Sezincote is a unique Indian House set amongst the Cotswold Hills. The architecture is in the Mogul style of Rajasthan, with a central dome, minarets, peacock-tail windows, jail-work railings and pavillions. A curving Orangery frames the Persian Garden with its fountain and canals. The house is set within a romantic water garden – a fine example of the Picturesque style – with pools, waterfalls, a grotto and a temple to the Hindu Sun God. Sezincote was built in 1810 for Charles Cockerell, by Thomas Daniell, the great painter of Indian architectural scenery, and the landscape designer Repton. Sezincote was the inspiration for the Brighton Pavillion and was visited by the Prince Regent. The house sits in a very peaceful spot and the gardens are a lot of fun to explore, with usually few other people around and there are a lot of unusual plants and trees.
Samuel Pepys Cockerell worked as surveyor for the British East India Company and as an apprentice to Sir Robert Taylor, where John Nash was also apprenticed. In spite of his tenure as Surveyor to the East India Company, Cockerell never travelled to India; his encounters with Mughal architecture, a building style that flourished in India in the 16th Century, were strictly through the medium of drawings and engravings, such as those by Thomas Daniell (who designed the garden for his ‘old Indian ally’ Sir Charles Cockerell and its temple, bridge, dairy and farm buildings) and his nephews. Cockerell had already experimented cautiously with Indian elements at Daylesford, Gloucestershire, built for Warren Hastings, first governor-general of British India nearby and is now home to the Bamfords and their famous organic shop and spa.
To find out more about the English Stately Homes that you can stay in for a holiday organised by LTR please contact Andrew Loyd on + 44 (0) 1835 824 642 or andrew@ltr.co.uk.