Penshurst Place near Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England has been the home of the Sidney family since 1552 when King Edward VI granted it to his tutor and steward Sir William Sidney (1482 - 1554).

The history of Penshurst precedes Sir William by some 150 years. The estate, consisting of 4000 acres of hunting land, was bought by Sir John de Pultney in 1338 as a country retreat within easy reach of London. Pultney was a successful merchant, dealing in wool and wine, who had also lent significant amounts of money to the king, Edward III to support his hostilities against France. The great hall was built of local sandstone with chestnut beams decorated with life-size wooden figures. Now known as the Baron's Hall, it soared to a height of 60ft and took three years to complete.

In 1341 Sir John was granted a licence to crenellate Penshurst but for no other reason than to impress. It was 40 years later - after Pultney's death from bubonic plague - that proper defensive work was carried out by Sir John Deveraux. A series of curtain walls and turrets 375ft by 280ft surrounded the manor spurred on by memories of the peasants revolt of 1380. Little remains of these defences today except for one of the lesser towers and a little imagination.

Over the years Pultney's hall has remained the centre of Penshurst Place despite the vagaries of its owners and changing fashions that have seen modifications and additions to Penshurst overall. The chestnut beams and minstrels gallery still exist in their original state.

After the death of Sir John Pultney his widow married Sir Nicholas de Lovayne. Their son - also Sir Nicholas de Lovayne - inherited the property and it was his widow who married Sir John Deveraux, the builder of Penshurst's defensive system.

Following the death of Sir John Deveraux's widow Penshurst passed to the daughter from her first marriage, Margaret de Lovayne. She married twice, first to Richard Chamberlain and then to John Seyntclere. Two sons were produced from each of these unions and when Margaret died the youngest son, John Seyntclere, became owner of Penshurst as part of his inheritance. He then sold it to John, Duke of Bedford (1389 - 1435) third son of Henry IV. He was responsible for adding the Buckingham Building to Pultney's hall and his emblems, the falcon and ibex, can be seen on the gables. After his death Penshurst was given to Bedford's younger brother Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester (1402 - 1447) founder of the Bodleian library in Oxford.

Before the Sidney family were granted the property, Penshurst was held by the Dukes of Buckingham - some met untimely deaths and all are mentioned in one or other of Shakespeare's tragedies.

Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham (1402 - 1460) a Lancastrian, was killed at the Battle of Northampton. Both his father, the Earl of Stafford, and his son, also named Humphrey, died in battle.

Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham (1455 - 1483) succeeded his grandfather on his death. Unlike his grandfather however he was a Yorkist, following the ill-fated Richard III but later joined a plot to put the Earl of Richmond on the throne. He was beheaded for his troubles

Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham (1478 - 1521) was seen as a rival to King Henry VIII and, by all accounts, talked himself into trouble by annoying Cardinal Thomas Wolsey. Although he became privy councilor and lord high constable he was eventually convicted of treason - as was Wolsey! His honors, including Penshurst, were forfeit to the crown and remained crown property until it came into the hands of Sir William Sidney. During this time Henry VIII stayed at Penshurst whilst courting Anne Boleyn at nearby Hever Castle.

Penshurst has often been described as the home of chivalry and romance having been the home of the poet Sir Philip Sidney. He and his sister, Lady Mary Sidney (countess of Pembroke) encouraged and patronized other poets of their day such as Edward Dyer, Philip's friend and biographer Fulke Greville, and Edmund Spenser.

Lady Dorothy Sidney - who went on to found the Spencer and Spencer-Churchill families through her marriage to Lord Spencer, 1st Earl of Sunderland - was made the subject of the love poems of Edmund Waller as "Sacharissa" while he made an unsuccessful attempt for her hand in marriage. Even today Penshurst fulfills its romantic role as a location for civil marriages.

Taken mostly from the guide to Penshurst Place with the addition of original photographs.