Temple Grove

Temple Grove was built in 1611 on the site of a former manor house. It was bought in 1694 by John Temple and was lived in by the Temple family throughout the 18th century. The house was inherited by Henry Temple, 3rd Lord Palmerston, but he sold it when he came of age in 1806, well before he became prime minister. The Rev. William Pearson bought Temple Grove in 1810 to create Temple Grove School, regarded in the 19th century as a highly prestigous prep school. The school moved to Eastbourne in 1907 and the house was demolished the following year.

Temple Grove is pictured here around 1812 from its ornamental lake. The engraving, coloured at a much later date, is based on a drawing by John Preston Neale in his multi-volume Views of the Seats of Noblemen and Gentlemen. The pond in the foreground has left its footprint in the pronounced dip in Observatory and Palmerston Roads.