Bagshot Park

[Durham]

I would describe Bagshot as an interesting rather than a beautiful house. Not my architectural cup of tea at all. Gatcombe is definitely lovelier. The paneling however does look splendid.

 

[Claire]

There is a bit of information about the park, house and the panel walls on the Bagshot Website.
https://www.bagshotvillage.org.uk/


I would actually like to find out more about the Park. But my efforts both to the Palace and Wessex's office never really got anywhere. There is some interesting information in a wedding book and in a book of Ingrid Seward.


Bagshot Park was shown to Prince Charles, Andrew and Anne as a possible place to live.
The Queen Mother wanted to buy it in the 1980's but the Queen advised against it. The QM used to visit the house even when the army was renting it. She did visit the Duke of Clarence there, but I wonder if the house was not going to be her home if the abdication hadn't happened.
It was the QM that appears to really want someone to buy the house and it was her who suggested it to Edward. It was not Edward's first choice, that was a house in London and it didn't work out.
After the Royal Army Chaplets ended their lease with the royal estates - the house stood empty and it was even looked into selling the house into the housing market. However due to its proximately to Sandhurst and several other areas of high risk sites on the area, it could not be. An American Actor even toured it in the 1990's in the hoper to purchase.


It was however judged too high risk and it was decided that they would rather have it left empty as only government and military occupancy would have been accepted at that time.

 

[JR76]

The Queen Mother wanted to buy it in the 1980's but the Queen advised against it. The QM used to visit the house even when the army was renting it. She did visit the Duke of Clarence there, but I wonder if the house was not going to be her home if the abdication hadn't happened.

Don't you mean the Duke of Connaught? He had the lease on the house until he died in 1942. Because of this there are descriptions of the house in many biographies and memoirs about or by his daughter Margaret and her Swedish and Danish descendants, but unfortunately I can't remember any photos of the interiors. What I do remember reading about is an Indian room that was made in India and shipped to Bagshot where Queen Victoria took such a liking to it that it inspired the much larger and opulent Indian room at Osborne.

 

[Durham]

There is a bit of information about the park, house and the panel walls on the Bagshot Website.

Thanks for the link.

 

[An Ard Ri]

The original house in 1790 a far cry from the late Victorian version

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Bagshot_Park_1790.jpg

 

[Durham]

The original house in 1790 a far cry from the late Victorian version

It looked rather pleasant as it was. It certainly grew!

 

[Claire]

Don't you mean the Duke of Connaught? He had the lease on the house until he died in 1942. Because of this there are descriptions of the house in many biographies and memoirs about or by his daughter Margaret and her Swedish and Danish descendants, but unfortunately I can't remember any photos of the interiors. What I do remember reading about is an Indian room that was made in India and shipped to Bagshot where Queen Victoria took such a liking to it that it inspired the much larger and opulent Indian room at Osborne.

yes - Connaught

 

[CyrilVladisla]

Bagshot Park, Hill Park, 1906
http://www.maryevans.com/history/10257592

 

[Tibi Froy]

I think I posted the following in the wrong place the other day - sorry, I am new to the Royal Forums and don't have the hang of it yet. I meant for it to go here but accidentally put it under "Bagshot Park - Social Life and Lifestyle":

I happened upon this photographic print of the original floor plan of Bagshot Park as it was constructed for the Duke of Connaught in 1879. It has been renovated a number of times since then, including before the Wessexes moved into the house in 1999, so is undoubtedly considerably changed, but I thought people might be interested to see how it was originally laid out.

https://www.mediastorehouse.com/fine...0&cid=20674980

Some of the labeling on the smaller servants' rooms is too blurry to read, but I found it interesting that it had a Still Room across from the Kitchen. In the late 19th century, a Still Room would have been used for brewing coffees and teas and making things like jams and preserves, but they were originally used in medieval times for the concoction of both alcoholic spirits and medicines.

 

[CyrilVladisla]

The Japanese House and Wisteria Pagoda of Bagshot Park
http://www.lookandlearn.com/history-images/M495834

 

[CyrilVladisla]

Information about Bagshot Park before Prince Edward acquired the residence

Bagshot Park

Bagshot Park and its Royal occupation.

www.bagshotvillage.org.uk

 

[Fauve]

Information about Bagshot Park before Prince Edward acquired the residence

Bagshot Park

Bagshot Park and its Royal occupation.

www.bagshotvillage.org.uk

thank you so much for the link, it was such a great read.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

The Duke of Edinburgh (formerly Earl of Wessex)'s lease with the Crown Estate

Much information on the Earl of Wessex (now Duke of Edinburgh)'s lease on the Mansion House at Bagshot Park has been place into the public domain.


From the Crown Estate's letter to the Public Accounts Committee of November 28, 2025:

C1. Bagshot Park

32. Bagshot Park is leased to Eclipse Nominees Ltd (HRH The Duke of Edinburgh formerly HRH The Earl of Wessex) on a long-term residential lease and forms part of the Windsor Estate where Section 5 of the Act applies. A redacted copy of the lease is available at the Land Registry.

33. The present house was built for Queen Victoria’s third son, and his wife, the Duke and Duchess of Connaught. Following the Duke’s death in 1942, Bagshot Park was requisitioned by the Army as a college. The college closed at the end of the Second World War. Thereafter, it was offered by His Majesty King George VI, to the Army Chaplains who were in residence from 1947 under a lease entered into with The Crown Estate. The Army Chaplains surrendered that lease back to The Crown Estate in 1996.

34. At that time, The Crown Estate sought independent professional advice from Knight Frank and considered various options for the property’s future, including residential, institutional, and leisure uses in the context of The Crown Estate’s obligations under section 5 of the Act.

The Commissioners of the day concluded that the most appropriate use of the property was as a single dwelling for private occupation. Surrey County Council also confirmed that private residential use was, in their opinion, the most appropriate, given the property’s listed status.

35. A marketing campaign was undertaken but did not attract any suitable tenants in line with The Crown Estate’s duties under Section 5 of the Act. In late 1996, HRH Prince Edward expressed interest in leasing Bagshot Park and The Crown Estate entered into detailed negotiations with his team. This resulted in a commercially negotiated (on an arm’s length basis) lease, informed by independent valuations at the time, as well as the Crown Estate’s obligations under Section 5(1) of the Act.

36. The agreed terms were as follows and set out in the NAO’s 2005 Report:

a. A 50-year assignable lease from 1998 at an initial annual rent of £90,000, reviewable every 15 years in line with the Retail Price Index.​

​

b. A requirement for HRH Prince Edward to invest substantially in the property’s restoration, with part of the Ministry of Defence’s (MOD) dilapidations contribution applied to these works. The MOD contributed £1.8m towards end of tenancy​

dilapidations. The Crown Estate allocated £1.6m out of £1.8m into the repair of Bagshot Park and retained the balance of £200,000. HRH invested a further £1,380,000 into the restoration of the property.​

​

c. The scheduled works were to be completed within two years.​

​

d. Inclusion of the stable block, with permission to sublet.​

37. The lease was then renegotiated in 2007 following independent professional valuation advice from Knight Frank and Cluttons (both acting for The Crown Estate) with a 150-year assignable lease being granted at a £5m premium.

38. With regard to both lease agreements entered into in 1998 and 2007, advice from independent legal and property experts was obtained by The Crown Estate, to ensure the negotiated agreed terms reflected market practice, including an onus on the tenant to maintain and uphold the property.

39. Prior to the 2007 lease being entered into, Knight Frank were instructed on behalf of The Crown Estate to negotiate the commercial terms. Cluttons were appointed by The Crown Estate to provide a second opinion and concluded at the time that the approach was consistent with good practice and that the price agreed represented fair value for the interest being sold, having regard to the duties and while allowing for the limitations of Section 5(1) and 5(2) respectively of the Act.

From Freedom of Information Act requests in late 2025:

Prince Edward pays peppercorn rent for his 120-room Surrey mansion

The Duke of Edinburgh , who was awarded the title after his father Prince Philip's death in April 2021, moved into the 120-room Bagshot Park with his wife, the Duchess of Edinburgh, in March 1998.

www.dailymail.co.uk

https://www.thetimes.com/uk/royal-family/article/prince-edward-peppercorn-rent-999j8rx0x

Various media reporting Edward pays a "peppercorn rent" for Bagshot Park, just as Andrew did.

But this is Edward's second lease on Bagshot - it was renewed in 2007 and £5million paid upfront for 150 year lease. Given that lump sum if paid out annually over 150 years gives £33,333 a year I'm not sure its fair to say he doesn't pay rent - it seems they chose to pay it upfront in a lump sum instead of annual lease payments. Edward did also put £1.3million into renovating the house and paid an initial £50,000 a year rising to £90,000 a year in rent so its not like he is getting the house for free.

To me it seems likely that in 2007, with Edward's mother aging and being his main source of income, a decision was taken that rather than paying annual amounts, a bigger lump sum securing the lease was better and a more stable option long term?

From the National Audit Office's report "The Crown Estate – Property Leases With The Royal Family" of April 7, 2005:

On Mansion House, Bagshot Park

The property leased to HRH the Earl of Wessex since March 1998 is the Mansion House at Bagshot Park, including a block of stables and Sunningdale Lodge.

Bagshot Park occupies 21 hectares within the designated area of Windsor Great Park. The property was previously leased to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) where it was used to house the Army Chaplains Department. Prior to that, the property had been in ”grace and favour” occupation. In 1996, the MoD handed back the property to The Crown Estate. The Crown Estate received a payment of £1.8 million in respect of dilapidations accrued during the Army Chaplains’ occupancy.

Because Bagshot Park is sited within the designated area of Windsor Great Park it is subject to the same restrictions as Royal Lodge in that The Crown Estate Act prohibits the sale of freeholds and requires that the character of the property be maintained as a Royal Park and forest. The Crown Estate appointed agents to assess the options available in respect of this property. The agents proposed a range of options including residential use, use by an educational institution and commercial use. The Crown Estate’s preference, and that of the local planning authority, was for residential use given the Commissioners’ duty to maintain the character of the Royal Park, the listed nature of the main house, and the added “historic provenance” from restoring Royal Family occupation.

The Crown Estate has stressed to us that, as with Royal Lodge, one of the options for the property was that it could revert to “grace and favour” status but this option was declined by the Royal Family in favour of a commercial arrangement, providing income to The Crown Estate.

The Crown Estate’s agents estimated a potential long leasehold value for residential use of between £2.5 million and £8 million. The range of values reflected a variety of potential uses, and at the higher end, would also have included additional land. Substantial financial investment would, however, have been required to bring the property up to standard regardless of the decision on its future use.

Based on The Crown Estate’s experience with this type of specialist residential property, a discreet marketing campaign focused on selected potential tenants was undertaken. The Crown Estate tells us that it received only two exploratory offers, one for the establishment of a conference centre and the other a proposal for hotel use. The Crown Estate rejected both on the grounds that the former did not meet the statutory obligation to maintain the character of a Royal Park and that the latter would have involved additional land occupied by others and potentially more complex planning considerations. Neither option met The Crown Estate’s preference of residential use. At this time, HRH the Earl of Wessex expressed an interest in the property and The Crown Estate entered into discussions with him.

After detailed negotiations, The Crown Estate let the property to HRH the Earl of Wessex for a period of 50 years with an initial annual rental of £5,000 prior to the refurbishment works being completed and £90,000 per year thereafter. The rent is subject to review every 15 years. The agreed annual rent for the property is consistent with the estimate provided by The Crown Estate’s independent advisors in respect of residential use and the land area included in the lease agreement.

As part of the lease agreement, HRH the Earl of Wessex was required to complete substantial refurbishment works within the first two years with an estimated total value of £2.18 million, of which The Crown Estate would contribute £1.6 million (having received £1.8 million from the MoD in respect of dilapidations). We have been told by The Crown Estate that the full costs of rectification exceeded the estimate and that The Crown Estate has contributed £1.6 million towards a total cost of £2.98 million.

The lease agreement permits subletting of the stable block. The lease may be re-assigned to another party following the first eight years after completion of the rectification works but not for the last three years of the lease.

The Annex to this document sets out information on the Bagshot Park lease agreement.

The Royal Household has not provided information on the number of rooms in the property occupied by HRH the Earl of Wessex, as it claims that it is “personal information” under Section 40 of Part 2 of the Freedom of Information Act, 2000.

 

[CyrilVladisla]

I like the blue interior of this room at Bagshot Park.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/575123814889777286/

 

[Toledo]

I have never heard of Bagshot Park. You learn something new at TRFS.