Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Billionaire promises to restore Lord Kitchener’s old home to former glory
Hong Kong businessman in £6m deal for country club
A Hong Kong billionaire businessman has snapped up Broome Park country club in a deal believed to be worth £6m.
Property investors the Bonds Group, lead by chairman Anson Chan, says it now intends to restore the mansion to its former glory.
The 250- acre estate near Barham features an 18-hole championship golf course. The manor house is split into 18 holiday flats. A further 14 holiday lodges are within its grounds. There are also two tennis courts, an indoor pool and a gym, as well as a restaurant and bar.
Built in 1638 during the reign of Charles I, it was most famously the home of Lord Kitchener, the minister of
‘Its long history and connection to Lord Kitchener are particularly appealing to us’
state for war during the First World War who was the face of the ‘Your country needs you’ poster campaign.
It was put on the market after previous owners Diamond Resorts decided to sell the site.
Now Mr Anson intends to return it to a plush hotel resort, run under the management of Countrywide Properties.
He said: “We are very pleased with the acquisition of Broome Park. Its long history and connection to Lord Kitchener are particularly appealing to us.
“It is my intention to restore it to its former glory over the next few years.”
Jeremy Jones, director at Christie & Co, which organised the sale, said: “Broome Park presented a fantastic opportunity for a variety of buyers as it offers potential to capitalise on the current estate and location.
“We are seeing substantial interest in the UK regional market from Asian investors who have confidence in the long term UK forecast. We wish Anson Chan all the best and look forward to seeing how he develops the estate.”
Bought by Kitchener in 1911, he had hoped to retire there, but was killed in action in 1916. Sold on, it was trans- formed into a country hotel, before being requisitioned during the Second World War by the Ministry of Defence. Its golf course, drawn up by the acclaimed course designer Donald Steel, opened in 1981.