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Hidden in the High Weald is Hole Cottage. Hole cottage is set in a magical position in the heart of Falconhurst estate where the rush of the 21st century can be left behind. The perfect getaway for a staycation… and just a short stroll from the main estate.
Hole Cottage
The Hole is the remaining section of a late medieval (probably built towards the end of the 15th century) timber framed hall-house of high quality, the rest of which was taken down in 1833. It lies by a small stream in a woodland clearing and, curiously enough, is easily accessible by railway, since it is only a 10 minute walk through the wood from Cowden station which has a direct 45 minute service to central London.
It still has the true feeling of the High Weald and of the deep woods in whose drop and shade the forges and furnaces of the Sussex ironmasters were established.
It is managed by the Landmark Trust. The Landmark Trust make every effort to furnish their houses within the style and era of the building, incorporating pictures, rugs and a good selection of local interest books. Expect modern bathrooms and kitchen equipment but no television or internet. A wonderful excuse to immerse yourself in the magical surroundings of this secluded hideaway.
More details, including prices and availability, can be found on their website here.
“It’s all green, and suddenly the cottage is standing there, as it has been all the time... To be woken up by birdsong and to be able to sit outside in the sun surrounded by bluebell woods is wonderful.”
History
Hole Cottage, or ‘The Hole’ as is more correctly called, was built in the late 15th century. It is the remaining third of what was a relatively sophisticated yeoman’s house, typical of the Wealden farmhouses in Kent and Sussex, housing a successful family, rich from the contemporary local iron industry. The house is built on an ancient thoroughfare leading from Pylegate Farm, Cowden through to Edells and across to Chiddingstone with a stream running alongside and set in a pretty glade but now surrounded by woodland. It would have been an idyllic spot to live.
There have been only a few owners of The Hole – Lady Katherine Burgh; the Streafeilds, General William Woodhouse, who bought The Hole together with Edells, and finally John Chetwynd Talbot who bought both Edells and The Hole and went on to build Falconhurst. Similarly, the tenants of The Hole have remained local families including the Wickendens, Burfoots and Buckwells.
The last tenant of The Hole left during the 1960s leaving the house needing serious restoration. Thomas Talbot (father of the current owner of Falconhurst, Charles Talbot) showed the house to a friend, Sir John Smith who had recently started an innovative new charity restoring interesting historical houses for holidaymakers. The Hole was enthusiastically taken on as a project by The Landmark Trust in 1969, restored sympathetically and has been let through them for short breaks ever since.
The landscape surrounding the cottage has changed somewhat since 1500. Woodland was planted along the stream and around the house during the 19th century, although more recently the invasive laurel has been removed to reveal the stream once more and the bare area planted with wildflower seed. It is a haven for wildlife with the song of birds filling the woods, and deer, badger, rabbits, stoats, weasels, mink and woodmice scurrying through the woodland.
A truly unforgettable stay in the Kent countryside awaits.