Hughenden Manor
Hughenden Manor is a red brick Victorian mansion in Buckinghamshire. It was the home of one the most famous Prime Ministers in British history, Benjamin Disraeli, who is buried nearby. Owned by the National Trust, it is situated in a 1,500 acre park and woodlands landscape with views over the Hughenden Valley.
Hughenden Manor was first recorded almost 1,000 years ago. However, the house as visited today was remodelled in 1862 by the architect Edward Buckton Lamb in a mock gothic style that the architectural doyen Pevsner described as ‘indescribable’. Benjamin Disraeli bought the original house in 1848 to befit his status: he was the Jewish born Londoner who had risen to British Prime Minister. He was a great favourite of Queen Victoria, and was elevated to the title of Lord Beaconsfield. When he died in 1881, she had a memorial erected to him here, the only one ever dedicated to a subject by a reigning monarch.
There is a collection of memorabilia including family portraits, furnishings and books. The formal garden was originally designed by Disraeli’s wife Mary. During World War Two, Hughenden Manor was used as a top-secret HQ for reconnaissance analysis, some of which was used to plan the famous Dambusters raid.