The Gosling

The Gosling lies within Hassobury Manor, a fantastic piece of Victorian Gothic architecture constructed in the mid-19th century. The building is Grade II-listed and set in beautiful mature parkland, while The Gosling itself extends over 3,100 sq ft within a core section of the manor house. It has generous living and entertaining spaces, four bedrooms and three bathrooms, and a palpable sense of grandeur throughout in both its proportions and decoration.

Setting the Scene

Hassobury Manor estate lies to the southern perimeter of the historic medieval village of Manuden, in Bishop’s Stortford. The manor and its surrounding land were part of the historic route to Cambridge, so were of great strategic importance during the Saxon and Norman eras. It remained an important piece of land through the Early Modern period and mentions of it can be found in texts prior to the Domesday Book.

The Gosling takes its name from Robert Gosling, a partner of Goslings Bank (later incorporated into Barclays) who commissioned renowned architect Phillip Charles Hardwick to draw up plans for a new house at Hassobury Manor. Hardwick was an eminent public architect, most notable for his designs at Euston Station, who adapted the architectural tropes of Classicism and Gothicism to forms suitable for 19th century Britain. Constructed over a period of two years, beginning in 1866, Hassobury is one of the few private commissions taken on by Hardwick; it allowed him to create a country house of fine proportions, featuring opulent detailing and exemplifying the engineering expertise so associated with the Victorian era.