MOTTISFONT: A HOME ON THE NAVE OF A CHURCH
Glimpse|May 2023
A splendid country home hewed from a 13th century monastery set amongst carpets of greenery sprinkled with beds of flowers, enveloped by ancient woods and trees, was enough to stir our inquisitiveness to visit the place!
Seema Anand Chopra
MOTTISFONT: A HOME ON THE NAVE OF A CHURCH

We were soon headed for the Mottisfont Abbey House in Basingstoke England whose unusual name means a 'meeting place by the natural spring' from the Saxon era!

Reverse Trail- Monastery to Home

In the 1500's at the time of the unfortunate dissolution of monasteries, those close to King Henry eight, were allotted the Abbeys or Priories and they chose to convert the monks' quarters into lavish homes. It was a popular practice followed by all but Lord Sandys; a close associate of the King, decided to incorporate the Church itself into a house! So from a welcoming Augustinian abbey where pilgrims came for blessings Lord Sandys built a mansion on the Church Nave as the central part!

Russels and the Mottisfont link

We stepped across the crystal clear water of the river Test to arrive at an area of emerald delight and entered the house through an elegant side entrance. Wondering what could be this early 20th century house connection to the early medieval monastery we began our tour already in awe. A volunteer came forward to welcome us to the Mottisfont house first followed by a visit to the ruins of the monastery!

Changing owners over the centuries it was lived in, post 1934, by th socialite wealthy couple Maud and Gilbert Russell and the house that we were about to visit was a modern home set up by them. Gilbert was a descendant of William Briwere, the Founder and Patron of the ancient Priory; 26 generations before! So the Russells felt a special link with the past of Mottisfont!

Gibert Russell's Study- a Getaway

Gilbert Russell, the great-grandson of the 6th Duke of Bedford was a successful Banker with a distinguished army career behind him. He held the reigns of the estate from this room, managed it and also the room was used as an escape from his wife's glitzy guests!

This story is from the May 2023 edition of Glimpse.

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This story is from the May 2023 edition of Glimpse.

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