Lord Egerton and Castle Without a Princess.
Lord Maurice Egerton tatton, the fourth and last Baron Egerton of Tatton (1874 – 1958). The last son of Alan de Tatton and Lady Anna Louisia Taylor, was a pioneer aviator, photographer and filmmaker.
He was an early motorist and prodigious traveller.
Lord Egerton Castle.
Is a splendid architectural masterpiece
Egerton built between 1930 and 1940 and still stands conspicuously like a pendant in the beautiful countryside, a 12 kilometers from Nakuru town,
a welcoming and relaxing stunning mansion, 200kms east of nairobi and 10 minute ride from nakuru town. It has expansive green lawns, splendid colorful garden on all its side.
Since arriving in Kenya in 1927, Egerton had lived in a six bed-roomed house next to the castle.
Built for a lady to whom Baron Egerton wished to become engaged, the house is something of an anachronism.
Lord Egerton deeply fell in love with Austrian woman in early 1920’s, shortly after he had moved to Britain’s African colony to occupy and farm his 26,000 acres of land. He brought his fiancé to the small home he had built on the property. she came to his house and laughed at him. She told egerton that she was of “royalty” back home and that she would never live in the “chicken coop” of a house he had built. She fled back to as soon as possible.
Sure to impress her, Lord Egerton constructed the castle on a scale that would surely impress her and make her change her mind. He conceived of a castle that would have no comparison in England or any other country for that matter. Well chopped stones and zinc tiles for the roof were shipped from Europe, the builders from Europe and Asia. The outcome in 1938, was a stupendous four-storey edifice fitted with some of the most up-to-date mechanical and electrical gadgets at the time, including an escalator.
However even after building a majestic castle for Lady Victoria she still rejects him in the presence of his friends. As it happened, not once but twice, and Egerton's heart was broken, even after building the castle, especially for her. This led to Lord Egerton changing and dedicating his life to farming, hunting and development of education. This gave birth to Egerton University founded on the basis of Agriculture but which has transformed into a diverse institution offering many courses apart from Agriculture.
He furnished and ran the castle as if the family he had envisaged actually existed. Nobody but the house servants was ever allowed in, According to the current caretaker Robert.
Lord Maurice banned all women from the 52-room castle and its 100-acre grounds. He hated chicken and dogs because the woman who spurned his proposal said the six-bed roomed house the Lord lived in before completion of the castle was small as a chicken hut or a dogs kennel
He banned women from ever setting foot in the 100-acre ground in which the castle stood, spent the rest of his life alone until his death on January 30, 1958. The woman associated with the baron’s irrational behaviour has never been named in all accounts about his life.
"He pinned notices on trees warning that the grounds were out of bounds for women and that any woman who disobeyed the notice risked being shot, when he planned to visit the quarters where his African staff lived, he would issue a two-week notice so that all women could be vacated." recalled 78-year- old Robert Onyiego the current caretaker, (former employee of Lord Egerton).
It is rather ironic that numerous weddings are now hosted on the castle, a favourite attraction for lovers tying the knot and a picnik site to his generosity Lord Egerton, bequeathed his land to the government.
Lord Maurice Egerton died with no heir.
Courtesy of;
Photographer-Kamau Patrick.
Models-Johny Walker and June DeeDee.
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