Langtons
| Langtons | |
|---|---|
 Langtons House from Langtons Gardens | |
  Location within Havering | |
| General information | |
| Address | Billet Lane |
| Town or city | Hornchurch, Havering, London |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51°33′56″N0°13′2″E/ 51.56556°N 0.21722°E |
| Current tenants | Havering register office |
| Renovated | 1797, 1929 |
| Owner | Havering London Borough Council |
Langtons HouseandLangtons Gardensare agrade II listed18th century house and landscaped gardens located inHornchurch,in theLondon Borough of Havering,Greater London. The house and gardens became local authority property in 1929 and are currently used as the boroughregister officeand a public park. Langtons House was used as the council offices ofHornchurch Urban District Councilfrom 1929 to 1965.
History
[edit]The house, built on the foundations of an older house in the early 18th century, stands in a picturesque landscaped garden with a lake,orangery,bath houseand agazebo,all dating from the end of the 18th century, when Hornchurch was a rural settlement. In 1776 Langtons and considerable property in Essex was owned byJohn Mayora brewer who became MP for Abingdon and established HM Stationery Office.[1]The house was purchased in 1797 by John Massu, whose family, originallyHuguenotrefugees, had become wealthy silk merchants in theCity of London.He set about modernising Langtons, to which he added the two-storey wings that project on the south front.[2]
The grounds were landscaped according to the plans ofHumphrey Repton.[3]He created the serpentine pond with the bathhouse andgazeboand plantedhorse chestnutsto mask or frame the mid-18th century stables, to which he added an octagonal cupola. Ashrubberywalk with serpentining paths was planted east of the house and a balancing shrubbery belt to the west is probably part of Repton's plan; theCedar of Lebanonwas planted as a central feature of the lawn. By 1805 the gardens were sufficiently advanced to be illustrated inPeacock's Polite Repository.[4]
Langtons was given toHornchurch Urban District Councilby Varco Williams and his daughter in 1929, under the condition that the building must be kept as it was and used for council purposes and that the six acres (24,000 m2) of grounds remain open to the public. The gardens, one of the surviving historic landscapes[4]serve as one of theparks and open spaces in Havering.TheFielders Sports Ground,north of the site, was once also part of the gardens and was used as a venue forfirst-class cricket.The building housed the council offices until the council was abolished in 1965 and Havering London Borough Council, based inRomford,was created.[5]
In 2016 the gardens were extensively restored adding many new features such as a Victorian greenhouse, ornamental bridge, entrance pillars, cobbled stable yard and new tea room.[6]
Havering register office
[edit]Langtons House is used as aregister officeand function rooms, and has become a popular venue forweddings.Due to an administration error it was found to be unlicensed from October 2004 to March 2005 with 193 marriages affected. Despite the error, all were later found by theHigh Courtto be legally valid.[7]
References
[edit]- ^England described: or, The traveller's companion. Containing whatever is curious in the several counties... To which is added, as an appendix, A brief account of Wales, etc R. Baldwin, 1776Page 98
- ^"The lower projecting canted wings are later C18 additions" (Bridget Cherry, Charles O'Brien, Nikolaus Pevsner,London5(Buildings of England series),s.v."Hornchurch" ).
- ^S. Daniels,Humphrey Repton Landscape Gardening and the Geography of Georgian England(Yale University Press), 1999.
- ^abHazel Conway, "Surviving historic landscapes in the London Borough of Havering"
- ^"Local Government Act 1963".Legislation.gov.uk.Retrieved25 April2020.
- ^"Langtons Gardens".Langtons House.Retrieved17 February2022.
- ^"No doubts over marriage legality".BBC News. 20 June 2006.Retrieved5 May2020.
External links
[edit]
- Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Havering
- Local government buildings in London
- Grade II listed buildings in the London Borough of Havering
- Houses in the London Borough of Havering
- Country houses in London
- Hornchurch
- Houses completed in the 18th century
- 18th-century architecture in the United Kingdom
- Grade II listed houses in London