Holland House

The remarkable Holland House library and whats left of the hous

Location: Holland Park, Holland Walk, Kensington

Description: Holland House (formerly Cope Castle), was one of the first great houses built in Kensington. It's situated in Holland Park and was built in 1605 for the diplomat Sir Walter Cope.

The house was largely destroyed on 27th September 1940 by twenty-two incendiary bombs during a ten-hour raid. Today only the east wing is still standing.

Miraculously, almost all of the library remaining undamaged. Surviving volumes included the incredibly important sixteenth-century Boxer Codex. There's a picture below: it's one of the war's most amazing pictures, of gentleman picking books out of the library while war debris surrounds them.

Nearby are the beautiful Japanese gardens called Kyoto Gardens.

Themes: Architecture Architecture Theme