West Dean House

In 1971 the Estate became the home of West Dean College, a centre of study of conservation, arts, crafts, writing, gardening, and music.

[1][2] The earliest known reference to the West Dean Estate is found in the Domesday Book in 1086, where it was included in the manor of Singleton as, a forest and hunting park.

[3] In 1621 Phillip sold the manor and it passed into various ownerships, including the Sussex families of John Aylwin of Lewes and Richard Lewkenor of Stoughton.

He bought West Dean from Frederick Bowers, a merchant who had owned the property since the death of its previous owner, Caroline Mary (Peachey) Vernon Harcourt (1785-1871).

[5] In her will she had bequeathed West Dean to a distant relative, Ulick de Burgh, 1st Marquess of Clanricarde, who immediately sold it to Frederick Bowers.

[6] Clanricarde also disposed of several other properties left to him by Caroline plus the extensive library housed at West Dean, the sale of which took nine days at Sotheby's and included a copy of John Gower's rare Confessio Amantis that sold for £670.

[7] When James moved to the West Dean Estate in 1891, he set about altering and greatly extending the house and commissioned Ernest George and Harold Peto to do so.

Ernest George helped embellish the state rooms and Harold Peto designed a 300-foot (91 m)-long pergola, still a highlight of the gardens today.

House parties at West Dean were attended by The Prince of Wales - who became King Edward VII when his mother Queen Victoria died.

The Prince of Wales had a group of rich and entertaining friends that became known as the Marlborough House set and included people like Evelyn and her sister-in-law Mary Venetia James (née Cavendish-Bentinck).

He was educated briefly at Eton, and then at Le Rosey in Switzerland, followed by Christ Church, Oxford, where he was a contemporary of Evelyn Waugh and Harold Acton.

In 1939 Edward James wrote to Aldous Huxley expressing his fear that after the war, certain arts, and particularly the techniques of the craftsmen would be lost.

All the work took place over a period of 20 years, directed by architect John Warren, who tried to retain the historical features of the house.

Robin Lane Fox in the Financial Times said "West Dean has a large walled kitchen garden whose standards are wonderfully high.

After the old boilers and electric heaters proved to be incapable with dealing with the needs of the ever growing West Dean College, other methods were looked into, and wood fuel appeared to be the most eco-friendly alternative.

One thousand two hundred tonnes of wood chippings are needed to supply not only West Dean College, but several other buildings on the estate as well, including the village church.