Cassiobury House

Cassiobury House was a country house in Cassiobury Park, Watford, England. It was the ancestral seat of the Earls of Essex. Originally a Tudor building, dating from 1546 for Sir Richard Morrison, it was substantially remodelled in the 17th and 19th centuries and ultimately demolished in 1927. The surrounding Cassiobury Park was turned into the main public open space for Watford.

St Albans Abbey claimed rights to the manor of Cashio , which included Watford, dating from a grant by King Offa of Mercia in AD 793. When King Henry VIII of England dissolved the monasteries in 1539, Watford was divided from Cashio, and the King made himself lord of the manor of Cassiobury. In 1546, he granted the manor to Sir Richard Morrison, who started to build Cassiobury House in the extensive gardens, but had not made much progress by 1553, when he went into exile abroad. The estate grounds were much larger than they are today, reaching as far as North Watford and southwards almost to Moor Park. After the death of his father in 1556, Sir Charles Morrison continued building and completed the mansion, which had 56 rooms, a long gallery, stables, a dairy, and a brewhouse. Sir Charles was succeeded by his son, Sir Charles Morrison, 1st Baronet ; the younger Charles had a daughter, Elizabeth Morrison .

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