Chichester Local History Society

Even devout West Deanistas learnt new things about this extraordinary estate as Hilary Sloan’s Zoomed guide led the monthly meeting from the Roman and Anglo-saxon landscapes on to famed architect James Wyatt’s elegant 19th century updating of the house, then via the lavish hunting and social indulgences of Edward Prince of Wales, when he and his cohorts arrived at Singleton station (opposite estate gates) for weekends of aristocratic anything goes, to the exotic surrealistic whims of Dali-befriendling Edward James and his cultural aspirations, still driving the estate today. An abundance of family associations, some halfhidden, lie inside and outside the adjacent St Andrew’s Church, and Harold Peto’s 100-metre pergola (1911) continues to enchant garden visitors.

May 12, 7pm, Zoom talk by Ann Scicluna will be on art in the cathedral.

Society details: www.chichesterlocalhistorysociety.org.uk