In the second of our series on historic Isle of Wight buildings, Island Echo examines the remarkable Steephill Castle to the west of Ventnor Town Centre.
Steephill Castle – demolished in 1963 – had quite a history. During the 128 years in which it stood, it was visited by British monarchs, became the temporary home to an Empress and was the residence of a best-selling novelist.
The story of Steephill Castle begins with the former diplomat and Governor of the Isle of Wight, Hans Stanley. The former governor built a rustic-style residence known as ‘The Cottage’ on the site, together with extensive landscaped gardens. However, in 1780, Stanley slit his own throat with a knife.
The Cottage was then bought by Willbraham Tollemache, 6th Earl of Dysart. It was said to have been his favourite residence.
7 years after the Earl’s death in 1821, the Cottage was purchased by John Hambrough, who constructed Steephill Castle between 1833 and 1835 at the incredible cost of £250,000 (£24million in today’s money).
Steephill Castle had an oblong shape and featured a square battlemented keep with a high rounded tower. Magnificent carvings and oak panelling adorned its interior, which included a billiard room lit by a stained glass window. and a dining room with an enormous black marble chimneypiece.
The initials of Hamborough and his wife Sophie Townsend were carved into the arched entrance to the drive.
Sadly, John Hambrough never saw his magnificent creation, as he went blind before it had been completed. However, plenty of Royal visitors did, including Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and her son King Edward VII and his wife Queen Alexandra.
Later in the 19th century, the Hambroughs went to live on the mainland. So, in 1874, Steephill Castle was temporarily occupied by Elisabeth, Empress of Austria – reputedly one of the most beautiful women in 19th century Europe – together with her sister Maria Sophia, the last Queen of Naples.
The Royal sisters had been informed they could live there in peace, and that their privacy would be respected. The presence of Queen Victoria at Osborne was apparently a disincentive for the Empress, as she was said to have disliked formality and ‘boring’ conversations.
The Royal party arrived on the Island on 2nd August 1874 to the great astonishment of Islanders, who had never before encountered such colourful visitors. Elisabeth had travelled with a huge entourage of ladies in waiting, chaplains, governesses, nurses, hairdressers, chefs and countless servants. Before they arrived, the billiard room was transformed into a gymnasium and new bathrooms installed.
The haughty Empress paid a perfunctory visit to Queen Victoria at Osborne but declined 2 invitations to dinner. This caused the British Queen to remark that the Empress might be beautiful but lacked any sense of royal duty.
Her 6-year-old daughter, Valerie, had been terrified when she met the Queen, as she had apparently never met such a stout lady. Her statuesque mother Elisabeth had succeeded in keeping her weight below 8 stone throughout her adult life.
In 1887, Steephill Castle was bought by Henry Sewell from Jamaica, whose family had made a fortune from sugar. In 1892, Sewell objected to the Newport, Godshill and St Lawrence Railway building a station opposite the castle, as he had purchased the estate for its quietness and repose.
The estate was next purchased by a director of the railway company, Charles Mortimer. This enabled the line from Newport to be extended beyond St Lawrence and Ventnor Town Station (later Ventnor West) to be built.
In 1902, Steephill Castle was acquired by John Morgan Richards, an American businessman, for just £14,000 (around £1.5million today). Richards’ claim to fame was to popularise the cigarette in Britain. He promoted his cigarette brands by having them sold in chemists. During Richards’ ownership, Steephill became famed for its social life, garden parties and fetes.
John Morgan Richards was the father of best-selling novelist and dramatist Pearl Mary Theresa Richards, who wrote under the male pen name of John Oliver Hobbes. Some of her famous works were completed on the Island.
Richards died at the end of World War I. The Steephill Estate was then acquired by Conservative politician Thomas Brooke-Hitching. On his death in 1926, the castle was bought by the Holiday Friendships Association for use as a hotel. It became a school during World War II when holidaying was prohibited.
By 1959, fire regulations had made Steephill Castle unsuitable for accommodation; by 1963, the site had become derelict and the grounds overgrown. Permission was obtained to demolish the castle and place 29 dwellings on the site. Much of the stone was used to repair St Catherine’s Church in Ventnor.
Demolition revealed a great deal of the castle decor to have been clever fakes, with the wood not made of oak and the ornate carvings plaster mouldings. Had the blind Mr Hambrough been cheated by his builder?
Little remains of Steephill Castle today. However, the stables and clock tower remain in situ at the junction of Undercliff Road and Castle Road. Ventnor Cricket Club continue to play at Steephill – once part of the estate.
Do any Island Echo readers remember Steephill Castle before its demolition? Let us know in the comments…
In the next edition of Historic Isle of Wight Buildings, we shall examine Appley Towers near Ryde.
Wonderful story, shame the castle couldn’t be saved.
Great story more please I wonder about the Stanley knife it reminds me of the story of Thomas Crapper who invented the Flushing loo
As I’ve “boasted” a couple of times previously whenever this report appears online, I was indeed fortunate to be taken up one of the towers in the early 1960s. My uncle, David Stotesbury, had bought Ventnor West Station and Steephill Castle, with plans, which he fulfilled, to build housing throughout the area. My father, who worked as a carpenter and joiner for his younger brother for many years, took the time to show me round the derelict Castle. Unforgettable!
Should never have been destroyed.
Myself and my husband are currently sitting in the Click Tower on holiday watching Sherlock. It’s a wonderful place – all brick and dark wood, very atmospheric. There is a staircase up the middle and you can climb right up to the clock. Regrettably the clock itself is boxed in so you can’t actually see a mechanism. You do get a nice distant view of the sea up there through a side window. For some reason there is a desk next to the window with three paintings of what look like a family group. They’re quite creepy. One of the men has a passing resemblance to a young Christopher Timothy. We’re having a fantastic time! Was so interested to read of the history of the place. 🙂