St Giles House in Dorset, the family seat of the Earls of Shaftesbury since the 17th century, is the winner of the 2015 Historic Houses Association (HHA) & Sotheby’s Restoration Award. The house was begun under the first Earl of Shaftesbury—a founding member of the Whig party—in 1651, built with elements from a 14th-century manor house that already existed on the site.
The prize-winning restoration project was led by the 12th Earl of Shaftesbury, Nicholas Ashley-Cooper, who was only 25 years old when he inherited the 5,000-acre estate in 2005, and the Countess of Shaftesbury. It took four and a half years to rescue the house from its state of disrepair, with grants from Natural England and the Country Houses Foundation. The restoration also included parkland buildings and an 18th-century grotto.
“The most rewarding part was moving the family back into the house again after a period of 50 years,” Lord Shaftesbury told The Art Newspaper via email. The new challenge will be balancing its role as a family home with opening up the building to the public and bringing in funds for running costs. “We want to do [this] in a way that’s relevant to the house and its history, so it doesn’t just become a generic venue,” he explained. “This is the exciting and daunting journey we’re on now.”
