easthampstead park history

1350 onwards
In 1350, a hunting lodge was built at the gateway to Windsor Great Forest and was seen as an easy stage (stopping off point) between London and Bristol. Both Edward III and Richard II spent some time at the Park and many public documents were signed there.

Henry VIII first saw the face of Katherine of Aragon when she stayed at EastHampstead Park on her way to marry his elder brother, Arthur. In 1629, Charles I granted William Trumbull I as “Keeper of EastHampstead Walk” and the hunting lodge was incorporated into a newly built mansion surrounded by a moat.

1860 onwards
The old house was demolished, leaving only a stable block, which can be seen as the low white building on the adjacent golf course. In 1858, the Fourth Marquis of Downshire began building the present Mansion, which is listed by the Department of the Environment as a “building of historic and architectural interest, in Jacobean style with curved gables, pierced stone parapet and stone frontispiece of naïve classicism”.

Second World War
The Army made use of the Park, which attracted a salvo of German bombs down the driveway in 1941. The Park was sold to Berkshire County Council after the war. During the sale, a great fire destroyed the gable roof. The Mansion was subsequently used as a Teacher Training College.

1972 onwards
The Park then became an education centre comprising Berkshire’s Adult Residential college, in-service training centre, and was also extended to become one of Bracknell’s three comprehensive schools.

1982 onwards
The Conference Centre was set up and ran in parallel with the school until Easter 1994. The centre is now popular for meetings, conferences, team-building activities and weddings.