Meet Beaverbrook, England’s Glamorous Country Estate With a Canadian Twist

The first thing most guests notice when they stay at Beaverbrook is its unabashed Britishness. From the croquet lawns and the historic houseguests―Churchill was a regular―to the estate’s own English sparkling wine and the Spitfire motif, the property does not shy away from its identity as a quintessential British country escape. But delve into its history, and guests will find an unexpected Canadian connection.

The estate’s origins date back to 1866, when work began on a late-Victorian mansion for Birmingham industrialist Abraham Dixon. “The one thing for the wealthy Victorians in those days was to get out of the smoke from up north [and] have the house down south,” says Beaverbrook host Annabel Spooner, who is currently working on a historical account of the property. As was fashionable among the upper classes at the time, Dixon’s new mansion was inspired by the European grand tour. “You’ve got a French roof, an Italian front. However, we’re in England, so you’ve got Victorian sash windows but a much more formal French-Italian lawn—nothing like an English country garden—and a massive love of the Riviera with all this balustrading,” Spooner says of the estate’s elements that can still be seen today.

The original swimming pool still exists and can be seen on the lawn, although even at the time, it was more of a water feature. “You’d probably get up to your knees with your big crinoline dresses on,” Spooner says. The dome in the entrance of what is now the lobby is another key architectural feature. “At the time, it was the largest unsupported dome on a private home.”

Things changed―and became decidedly more Canadian―in 1910 when, following Dixon’s death, the estate was put up for sale and Canadian-born Max Aitken, who would later become the first Lord Beaverbrook, snapped it up.

Aitken was born in 1879 in Ontario and struck out on his own as a stockbroker in Canada. He went on to build a considerable fortune through a series of business ventures before moving to Britain, where he became a prominent industrialist. “He had the bright idea of amalgamating all the cement factories and the steelworks, which were all being poorly run, into one big conglomeration [and] literally overnight became a multi-multi-millionaire,” Spooner says.

But with his fortune made, Aitken’s ambitions extended well beyond Canada. “Canada’s too small for him now. He’s got his eye set on bigger prizes: Great Britain, and most importantly, being part of British politics.” One day, while driving with his friend Rudyard Kipling―of The Jungle Book fame, and now the namesake of a Deluxe Room in the main house―Aitken noticed the drive. “Legend has it he pulled up and said, ‘Take me to your master,'” Spooner says. He purchased the property after a single look, paying £30,000.

Rudyard Kipling’s room, the Deluxe Room at Beaverbrook.

 

The Dower House at Beaverbrook.

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It was a considerable sum at the time, but the property’s scale and grandeur make the figure feel incongruous today. The estate’s newly rebuilt Dower House, a standalone five-bedroom private residence tucked away on the grounds, offers a glimpse of the extraordinary scale of the estate Aiken acquired. Guests can retreat to Sir Frank’s Bar, dressed in old-world botanical illustrations, for Beaverbrook’s signature house cocktail, Churchill’s Charge, which is a mix of gin, cognac syrup, bitters, lemon, and champagne, topped with champagne foam.

The Dower House at Beaverbrook.

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Aitken put his own stamp on what would become known as Beaverbrook, particularly through the addition of art deco details. “He had a love of art deco,” Spooner says, pointing out the original geometric lights in the library, which Aiken used as his headquarters. He also added the handsome wood-panelled walls. “He had the maple shipped from Canada.” Aiken also installed the first private cinema in the country, which is still used by hotel guests for daily screenings, naturally accompanied by homemade popcorn. The cinema’s original piano, used during the silent film era, now sits beneath the dome in the hotel’s grand foyer.

Sir Frank’s Bar at Beaverbrook.

Along with becoming a bona fide media baron by buying and creating major British newspapers, Aitken also achieved his goal of entering British politics, first as a donor, then as an MP. In 1917, he accepted a seat in the British House of Lords as Lord Beaverbrook. There is some debate over the origins of the name Beaverbrook, but one version suggests that he took it from a small river near his childhood home in Maple, Ontario.

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