester Lodge here ); A5 Albany, London; Long Sutton, Lincolnshire; 100 Marine Parade (Royal Crescent Mansions), Brighton.

20.      Frederick John Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich 

Nocton Hall:  Nocton Hall dates back to the 16th Century.  Goderich refurbished it extensively.   A major fire in 2004 and frequent vandalism and theft has left the hall in ruins.  The history of the estate and pictures of the ruins are here

Charles Street, St James Square, London; Old Burlington Street, London; Somerset House, Strand, London; Blackheath, Kent; Pembroke House, Whitehall; 1 Eastern Terrace, Brighton; 1 Carleton Gardens, London; Grantham House, Putney Heath, Surrey. Goderich died here 28 January 1859.

21.      Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington 

Apsley House:  Apsley House is the London townhouse of the Dukes of Wellington.  It was built for Lord Apsley in the 1770s.  It passed to Wellington in 1817.  He carried out renovations in two phases in 1819 and in 1828 after he had become Prime Minister.   It is now also called the Wellington Museum, exhibiting a large assemblage of paintings, other artworks and memorabilia of his career, commemorating Wellington’s life as a soldier and statesman.  Most of Apsley House is now open to the public.

Statfield Saye House:  Stratfield Saye House was the stately home of Arthur Wellesley, the 1st Duke of Wellington, from 1818 to 1852. The estate was acquired in 1817 by the Sate and given as a gift to Wellington for leading the victory against Napoleon. His plans for a ‘Waterloo Palace’ to rival Blenheim Palace were abandoned due to the cost. Improvements were then made to the existing building. The Wellington Exhibition, which presents the life and times of the Duke with a large collection of military artifacts, is housed in what were the stables. Visits are by guided tour only, which must be booked in advance.

22.      Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey of Howick 

Howick Hall: Howick has been owned by the Grey family since 1319. The Hall which stands on the site today was built in 1782 by William Newton. In 1926, A fire destroyed the interior of the main house. It was rebuilt in 1928, In 1973 the west wing was converted into a private home.  The rest of the hall, arboretum and gardens are open to the public.

23.      William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne 

Brocket Hall:  The current appearance of the house and park owe much to Sir Matthew Lamb, 1st Baronet, who purchased the estate in 1746 and commissioned the architect Sir James Paine to design and build it around 1760. Melbourn inherited the house in 1828. On his death it passed to his sister, Emily. In the late 1990s, the Club Corporation of Asia purchased Brocket Hall and converted it into a hotel and conference centre, built a second eighteen-hole golf course and opened a restaurant called Auberge du Lac. Brocket Hall is now open to the public.

Melbourne Hall:   Melbourne Hall is a Georgian style country house in Derbyshire, owned by Melbourne and then passed to his sister, Emily, in 1848.  In 1906 the house became the seat of the Kerr family. Melbourne Hall is open to the public.

Melbourne House, Piccadilly, London.(known today as Dover House) It became the Scottish Office in 1885. With the introduction of a devolved Scottish government, it is now used by the Secretary of State for Scotland.

24.      Robert Peel 

Drayton Manor:  Between 1830 and 1835, Peel had his father’s old manor house demolished and had this stately mansion constructed in its place.  After Peel’s death in 1850, the family gradually used it less and less and it was finally demolished in 1919. In 1950, an amusement park was opened on the grounds called Drayton Manor Resort.

25.      John Russell 

Pembroke Lodge, Richmond, Surrey:  Queen Victoria gave this lodge to the Russells in 1847.  They lived there the rest of their lives. Russell conducted government business there and entertained Queen Victoria, foreign royalty, aristocrats, writers and other notable people of the time. For the past 50 years the Lodge has been a venue for weddings.

26.     Edward George Geoffrey Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby

Knowsley Hall:  This is the ancestral home of the Stanley family and Earls of Derby.  It is now open to the public for weddings, meetings and other special events. 

Knowsley Safari Park:  The private zoo of the Earls of Derby has become the basis of the Knowsley Safari Park.  Opened in 1971 visitors drive past lions, cheetahs, monkeys, giraffes, and many other animals.  

27.      George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen 

Haddo House:  The Gordons, who later became the Earls of Aberdeen, have lived on this site for over 400 years. Designed in 1732 by William Adam, the house underwent remodelling in the 1880s. Haddo House is now open to the public.

The Ranger’s House, Blackheath London:  Aberdeen had use of this house in his sinecure position of Ranger of Greenwich Park. The house is now open to the public and includes the Wernher Art Collection of medieval jewellery, Italian ceramics, bronze sculptures, Renaissance paintings, 18th-century French furniture and British portraits.  The official website is here

28.      Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston 

Brocket Hall: Palmerston died here 18 October 1865.

Broadlands:  Broadlands is now open to the public. The official website is here.

Cambridge House:  Palmerston’s London townhouse. Also the location at that time of the Naval and Military Club (nicknamed the In and Out Club)

29.      Benjamin Disraeli 

93 Park Lane[liv]: Disraeli’s wife, Mary Anne, inherited a life interest in 93 Park Lane from her first husband, Wyndham Lewis.  She and Disraeli live there for their entire 33-year marriage from 1839 until her death in 1872

Hughenden Manor:  Built in the late 18^th century, Disraeli purchased this red brick manor house in 1847 and had it remodelled in 1862 by Edward Lamb.  During the Second World War, the basement was used as a secret intelligence base code named "Hillside" where staff analysed aerial photography of Germany and created maps for bombing missions, Today, Hughenden is a museum dedicated to commemorating Disraeli’s life as a statesman and novelist. Run the National Trust, it is decorated as it might have been when Disraeli lived there: family portraits, his furnishings, and a library with his novels. Also open are rooms in the west wing that housed the Hillside operation. The estate is now open to the public. 

30.      William Ewart Gladstone 

Hawarden Castle:  Gladstone died here 19 May 1898.  In 1874, Gladstone’s son inherited Hawarden Castle from his uncle.  Gladstone and his wife lived there and he spent a great deal of time and money on the estate.[lx]  The castle is still a private residence owned by the Gladstone family.  The grounds are

Gladstone’s Library:  Founded by Gladstone in 1895 with a grant of £40,000, Gladstone's Library is a small library/hotel (26 rooms) with a collection of over 150,000 books, pamphlets and journals many from Gladstone’s personal library.  The library is dedicated to commemorating Gladstone’s life as a statesman and scholar, https://www.gladstoneslibrary.org/

Fasque House:  Fasque House (or Castle) was purchased in 1829 by Gladstone’s father Sir John Gladstone 20 years after its completion.  Gladstone often stayed there. 

In 2011, it was opened as the Fasque House Estate and Cottages, a hotel and venue for weddings and other special events.  https://fasquecastlecottages.com/

31.     Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury 

Hatfield House:  Salisbury was born here 3 February 1830.  He died here 22 August 1903. This is the ancestral home of the Cecil family built in 1607 1612 by Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury.  The estate is now open to the public. The website is here

32.      Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery 

Dalmeny House:  From Dalmeny House, Roseberry planned and organized the first electioneering campaign in 1880.  Called the Midlothian Campaign, it returned Gladstone to the Premiership.

The Durbans:  Rosebery died here 21 May 1929. His three Derby winners – Ladas II (1894), Sir Visto (1894) and Cicero (1905) - were all trained and are buried here. 

Barnbougle Castle; Lansdowne House; Mentmore Towers;

33.      Arthur James Balfour 

Whittingehame House:  Balfour was born here 25 July 1848 and is buried in a local churchyard. Whittingehame House is a mansion built by Balfour’s grandfather between 1817 and 1827.

Between 1939 and 1941, the house was converted into a school for Jewish refugee children coming to Britain through the Kindertransport. The school, known as the Whittingehame Farm School, sheltered 160 children between the ages of 7 and 17.  The house still stands but is divided into private apartments.  It is not open to the public.

34.      Henry Campbell-Bannerman 

Gennings Park and Hunton Court:  These homes are on the same estate within view of each other.  Henry Bannerman, Campbell-Bannerman’s uncle, left them to him with two provisos: 1. That his wife be allowed to live the rest of her life in Hutton Court and 2. That he add “Bannerman” to his name.  This he did, becoming Henry Campbell-Bannerman in 1871. He and his wife settled into Gennings Park.

Castle Belmont, Perthshire:  Campbell-Bannerman inherited this castle by marriage from the Earl of Wharncliffe. From 1931 to 2013 it was used as a retirement and holiday home for men convalescing from illness.  The Castle has remained empty since. 

6 Grosvenor Place, London; 29 Belgrave Square, London; 6 Claremont Gardens, Glasgow; 60 Queen’s Gate, London; 117 Eaton Square, London

35.      Herbert Henry Asquith 

Mill House and the Wharf, Sutton Courtenay:  Asquith died here 15 February 1928. Asquith’s great granddaughter the actress Helena Bonham Carter purchased the Mill in 2006.

36.      David Lloyd George

Highgate and the Lloyd George Museum:  Highgate is Lloyd George’s childhood home in Llanystumdwy. Today it is incorporated into the Lloyd George Museum, dedicated to commemorating the life of Lloyd George as a statesman.

Ty Newydd: Lloyd George died here 26 March 1945. Ty Newydd is a 15^th century house that Lloyd George bought in 1942. He commissioned Clough Williams-Ellis to substantially renovate it. In 1990, it became the home of the Ty Newydd National Writing Centre of Wales.  Its website is

Bron-y-de Bron-y-de was a house and 700-acre farm purchased by Lloyd George in 1922.  He operated it successfully growing fruit and vegetables and raising pigs and poultry.  It was destroyed by fire in the 1960s. Lloyd George demonstrates a rototiller and caterpillar tractor here https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/film/watch-rotatiller-and-caterpillar-tractor-oct-and-nov-1938-1938-online.  Here is a picture of him standing in the orchard https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/film/watch-rotatiller-and-caterpillar-tractor-oct-and-nov-1938-1938-online

37.      Andrew Bonar Law 

24 Onslow Gardens, London :  Law died here 30 October 1923.

38.      Stanley Baldwin 

Lower Park House, Bewdley, Worcestershire: Baldwin was born here 3 August 1867.

Wilden House, nr Stourport-on-Severn, Worcestershire; Dudley Hall, nr Stourport-on-Severn, Worcestershire; 93 Eaton Square; 10 or 11 Upper Brook Street, Mayfair, London; 60 or 69 Eaton Square, Belgravia, London.

39.      Ramsay MacDonald, 

Allan Lane, Lossiemouth; Doughty Street, London; 3 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London; The Hillocks, Lossiemouth, 9 Howitt Road; 103 Frognal

40.      Neville Chamberlain

Southbourne, Augustus Road, Birmingham and Highbury, Moor Green, Birmingham. Chamberlain’s father, Joseph, was an avid collector of ornamental flowers, especially orchids. Both the Southbourne and Highbury mansions had numerous glasshouses for his large collection. Highbury had 13.

41.      Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill

Chartwell:    Churchill lived at Chartwell from 1922 to 1965. Originally built in Tudor times the house has been extended and renovated extensively since, mostly by Churchill himself. In 1946 the house was given to the National Trust with the provision that Churchill and his wife could live there until their deaths. Today Chartwell is open to the public. The house is now a museum dedicated to commemorating Churchill’s life as a statesman, historian and artist.  It is now open to the public.

28 Hyde Park Gate: Churchill died here in 1965.

Blenheim Palace:  Churchill was born here 30 November 1874

42.      Clement Attlee 

18 Poninscale Rd. Putney  Atlee was born here 3 January 1883.

Haywood, Stanmore, Hertfordshire Westcott; 17 Monkhams Avenue, Woodford Green[cxviii]; Heywood Court, London Road, Stanmore; 22 – 32 Portinscale Road, Wandsworth

43.      Anthony Eden 

Alvediston Manor  Eden died here 14 January 1977.  He raised a small herd of Hereford cattle at the farm he purchased nearby.

44.      Harold Macmillan 

Birch Grove:  Macmillan died here in 1986.

45.      Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home

The Hirsel Home died here 9 October 1995.  The Hirsel has been the Douglas-Home family estate since 1611. The estate is located in the village of Coldstream from where General Monck ledm his army’s march across the River Tweed to London and to the restoration of the monarchy in 1659 – 1660. The estate is now open to the public. The official website is here

Springhill House, near Coldstream, Berwickshire This is the dowager house of the Hirsel.

Douglas Castle:  Originally built in the 13^th century and rebuild several times afterward, Douglas Castle was the Douglas-Home family seat until it was demolished in 1938.

46.      Harold Wilson 

Lowenva, Hugo Town, Scilly Isles: Lowenva was a three-bedroom bungalow Wilson built in 1958 for his family when they vacationed on the isles. Lowenva is an old Cornish word meaning “house of happiness”.  Guardian article https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/may/27/scilly-harold-wilson-prime-minister

5 Lord North Street:  The Wilsons preferred this 5-story townhouse to 10 Downing Street.  Wilson claimed that Downing Street had been “bugged” and that right-wing elements of MI5 were trying to subvert his ministry.  See Telegraph article: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/property/4812588/Inside-story-5-Lord-North-Street.html

47.      Edward Richard George Heath 

Arundells, Cathedral Close, Salisbury, Wiltshire: Originally a medieval canonry, Arundells was redesigned in the 18th century with a Queen Anne façade looking out on to Salisbury Cathedral close. Heath bought this home in 1985 and lived in it until his death in 2005.  In his will, Heath bequeathed the house and its contents to a charitable foundation. The house is now a museum dedicated to Heath’s life as a statesman, pianist, conductor and yachtsman, paintings by Churchill, and Lloyd George’s writing desk, Chinese ceramics from Chairman Mao and and items from Fidel Castro and Richard Nixon..  Arundells is open to the public.

48.      James Callagha3n 

Upper Clayhill Farm, Ringmer:   Callaghan died there in 2005

49.      Margaret Hilda Thatcher  (1979 – 1990)

Scotney Castle  Thatcher rent the belfry flat of the castle.  The grounds are open to the public.  The official website is here

51.      Anthony Charles Lynton Blair  (1997 – 2007)

Wotton House:  This is the early 18^th century home was once owned by two Prime Ministers: George and William Grenville.  The grounds were landscaped by Capability Brown and another Prime minister, William Pitt the Elder.  The estate has two houses situated side-by-side, a big one and a small one. The Blairs purchased the small house which was owned previously by the actor, Sir John Gielgud.

52.      Gordon Brown  (2007 – 2010)

North Queensferry, Fife, Scotland: Brown has lived in North Queensferry since the 1990s.

53.      David Cameron  (2010 – 2016)

Holland Park Townhouse:  After leaving office in 2016, Cameron purchased this townhouse.

Trebetherick, near Daymer Bay:  The Camerons purchased this holiday house in Cornwall in 2017.

Cotswalds:  The Camerons purchased this house in 2017.

54.      Theresa May  (2016 – 2019)

Sonning, Berkshire:

55.      Boris Johnson  (2019 – 2022)

Brightwell Manor  Brightwell Manor is a 400-year-old moated house in Oxfordshire that Johnson purchased in 2023.

56.      Liz Truss  (2022)

Thetford, Norfolk; Greenwich, south-east London

Kidderminster, Worchestershire; Burnaby, British Columbia;

57.      Rishi Sunak  (2022 - present)

Kirby Sigston Manor  Kirby Sigston Manor is manor house in North Yorkshire, originally built in 1826 and purchased by Sunak in 2010 prior to becoming a Member of Parliament.

Kensington, London; Old Brompton Road, London; Santa Monica, California;

Cited texts

• Beckett, M. (n.d.). Retrieved from Lost Heritage - England's lost country houses:
• Dale, I. (2020). The Prime Ministers: 55 Leaders, 55 Authors, 300 Years of History. London, UK: Hodder & Stoughton.
• Eccleshall, R., & Walker, G. (. (Eds.). (1998). Biographical Dictionary of British Prime Ministers. London and New York: Routledge.
• Englefield, D., Seaton, J., & White, I. (1995). Facts about the British Prime Ministers. H.W.Wilson Co.
• Girouard, Mark (1985), Historic Houses of Britain, British Heritage Press ISBN 0-517-44646-4
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