Broadlands House

Broadlands House is a large country house situated on the Broadlands Estate near Romsey. The building’s history is complex, beginning as an Elizabethan U-shaped structure that was substantially altered and refaced between 1768 and 1771 by Capability Brown, followed by further work in 1788 by Henry Holland. Later minor additions and subtractions have also occurred.

The walls are of yellow (white) brick in Flemish bond with Portland stone dressings. Features include an eaves cornice, architraves with cornices or triangular/segmental pediments, a cill band (on the north side), a plinth and chamfered quoins (dated 1859). The roof is slate, with flat-roofed dormers.

The west front, dating from 1771, refaced an existing irregular building into a symmetrical composition of two storeys, an attic, and a basement, with a width of 3 windows across. A central Ionic stone portico with a pediment is accessed by a flight of steps flanked by walls, terminating in Grecian sarcophagi. Ground-floor windows have alternating triangular and segmental pediments and contain Victorian sash windows. The central doorway is topped by a larger segmental pediment on brackets. The south elevation is also symmetrical, with a slight projection in the centre beneath a pediment, and ground-floor windows featuring pediments. Like the west front, this was part of the refacing work.

The east elevation, a result of Henry Holland’s 1788 work, widened the original Elizabethan wings and filled the former enclosed forecourt with a recessed portico, leading to an octagonal, top-lit vestibule. This creates a symmetrical facade of two storeys and an attic, 3 windows wide. The portico features four slender Ionic columns with pilasters, incorporating niches on either side of a central doorway. In 1859, T L Donaldson raised a front wall to the attic, increasing the overall height. An extension to the north elevation, dated 1954, features eight regularly spaced windows and a stone doorframe. A previous single-storey forward extension, added in 1859, was removed in 1954.

Inside, a north staircase predates the Palmerston family, and the state rooms on the west and south sides contain notable Georgian details. The original east front hall was converted into a Sculpture Hall and subsequently aligned with the portico and vestibule, demonstrating Holland’s fine proportions. The house contains a collection of classical sculpture, furniture, and pottery assembled by Holland and Palmerston. Broadlands House was the long-term residence of the Earl Mountbatten family.