Hadlow Castle
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Hadlow "Castle", in Hadlow, Kent, was a Victorian house built by Walter May, the work beginning in the 1780s and being finished by 1843, although various additions were made later. To that building was added, by his son, Walter Barton May, a folly in the shape of a 210 feet high tower, which became known as "May's Folly". It was designed by George Ledwell Taylor and built in the 1838.
May's Folly is a Victorian Gothic tower, and one of the largest in Britain. The original top 40 feet - an octagonal lantern - has had to removed for safety reasons, but plans are in hand to replace it.
The castle fell into disrepair and the part of the building was demolished, but some parts were saved in 1951 by the painter Bernard Hailstone. Now the entrance gateway and lodges of the Castle still stand - a heavy Gothic presence on the street - as does the Stable Court with two turreted pavillions, which are all in private ownerships, and new homes have been built in the grounds.
Reference
The Kent Village Book Alan Bignell (Countryside Books, 1986)
External links
- Follies and Monuments (http://www.follies.btinternet.co.uk/hadlow.html)
- Includes two photographs the the house; and of the tower (http://www.any-village.co.uk/main.asp?SiteID=AVUK&SpecID=Hadlow#Images)