The bargain-basement mansion: Historic house which has been a school, a PoW camp and even the site of an ORGY goes on sale for just £250,000 after owner went bust

• Halswell House in Bridgwater, Somerset, is one of Britain's finest houses and boasts Tudor buildings and 31 acres
• The Palladian mansion was described by Pevsner as 'the most important house of its date in the country'
• Ballroom, banqueting hall, lake and follies all included with auctioneer's guide price of £250,000-£500,000 for the lot
• The estate was repossessed after owner Grahame Bond declared bankrupt and is priced for a quick sale
• Halswell, the earliest parts of which were built in 1536, has a fascinating - and occasionally chequered - past
• The Tudor manor house was built for Robert Halswell whose son Nicholas became Bridgwater MP
• During the Second World War an area of Halswell's parkland was used as a camp for Italian prisoners of war
  

By Harriet Arkell

Published: 07:28 EDT, 20 November 2013 | Updated: 10:34 EDT, 20 November 2013

With its elegant ballroom, banqueting hall, rolling acres and lake, Grade I-listed Halswell House looks as if it should be worth several million pounds.

But the Palladian mansion, once described by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner as 'the most important house of its date in the country', is for sale at a knockdown £250,000 after being repossessed when its owner was declared bankrupt.

For the price of a one-bedroom flat in one of London's less exclusive areas, you could pick up one of Britain's finest country mansions that comes with beautiful Tudor buildings and 30 acres of lush Somerset land.

And, like anything of a certain age, it also has a rather interesting past.

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Dream home: And Halswell House near Bridgwater in Somerset could be yours for as little as £250,000 when it comes up for auction next month priced for a quick sale

Stately grandeur: The banqueting hall at Halswell boasts intricate cornicing, high ceilings and a polished wooden floor - one of many elegant rooms

Halswell House is said to be worth about £3million after it was bought by businessman Grahame Bond in 2004 and underwent a massive refurbishment.

The property, which has been used as a luxury wedding venue in recent years, has a somewhat chequered history.

In 2009 the police were called after a mass orgy broke out during a black-tie ball organised by a Dutch adult entertainment firm that had hired it out for the night.

And in July 2012, Mr Bond's then 78-year-old mother, Stella Bond, staged a three-day sit-in in the library to prevent it being repossessed by bailiffs.  Mrs Bond sat in an armchair in the wood-panelled library for 72 hours as bailiffs watched her, hour after hour, ready to take the house if she left.

Mrs Bond, who lived in a house on the estate, began her sit-in when bailiffs turned up to take the house while her former estate agent son was out.  The grandmother of four who has osteoporosis and had suffered a stroke in 2006, said the bailiffs could not provide her with paperwork proving they could take possession, so she took up position in the library with a young carer by her side.

She said of the bailiffs: 'They were quite intimidating but I stayed put.  One man was quite irritating - he thought he could move me by talking to me, but of course he couldn't.'

Room to spare: The house, which was once the site of an orgy, boasts both Palladian and Tudor architecture, and several suites and bedrooms

History: Halswell's Tudor buildings date back to 1536 when they were built for Robert Halswell, whose son Nicholas went on to become the local Bridgewater MP

Divorcee Mrs Bond, who was evacuated to Somerset from London during the Blitz, said: 'It took a lot of hard work to restore this house, it was so dilapidated.

'My son had a dream for a long time to put a stately home back together again. It is beautiful – I was not going to let it go.’

The bailiffs were eventually called off but despite Mrs Bond's best efforts, Halswell House was subsequently repossessed by the mortgage lender Citi Private Banking, and is now being sold on its behalf.

Halswell has been described by architectural historian Marcus Binney as 'possibly the most perfect house in the British Isles' in his 2007 book In Search Of The Perfect House - 500 Of The Best Buildings In Britain And Ireland.

Mr Bond's indomitable mother, Stella Bond, now 79, last year staged a three-day sit-in in an armchair in Halswell's panelled library to prevent bailiffs taking the house

The bargain-basement guide price was drawn up by specialist land and property auctioneers Clive Emson.

Five estate houses are also being offered in separate lots at next month's the sale, but the entire collection could be sold in one go if there is sufficient interest from people who want to acquire virtually their own hamlet.

The guide price for everything is between £650,000 to £960,000.The vast estate sits in Halswell Park in Goathurst near Bridgwater.

Graham Barton, of Clive Emson auctioneers, said: 'This is a unique opportunity to acquire in broad terms your own hamlet. 

View from the terrace: Halswell House comes with 31 acres of beautiful Somerset countryside and the owner will enjoy splendid isolation

Glamorous party venue: Grade I-listed Haslwell House has in recent years been let out by Mr Bond for parties, weddings and other events

Historic: The Tower House is another lot for sale on the Halswell Estate and has four double bedrooms, a large garden, and a guide price of just £80,000-£100,000

'The mansion and Tudor manor are set in 30 acres of Somerset countryside and this comprises one lot.

'There are also five houses on the estate in separate lots but we reserve the right to sell everything at once should there be interest from people wanting to acquire virtually their own hamlet.

'The mansion house is in an elevated position with breath-taking rural views over the Somerset countryside.

'The Tudor manor house does need some investment but the mansion is in fair condition and any new owner could move in.

'Halswell House is ready to become a magnificent private home once again, although it will interest investors with a variety of plans.

'Opportunities to bid on something of this scale and of such historical and architectural importance are astonishingly rare.'

Quantock Cottage, which lies on the estate, offers three double bedrooms and one bathroom and has a guide price of £80,000 - £100,000, though the auctioneer admits it 'would benefit from modernisation'

For sale in a separate lot is Parkhead, a large, semi-detached country house offering four good sized bedrooms, garaging, and a large garden - the guide price is £115,000-£130,000

Outside space: Parkhead also comes with some smart outbuildings complete with battlements where the new owner can park several cars, or even horses

The Tudor house on the estate was built in 1536 for Robert Halswell and it passed down the family, one of whose members was Sir Nicholas Halswell, who became MP for Bridgwater in 1603.

Later the Halswells married into the wealthy Somerset Tynte family and Sir Halswell Tynte oversaw the development of the 17th century mansion including the huge Palladian block that looks north towards the Bristol Channel.

In the 18th century, Sir Charles Tynte made substantial improvements to both houses, renovated the earlier formal garden, and erected follies and other elements.  There is a grotto, temple, ruins, as well as a large dovecote.

With a guide price of £60,000-£70,000, Gardener's Cottage has two large bedrooms (although the auctioneer notes that one has no natural light), and a 'highly enviable rural location'

Groom's Cottage, offered for sale with a guide price of £50,000-£60,000, is said to need 'enhancement', and offers a kitchen/living room, bedroom, bathroom and garden

In 1923 a fire caused extensive damage but the house was rebuilt at great expense, and during the Second World War it served as a girls' school, while some of the land was made a camp for Italian prisoners of war.

The National Trust declined the opportunity to take on the house when owner Lord Wharton put it up for sale after the war.  The aristocrat went to London with his boyfriend and his sister went to South Africa in what was a scandal at the time.  The estate was then sold and broken up, before being bought by a local property developer who turned it into several bedsits.  It was later owned by a Muslim group before Mr Bond bought it for £1.94million in 2004.

The Halswell estate will be auctioned on 17 December at the St Mellion International Resort in Cornwall. 

'THE PENNY DROPPED THAT IT WAS A SWINGERS' PARTY' - HOW THE STATELY HOME'S OWNER WALKED IN ON AN ORGY

Halswell House was the setting for an orgy after its owner, Grahame Bond, let it to a company thinking they wanted to hold a masked ball there.

More than 350 well-heeled partygoers flocked to the historic house for the £65-a-head ball, parking their Porsches, Aston Martins and BMWs outside.

But the astonished owner said that the elegant ball turned into a heaving orgy as if 'at the flick of a switch'.

Masked partygoers: Grahame Bond hired his house for £9,000 thinking it would host a masked ball, but suddenly it turned into an orgy

Mr Bond said: 'The party started normally and the whole group were dressed in these great costumes.

'But then one of the organisers announced: "The moment has come, the spell has begun", and everyone began kissing and having sex.

'To say I was shocked was an understatement.  When the haze from the dry ice cleared we realised it was going on everywhere.

'That's when the penny dropped that it was a swingers' party.'

Mr Bond said that more than 350 guests arrived in expensive cars and wearing masks for the ball - this still from a video of the event shows a performer on stage

Stunning venue: This picture from the party organisers' website, shows another performer in the splendid surroundings of Halswell House

Mr Bond, who had hired out his house for £9,000 for the night of the party in July 2009, sent his younger members of staff home and called police, but was told they were powerless to act because it was a private party.

The house had been booked by Dutch events company Little Sins, who told Mr Bond that 'there was a dating aspect' to the party, but he had not understood that that meant it would be an orgy.