FRANCIS JOHNSON AND PARTNERS

Orangery at Sledmere House, East Yorkshire

This Orangery has a main façade which dates from circa 1790 and is attributed to Sir John Soane. It was originally part of the orangery at Fairford Park, Gloucestershire, a house which was demolished in 1957. The façade was dismantled by the National Trust and re-erected at Sledmere on the understanding that it would be accessible to the public.

The Bath stone ashlar and Coade stone ornaments were carefully restored prior to reconstruction and new French windows manufactured to a more delicate design than the originals. The other three facades are in brick, that to the rear facing a private swimming pool and incorporating a Palladian arch motif.

The Bath stone of the orangery tones remarkably well with the Mansfield stone of Sledmere House and few would realize that it had not always been there.