The entrance facade
The entrance facade with quadrant wall
Entrance facade quadrant wall
Side facade
Side facade with Roman emperors
Rear Victorian facade
Church interior
Church memorial
Royal coat of arms in the church
Built / Designed For: Sir Henry Parker
House & Family History: Considered one of the most perfect late 17th century houses in England, Honington is a 1680s house built of an exquisite, mellow red brick with stone quoins and carved busts of Roman emperors set into round-headed niches above the ground-floor windows (the garden facade of Castle Hill, Ipswich, Massachusetts, is based on Honington). The Manor of Honington was owned by the Priory of Coventry until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 16th century. In 1540 the manor was granted by the crown to Robert Gibbes. In 1670 Honington was sold by the Gibbes family to Henry Parker, who built the current house. Parker's grandson sold the estate in 1737 to Joseph Townsend, who carried out extensive work on the house, leaving it as seen today. The interior was lavishly remodeled by Townsend in the 1750s and features an extraordinary display of early Georgian plasterwork of the highest quality, particularly in the breathtaking coffered domed Octagonal Saloon, which was designed for Townsend by his friend, John Freeman. With luscious Rococo garlands on the walls, Kentian doorways, and a ceiling painting attributed to Bellucci, the 1751 saloon burns brightly as the star of this extraordinary house. The second floor features the early 17th century Chinese Room (so-called because of its wallpaper), which also sports fine stucco work.
Garden & Outbuildings: Honington is set in 15 acres of grounds.
Architect: William Smith
Date: Circa 1685Architect: Sanderson Miller
Date: Circa 1755-60Architect: John Freeman
Date: 1751John Preston (J.P.) Neale, published under the title of Views of the Seats of Noblemen and Gentlemen in England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, among other titles: 2.S. Vol. I, 1824.
Country Life: XV, 942, 1904. XLVIII, 630, 666, 694, 1920. CLXIV, 791, 893, 1082, 1978.
Title: Burke's & Savills Guide to Country Houses, Volume II: Herefordshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire
Author: Reid, Peter
Year Published: 1980
Reference: pgs. 151-153
Publisher: London: Burke's Peerage
ISBN: 0850110319
Book Type: Hardback
Title: English Country Houses: Early Georgian, 1715-1760
Author: Hussey, Christopher
Year Published: 1955
Reference: pg. 175
Publisher: London: Country Life Limited
ISBN: NA
Book Type: Hardback
House Listed: Grade I
Park Listed: Grade II*
Current Seat / Home of: Benjamin Wiggin; Wiggin family here since the 1920s.
Past Seat / Home of: SEATED AT EARLIER HOUSE: Robert Gibbes, 16th century; Gibbes family here 1540-1670. SEATED AT CURRENT HOUSE: Sir Henry Parker, 17th century; Parker family here 1670-1737. Joseph Townsend, 18th century; Townsend family here 1737-1905. Sir Grey Humberston d'Estoteville Skipwith, 11th Bt., 1905-20s.
Current Ownership Type: Individual / Family Trust
Primary Current Ownership Use: Private Home
House Open to Public: Limited Access
Phone: 01608-661-434
Fax: 01608-663-717
Historic Houses Member: No