History of Buckholt Estate
Buckholt Estate extends to just over 1,000 acres and is situated on a ridge on the Hampshire / Wiltshire border, just over four miles to the west of Stockbridge.
Historically Buckholt was a Royal Forest, adjoining the north-east corner of the New Forest. It name arose because the bowl that comprises most of the land at Buckholt wasn't traditionally hunted over and was a place of sanctuary for deer; Buck's Holt. In the middle-ages Buckholt was known for its fine beech trees, of which many were used in the building of Salisbury Cathedral, Clarendon Palace, (now Clarendon Park) and for ship building at Portsmouth.
Bought by the Baring family in 1823, the then estate formed part of the Norman Court Estate. In the 1870s the first Buckholt House was built as a Dower House. In 1906 Norman Court Estate was sold to the Singer Family but after the death of their son in the second world war the estate was sold and split up. The land passed to the Dalgety family before being sold in 1983 to Lord Rothes. In 2007, a few years after his death, the Matthews family bought Buckholt
Michael MatthewsMichael Matthews was born and raised on a farm on the Wiltshire / Dorset border in Swallowcliffe, west of Salisbury. The second son of a farmer, he was always passionate about the countryside, farming and shooting. In 1991 he took over a family farm that had previously been tenanted in the Candover Valley just outside Alresford.He was the first member of the Matthews family to live in Hampshire. He ran a mixed farm with a large dairy although it was mainly an arable farm and for two years he was the UK's largest grower of opium poppies, used in the production of morphine. He also started a successful shoot, predominantly partridges, which is now one of the largest partridge shoots in Hampshire.In 1994 Michael married Sarah Selkirk and they have three children.In 2007 the farm in the Candover Valley was sold and the Matthews moved to Buckholt where they initially bought the farm. Two years later bought Buckholt House, thus putting the estate back together.
The old house was then replaced, although, through a long build,70% of it's original walls were retained. The work finished and the Matthews moved in just before Christmas 2011.
Our emblem Kruger, is used as warthogs were my grandmother's favorite animal and it was she who was responsible for us being in a position to acquire Buckholt.
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