AN ARCHITECT on the board of a trust in America dedicated to celebrating the work of Edwin Lutyens says he was 'delighted' to tour a Basingstoke building.

Daneshill Manor House, in Lutyens Close, was designed by architect Sir Edwin Lutyens for Walter Robertson Hoare, whose family lived in the house until the 1940s.

The building was then used for Daneshill school in the 1970s before it was taken over by agrochemical company, Monsanto. Now, the building is owned by Absolutely Offices and used as a shared office space.

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(Image: NQ)

Members of the Institute of Classical Architecture and the Lutyens Trust, both based in the United States of America, took a trip to the United Kingdom to tour the Manor House in addition to other buildings in the area built by Lutyens.

Caroline Slaten, vice president of the institute, explained that out of approximately 110 architectural colleges in the USA, only six or seven teach classical architecture.

The institute aims to 'fill the gap' by appreciating and teaching the principles of traditional architecture. 

"It's amazing to see what he has built and all of the details of the building, including the brickwork. We don't have many buildings like this in the USA, so it's wonderful to see them being preserved in the UK," said Caroline.

The group were taken on a tour of the house and shown a number of original features including the windows, doors, fireplaces and more, joined by Basingstoke and Deane Mayor Cllr Dan Putty.

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The Mayor said he was 'honoured' to support the group visit to Basingstoke, explaining the history of the house and other Listed buildings across the borough.

Ankie Barns, who sits on the board of the Lutyens Trust America, formed in 2017, explained that many of the building's bricks are custom-designed as Edwin Lutyens owned a brickworks in the area.

The Washington DC resident said that the small flat bricks used on the exterior were utilised to make the Manor appear larger and of greater stature. A minimal amount of wood was used in the building's creation to make it last.

The group also presented Mayor Cllr Dan Putty with a book named 'The architecture of Sir Edward Lutyens, public buildings and memorials' which features drawings and pictures of his work.