|
| This is an attractive collection of buildings, standing on foundations that have been there since the middle ages. Pugin was involved with the house from 1841 to 1846. Captain Hibbert rented Bilton in 1839 and bought it a year later. In 1887 Bilton was sold to the Rev Earle, who had a school which he then moved to Bilton and the school is still on the site. |
|
| Pugin was employed by Captain Hibbert to enlarge and decorate Bilton. However he found Hibbert an argumentative client, Myers, Pugin's builder luckily was not so easily upset. | 
|
| The interior of the school is splendid, entering the front door one is reminded of The Grange in Ramsgate. The ground floor is full of carved wood, wonderful fireplaces wooden panelling and carved stone vents to distribute heat. | 
|
| The wooden carvings of beasts on the staircase were the prototypes for the ones executed for the House of Lords. These Pugin fire dogs were exhibited at The Victoria & Albert Museum Pugin exhibition. In the library it was good to see Pugin wallpaper, such lovely colours. | 
|
| The actual buildings themselves are no less attractive, with wonderful views over rolling countryside. There is a lovely stone balustrade on a terrace with the words cut out in stone, in Gothic script saying 'this house was built by' and here we came to a full stop as you can see from the picture the foliage covered the rest. | 
|
| As I climbed right to the top of the Grange I looked out of the window and discovered a fabulous view and in the foreground was the Hibbert 'H' on a pinnacle, just as the Pugin 'P' sits on the top of Pugin's house in Ramsgate. | 
|