Sir Christopher Wren, born in East Knoyle, Wiltshire, in 1632, the son of the rector of Knoyle, was the greatest British architect of all time. In the early 18th century, he lived in his Hampton Court home, The Old Court House, which was given to him as payment for designing St Paul’s Cathedral. Now, this house with an English Heritage blue plaque has gone on sale for £4.25million ($6.54million).
This magnificent house has six bedrooms, three bathrooms, three/four reception rooms, a kitchen/breakfast room, cellars, garage for at least two cars and a river mooring. Wren’s former dining room is now a study but the well-proportioned room, panelled in wood by Wren himself, also includes the same marble fireplace he put in for King William III in Hampton Court Palace.
Patrick Glynn-Jones, of Savills Richmond, which is selling the property, said: “This is an exquisite and historic home. The magnificent first floor drawing room is the standout room of the house. Houses of this ilk are few and far between. I can see someone getting emotionally engaged by it, with all its fabulous historical features.”
Wren, who was a Royal Surveyor for 49 years was responsible for rebuilding 52 churches in the City of London after the Great Fire in 1666, including his masterpiece, St. Paul’s Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, completed in 1710. Other notable buildings by Wren include the Royal Naval College in Greenwich and the south front of Hampton Court Palace.
