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The Great Dixter House and Gardens by HARTLEPOOLMARINA2014 –

Top Ten Amazing Facts about the Great Dixter House

Great Dixter House is a historical house located in Northiam, East Sussex,  England. It was built in 1910-1912 by architect Edwin Lutyens. It was a dwelling place for a family of Eight i.e Nathaniel Lloyd his wife Daisy Lloyd and 6 children. The house is currently open to the public. In the article are ten amazing facts about the Great Dixter House.

1. It is a combination of two similar structures

The Great Dixter House Northiam by Dominique MacNeill –

After the property was purchased in 1910 by Nathaniel Lloyd,  a businessman, his architect Edwin Lutyen convinced him to buy a similar cottage from Beneden, Kent. The cottage is said to be existing since mid 15th century.

  Lutyen combined the two structures with his work to create a much larger house which then was called the Great Dixter House. 

2. The house was useful in both world wars

During the  First World War, some parts of the house became a hospital and a total of 380 wounded soldiers were hospitalized there. During the Second World War, ten victims of the war were housed in the Dixter House in 1939 until it was decided that they should go further West where the enemy aircraft was minimal.

3. It was home to professional writers

Nathaniel Lloyd the owner of the Great Dixter House, was a writer. He wrote two books that became widely read. Specifically, the books were about historic buildings.

One written in 1925, A history of English Brickwork, and a History of English House in 1931.

His son Christopher Lloyd who was born in the same house in 1921 and also who inherited the house after the death of Daisy Lloyd, became a famous writer also. Within his 42-year career of writing, he had many books that also were widely read. 

4. The house is surrounded by the world’s famous garden

Great Dixter Gardens by Oast House Archive –

When the Lloyd family took over the house in 1910, no garden was worth the one they established. The garden is exclusively miscellaneous. The plants are grown to give a unique identity to the Dixter, and the wide range of tastes of the Christopher Lloyd.

5. It is open to the public

Before his death, Christopher Lloyd established the Great Dixter Charitable Trust to ensure, the property was well preserved.

From March to the beginning of  November, the house and the garden are open to the public in exemption of the nursery which is open throughout the year.

The garden is managed by Fergus Garrett, who worked with Christopher until he died in 2006, as Head Gardener and Innovator.

6. The spirit and the view of horticultural education are still preserved in the house

Just like Christopher Lloyd studied decorative horticulture at Wye College, Kent, and used the Dixter garden for his practical studies, also after his death, the garden was also open to students.

Study days, symposiums, lectures, and practicals are held frequently at the Dixter house and Gardens to ensure skills in managing an exquisite garden are still flowing from generation to generation.

7. The Dixter House has had a series of owners since it was built

Photo of Christopher Lloyd as a senior in Highschool by Staples High Senior Class, 1958-

During the 15th century, the house was just a simple structure owned by the 1st Duke of Windsor. 1910 the house was bought by Nathaniel Lloyd, Nathaniel passed the house ownership to his wife, Daisy, after his death in 1933.

Daisy also died in the year 1977, and Christopher Lloyd inherited the property. Christopher Lloyd further inherited the Great Dixter House to the Great Dixter Charitable Trust to ensure good management of the property.

8. The Dixter House was purposefully bought by Nathaniel Lloyd

When he retired in 1909, Nathaniel Loyd was looking for an old house to buy and renovate. Being a man of style and fashion, he hired a famous architect, Lutyen to renovate the house.

His choice was fixed, a house that had a good terrain for shooting and golf. The Dixter House was his best choice, the house had been vacant for ten consecutive years. It was after the complete renovation of the house was done then the house was called the Great Dixter House in 1912.

9. The house is a tourist attraction site

The Great Dixter house interior
with collections by Nathaniel Lloyd by Weaver, Lawrence, 1876-1930 –

People visit the house to see furniture from different eras dating 100 years back. Some are Italian and  French that sit right beside the English furniture.

Also, there are architectural photographs held by the  National Trust and pottery collection, which has over 300 pieces by the now extinct Aldermaston pottery. The garden itself is an attraction site because it’s the world’s best and most maintained from its year of foundation by Christopher Lloyd.

People are welcome to see a variety of the flowers grown there. The house also itself is an attraction site because it appeared in the magazine ( Country Life) after its renovation in 1912.

10. The house is surrounded by a variety of gardens

The Great Dixter House Gardens by Oast House Archive –

The gardens vary from each other due to the different horticultural plants grown there. There’s a walled garden with mosaic paving, a sunken garden, an upper moat filled with grass and flowers (formerly it was filled with water), a vegetable garden for growing food for the house, and a peacock topiary garden.

                The Great Dexter House is quite a remarkable house in the history of man,     from the instances encountered. Also, it’s evident that the house was built for the welfare of the people, not the individual owners themselves simply because it was a shelter for the victims of war like wounded soldiers in the First World War, and also home to evacuees in the Second World War. Even before his death also, Christopher Lloyd had opened up private property to the public as a charitable duty.