White Lodge

White Lodge is a Grade I listed Georgian house situated in Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Formerly a royal residence, it now houses the Royal Ballet Lower School, instructing students aged 11–16.

The house was built as a hunting lodge for George II, by the architect Roger Morris, and construction began shortly after his accession to the throne in 1727. Completed in 1730 and originally called Stone Lodge, the house was renamed New Lodge shortly afterwards to distinguish it from nearby Old Lodge, which was demolished in 1841. Old Lodge itself had been built by George II for Britain's first prime minister, Sir Robert Walpole, who frequented it, particularly to hunt at the estate. Walpole said that he could "do more business there (Old Lodge) than he could in town".

Caroline of Ansbach, wife of George II, stayed at the new lodge frequently and, on her death in 1737, White Lodge passed to her friend Sir Robert Walpole, the prime minister. After his death, it passed to Queen Caroline's daughter, Princess Amelia, in 1751. Amelia also became the ranger of Richmond Park and closed the entire park to the public, except to distinguished friends and those with permits, sparking public outrage. In 1758, a court case made by a local brewer against a park gatekeeper eventually overturned Princess Amelia's order, and the park was once again opened to the public. Amelia is remembered for adding the two white wings to the main lodge, which remain to this day. They were designed by Stephen Wright.

The prime minister, John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, became ranger of Richmond Park after Princess Amelia's resignation in 1760. The British Magazine for January 1761 lists Lord Bute as the Ranger with his Deputy Ranger being Sir Sidney Meadows. Although White Lodge remained Lord Bute's official address, he was also entitled to the use of White Lodge's neighbour, Old Lodge, which would house the Meadows family, who were of the Prime Minister's extended family: The Royal Collection holds an etching, dated 1780, by George Barret, Sr. entitled The Lodge in Richmond Park, the residence of Philip Meadows Esq.. Philip Meadows or Medows was the Richmond Park Deputy Ranger and the brother of Sir Sidney Meadows; their father being Sir Philip Meadowes.

Text adapted from “White Lodge, Richmond Park” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

White Lodge ranks #1,580 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #105 of the 329 mapped in England. Founded 1730, it is older than 20% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 525 atlas entries founded in the 18th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 6,144 times in the last 60 days, more than 87% of the atlas. 26 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is London, 12 km away. See how England compares in the castle statistics.

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Read the full history on Wikipedia ↗