Hylands House

[2] Around 1726, a local and well-respected lawyer, Sir John Comyns, purchased the manor of Shaxstones in Writtle, and commissioned the construction of a new family home on the estate, suitable for a man of his standing.

[3] In 1797 Cornelius Kortright purchased Hylands House and employed the well-known landscape architect Humphry Repton, who set about redesigning the gardens.

[3] However, despite the grand plans, Kortright did not see the House through to completion as his ever-increasing family required them to relocate to a much larger residence, in nearby Fryerning.

Pierre Cesar Labouchere, a Dutch-born merchant banker, purchased the estate in 1814 and set about completing Repton's design for expansion and improvement of the house and parkland.

Labouchere created the formal Pleasure Gardens and under the guidance of architect Williams Atkinson, the Georgian Stable Block and Coachman's Cottage.

He also collected neo-classical sculptures, including works by the Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen, replicas of which are on display in the house today.

[3] After Labouchère's death, his son Henry Labouchere sold Hylands House and Estate to Mr John Attwood, former owner of an ironworks in Birmingham.

As MP for Harwich, he decided that Hylands was insufficiently grand to reflect his position in society, and had the house considerably enlarged and fully redecorated.

The Gooch family entertained regularly, with shooting parties and fetes, including a memorable celebration for the coronation of King George V. During World War I, Hylands House was requisitioned for use as a military hospital, and over 1,500 patients were treated there.

Christine was later left alone when her son, Charles John MacKenzie (Jock) Hanbury, became one of the first pilots to die in the Second World War in a flying accident.

Christine Hanbury made great changes to the grounds, including a lawn tennis court, rhododendron borders and a private area in the gardens dedicated to the memory of her husband and son.

[4] Mrs Christine Hanbury died in 1962, aged 89, leaving the house and estate to her trustees, and for the final time in its history, Hylands was again offered for sale.