A magnificent, Grade II-listed 17th-century country house set within circa 23 acres of gardens and grounds on the edge of Epping Forest
Coopersale House is a splendid 17th- and 18th-century home set among expansive parkland on the eastern edge of Epping. The Grade II-listed period property is generously proportioned, affording almost 20,000 sq ft of living space, including extensive annexes and outbuildings for further development or staff accommodation.
The principal residence has accommodation over three floors and is designed for both entertaining at home and the demands of family life, with a number of reception rooms and expansive leisure facilities inside and out. The main façade of the house, restored in the Queen Anne style, faces southeast onto a fabulous carriageway driveway and an ornamental fountain, while the south-westerly elevation has two projecting window bays looking out onto formal parterre gardens and the private lake. The house is notable for its character features, including sash windows, a pedimented front door and, internally, original fireplaces, panelling, ceilings and a handsome staircase. Though the house has been extensively restored and has been modernised for contemporary living, much of its original character remains. Coopersale House has a fascinating history, passing through the Archer- Houblon family for several centuries until 1908 when it was sold.
The beautifully presented interiors have been designed with seamless flow, the substantial reception areas situated separately from the living accommodations. Modern additions like new bathrooms and a stylish kitchen complement the older parts of the home: the sitting rooms, with their wood flooring and decorative wall and ceiling details; a stunning wood-panelled dining room; and the modern kitchen built around a stone fireplace inset with a wood-burning stove. Upstairs, the bedrooms are well sized and almost all have their own bathroom. There is also a staff apartment providing further accommodation.
Connected to the main house is a leisure wing housing an indoor swimming pool, changing facilities, showers and a sauna. On the southeast elevation there is a double-height games room, perfect for teenagers or older children.
In addition to the cosmetic upgrades, the swimming pool has been refurbished and there are a number of solar panels and Cat 5 wiring throughout as well as fibre broadband. The house and its security can be controlled and viewed remotely via Control4 application. The roof, plumbing and electrics have also been updated.
The Outbuildings
In addition to the main house and its extensive leisure facilities, the property also benefits from a number of outbuildings including a double garage, separate garage with barn-style doors and a stable. Attached to the garage building is a self-contained annexe with a bedroom, shower room and a kitchen on the ground floor, a further double bedroom and living room upstairs and eaves storage.
In addition there is a further separate, self-contained detached annexe with a reception room, kitchen and two bedrooms and two bathrooms. Both annexes would work equally well as staff accommodation or for short - or long-term lets.
The Grounds
The grounds at Coopersale House were laid out for William Eyre Archer, a lawyer and politician, in the 1730s and designed by Adam Holt, who also landscaped the water gardens of Wanstead Park. Later, plans were drawn up by Capability Brown but were not carried out, though the garden is landscaped in a complementary style, including expansive parklands, specimen trees such as magnolia, old oaks and beech, and formal planning. There are entrances on both Stonards Hill, where there is a formal gated entrance with video entry phone, and Houblons Hill, which leads through dense shrubbery of rhododendrons to the detached annexe and the main house's turning circle. The driveways, particularly the main entrance, are grand and afford a superb first impression.
The formal gardens consist of manicured lawns and areas of attractive box parterre, including a particularly impressive plan to the south-west of the house, leading down a series of steps from the terrace to a lavender and box pattern which separates the house from the ornamental lake. In addition to the lake there are fountains and ponds around the estate, and there is a beautiful enclosed secret' rose garden on the western side of the lake which also incorporates an orchard with many fruiting varieties of apple, pear, plum and cherry.
There are many paths leading through the grounds and an all-weather floodlit tennis court overlooks the lake.
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I absolutely love Coopersale House, the setting is just perfect - from the views across the lake to the house emerging through the trees as you come up the carriage driveway, the house and grounds have it all. This house will forever be 'my Pemberley'.
Felicity WalkerProperty agent