The history of Chastleton House

Civil War and declining fortunes 

Walter’s grandson, Arthur Jones (c.1615–87), known in the family as ‘The Cavalier’ remained loyal to King Charles I during the Civil War. Family lore states that following the defeat at the Battle of Worcester (1651), Arthur fled to Chastleton and hid from pursuing Roundhead soldiers in the ‘secret’ room above the porch. He escaped after his wife Sarah drugged the soldiers. Arthur later inherited it in 1656. 

During the Commonwealth (1649–66), the family received several fines for being Jacobites – supporters of the exiled Stuart dynasty – and their finances never fully recovered. Their Jacobite sympathies are visible throughout the collection, including the ‘Juxton Bible’, reputed to have been used by Charles I before his execution.  

The last direct descendent 

Arthur Jones (1746–1828) inherited Chastleton in 1813 and undertook improvements and structural work to the house. Arthur had previously lived opposite Chastleton in the Greenwood house which he demolished shortly after moving into Chastleton. He retained the 18th-century dovecot as an eye-catcher in the landscape.  

Arthur was the last direct descendant of Walter Jones. On his death, a distant cousin by marriage – John Henry-Whitmore Jones (1795–1853) – inherited Chastleton. 

Chastleton inventors 

On inheriting Chastleton in 1828 John changed his name to Whitmore-Jones. Three of his eight children were inventors of games still played today. Mary Elizabeth (1823/4–1915), who also wrote several books, created variations of the card game Patience. Wolrych (1837/8–74) invented numerous gadgets and board games including Squails. Walter (1831–72) codified the rules of croquet and, as the writer Arthur Lillie observed, '...transformed the game from the silliest of open-air games to the most intellectual one.’

Into the 20th century 

Mary Whitmore-Jones (c.1823–1915) inherited Chastleton in 1874. Within a few years, she passed the management of the estate to her nephew, Thomas Whitmore-Harris (1864–1917). Thomas changed his name to Whitmore-Jones and married his first cousin, Irene Dickins (1870–1955).  

Tenanted – a brief spell 

The cost to maintain Chastleton was becoming a burden, so in 1897, the Whitmore-Joneses let the house. They relocated into the village and took a section of the Long Gallery panelling as a memento. Irene moved back to Chastleton in 1934 and opened the house to paying visitors to generate income. In 1936 she was forced to sell significant parts of the Chastleton Estate – around 1,250 acres and five farms.  

During the Second World War, the house was briefly used to store artwork evacuated from the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. It then became the temporary home of a boarding school. 

The last family owners  

Barbara (1912–2005) and Alan Clutton-Brock (1904–76) inherited in 1955. They uprooted their young family from fashionable London and moved to Chastleton, making it their family home. Alan was art critic for The Times and Slade Professor of Fine Art at the University of Cambridge. At a time when country houses were being demolished at an alarming rate, the romantic beauty of Chastleton likely appealed to him. Both Alan and Barbara mixed widely in literary and artistic circles and much of what you see at Chastleton today relates to their time as owners.  

Making ends meet  

Their ownership of Chastleton was defined by the struggle to maintain the magnificent but crumbling house. To make a little extra money, they opened Chastleton to the public, leaving only a few rooms for their personal use.  

Following Alan’s death in 1976, Barbara struggled for another 15 years in the cold and decaying house, with her many cats as company. Barbara undertook many repairs herself, including rewiring the house, and roping in friends and family for assistance. However, the urgent need for major repairs finally forced the sale of Chastleton, after nearly 400 years in the same family.

Saved for the nation 

In 1991 the National Heritage Memorial Fund bought Chastleton, with much of its original contents and transferred it to the care of the National Trust.  

Preserve, not restore 

To retain the magical atmosphere created by centuries of benign neglect, the National Trust repaired and preserved the house, rather than restoring it. It took six years to make the building structurally sound and to stabilise the vulnerable interiors. The National Trust reopened Chastleton to the public in 1998. 

Chastleton in the 21st century 

Barbara often said that ‘poverty is a great preservative’ and the National Trust continues to balance the time-capsule atmosphere with the ongoing conservation needs of this fragile house and collection. Recent work includes the conservation of the 16th-century ‘Fathers of the Church’ paintings.  

The gardens were originally laid out in the early 1700s. Nestled within high protective walls, these discrete spaces still provide an intimate setting for the house. In about 1607, Walter Jones created the ‘Best Garden’, so called because it is overlooked by the most important rooms in the house. In 2023, the ‘Best Garden’ was restored to how it looked at the turn of the 20th century.  

In the 1860s, the rear lawns were laid out according to Walter Jones-Whitmore’s new regulations for croquet. These contrast with the 19th-century kitchen garden and ‘wild-garden’ with its wilderness walk.

Further reading

• Farr, Dennis. ‘Brock, Alan Francis Clutton- (1904–1976), art critic.’ Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.  September 23, 2004.

• Williams, Elizabeth. ‘Whitmore, Walter Thomas Jones (1831–1872), promoter of croquet.’ Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.  May 24, 2012. 

• Chastleton Estate Papers, Oxfordshire County Council.