Binfield Lodge

Binfield Lodge is a large house located in landscaped grounds, originally dating to the early 15th century and significantly remodelled in the 18th century by John Pitt for his brother William Pitt, with later extensions and alterations in 1912 by Sir Edwin Lutyens. The house is primarily constructed of red brick in a Flemish bond pattern, with some timber frame sections covered by mathematical tiles. The older part of the roof is slate, hipped on one side and gabled on the other. A later section has an old tile roof with three hipped projections featuring wide, overhanging eaves on the east side.

Originally, the plan was a U-shape, formed from an open-hall with two framed bays and two crosswings, each with three framed bays; however, the layout is now irregular due to extensions on three sides. The house is two storeys and has attics. Numerous chimneys feature cornices and clay pots. Most windows are sash windows with glazing bars.

The principal (south) front has a central five-bay section flanked by projecting end wings with pedimented Dutch gables. A continuous moulded wood cornice runs across the gables. Recessed sash windows have shallow brick arches and plain reveals. Lunette windows at second-floor level are set within stone bands at sill level. A French door with sidelights stands beneath the gable end on the left. The central glazed door has a cornice head and radial fanlight, set within a doorcase of Ionic pilasters and a pedimented surround. The south-east wing was extended by Sir Edwin Lutyens. The east return presents three full-height, projecting canted bays with tall, narrow windows on both ground and first floors, all beneath wide, projecting eaves. A brick band runs along the head of the ground-floor windows, and a moulded stone band sits at the sill level of the first-floor windows.

Inside, a 17th-century open-well staircase features a large, moulded handrail, square newels, turned vase balusters, and a panelled dado. A sitting room has an acanthus leaf ceiling cornice and an 18th-century fireplace with a marble inset and a carved wooden surround enriched with urns and floral decoration. A Georgian room includes a moulded ceiling cornice and frieze with a floral motif, alongside a cast iron hob grate set in a marble surround carved with cherubs, a Greek key, and egg-and-dart ornament. A ballroom designed by Lutyens is accessed through a three-bay arcaded hallway via two-panelled doors. The ballroom itself has two domes and a marble floor, and is accented by a dentilled ceiling cornice, a large marble fireplace with a dentilled cornice and moulded marble hearth, and a moulded dado rail.