Live Like a Leader of the Free World in Winston Churchill’s Old Home, Now for Sale
If you thought you’d never have anything in common with Sir Winston Churchill—the man who (allegedly and famously) said, “success is not final, failure is not fatal” and, even more famously, led Britain to victory in the Second World War—think again. For one, you can now buy the South Kensington property that once served as his London residence…for about $24.8 million dollars.
The six-bedroom house at 27 Hyde Park Gate—selling for £19,500,000 in local currency—satisfies the three things that matter most in real estate (location, location, location, of course), what with its prime spot on a quiet cul-de-sac. It’s got four floors of true-blue English heritage mixed with modern upgrades, including a primary bedroom with a terrace overlooking manicured gardens; a chic bathroom bedecked in veiny, brown marble; rooms with wallpapers to swoon over (there are peacocks and wispy clouds and monkeys); as well as vintage, upholstered furniture with some serious character.
It’s not hard to imagine Churchill using these rooms as havens of emotional recuperation after his momentous first term in the role of prime minister. To be sure, he bought the house next door first, in 1945, and then expanded to 27 Hyde Park Gate the following year. The latter originally served as the British statesman’s office space; only later did he merge the two houses into a sprawling living arrangement.
Exterior
27 Hyde Park is a formidable building that was once home to a formidable man.
Reception Room
You can almost visualize Churchill entertaining guests of honor in this double-height reception room, which leads out onto the west-facing garden.
Bedroom
Most of the house's six bedrooms have eye-catching wallpapers, like the peacock-themed one pictured.
Primary Bedroom (Principal Suite)
The primary bedroom (or principal suite, as the Brits like to say) has a stately four-poster bed and terrace.
Kitchen
The house's kitchen holds the advantage of plentiful storage space, a vast center island, and updated cabinetry.
James Pace, head of Kensington sales at Knight Frank (the real estate agency holding this listing) says the crowning feature of the home is its double-height reception room: “perfect for hosting social gatherings in grand, stately surroundings.” He also comments on the French doors, which open to a (very English, very prim) garden and create a seamless flow between the indoors and outdoors—vital in a country that already gets a lower-than-average amount of good weather days.
“The intelligent floor plan offers an impressive sense of lateral space seldom found in homes of this period,” Pace adds.
It’s only right, after all, that the man who inspired millions of his countrymen to endure one of the darkest periods in human history had trusty access to a place where he, too, could look up, stretch out, and feel a bit more hopeful.
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