Protection for remnants of lost Norfolk country house

And a campaign to safeguard it for future generations means The Lodge in Stoke Holy Cross has been awarded Grade II-listed status by Historic England.

The Lodge at Stoke Holy Cross has been granted listed status (Image: Savills)

The Tudor-style building, with its steeply pitched gabled bays and ornate chimney stacks, was the entrance lodge to the now-demolished Stoke Hall, which stood imposingly in acres of land off Norwich Road.

The now-demolished Stoke Hall (Image: Newsquest Library)

The hall was built by respected architect Anthony Salvin in the 1850s for banker Henry Birkbeck and boasted 28 bedrooms and acres of beautiful gardens.

Prime minister William Gladstone (Image: Wikipedia Commons)

Prime minister William Gladstone reportedly stayed at the hall, but in the 1930s, amid financial difficulties, much of the estate was sold.

In 1938, the hall was pulled down, with the fixtures and fittings sold off. The Tudor-style entrance porch was reportedly sold for just £1.

The Lodge at Stoke Holy Cross (Image: Jasper Copping)

The entrance lodge, however, survived to the present day.

And the listing means it will do so in the future, with the status giving it protection from inappropriate development or demolition.

READ MORE: Why Stoke Holy Cross is Norfolk's number one food spot

Victorian architect Anthony Salvin (Image: Wikipedia)

The lodge has recently been sold and officers at South Norfolk Council and conservation charity the Victorian Society campaigned to get it listed, saying it was important to protect the work of such an eminent and distinctive architect.

Inside The Lodge (Image: Savills)

Joe O’Donnell, director of the Victorian Society, said: "We are delighted that The Lodge in Stoke Holy Cross has been listed at Grade II.

"It is one of the last remnants of the now demolished Stoke Hall estate which was designed by the architect Anthony Salvin - an important and much sought-after Victorian country house architect.

"The lodge itself is a fine Jacobean-style building, probably built around 1852-1853 in the distinctive style of Salvin.

"We are pleased that Historic England has agreed that The Lodge was designed by Salvin and ensured its protection for the future.”

Inside The Lodge at Stoke Holy Cross (Image: Savills)