By Francesca Peacock
Haslingfield Manor is a house worthy of Wolf Hall. Originally built for Sir Thomas Wendy — court physician to both Henry VIII and Elizabeth I — the 16th-century house is approached by a drive that makes its way over the original moat.
Located in the village of Haslingfield, six miles outside Cambridge, the house cleverly combines Tudor details with modern style. The interior that features timber bay windows and historic beams has been updated by interior designer Ilse Crawford (whose other credits include Babington House and Soho House New York) while the gardens are by award-winning garden designer Dan Pearson.
The six-bedroom family home, currently on the market for £6.95mn, would have originally been much larger: what remains is one wing of the Tudor “H” plan. The second floor and northern extension were added in the 17th century, giving the house its impressive three-storey height and stature.
Owner Caroline Hudack recounts that Queen Elizabeth I stayed at the house in 1564 as part of her journey towards Cambridge. Elizabeth is rumoured to have lost one of her rings while staying on the property, but so far, no metal detector has been able to unearth it. In some places, any would-be detectorist might find themselves digging a larger hole than they expected: previous owners were doing some renovation work when they came across a network of tunnels under the house. Thought to date from the years of the Reformation, the tunnels lead all the way to the village church.
Yet the house has appeal beyond its history. Inside, you’re greeted by what Hudack calls “old soulfulness” and a liveable “modern aesthetic”. After leaving east London in 2021, Hudack and her husband were drawn to country life — and to the interiors designed by Crawford, completed by the previous owners. Original fireplaces sit alongside walls of bookcases and high-ceilinged spaces for entertaining.
The current owners worked with Crawford again to update the house to their tastes including changing dark walls for lighter, green-toned paint in the bedroom. The house's design is unfussy: with stainless steel worktops, the modern kitchen has an industrial feel; walls in the living areas feature original wooden beams that Hudack says, “have so much character” they look best without any additional decoration.
Hudack and her husband made their most recent renovations during Covid, adding two home offices and rejigging the upstairs layout to work better for their three children. “It’s definitely a family house,” she says.
Outside, the three-acre gardens are divided into “rooms that unfold”. Designed by Pearson, they have not lost their Tudor history — there is the original walled garden, and an area of more formal planting including a rose garden — but they have been shaped to suit family life. There is a grass tennis court behind the house, a wood-fired hot tub and a well-planted kitchen garden with the recent addition of a cedar wood greenhouse.
In the back corner of the garden, there is a wooden playground and treehouse — made by the same company that designed the adventure playground at Penthrope, in Norfolk. The area is “very discreet and beautiful”, and almost entirely invisible from the house or other areas of the garden. Just as the garden caters for different phases of family life, it changes through the seasons: Hudack has reworked the borders, adding Japanese acers and dahlias for year-round interest.
It may be five centuries old, but thoughtful renovations and additions have given this house a striking balance of old and new.
Photography: Savills
