| Hilfield Castle | |
|---|---|
 Hilfield Castle c 1890 | |
  Location within Hertfordshire | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Gothic |
| Location | Hilfield Lane, nearAldenham andBushey,Hertfordshire,England |
| Coordinates | 51°39′13″N0°20′05″W / 51.6536°N 0.3348°W /51.6536; -0.3348 |
| Construction started | 1798 |
| Completed | 1799 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Jeffry Wyatt |
Hilfield Castle, alsoHilfield Lodge,[1] is a country estate and house about 2 miles (3.2 km) east of Watford and 1 mile (1.6 km) southwest ofAldenham,in Hertfordshire, on the outskirts of London in theUnited Kingdom. The estate contains two large reservoirs, one of which were built by French prisoners of war in the 1790s,.[2] The grounds now formAldenham Country Park.Elstree Aerodrome is located just to the east and theM1 motorway passes to the west.
The castle dates to 1798–99, when it was built by architectJeffry Wyatt for Hon. George Villiers, brother of the earl of Clarendon. to replaceSlys Castle. It is a picturesque Gothic design, and the estate includes numerous cottages, barns and a boathouse on the reservoir.
Nikolaus Pevsner notes that it is a "castellated, turreted, and cemented house with a gatehouse complete withportcullis".[3] He also notes that the entrance and south sides are symmetrical and that the conservatory is of "ecclesiastical appearance."[3] The castle is built from brick with a 4-storey central tower "flanked by octagonal turrets to lower 4-storey bays with outer 2-storey bays with a later mansard attic."[4] The turrets have slit windows, which are machicolated and crenellated. Of note is the "octagonal Breakfast Room with a vaulted ceiling and a Gothic conservatory."[5] It became aGrade II* listed building on 1 June 1984. It is owned by the Jefferis family as a private house and is not open to the public.[6]
It was sold in 1818 by Villiers to John Fam Timins. He had served in the BritishEast India Company, for whom he had captained severalEast Indiamen; he had most notably participated in theBattle of Pulo Aura. When he died in 1843, his son William Raikes Timins succeeded him. He died in 1866, and was succeeded by his nephew the Rev. Douglas Cartwright Timins, who died in 1872, when Hilfield passed to his son Douglas Theodore, who sold the house and park in 1906 to the late Lord Aldenham.[7][8]
The reservoir nearest to the house is called Hilfield reservoir and is owned byAffinity Water. It is managed as a wildlife reserve by theHerts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust and is not open to the public except by appointment.[9] It was built in 1953.[10]
The more southerly reservoir is called Aldenham reservoir and forms part ofAldenham Country Park. It is open to the public with trails and other attractions[11] and hosts a sailing club.[12] It was built by French prisoners of war during theNapoleonic war.
The castle has appeared in several TV series and films, includingStanley Kubrick's motion pictureLolita (1962) when it served asPeter Sellers's “Pavor Manor”,George Pollock's filmMurder at the Gallop (1963), and an episode ofRandall and Hopkirk (Deceased) ("For the Girl Who Has Everything", 1969) when it was occupied byLois Maxwell.[13] It also appeared in various episodes ofLittle Britain as the Hotel run by the bizarre flute playing Scottish characterRay McCooney, played byDavid Walliams.