Portman Estate - History

History

The Portman Estate in London was originally an area of 270 acres (1.1 km2) and was acquired in 1532 by Sir William Portman of Somerset (1498–1557), who later became Lord Chief Justice to King Henry VIII. Initially, Sir William took assignment of a lease in respect of 11 fields and the manor of Lilleston, Middlesex. The lease had 30 years left to run and was purchased for £70 subject to an annual rental of £8. He subsequently bought the freehold of the property in June 1554 under the reign of Queen Mary. Reputedly, Sir William needed the land as a source of goat’s milk for his ailing wife and to rest cattle en route to market from his vast Dorset and Somerset Estates.

Development of the Estate was started some time later by Henry William Portman (1738–96). Orchard & Portman Streets were the first to be developed in the 1750s and Portman Square followed in 1764. The Square became very fashionable and was to owe its popularity to buildings by Robert Adam - Home House, 19/20 Portman Square, built for the Countess of Home, survives today as a private club - and James "Athenian" Stuart, the architect of Montagu House, built in the northwest corner of Portman Square for Mrs Elizabeth Montagu, which was demolished following bomb damage during The Blitz in 1941.

The Estate also includes Manchester Square dating from the 1770s, and Bryanston and Montagu Squares - both established around 1810. The actual building was not undertaken directly by the Estate, though the architect responsible for the design and characteristics of the residential squares of Montagu & Bryanston was James Thompson Parkinson, who was no doubt instructed by the Estate.

The development of London through this period relied on the Estate owners who would draw up plans for street layouts and open spaces, and then lease the land to developers who were responsible for building houses. The Estate would typically specify the design and the subsequent use and would collect a ground rent.