BROADLANDS1

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Broadlands' Archives show that his was the principal influence in planning the project to 'square' the house in new classic Palladian style, to be encased in white brick to give the appearance of stone and to have two noble porticos. Brown's protégé and son-in-law - Henry Holland (1745-1806) - added the east front portico and domed hall in 1788. Most of the decorative plaster work in the main rooms was designed and executed by Joseph Rose the Elder (1723-1780), described by a contemporary as "the first man in the Kingdom as a plasterer". The stable building, which now houses the Mountbatten Exhibition, has changed little since the end of the 17th Century when the old manor house of the St. Barbe family stood on the site of the present Georgian house. The 18th Century grace of Broadlands' exterior is today complemented by its elegant interior and visitors can see many of the original paintings, furniture, porcelain and magnificent sculpture collected by the Palmerstons. Viscountess Palmerston wrote -

“Nothing can be more comfortable than this House. It is magnificent when we have company, and when alone it seems to be only a cottage in a beautiful garden"

BROADLANDS

BROADLANDS is considered one of the finest examples of mid-Georgian architecture in England. It stands serenely in a unique place in British history, having had several distinguished owners and many of its important visitors have helped to shape the course of history. Its name originates from the Brodelandes estate, which was owned by nearby Romsey Abbey, which had been founded by a daughter of King Edward the Elder (870(899-924) as a Benedictine nunnery in 997.

In 1539, the manor was surrendered to King Henry VIII (1491(1509-1547), who separated the Abbey from the house after the Dissolution of the Monasteries and Broadlands was sold to Sir Francis Fleming in 1547, whose daughter married Edward St. Barbe. The manor remained the property of the St. Barbe family for the next 117 years.

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