About the House
The property has just under 4 acres of landscaped gardens with far reaching views over the surrounding countryside. It combines rural tranquillity with the benefit of being within walking distance of amenities in the village which include The George pub and restaurant and a small supermarket. It is less than 3 miles from the Georgian market town of Ampthill and less than 30 minutes’ drive from all the amenities in Milton Keynes.
History and Heritage
The property was built in 1815 for the Duke of Bedford and a ledger of the building works, referring to the property as Maulden New Farm, reveal building costs came to a total of just under £5120. In the 1841 census the farm, with 630 acres of land, was tenanted by Thomas Overman with his family and three servants. By the 1871 census the tenancy had passed to George Street who farmed 500 acres and lived in the house with his family and five servants including a governess and groom.
In 1910 Swaffield and Sons Architects of Ampthill were employed by the then Duke to make some alterations to the property and the Duke sold it in 1911 for £2,150.
History Continued
When the property was Grade listed in October 1952 it was known as Quinville House. The vendors purchased it in the mid 1990s after it had been run for some years as a country house hotel and spa called Mallets. The new owners undertook a comprehensive restoration programme including replacing the kitchen, replacing and upgrading all the en suites and the bathroom, and upgrading the wiring and plumbing.
Ground Floor
The reception hall has a vaulted ceiling with exposed beams, a Fired Earth tiled floor, a brick fireplace with a log burner, dual aspect windows and a door to the rear garden. The spacious inner hall has a full turn staircase with individual balustrades to the first floor. Natural light is provided by a double height window overlooking the rear garden and there is room for a seating area in the window embrasure overlooking the rear garden. A side hall has a door and steps down to the drive.
Principal Reception Rooms
There are three reception rooms in the central part of the house. The sitting room has two sash windows overlooking the rear garden. There are decorative wall panels, coving, and a marble fireplace with a slate hearth and a log burning stove. In the family room the fireplace has a Cherry wood surround and a log burning stove. The dining room has exposed Oak flooring, an ornate ceiling rose, and the fireplace has a stone surround and an open grate. The vendors have installed a custom built range of fitted bookshelves featured on two on the walls. Both these rooms have bay windows overlooking the front gardens.
Other Reception Rooms
The other reception rooms are in the two single storey wings. The triple aspect L-shaped games room in the east wing has a snooker table and a table tennis table and a door leads to an adjoining cloakroom. There is a brick fireplace with an electric stove, a bay window to the front and doors to the rear garden. The TV room is in the other wing and is now a self contained suite with a separate bedroom area. It features an exposed brick open fireplace. The room now measures just under 22 ft. and has a high vaulted ceiling with exposed beams and spotlights, exposed Oak flooring and doors to a gravel courtyard area and the drive.
Kitchen/Breakfast Room and Utility Room
The kitchen has a window to the rear with shutters and is fitted with a range of hand crafted units, including glazed display units, with wood and granite work surfaces incorporating a double Belfast sink. The island unit has further storage and incorporates a butcher’s block. A recess houses a four oven oil fired Aga. Other appliances include a dishwasher, a microwave, and a Neff electric oven with a slide and hide door. The tiled floor, with underfloor heating, continues into the adjacent breakfast room which has dual aspect windows to the front and rear, a part glazed door to the rear terrace and space for a breakfast table. The utility room houses the boiler and has a tiled floor, a range of fitted wooden units, an oversized sink, with work surfaces over a washing machine and a door and window to the rear.
Cellars
The side hall outside the breakfast room has a door to a raised porch with steps to the drive. Under this porch there are steps down to double doors accessing the cellars which extend over 52 ft. under the dining and family rooms. The cellars are currently used for storage but they were used as the gym when the house was a hotel. The internal staircase used at that time is still in place and could be reinstated if desired.
Principal Bedroom Suite
The main bedroom measures just under 24 ft. by 18ft. and has sash windows with far reaching views over countryside to the front. There is ornate ceiling coving, a fireplace, a built-in double wardrobe and an en suite cloakroom.
Other Bedrooms and Bathrooms
The guest bedroom on the ground floor is triple aspect including doors to the rear garden. It has a built-in wardrobe and an en suite shower room. There are four further bedrooms on the first floor, three with en suite shower rooms, two with fireplaces and built-in wardrobes. The family bathroom has an Airbath Jacuzzi bath, a double shower cubicle, a WC, a washbasin and extensive vanity storage furniture which includes a built-in dressing table.
Annexe Potential
The single storey west wing of the property, comprising the utility room, TV room, guest bedroom and en suite, could easily be made into a self-contained annexe if desired, with the utility room converted into a kitchen. This area has independent access from the drive and the small gravel courtyard, outside the entrance door and doors from the TV room, could be used as an outdoor seating area.
Swimming Pool and Tenis Court
The tennis court is in the elevated wooded section of the grounds behind the house and is surrounded by a chain link fence and requires full restoration. The swimming pool requires full refurbishment with the pool house itself having arched areas with removable panels so that the pool can be opened to the garden in good weather. The pool house is also in need of refurbishment. A paved terrace outside the pool is shaded by a pergola with an established wisteria.
Gardens and Grounds
The gardens are a particular feature of the property and have been professionally landscaped. The south facing front garden has several mature trees and shrubs including magnolias, and a wisteria. The upper level has a sculptured hedge border and a central path which leads to steps down to the walled sunken garden. Both these areas have lawns and well stocked borders with established shrubs and flowers, and the sunken garden also has a paved seating area. At the rear there is a paved terrace area spanning the width of the property for outside dining and entertaining. Steps lead up to terraced lawns with retaining walls. The elevated wooded area has far reaching views over the surrounding countryside and a wide variety of trees including Japanese flowering cherry trees and apple trees. The hexagonal summer house has recently ben re-thatched. There is a soft fruit garden behind the garage and a lean to greenhouse against the retaining wall with raised vegetable beds alongside.
Situation and Schooling
The property is within walking distance of amenities in the village which include a village church, a shop, two public houses and a lower school which is rated as good by Ofsted. More comprehensive facilities are available in Flitwick and the Georgian market town of Ampthill. Milton Keynes, which has one of the largest covered shopping centres in Europe and a wide range of leisure facilities, is less than 30 minutes’ drive. Maulden is about 20 minutes’ drive from the M1 and the A1 for commuting by car, and Flitwick (3 miles away) has rail services to St. Pancras International in 41 minutes. The Harpur Trust Schools in Bedford are about 9.7 miles away.
