The historic grounds at Compton Verney are registered as a Grade II* listed parkland. Most of what you see in the grounds is the result of a long-term project to restore many of the features which Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown (1716 – 1783) created after 1768. Brown was commissioned by John Verney, 14th Baron Willoughby de Broke (1738 – 1816) to redesign the landscape at Compton Verney. Brown’s resulting landscape typified his minimalist approach to parkland, with its sweeping vistas, viewpoints and imaginative use of water.*

*Info from the Compton Verney Grounds leaflet.

The stable block was designed by James Gibbs in 1736. It has been converted to private dwellings.

[Capability] Brown changed the direction of the approach to the house and merged the five separate pools into the central lake, which he crossed with two new bridges. The Upper Bridge of 1770, guarded by four lead sphinxes, is thought to have been designed either by Brown or by architect Robert Adam.*

*From the Compton Verney Grounds leaflet.

The house at Compton Verney is quite different from the stately homes I usually visit. The house has been transformed to its former glory, but within the walls you will find an art gallery rather than seeing the house as it would have been when it was inhabited.

Until the early twentieth century Compton Verney was home to the Verney or Willoughby de Broke family for almost 500 years. It has now been transformed from a derelict eighteenth-century mansion into a gallery of international standing, offering a combination of high quality attractions and facilities. The project took ten years to complete and over twenty gallery spaces have been created. Compton Verney is unique in that it is a place where art, architecture, landscape and learning fuse, to offer the visitor an experience that is completely integrated and accessible.

The project worked for me, but that doesn’t mean I like all of the art that is displayed there

A sign board near to the Ice House gives the following information:

Lancelot ‘Capability Brown’ started work at Compton Verney for the 14th Baron Willoughby de Broke in 1768.

This Ice House was built as a picturesque incident on the new drive in 1772, almost certainly to Brown’s dosing.  Positioned amidst shrubbery in order to shade the building from the heat, the final payments for the structure in November 1772 included 15s 2d to a William Harris for thatching the roof.

During the winter, servants would cut blocks of ice from the lake and store them below ground in the ice house, between insulating layers of straw.  Ice would then be removed as needed for cooking and entertaining during the summer month.

The Ice House’s roof was removed in the nineteenth century, and the opening covered with a brick dome.  In 2010 the building was expertly restored thanks to generous financial support from Natural England.