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{{Short description|Georgian mansion next to Greenwich Park}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2015}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
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| caption = Ranger's House, seen from [[Shooters Hill Road]]
| caption = Ranger's House, seen from [[Shooters Hill Road]]
| type = Mansion
| type = Mansion
| locmapin = Greater London
| locmapin = United Kingdom London Greenwich
| coordinates = {{coord|51|28|24.4|N|00|00|5.8|W|type:landmark_scale:3000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| coordinates = {{coord|51|28|24.4|N|00|00|5.8|W|type:landmark_scale:3000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| gbgridref = TQ 38887 76832
| gbgridref = TQ 38887 76832
| location = [[Blackheath]]
| location = [[Blackheath, London|Blackheath]]
| area = [[Greater London]]
| area = [[Greater London]]
| built = c. 1722
| built = {{circa|1722}}
| architect = [[John James (architect)|John James]]
| architect = [[John James (architect)|John James]]
| architecture = [[Palladian]]
| architecture = [[Palladian]]
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| designation5_number =
| designation5_number =
}}
}}
'''Ranger's House''' is a medium-sized red brick Georgian mansion in the [[Palladian]] style, adjacent to [[Greenwich Park]] in the south east of [[London]]. It is situated in [[Blackheath, London|Blackheath]] and backs directly onto Greenwich Park. Previously known as '''Chesterfield House''', its current name is associated with the Ranger of Greenwich Park, a royal appointment; the house was the Ranger's official residence for most of the 19th century. It is a Grade I [[listed building]].<ref>{{NHLE|desc=The Ranger's House|num= 1218679 |accessdate=5 May 2020}}</ref> There is a rose garden behind it, and since 2002 it has housed the '''Wernher Collection''' of art.
'''Ranger's House''' is a medium-sized red brick Georgian mansion in the [[Palladian]] style, adjacent to [[Greenwich Park]] in the south east of [[London]]. It is situated in [[Blackheath, London|Blackheath]] and backs directly onto Greenwich Park. Previously known as '''Chesterfield House''', its current name is associated with the Ranger of Greenwich Park, a royal appointment; the house was the Ranger's official residence for most of the 19th century. It is a Grade I [[listed building]].<ref>{{NHLE|desc=The Ranger's House|num= 1218679 |access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref> There is a rose garden behind it, and since 2002 it has housed the '''Wernher Collection''' of art.


==History==
==History==
[[File:Ranger'sHouse.jpg|thumb|left|''The Ranger's House, Greenwich'' by George Robertson, 1791. Built about 1722–23 for Captain Francis Hosier. National Maritime Museum, London. (PT2659)]]
[[File:Ranger'sHouse.jpg|thumb|left|''The Ranger's House, Greenwich'' by George Robertson, 1791. Built about 1722–23 for Captain Francis Hosier. National Maritime Museum, London. (PT2659)]]
The house, probably dating from 1722–23,<ref name=eh>{{cite journal|first=Richard|last=Lea|title=Ranger's House, Blackheath|journal=English Heritage Historical Review|year=2011|volume=6|pages=50–79}}</ref> was originally built for Capt., later Vice-Admiral, [[Francis Hosier]] (1673–1727) on wasteland adjacent to Greenwich Park, probably with [[John James (architect)|John James]] as architect.<ref name=eh/> The house then had a superb view and easy access to London by road and river. Hosier had made his fortune through trade at sea and both the ship he served on as a lieutenant and his own ship were called the ''Neptune''. He occupied the house until dying of yellow fever at sea in 1727, during the disastrous [[Blockade of Porto Bello]] off Panama.
The house, probably dating from 1722 to 1723,<ref name=eh>{{cite journal|first=Richard|last=Lea|title=Ranger's House, Blackheath|journal=English Heritage Historical Review|year=2011|volume=6|pages=50–79|doi=10.1179/1752016912Z.0000000005}}</ref> was originally built for Capt., later Vice-Admiral, [[Francis Hosier]] (1673–1727) on wasteland adjacent to Greenwich Park, probably with [[John James (architect)|John James]] as architect.<ref name=eh/> The house then had a superb view and easy access to London by road and river. Hosier had made his fortune through trade at sea and both the ship he served on as a lieutenant and his own ship were called the ''Neptune''. He occupied the house until dying of [[yellow fever]] at sea in 1727, during the disastrous [[Blockade of Porto Bello]] off Panama.


In 1748 the lease of the house was inherited by the [[Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield|4th Earl of Chesterfield]]. He was a politician, diplomat, man of letters and wit who eventually became Secretary of State. He added the splendid bow windowed gallery for entertaining and displaying his art treasures. Chesterfield wrote that the view from the gallery gave him "three different, and the finest, prospects in the world".
In 1748 the lease of the house was inherited by the [[Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield|4th Earl of Chesterfield]]. He was a politician, diplomat, man of letters and wit who eventually became Secretary of State. He added the splendid bow windowed gallery for entertaining and displaying his art treasures. Chesterfield wrote that the view from the gallery gave him "three different, and the finest, prospects in the world".


In 1782, the next purchaser was Richard Hulse (1727–1805), 2nd son of Sir [[Hulse baronets|Edward Hulse]], 1st Bt., physician to George II<ref>{{cite web|title=The Royal Hospital: Paymasters General and Officials, Survey of London: volume 11: Chelsea, part IV: The Royal Hospital|year=1927|pages=37–60|url= http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=98501|accessdate=18 September 2010}}</ref> and Elizabeth Levett. He was [[High Sheriff of Kent]] in 1768 and a JP. He held the office of Deputy Governor of the [[Hudson's Bay Company]] between 1799 and 1805. He lived at sometime at Baldwins, Kent, and died unmarried without progeny.<ref>thepeerage.com</ref> Hulse added a room with a bow window on the north side to balance Chesterfield's gallery and this is how the house appears today.
In 1782, the next purchaser was Richard Hulse (1727–1805), 2nd son of Sir [[Hulse baronets|Edward Hulse]], 1st Bt., physician to [[George II of Great Britain|George II]]<ref>{{cite web|title=The Royal Hospital: Paymasters General and Officials, Survey of London: volume 11: Chelsea, part IV: The Royal Hospital|year=1927|pages=37–60|url= http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=98501|access-date=18 September 2010}}</ref> and Elizabeth Levett. He was [[High Sheriff of Kent]] in 1768 and a JP. He held the office of Deputy Governor of the [[Hudson's Bay Company]] between 1799 and 1805. He lived at sometime at Baldwins, Kent, and died unmarried without progeny.{{citation needed|date=October 2020}} Hulse added a room with a bow window on the north side to balance Chesterfield's gallery and this is how the house appears today.


Chesterfield House, as it was known, was briefly renamed Brunswick house while occupied by the [[Princess Augusta of Great Britain|Duchess of Brunswick]] from 1807 to 1813.
Chesterfield House, as it was known, was briefly renamed Brunswick house while occupied by the [[Princess Augusta of Great Britain|Duchess of Brunswick]] from 1807 to 1813.
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It was first used as the official residence of the Ranger of Greenwich Park in 1816;<ref>National Maritime Museum, Greenwich</ref> previously, [[Caroline of Brunswick]], appointed Ranger in 1806, had lived in the neighbouring [[Montagu House, Blackheath|Montagu House]] (demolished in 1815).
It was first used as the official residence of the Ranger of Greenwich Park in 1816;<ref>National Maritime Museum, Greenwich</ref> previously, [[Caroline of Brunswick]], appointed Ranger in 1806, had lived in the neighbouring [[Montagu House, Blackheath|Montagu House]] (demolished in 1815).


At the invitation of [[Queen Victoria|the Queen]], Field Marshal [[Garnet Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley|Lord Wolseley]] and his family moved from their former home at 6 [[Hill Street, London]] to the much grander Ranger's House in Autumn 1888.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Iv4m19wI0WYC&pg=PT229&lpg=PT229&dq=ranger%27s+house+garnet+wolseley&source=bl&ots=E4CnjMWjx_&sig=yWhBkrV5mr__bUdcY0_7wyja5UE&hl=en&sa=X&ei=EdbMU6XaG6aI7Aaow4HADQ&ved=0CCwQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=ranger's%20house%20garnet%20wolseley&f=false|title=The Master, the Modern Major General, and His Clever Wife: Henry James's Letters to Field Marshal Lord Wolseley and Lady Wolseley, 1878–1913|first=Henry|last=James|publisher=University of Virginia Press|year=2012}}</ref>
At the invitation of [[Queen Victoria]], Field Marshal [[Garnet Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley|Lord Wolseley]] and his family moved from their former home at 6 [[Hill Street, London]] to the much grander Ranger's House in Autumn 1888.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Iv4m19wI0WYC&q=ranger%27s+house+garnet+wolseley&pg=PT229|title=The Master, the Modern Major General, and His Clever Wife: Henry James's Letters to Field Marshal Lord Wolseley and Lady Wolseley, 1878–1913|first=Henry|last=James|publisher=University of Virginia Press|year=2012|isbn=9780813932354}}</ref>


The [[London County Council]] purchased the house in 1902 from the Commissioners of Woods and Forests and it became a council sports club and tea rooms. It was requisitioned in both World Wars. Two [[blue plaque]]s were erected by the London County Council in 1937 to commemorate Wolseley and Chesterfield at the house.<ref name='EngHetBP'>{{cite web| url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/discover/blue-plaques/search/wolseley-garnet-1st-viscount-wolseley-1833-1913|title=Wolseley, Garnet, 1st Viscount Wolseley (1833–1913)|publisher=English Heritage| accessdate=11 November 2014}}</ref> Later it was used to display the [[Arnold Dolmetsch|Dolmetsch]] collection of musical instruments<ref>{{cite web |title=History of the Ranger's House |url=https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/rangers-house-the-wernher-collection/history-and-stories/history/ |website=English Heritage |accessdate=5 May 2020}}</ref> and the Suffolk Collection of [[Jacobean era|Jacobean]] portraits. The latter is now on display at [[Kenwood House]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=French |first1=Anne |title=Ranger's House |date=1989 |publisher=English Heritage |location=London |page=3}}</ref>
The [[London County Council]] purchased the house in 1902 from the Commissioners of Woods and Forests and it became a council sports club and tea rooms. It was requisitioned in both World Wars. Two [[blue plaque]]s were erected by the London County Council in 1937 to commemorate Wolseley and Chesterfield at the house.<ref name='EngHetBP'>{{cite web| url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/discover/blue-plaques/search/wolseley-garnet-1st-viscount-wolseley-1833-1913|title=Wolseley, Garnet, 1st Viscount Wolseley (1833–1913)|publisher=English Heritage| access-date=11 November 2014}}</ref> Later it was used to display the [[Arnold Dolmetsch|Dolmetsch]] collection of musical instruments<ref name=EH>{{cite web |title=History of the Ranger's House |url=https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/rangers-house-the-wernher-collection/history-and-stories/history/ |website=English Heritage |access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref> and the Suffolk Collection of [[Jacobean era|Jacobean]] portraits. The latter is now on display at [[Kenwood House]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=French |first1=Anne |title=Ranger's House |date=1989 |publisher=English Heritage |location=London |page=3}}</ref>

⚫
In 1986 Ranger's House came into the care of [[English Heritage]].<ref name=EH />


===Ranger of Greenwich Park===
===Ranger of Greenwich Park===
The first Ranger was appointed in 1690 (it is a royal appointment, a [[sinecure]] carrying no official responsibilities, and was for some years combined with the office of Governor of the [[Greenwich Hospital, London|Greenwich Hospital]]). At first, the Ranger resided at the [[Queen's House]], Greenwich. Past Rangers have included:
The first Ranger was appointed in 1690. A royal appointment, it is a [[sinecure]] carrying no official responsibilities, and was for some years combined with the office of Governor of the [[Greenwich Hospital, London|Greenwich Hospital]]. At first, the Ranger resided at the [[Queen's House]], Greenwich. Past Rangers have included:
*[[Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset]] (appointed 1690)
*[[Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset]] (appointed 1690)
*[[Henry Sydney, 1st Earl of Romney]] (1697 – ?)<ref name=Chettle>George H Chettle, 'The history of the Queen's House: From 1689', in Survey of London Monograph 14, the Queen's House, Greenwich (London, 1937), pp. 47–58. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/bk14/pp47-58 [accessed 3 January 2018].</ref>
*[[Henry Sydney, 1st Earl of Romney]] (1697 – ?)<ref name=Chettle>George H Chettle, 'The history of the Queen's House: From 1689', in Survey of London Monograph 14, the Queen's House, Greenwich (London, 1937), pp. 47–58. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/bk14/pp47-58 [accessed 3 January 2018].</ref>
*Sir [[William Gifford (Royal Navy officer)|William Gifford]] (1710 – ?)<ref name=Chettle />
*Sir [[William Gifford (Royal Navy officer)|William Gifford]] (1710 – ?)<ref name=Chettle />
*[[Matthew Aylmer, 1st Baron Aylmer]] (1714–1720)<ref name="HOP">{{cite web|title=AYLMER, Matthew (c.1658–1720), of Westcliffe, nr. Dover, Kent.|url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1715-1754/member/aylmer-matthew-1658-1720|website=History of Parliament|accessdate=3 January 2018}}</ref>
*[[Matthew Aylmer, 1st Baron Aylmer]] (1714–1720)<ref name="HOP">{{cite web|title=AYLMER, Matthew (c.1658–1720), of Westcliffe, nr. Dover, Kent.|url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1715-1754/member/aylmer-matthew-1658-1720|website=History of Parliament|access-date=3 January 2018}}</ref>
*Sir [[John Jennings (Royal Navy officer)|John Jennings]] (1720–1743)<ref name=Chettle />
*Sir [[John Jennings (Royal Navy officer)|John Jennings]] (1720–1743)<ref name=Chettle />
*Lady Catherine Pelham (wife of [[Henry Pelham]]; 1743–1780)<ref name=Chettle />
*Lady Catherine Pelham (wife of [[Henry Pelham]]; 1743–1780)<ref name=Chettle />
*[[Caroline of Brunswick]] (1805–1813)<ref name=Chettle />
*[[Caroline of Brunswick]] (1805–1813)<ref name=Chettle />
*[[Princess Sophia Mathilda of Gloucester]] (1813<ref name="Regency">{{cite web|last1=Knowles|first1=Rachel|title=Princess Sophia Matilda of Gloucester (1773–1844)|url=http://www.regencyhistory.net/2013/11/|website=Regency History|accessdate=3 January 2018}}</ref> – 1844)
*[[Princess Sophia Mathilda of Gloucester]] (1813<ref name="Regency">{{cite web|last1=Knowles|first1=Rachel|title=Princess Sophia Matilda of Gloucester (1773–1844)|url=http://www.regencyhistory.net/2013/11/|website=Regency History|access-date=3 January 2018}}</ref> – 1844)
*[[Garnet Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley]] (1888–1896)
*[[Garnet Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley]] (1888–1896)


==Wernher Collection==
==Wernher Collection==
[[File:Gabriel Metsu - The Spinet LSE RHEH 88259571.jpg|thumb|upright|Gabriël Metsu - The Spinet]]
The Wernher Collection was assembled by the German-born diamond magnate Sir [[Julius Wernher]] in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Wernher lived at Bath House on [[Piccadilly]] and [[Luton Hoo]] in [[Bedfordshire]]. At one time part of the collection was on display to the public at Luton Hoo, which was owned by Sir Julius' descendants until the early years of the twenty first century. There are about 700 items on display at Ranger's House occupying twelve rooms, some of which have been decorated to evoke the way the collection was displayed when it was at Bath House.
The Wernher Collection was assembled by the German-born diamond magnate Sir [[Julius Wernher]] in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Wernher lived at Bath House on [[Piccadilly]] and [[Luton Hoo]] in [[Bedfordshire]]. At one time part of the collection was on display to the public at Luton Hoo, which was owned by Sir Julius' descendants until the early years of the 21st century. There are about 700 items on display at Ranger's House occupying twelve rooms, some of which have been decorated to evoke the way the collection was displayed when it was at Bath House.


The collection includes paintings by [[Sandro Botticelli]], [[Filippino Lippi]], [[Hans Memling]], [[Gabriel Metsu]] [[Francesco Francia]], and portraits by the English painters Sir [[Joshua Reynolds]], [[George Romney (painter)|George Romney]] and [[John Hoppner]].
The collection includes a painting from the workshop of [[Sandro Botticelli]] (“Madonna of the Pomegranate”), works by [[Filippino Lippi]], [[Hans Memling]], [[Pieter de Hooch]], [[Gabriël Metsu]], [[Francesco Francia]], and portraits by the English painters Sir [[Joshua Reynolds]], [[George Romney (painter)|George Romney]] and [[John Hoppner]].


The collection also contains an eclectic mix of decorative art with many pieces by acknowledged masters, including [[Renaissance]] jewellery, [[medieval]], [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] and Renaissance ivories, enamels, bronzes, Italian maiolica, tapestries, furniture and [[Manufacture nationale de Sèvres|Sèvres]] porcelain, as well as a life size marble sculpture by [[Giulio Bergonzoli|Bergonzoli]] of an angel kissing a semi-nude woman entitled "The Love of Angels".
The collection also contains an eclectic mix of decorative art with many pieces by acknowledged masters, including [[Renaissance]] jewellery, [[medieval]], [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] and Renaissance ivories, enamels, bronzes, Italian maiolica, tapestries, furniture and [[Manufacture nationale de Sèvres|Sèvres]] porcelain, as well as a life size marble sculpture by [[Giulio Bergonzoli|Bergonzoli]] of an angel kissing a semi-nude woman entitled "The Love of Angels".


==In popular culture==
⚫
Ranger's House is in the care of [[English Heritage]].
The exterior of the house appears as the home of the fictional Bridgerton family in the [[Netflix]] series ''[[Bridgerton]]''.<ref name="Frommer's">{{cite web |title=The Filming Locations of Netflix's "Bridgerton" That Tourists Can Visit |url=https://www.frommers.com/slideshows/848445-the-filming-locations-of-netflix-s-bridgerton-that-tourists-can-visit |website=Frommer's |access-date=4 June 2021}}</ref>


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
{{Commons category-inline|Ranger's House}}
{{Commons category|Ranger's House}}
*[https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/rangers-house-the-wernher-collection/ Ranger's House and the Wernher Collection on English Heritage's website]
*[https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/rangers-house-the-wernher-collection/ Ranger's House and the Wernher Collection on English Heritage's website]


{{London museums}}
{{London museums}}
{{Royal palaces in the United Kingdom}}
{{Royal palaces in the United Kingdom}}
{{Authority control}}


[[Category:1723 establishments in England]]
[[Category:Houses completed in 1723]]
[[Category:Royal buildings in London]]
[[Category:Royal buildings in London]]
[[Category:Royal residences in the Royal Borough of Greenwich]]
[[Category:Royal residences in the Royal Borough of Greenwich]]
[[Category:Houses in the Royal Borough of Greenwich]]
[[Category:Houses in the Royal Borough of Greenwich]]
[[Category:Country houses in London]]
[[Category:Grade I listed buildings in the Royal Borough of Greenwich]]
[[Category:Grade I listed buildings in the Royal Borough of Greenwich]]
[[Category:Grade I listed houses in London]]
[[Category:Grade I listed houses in London]]
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[[Category:Decorative arts museums in England]]
[[Category:Decorative arts museums in England]]
[[Category:Former private collections in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Former private collections in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Caroline of Brunswick]]
[[Category:Princess Augusta of Great Britain]]

Latest revision as of 03:34, 22 October 2024

Ranger's House
Ranger's House, seen from Shooters Hill Road
TypeMansion
LocationBlackheath
Coordinates51°28′24.4″N 00°00′5.8″W / 51.473444°N 0.001611°W / 51.473444; -0.001611
OS grid referenceTQ 38887 76832
AreaGreater London
Builtc. 1722
ArchitectJohn James
Architectural style(s)Palladian
OwnerEnglish Heritage
Listed Building – Grade I
Official nameThe Ranger's House
Designated19 October 1951
Reference no.1218679
Ranger's House is located in Royal Borough of Greenwich
Ranger's House
Location of Ranger's House in Royal Borough of Greenwich

Ranger's House is a medium-sized red brick Georgian mansion in the Palladian style, adjacent to Greenwich Park in the south east of London. It is situated in Blackheath and backs directly onto Greenwich Park. Previously known as Chesterfield House, its current name is associated with the Ranger of Greenwich Park, a royal appointment; the house was the Ranger's official residence for most of the 19th century. It is a Grade I listed building.[1] There is a rose garden behind it, and since 2002 it has housed the Wernher Collection of art.

History

[edit]
The Ranger's House, Greenwich by George Robertson, 1791. Built about 1722–23 for Captain Francis Hosier. National Maritime Museum, London. (PT2659)

The house, probably dating from 1722 to 1723,[2] was originally built for Capt., later Vice-Admiral, Francis Hosier (1673–1727) on wasteland adjacent to Greenwich Park, probably with John James as architect.[2] The house then had a superb view and easy access to London by road and river. Hosier had made his fortune through trade at sea and both the ship he served on as a lieutenant and his own ship were called the Neptune. He occupied the house until dying of yellow fever at sea in 1727, during the disastrous Blockade of Porto Bello off Panama.

In 1748 the lease of the house was inherited by the 4th Earl of Chesterfield. He was a politician, diplomat, man of letters and wit who eventually became Secretary of State. He added the splendid bow windowed gallery for entertaining and displaying his art treasures. Chesterfield wrote that the view from the gallery gave him "three different, and the finest, prospects in the world".

In 1782, the next purchaser was Richard Hulse (1727–1805), 2nd son of Sir Edward Hulse, 1st Bt., physician to George II[3] and Elizabeth Levett. He was High Sheriff of Kent in 1768 and a JP. He held the office of Deputy Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company between 1799 and 1805. He lived at sometime at Baldwins, Kent, and died unmarried without progeny.[citation needed] Hulse added a room with a bow window on the north side to balance Chesterfield's gallery and this is how the house appears today.

Chesterfield House, as it was known, was briefly renamed Brunswick house while occupied by the Duchess of Brunswick from 1807 to 1813.

It was first used as the official residence of the Ranger of Greenwich Park in 1816;[4] previously, Caroline of Brunswick, appointed Ranger in 1806, had lived in the neighbouring Montagu House (demolished in 1815).

At the invitation of Queen Victoria, Field Marshal Lord Wolseley and his family moved from their former home at 6 Hill Street, London to the much grander Ranger's House in Autumn 1888.[5]

The London County Council purchased the house in 1902 from the Commissioners of Woods and Forests and it became a council sports club and tea rooms. It was requisitioned in both World Wars. Two blue plaques were erected by the London County Council in 1937 to commemorate Wolseley and Chesterfield at the house.[6] Later it was used to display the Dolmetsch collection of musical instruments[7] and the Suffolk Collection of Jacobean portraits. The latter is now on display at Kenwood House.[8]

In 1986 Ranger's House came into the care of English Heritage.[7]

Ranger of Greenwich Park

[edit]

The first Ranger was appointed in 1690. A royal appointment, it is a sinecure carrying no official responsibilities, and was for some years combined with the office of Governor of the Greenwich Hospital. At first, the Ranger resided at the Queen's House, Greenwich. Past Rangers have included:

Wernher Collection

[edit]
Gabriël Metsu - The Spinet

The Wernher Collection was assembled by the German-born diamond magnate Sir Julius Wernher in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Wernher lived at Bath House on Piccadilly and Luton Hoo in Bedfordshire. At one time part of the collection was on display to the public at Luton Hoo, which was owned by Sir Julius' descendants until the early years of the 21st century. There are about 700 items on display at Ranger's House occupying twelve rooms, some of which have been decorated to evoke the way the collection was displayed when it was at Bath House.

The collection includes a painting from the workshop of Sandro Botticelli (“Madonna of the Pomegranate”), works by Filippino Lippi, Hans Memling, Pieter de Hooch, Gabriël Metsu, Francesco Francia, and portraits by the English painters Sir Joshua Reynolds, George Romney and John Hoppner.

The collection also contains an eclectic mix of decorative art with many pieces by acknowledged masters, including Renaissance jewellery, medieval, Byzantine and Renaissance ivories, enamels, bronzes, Italian maiolica, tapestries, furniture and Sèvres porcelain, as well as a life size marble sculpture by Bergonzoli of an angel kissing a semi-nude woman entitled "The Love of Angels".

[edit]

The exterior of the house appears as the home of the fictional Bridgerton family in the Netflix series Bridgerton.[12]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Historic England. "The Ranger's House (1218679)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  2. ^ a b Lea, Richard (2011). "Ranger's House, Blackheath". English Heritage Historical Review. 6: 50–79. doi:10.1179/1752016912Z.0000000005.
  3. ^ "The Royal Hospital: Paymasters General and Officials, Survey of London: volume 11: Chelsea, part IV: The Royal Hospital". 1927. pp. 37–60. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
  4. ^ National Maritime Museum, Greenwich
  5. ^ James, Henry (2012). The Master, the Modern Major General, and His Clever Wife: Henry James's Letters to Field Marshal Lord Wolseley and Lady Wolseley, 1878–1913. University of Virginia Press. ISBN 9780813932354.
  6. ^ "Wolseley, Garnet, 1st Viscount Wolseley (1833–1913)". English Heritage. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
  7. ^ a b "History of the Ranger's House". English Heritage. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  8. ^ French, Anne (1989). Ranger's House. London: English Heritage. p. 3.
  9. ^ a b c d e George H Chettle, 'The history of the Queen's House: From 1689', in Survey of London Monograph 14, the Queen's House, Greenwich (London, 1937), pp. 47–58. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/bk14/pp47-58 [accessed 3 January 2018].
  10. ^ "AYLMER, Matthew (c.1658–1720), of Westcliffe, nr. Dover, Kent". History of Parliament. Retrieved 3 January 2018.
  11. ^ Knowles, Rachel. "Princess Sophia Matilda of Gloucester (1773–1844)". Regency History. Retrieved 3 January 2018.
  12. ^ "The Filming Locations of Netflix's "Bridgerton" That Tourists Can Visit". Frommer's. Retrieved 4 June 2021.

Further reading

[edit]
  • French A, Ranger's House. A colour handbook English Heritage 1992
  • Bryant J, London's Country House Collections 1993, English Heritage
  • Adams G. The Jacobean portraits at Ranger's House 1984.
  • Girouard M. Life in the English Country House, A Social and Architectural History. Yale University Press 1984.
  • Mingay G E, Georgian London. Batsford 1975
  • Summerson J. The Architecture of the Eighteenth Century. Penguin 1986, *Ellenby J. The Georgian London.
[edit]
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