Roman Times

The area is believed to have been traversed by the Devil's Highway, a Roman road running from London to Silchester in Hampshire. A monument marking its presence can still be seen today at the northern end of Stroude Road, near the Tudor hunting lodge now known as the Great Fosters Hotel.

Medieval Period

During the Middle Ages, the area was part of the Royal Manor Lodge, a royal residence within Windsor Great Park.

Dive into the rich tapestry of Virginia Water’s history, and explore the ancient roots that have shaped this unique community.

THE HISTORY OF VIRGINIA WATER

Virginia Water's history is a blend of royal heritage, landscape innovation, and modern development.

To this day it remains a fascinating area with a lot to explore!

Archaeological discoveries indicate that settlement within the Runnymede area began over 12,000 years ago, towards the end of the Stone Age. Evidence of Bronze Age and Roman activity has also been uncovered at St Ann’s Heath and Virginia Park, the site of the former Sanatorium.

Dive into the rich tapestry of Virginia Water’s history, and explore the ancient roots that have shaped this unique community.

Early History

The Wentworth Estate

Lieutenant-General Thomas Wentworth

Lieutenant-General Thomas Wentworth was a distinguished British Army officer, serving in both the War of Jenkin’s Ear and the Jocobite uprising of 1745. As the son of a baronet from Bretton Hall, Yorkshire, Wentworth resided in Sunningdale. He later became a Member of Parliament for Whitchurch and died in 1747 in Turin, where he was serving as the British Ambassador.

"Wentworth Waste"

He had little to do with the current Wentworth Estate other than his marriage to Elizabeth Lord, who inherited 100 acres of peaty wasteland near Egham from her father, Robert Lord of St Martin’s in the Fields. Elizabeth, who long outlived her husband and moved to the Cotswolds, sold the land, which had become known as “Wentworth’s Waste”, in 1761 to Dr John Jebb, Dean of Cashel in Ireland. Jebb planted many trees, bought up other tracts of land and created Virginia Farm.

1805 - Mansion Constructed

In 1805 the main house, a Gothic-revival mansion, was constructed for the brother-in-law of the Duke of Wellington (and is now the Wentworth Golf Clubhouse).

The property was later acquired by exiled Spanish Count, Roman Cabrera, who along with his English wife, Countess de Morella, acquired further farmland.

18th Century

Creation of Virginia Water Lake

The lake was created in the mid-18th century for William, Duke of Cumberland. It was one of the largest artificial lakes in England at the time.

The creation of the lake was part of the great age of landscape gardening, transforming the area into a picturesque landscape and led to the beginnings of the Virginia Water neighbourhood as it is today.

Naming The Lake

The name Virginia Water was first given to the lake at the southern end of Windsor Great Park. This was created by William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, after his return from the Battle of Culloden in 1746. He was appointed Ranger of Windsor Great Park by his father, King George II.

The Folly

The Folly is a classical ruin built in the 1820’s. It is located beside the lake in Windsor Great Park.

The folly incorporates a large collection of Roman antiquities from the site of Lepcis Magna in Libya.

The ruins were transported from the site of Leptis Magna in 1816 and installed in Virginia Water in 1826.

19th Century

Holloway Sanatorium

In 1885, Thomas Holloway founded the Holloway Sanatorium, a hospital for the care and cure of mental invalids, which is now part of the Virginia Water landscape. By the 1970s, the Holloway Sanatorium was approaching the end of its long life as a psychiatric hospital and it finally closed down in 1980.

Holloway Sanatorium built by the Victorian entrepreneur, Thomas Holloway, who also was responsible for the magnificent gothic building that is The Royal Holloway College. Great Fosters Hotel, which has been listed Grade I on the National Heritage List for England since July 1951, and its gardens and parkland have been Grade II listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens since July 1988.

The building was eventually bought up by property developers and converted into luxury houses and apartments. Holloway Sanatorium known today as Virginia Park has been a picturesque backdrop for various music videos and films including: "Charlotte Sometimes" by The Cure, “Goody Two Shoes” by Adam Ant, “London Town” by Bucks Fizz and the iconic "Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler.

20th Century - World War II

Backup Control Bunker

At the start of World War II, the Wentworth estate was requisitioned and transformed into a military encampment just outside Virginia Water. A key feature of this site was the construction of a backup control bunker, built as a contingency in case the primary command center under Whitehall was destroyed during the heavy bombing raids of London by the Luftwaffe. Notably, the layout of this bunker mirrored that of the Whitehall bunker.

London Tube, a Bunker and now a Car park

One of the most distinctive aspects of the Wentworth tunnels is their construction using surplus cast iron tubes originally from the London Underground. These tubes, which were repurposed from the city's tube lines and stations, form the structure of the bunker. The design includes two larger tubes, with a smaller access tube connecting them. The entire bunker is shielded by a massive bombproof slab on the surface, with a brick ventilation cowl protruding from it. This slab now serves as a car park.

Signal Center

Although General Sir Alan Brooke, Commander-in-Chief of Home Forces, had planned for Wentworth to be his headquarters in the event of a German invasion, it ultimately served a different purpose. Instead, it was utilized by the 21st Army Group as a signals center in the crucial period leading up to D-Day.

The Development Of
The Area

The Making of the Virginia Water Neighbourhood

The creation of the lake and the ensuring landscaping led to the beginnings of the Virginia Water neighbourhood as it is today.

Film Use

The area of the lake itself and its ensuring parkland remains a vastly popular destination for visitors and is also frequently used as a film set for productions varying from the Harry Potter series to the recent Dark Angel.

The Bourne

It is now the river Bourne that flows from the lake eastwards winding its course through the Wentworth Estate under Wellington Avenue into the Bourne Nature Reserve in Trumps Green, and eventually into the Thames at Chertsey.

The Railway Station

The development of the area in the 19th Century followed the arrival of a railway station at Virginia Water in 1856, the substantial houses and Estate built.

Building of the Church

Christchurch, Virginia Water (unlisted) was built in 1838 and has several historic memorials within its churchyard, including the Grade II listed tomb of Count and Countess Morella of Wentworth House.

The Wentworth
Golf Club

1926 - The Ryder Cup's Precursor

Wentworth Club was in its infancy when its first grand occasion took place in 1926, when the first shot was played at the historic International Match, recognised as the precursor to the Ryder Cup.

Wentworth’s three courses have each played host to some of the world’s most prestigious trophies, including:

The Daks Tournament, The British Masters, The Women’s British Open, The Canada Cup, The World Match Play and of course,

the highly anticipated BMW PGA Championships.

Residential Development

In 1922 builder W.G. Garrant acquired the Estate from the Cabrera family to develop their land into an extensive Estate of varyingly sized properties for private residential development around a new golf course.

Making of the Clubhouse

The original country house was converted into the Golf Clubhouse. Harry Colt, the then Secretary of Sunningdale Golf Club and respected golf Architect, was commissioned to design the East Course, completing this in 1927 and adding a second course, the West, two years later.

Championship Courses

The West has subsequently been the principal Championship course.

Celebrating this is an invitational match between the best players for Britain and Ireland, played against those from the United States. After two matches, Samual Ryder offered a trophy to the winning team encouraging the event to be held biannually.

Wentworth became host of the Ryder Cup in 1956, and many other major professional tournaments since.

One of the Most Prestigious Golf Clubs in Europe

The Wentworth Estate was the first estate in the UK to be protected by an Act of Parliament in 1964 and is confined by Freehold covenants. The Estate has a variety of house styles notably the original Surrey Homes style built by W.G. Tarrant beginning in 1922. The Wentworth Estate is home to the central administration of the DP World Tour and Wentworth Club is one of the most prestigious golf clubs in Europe.