Overlooking the Bristol Channel on the Devon/Somerset border, Glenthorne House dates from 1831 and was built by the Reverend Walter Stevenson Halliday, the son of a Scottish naval surgeon and banker, who had made a fortune during the Napoleonic Wars.
Inheriting from his father, Walter had looked for a country estate and was drawn to the area around Countisbury. He was in the fortunate position of being able to choose his landscape and then fit his house into it.
The driveway alone took almost a year to build and is thought to be the longest in England. It zigzags down for approximately 2.5 miles, dropping almost 700 feet, to where it meets the house, beyond which a formal terraced lawn extends to the garden edge and then falls steeply down to the sea.
Before building work on the house itself could begin, stables had to be built at nearby Home Farm to house the working horses and then a track was cut to the sea and a landing stage made for materials coming in by water.
The house is classical Georgian in places and Gothic in others, with a noticeable Tudoresque influence. It is built of pinkish local stone, ornated with Bath stone and roofed with Cornish slate.
In 1872 Glenthorne House passed to Walter’s nephew William and his wife Maria and their four daughters. The pair had a healthy interest in scholarly and literary matters, and over the years that followed Glenthorne became known as the home of literature.
The house stayed into the ownership of the Halliday family for over 100 years, passing eventually in the 1960s to Benjamin Halliday who was the last family member to live there.
In 1983 Glenthorne was bought by Sir Christopher Ondaatje, businessman, philanthropist, adventurer, writer and bob-sledding Olympian for Canada.
By then the house was in a bad state of repair. In reflecting on his purchase, years later in Country Life magazine, Sir Christopher says: ‘Despite its romantic, Daphne du Maurier appearance, the house was an absolute wreck, with rain pouring though the roof, right to the ground floor.’
Sir Christopher hired a team of 35 craftsmen and builders to renovate the entire house in just seven months.
The literary association, formed by the Hallidays, continued with into modern times; it is thought that the majority of the renowned novel The English Patient, and other novels, were penned at Glenthorne by Sir Christopher’s brother Michael Ondaatje.
Sir Christopher eventually put Glenthorne on the market in 2018.
Talking to Country Life at the time, Sir Christopher described the house as ‘the most beautiful spot on Earth.
‘Woods climb giant hills behind us, separated occasionally by narrow streams, hidden by ferns and rhododendrons, which cascade over mossy rocks down to the stony beach.’
Today the house has undergone extensive renovation work by the current owners who purchased the home from Sir Christopher, enhancing many of the building’s original features, whilst incorporating many modern conveniences, required of today’s country houses.
Chris Clifford, head of Savills residential team in Devon, is marketing the property which is once again for sale. He says: ‘The magic of Glenthorne is like nothing else. Alongside its great history, there is much myth, from stories of Joseph of Arimathea landing on the beach, to the Exmoor Beast leaving claw marks on trees in the woodland... all of which feel very real when you spend time here.
‘Having grown up just a few miles down the coast, it is a particular privilege to have the opportunity to show buyers this incredible home and setting.
‘The grounds feature glorious deep combes, with natural oak woods, which are in great contrast to the wild heather moors at the top of the cliffs. Such a varied landscape across 77 acres is really quite rare. It’s no wonder Glenthorne has proved such an inspirational setting, both for those who have lived here for many years, or even just visited for a few hours.’
The house is available through Savills for £7m.
