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  Ramsgate, Kent
Acquired: 1996
Augustus Pugin built this house in 1843-4 to live in with his family. He built it to live out his idea of life in a medieval, Catholic community, in buildings executed in the Gothic style of so-called pointed architecture. His vision was of a family home nestling in the shadow of a benevolent monastery and he bought enough land to erect St Augustine's Priory next door. The event of his early death at the age of 40 meant that his son, Edward (an architect in his own right), was to complete the monastery and its church, still home to a thriving Benedictine community.
The Grange is one of a very small group of houses built by great architects for their own use and is unique in being available for anyone to stay in. At first glance, the house may not appear remarkable; if it does not, it is because Pugin's asymmetrical treatment of the elevations and functional plan were to set the pattern for decades of vicarages and villas. For Augustus Pugin, it was how a building was to be lived in that was important, not its external symmetry. It was at The Grange that Pugin produced much of his finest work, sitting in his library high on the chalk cliffs overlooking the Goodwin Sands and working at prodigious speed. From here the designs for the interiors of the House of Lords and the Mediaeval Court at the Great Exhibition flowed effortlessly from his pen. Of course he reserved some of his finest and most characteristic flourishes for his own home, some of which remain today. Others we have reinstated, to give a flavour of his rich and atmospheric interiors.
We acquired the Grange in 1997, with a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, to save it from conversion into flats. Work started on site in January 2004 following six years' dedicated research and fundraising. The Grange's international significance, recognised by its Grade I status, brought further generous support from the Heritage Lottery Fund and also English Heritage for the restoration work. We are equally grateful for considerable grants from Thanet District Council, the Jonathan Vickers Charitable Settlement and other charitable trusts as well as a multitude of donations from private individuals.
To find out more about the history of this building please click here.
The Grange sleeps up to 8 people. Please contact the Booking Office, or visit our Building search page for further information. Additionally the rooms on the ground floor are open by appointment every Wednesday afternoon. Entry is free of charge. Anyone wishing to visit will need to make an appointment. Click here for more details.
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