Drayton House, Kettering, England

The following is from the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest.

Well-preserved formal gardens of around 1700 with elements by Tilleman Bobart, John Van Nost, Henry Wise, Jean Tijou and John Webb, associated with a country house. Surrounding landscape park crossed by early 18th-century avenues.

LOCATION, AREA, BOUNDARIES, LANDFORM, SETTING

Drayton House stands 2 kilometres south-west of the village of Lowick, which is on the A6116 from Thrapston, 3 kilometres to the south-east, to Corby. Running 2 kilometres south of Drayton is the A14, which passes Kettering 8 kilometres to the west. The park stands in open countryside, and its boundaries follow field edges. The area here registered is around 120 hectares.

REFERENCES Used by English Heritage

J Morton, The Natural History of Northamptonshire (1712), pp 493-4

Country Life, 25 (10 April 1909), pp 528-9; 31 (15 June 1912), pp 898-908; (22 June 1912), pp 934-44; 137 (13 May 1965), pp 1146-50; (20 May 1965), pp 1216-19; (27 May 1965), pp 1286-9

G Jekyll, Garden Ornament (1918, reprinted 1982), pp 51, 85, 91, 210, 293, 314

Drayton House, guidebook, (B A Bailey 1990)

J Heward and R Taylor, The Country Houses of Northamptonshire, (RCHM(E) 1996), pp 175-88

Maps

Map of Drayton, around 1780 (private collection)

OS 6" to 1 mile: 1st edition published 1888; 2nd edition published 1901

OS 25" to 1 mile: 2nd edition published 1900 

Description written: 1998