It’s simple: if you have £5 million, buy this place. Rectory Park is a Grade II listed house near Horsmonden, Kent. It is large, historic and friendly, and its 116-acre estate is astounding.
The front door leads into the 17th-century middle section of the house. Directly off a modest porch, the sitting room is cosily informal, with a big fireplace, well-used oak floorboards and full-height panelling, amateurishly patched together in the 19th century from box pews recycled from the rectory’s companion church. There are four wooden pillars, two holding up the ceiling and two simply keeping them company. The library has glass-fronted cabinets and further grand views, and there is a snug panelled study. The kitchen-breakfast room is the only disappointment. Converted 20 years ago,