Tottenham Park, Marlborough, England

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

HISTORIC DEVELOPMENT

By around 1200 the area around Tottenham House, then known as Tottenham Wood, formed part of a large forest known as Savernacke Forest, which covered an area of roughly 100 square miles (259 square km). In 1330 this forest underwent major disafforestation, except for a few areas which were subsequently formed into separate bailiwicks. Tottenham Wood was situated in the La Verme bailiwick, which initially belonged to the Esturmy family but was taken over during the 15th century by the Seymour family. By around 1600 the bailiwicks of the old Savernacke Forest had almost completely disappeared and a series of large parks had been created.

By the late 16th century the Seymours had created a deer park at Tottenham, situated around an Elizabethan mansion called Totnam Lodge built in about 1575. In 1671, John, Duke of Somerset inherited the Tottenham estate. A year later he improved Totnam Lodge and its park, which by that date included long tree-lined walks and a deer chase (Marquess of Ailesbury 1962). In 1675, after the death of the Duke of Somerset, his estate passed to his granddaughter Lady Elizabeth Seymour, who in 1676 married Thomas, Lord Bruce, Earl of Ailesbury. By that time Totnam Lodge had been destroyed, possibly by a fire (Marquess of Ailesbury 1962). Subsequently, large areas of the park were converted into agricultural land, which Lord Bruce hoped to return to parkland once his financial situation had improved. In 1696 however, during the reign of William of Orange, he was imprisoned on a charge of treason. He was released shortly after in 1697 but lost his title and was never able to return to Tottenham, which subsequently fell into further decay.

In 1703, Lord Bruce's son, Charles Bruce inherited the Tottenham estate. By 1718 Tottenham House contained gardens, a nursery, a bowling green, and a series of formal rides or avenues, including the Great Walk (Estate plan, 1718). In about 1721 Charles Bruce commissioned his brother-in-law Richard Boyle, Lord Burlington (owner of Chiswick House - see description elsewhere), to improve the estate. Burlington designed a new house, set within formal pleasure grounds surrounded by a park with avenues, rides, and various garden buildings (Rysbrack painting, after 1737). After Charles Bruce's death in 1747, his son Thomas Brudenell- Bruce inherited the estate. The latter commissioned Lancelot Brown (1716-83), who between 1764 and around 1770 improved the park, Savernake Forest, the pleasure grounds, and built a new kitchen garden (Estate plans, 1786, around 1800; sketch by Hoare, around 1763). In 1776 Thomas Brudenell-Bruce regained the Ailesbury title under King George III.

In 1814, after Thomas Brudenell-Bruce's death, his son Charles, the first Marquess of Ailesbury, inherited the estate. Two years later a new stable block was built, designed by Thomas Cundy who later (around 1820) replaced Burlington's mansion with a new house. The latter included a conservatory and orangery, in front of which a flower garden was created in about 1830, possibly by Henry Burn, head gardener at Tottenham House from around 1815 (Gardener's Mag 1831). During the late 19th and 20th centuries the layout of Tottenham House and Savernake Forest remained largely unchanged. In 1939 the management of the Forest was handed over to the Forestry Commission, who immediately started a tree-planting programme and created a new deer park. During the Second World War a Ploughing-up Order was issued for some parts of the park. The House is currently (2002) in use by the Prince of Wales' Trust. The site has remained in private ownership, and there are plans to develop it for hotel and leisure use including a golf course.