This Mayfair Mansion Has Played Host To 4 PMs Across The Years

No, don’t to rush to the news just yet: Keir Starmer hasn’t decided to move out of No. 10; I’m not even sure it would be legal for him to put it on the market if tried. While you would probably struggle to find a home that has hosted as many Prime Ministers as the Downing Street terrace or Buckingham Palace (sources suggest King Charles III isn’t planning to let go of that one any time soon either), this Mayfair mansion which has played host to four Prime Ministers across the years might just be the next best thing. 

With the recent news that King William IV’s former Mayfair mansion has hit the market, you might expect any other competing Mayfair homes to dim against its majesty. But the simplest way to outshine one Mayfair mansion? Get two.

Located on South Audley Street, these two adjoining homes are on sale for the price of one – that price being £35m, of course. And while the current layout divides the two properties, there’s nothing stopping you from uniting the two halves into the ultimate Mayfair mega-mansion. Now that’s a home fit for a king.

This Mayfair Home Has Played Host To Four PMs

Credit: Wetherell/Casa E Progetti

Back In Time

Built around 1736-1737, these Grade II listed Georgian townhouses were designed in the Palladian architectural style by Mayfair builder Roger Blagrave. Featuring cream stucco facades and Bridgerton style interiors by craftsman William Singleton, the smaller of the two properties, 13 South Audley Street, was originally the London residence of the Montagu family of Beaulieu fame

Among the famous faces who have occupied these homes, the larger of the two mansions, No. 14, has hosted four British Prime Ministers: Henry Pelham, William Pitt, Stanley Baldwin and Neville Chamberlain. First built, not for a PM, but a MP, No. 14 was the home of Lord Galway: the Surveyor General of the Crown Estate and the brother-in-law of then British Prime Minister Henry Pelham. A member of the long-defunct Whig Party, Pelham is generally considered to be Britain’s third PM from 1743 until his death in 1754. 

Between 1747 to 1805, No. 14 was later owned by Admiral Edward Boscawen, a good friend of Prime Minister William Pitt, before it was bought up by Victorian sculptor Sir Richard Westmacott – for which the property was granted its Blue Plaque. This was followed in 1923 by the purchase by Conservative MP and landowner Lord Donald Howard, 3rd Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal.

Credit: Wetherell/Casa E Progetti

In 1928, Lord Howard bought up the neighbouring No. 13, employing architect Sydney Ernest Castle to modernise the interiors of both. While No. 14 became a grand mansion for he and his wife Lady Diana to entertain senior politicians and members of high society, No. 13 was designated as his office and guest house. When, in 1934 to 1939, Lord Howard served as Under Secretary of State for War for PMs Stanley Baldwin and later Neville Chamberlain, both PMs (plus Foreign Secretary Lord Halifax and the Duke of Duchess of Kent) paid a visit. 

Following the devastation of World War Two, both properties became the Mayfair home of the International Music Association under BBC Controller of Music, William Glock. Changing mediums a decade later, after 1957 they then became the headquarters of the Royal Photographic Society until 1979. Following the society’s relocation to Bath, they have served as business headquarters until today. 

Credit: Wetherell/Casa E Progetti

Step Inside

With six stories and nearly 16,000 sqft to play with, there is plenty of room to transform these properties from family offices into a family home. At 14, alongside the existing passenger lift, there is potential for leisure facilities, a catering kitchen and family kitchen, five reception rooms, a principle bedroom suite and four further ensuite bedrooms. Meanwhile, 13 has space to be transformed into a further family home or to provide guest and staff accommodation, with agents estimating that a mega-mansion could almost double the value to £65m. 

No. 13 and 14 South Audley Street are on the market together with Savills and Wetherell for £35m.