History of Bramshill House
1347
Bramshill can be dated back to the Domesday Book when it was known as the estate of ‘Bromeselle’ and held by Hugh de port, a French-English Norman aristocrat. By the 14th Century the Foxley family owned the estate and in 1347 Sir Thomas Foxley, Constable of Windsor Castle, was granted permission to enclose 2,500 acres of land as a deer park at Bramshill and Hazeley. Between 1351 and 1360 Sir Thomas Foxley erected a large noble house on the site.
1605
In 1605, the estate was acquired by Edward, 11th Lord Zouche of Harringworth, the ambassador to Scotland and Lord President of the Council of Wales. He bought the property as a large country house that would make a statement and assert his authority. Between 1605 and 1625 the existing house was reconstructed.
1620’s
Throughout the building’s history many important visitors visited the site including King James I in 1620 and the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1621. The estate also played host to a first class cricket match between England and Hampshire in 1823 with the county side winning by five wickets.
1940
During World War Two Bramshill was used a maternity home and after the war as a Shelter for the exiled King of Romania.
2015
The estate was then used by the Home Office and Government as a police training college until its closure in 2015. Bramshill House is considered as one of the country’s most spectacular Jacobean properties and has an incredibly rich and complex history. To date, 11 different build periods being identified in the house alone and many intricate layers have been identified in the surrounding landscape. The house is Grade I listed, putting it in the category of exceptional interest along with only 2.5% of all other listed buildings in the UK.