Built: 1898
Architect: Joseph Lucas
Owner: Order of The Visitation
Unoccupied

Foxhunt Manor at Waldron in East Sussex is a magnificent manor house dating from 1898 and built by Joseph Lucas J.P., a builder who designed and built the property for himself and his family.

In context of most country houses it is not necessarily beautiful. Its appearance is very Victorian but not necessarily for the better. The house has a foreboding look of ‘institution’ about it and could have been built as a public building.

Joseph Lucas sold Foxhunt Manor in 1920 and moved to Birkdale, Branksome Park, Bournemouth. The house was sold to Eugene Fitzroy Oakshott in 1920 who remained until his death in 1934.

Eugene Fitzroy Oakshott was the son of Eugene Phillip Oakshott who had made his money building up the department store, Spencer and Co of Madras, in India.

Following Eugene Fitzroy Oakshott’s death the house and estate were offered at auction by Knight, Frank and Rutley in 1935.

Auction notices at the time described Foxhunt Manor as standing high and having magnificent views to the South Downs. It was a ‘modern’ house with 2 halls, 3 reception rooms, a billiard room, 17 bed and dressing rooms, 4 bathrooms and several offices. It offered an ample private water supply, electric light and central heating. Its pleasure grounds came with tennis courts, bowling green and a ‘prolific’ orchard.

The house and estate failed to sell but sold privately to the Xaverian Brothers in December 1935. It was run as a preparatory boarding school for Mayfield College (then known as the School of St. Edward the Confessor).

The school closed in 1959 when it was purchased by the Order of The Visitation and used as a Monastery for the Visitation. The religious order recently moved to stables on the original estate and Foxhunt Manor put up for sale.

The house has brick elevations with matching coloured mullions, under a tiled roof.

It is uncertain how much of the original interior remains but the joinery is high quality oak with panelled dados and doors, carved friezes and chimney pieces, fine carved archways and wood panelled ceilings to some rooms, with oak strip floors.

The current accommodation is arranged over 4 floors and an architect has drawn up proposals to create a reception hall, library, drawing room, conservatory, dining room, music room, kitchen, scullery and morning room on the ground floor; a master bedroom suite and 6 further first floor bedrooms; extensive staff accommodation on the second floor; and gymnasium and service areas on the lower ground floor. In the 1960’s a substantial addition was built housing a chapel and ancillary rooms.

References:-
Jackson-Stops & Staff

Foxhunt Manor
Foxhunt Green, Waldron, East Sussex, TN21 0RX