Chapman Lodge, on the border of Wimbledon Common, is an unusual building. At first glance, it looks like a bungalow, with white bricks, arched windows and an octagonal-shaped room to the rear. Surrounded by greenery, it stands alone, as if out of place.
“It feels like its own little retreat,” says Alex, whose parents bought the house in 2014, and who lived there herself for four years. “It’s a historical gem. Everyone who comes in always says that it looks like it’s in the Mediterranean. It’s very unusual.”
The lodge, built in 1864, was originally part of the larger Belmont Estate. It was constructed for merchant banker Daniel Meinertzhagen and has since had a string of notable owners, including Henry Driver Holloway, of the Holloway medicine manufacturing family, and members of the Orléans branch of the French royal family.
According to the Land Registry, it was acquired by Prince Ferdinand Phillippe Marie, the Duc d’Alençon, in 1897, who died at Belmont Estate in 1910.
The property passed to his son, Prince Philippe Emmanuel, who was the eighth Duc de Vendôme and great grandson of King Louis Philippe I of France. He is celebrated for his efforts in the First World War when, being unable to serve in the army as royalty, he volunteered with the French Red Cross.
In 1930, Belmont House was acquired by Southlands College, which merged with the University of Roehampton in 1985. Belmont House was demolished, rebuilt as mansion flats and renamed Chapman Square in 2001. Today, Chapman Lodge is all that remains of the original estate.
“[The developers] ideally wanted as much land and property to build the flats, but they weren’t allowed to knock down the lodge house, because of its history,” Alex’s father Peter explains. “From a development point of view, there was no real value in the house. It was more of a thorn in their side. But now, it’s a blessing that it remains.”
The family and their three children were looking to downsize from their six-bedroom house in Earlsfield when they bought the property in 2014. Despite the estate having been acquired by Southfields College, the lodge was still a residential home. Its previous owners had extended the building considerably, creating an entire basement floor and effectively doubling the floorplan.
“[My parents] just fell in love with this house in Wimbledon on the Common. My dad is an avid runner, and he wanted to be able to go outside and be in nature. That was the main reason that they chose it,” says Alex, who is an interior designer.
“They also looked in Fulham, and it was almost the same price for a terraced house there as this detached house. That’s a big part of why it’s so unusual: a detached house in Wimbledon often costs over £5 or £6 million.”
Today, the house covers 2,404 square feet of space, with four bedrooms and three reception rooms. On the ground floor, there is a master bedroom, hallway, kitchen, reception and dining room, with large arched doors to the garden.
The octagonal-shaped room, connected to the main living space by more tall arches, is used as a sitting area. The space has high ceilings, tiled floors, and neutral-toned interiors. “The light is special,” says Alex. “The arches give it a real Mediterranean feel.”
Downstairs, in the newer basement extension, there is another reception room, three bedrooms and a family bathroom. All the rooms open out onto the garden.
Outside, the house is surrounded by gardens, with a driveway at the front of the house and a gated entrance. “Because it’s gated, it feels very secure — tucked away from the hustle and bustle. But you’re still close to everything, location-wise. You can walk to Wimbledon Village, and Fulham and Southfields are around the corner.”
Over the past decade, Alex and her family have enjoyed the house’s architecture, location — and the annual buzz of the tennis at Wimbledon. “It’s always thriving at this time of year. It’s a really nice atmosphere,” she says. “We’re quite a loud family. You can be as loud as you want there, and no one can hear you. That’s been great — and quite unusual in London.”
Now, though, Peter and his wife are taking a “gap year”, as he puts it, before downsizing again. They have listed the house for £2.45 million on Purple Bricks.
Alex believes it would suit buyers in a similar position to her parents in 2014: a couple looking to move to a smaller property with the potential to live on one floor, and guest accommodation below. Or, of course, a tennis lover: “The next owners have got to make the most of the tennis, because it’s just too close to not.”
“My parents are very sad to be parting with it,” she says. “I think whoever does want to buy this property next is going to be a real history buff, that appreciates that this is a special piece of history.”
“It feels like you’re living in the middle of Wimbledon Common,” adds Peter. “We’ll miss the location and the independence — you’ll never have someone moving in next door to you. We won’t get that again in London.”
