The Valley Diary

Fox Hall

Fox Hall is the most outstanding house in the hamlet of Charlton. It is administered by the Landmark Trust, a charity that rescues buildings of architectural value from neglect. It was built in 1730, as a hunting lodge for the second Duke of Richmond. Hunting was a sport particularly enjoyed by the Duke. Fox Hall was most probably built to a design by Lord Burlington, though some experts claim that the actual designer was Burlington’s assistant, Roger Morris. [Richard Boyle, 3rd Lord Burlington, born in 1694, has been described as the high priest of English Palladianism - a style of architecture derived from the buildings of Andrea Palladio (1508-80), the great Italian architect, noted for the revival of Roman symmetry.]

The house possesses three small rooms downstairs and a very large room with a high ceiling on the first floor. Opinion is divided about the original use of this upper room. The Landmark Trust, suggests that it was ‘undoubtedly Britain’s premier bed-sit’, but recent research by Simon Rees, author of The Charlton Hunt – A History, published in 1998, indicates that the upper room was actually the Banqueting Hall used by the Hunt. The hall would have seated twenty people, or more, quite comfortably. A special feature of the room was a wind indicator, installed so that members of the hunt could tell which way the scent would be lying.

In 1750, after the death of the second Duke of Richmond, his son the third Duke, was still a minor. He was not as passionate about hunting as his father. In 1790 hounds were moved to Goodwood, but Fox Hall was kept for the Duke’s occasional use. By the nineteenth century it was let to a tenant. Later, it was occupied by Thomas Foster, who managed the saw-mill at Charlton. His daughter succeeded him as occupant for a time. In the 1930s and later, the saw-mill belonged to J H and F W Green, who ran the mill, and Mr Tinniswood, the manager of the mill, lived at Fox Hall. The manager’s office was on the ground floor and living quarters were on the upper two floors. In 1961 Mr Tinniswood purchased Fox Hall from the Goodwood estate. Local residents recall that Mrs Tinniswood used to struggle to do the decorating at Foxhall by herself. After the death of Mr Tinniswood in 1979, his daughter, Mrs Hampden-Smith, put the house up for sale by auction. It was purchased by the Landmark Trust.

After its acquisition by the Trust, restoration work was carried out under the supervision of the architect Philip Jebb by T Couzens and Co. A new oak floor, supplied by Charlton Saw Mill, was laid in the main room; the walls were covered in fabric from the Gainsborough Silk Mill in Suffolk; a missing dado rail was replaced and reproductions of paintings in Goodwood House were reframed and hung. Unfortunately, it was not possible to repair the wind indicator.

Fox Hall can be rented from the Landmark Trust: 01628 825925 or visit them here Accommodation for up to 4 people with an open fire, garden and adjacent parking.