The park lies near Easebourne, West Sussex, in the South Downs National Park. The estate belongs to Viscount Cowdray, whose family have owned it since 1909. It has a golf course, and it offers clay pigeon shooting and corporate activity days, as well as the more traditional activities of agriculture, forestry and property lets.
The preserved ruins of Cowdray House an important Tudor era great house lie in the park and are open to visitors.
During the Second World War it was occupied by the Royal Army Service Corps. After the war, architect Percy Wheeler made alterations for the 3rd Viscount. The house was refurbished by the 4th Viscount from 1995. It is Grade II listed.[2] Numerous other aspects of the estate are listed.[1]
In 2005 the Heritage Lottery Fund awarded a grant of £2.7m towards the cost of stabilising the ruins and they were opened to the public on 31 March 2007.[5] In May 2009 Lord Cowdray sought to turn the house into a country house hotel, but the project was abandoned when Cowdray failed to find a business partner.[6] Cowdray moved to another family property at Fernhurst.[7] The following year, in September 2010, the house was put on the market for £25 million, not including the rest of the estate.[6][8] Michael Pearson, the fourth Viscount Cowdray, claimed that he did not want his son to inherit the burden of maintaining the house.[6]
The collection housed within Cowdray Park was auctioned in situ by Christie's over three days, between 13 and 15 September 2011.[9] Among the objects sold were furniture, silver, paintings, tapestries and porcelain, with a portrait previously identified as Queen Elizabeth I (but now considered more likely to be Catherine Howard, née Carey, Countess of Nottingham) achieving the highest auction price of £325,250.[10] In total, the auction raised £7.9 million.[10]
Cowdray Park Polo Club
The estate is home to the Cowdray Park Polo Club, which describes itself as the "Home of British Polo".[11]
The club was founded in 1910. The Cowdray Gold Cup tournament was inaugurated in 1956.[12]