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Pembroke Lodge

Pembroke Lodge began life as the molecatcher's cottage in Richmond Park. Hunters who rushed around the old deer park wanted the rough excitement of the hunt. But they wanted their excitement without the risk of molehills which might trip them up. I'm reminded of the kind of characters Ernest Hemmingway wrote about, wanting to get back to nature, while carrying a nice can of peaches in syrup in their knapsack. This is really what a place like Richmond Park is all about, an idealised vision of nature, which we can enjoy without leaving the comforts of urban life. The molecatcher's cottage was then extended, and given to Elizabeth Herbert, the countess of Pembroke, principal lady-in-waiting to George the Third. Elizabeth extended the house further into the building we see today. In 1847 Queen Victoria granted the house to Prime Minister Lord John Russell. In 1854 the Cabinet met at Pembroke Lodge and decided to proceed with the Crimean War against Russia.

 

Lord John Russell's grandson, Bertrand Russell, born in 1872, grew up at Pembroke Lodge. Russell wrote that he became accustomed to the wide horizons, provided by Richmond Park. Parks were created in the nineteenth century as places to allow people in towns a glimpse of a wider horizon. They were an idealised landscape where you could enjoy nature without the danger of those molehills. Pembroke Lodge sits on the highest elevations in Richmond Park. Henry the Eighth's Mound is in the grounds. This prehistoric burial mound was used by Henry the Eighth to view hunting in the park. There are wonderful views to the west, while to the east there's a remarkable vista through the trees, focusing precisely on the dome of St Paul's Cathedral .

 

Pembroke Lodge is now a restaurant, wedding and conference venue.

Directions: the nearest Underground station is Richmond. A bus, 371 or 65, then provides a service on the three quarters of a mile journey to the predestrian entrance at Petersham Gate. There are six car parks in Richmond Park. From the M3/A326, come off at Richmond and follow signs. Enter by the Richmond Gate. Click here for an interactive map centred on Pembroke Lodge.

Contact:

telephone: 0208 332 6719

web site: http://www.pembroke-lodge.co.uk/