Bentley
WILDFOWL & MOTOR MUSEUM
Bentley Wildfowl &
Motor Museum
Halland, Lewes
E.Sussex, BN8 5AF
01825 840573
01825 841451
Bentley House & Gardens
Bentley has a fascinating history with records going back 700 years. However what you see today is very much the creation of Gerald & Mary Askew who discovered Bentley in 1937. They fell in love with it and together set about creating a remarkable home.
With great plans in mind, the Askews began adding to the original farm until the landholding was considerable. With the War over, they began the task of improving Bentley. The house had lost much of its original character and had been rather unattractively 'improved'. Raymond Erith was employed and the house was extended, completely recast and furnished with a wonderful collection of pieces.
The Askew's work and vision entirely reshaped the estate.
Having started in the house, the Askews began improving the garden. Luckily they inherited two lovely species of trees, Ginkgo Biloba and Swamp Cypress which stand in front of the house.
The garden was created as a series of 'rooms' with yew hedges as a reflection of the house. The layout is formal but the planting informal. Here the Askews were helped and advised by imaginative landscape gardener, Jim Russell. He suggested the use of rare trees and plants, especially old roses including the Bourbons, the Gallicas and the Damasks.
The Askews were also influenced by many gardens they visited, especially at Isfield Place, Sissinghurst and Charleston Manor.
In 1978, Mary Askew opened the nucleus of the estate to the people of East Sussex who have enjoyed it ever since.
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