Inventory Site Record

Southside House dates from at least the C18th and has a long history, but its garden was largely the creation of Hilda Pennington-Mellor and Dr Axel Munthe, who bought the property in c.1910, and their son Major Malcolm Munthe who restored it after WWI. It comprised a series of garden rooms, linked by water and pathways, with sculptures, temples, a small grotto and pet cemetery. Ownership was transferred to the Pennington-Mellor-Munthe Charity Trust in 1982 and Southside House was opened to the public; following the death of Malcolm Munthe in 1995, it continued to be run by a Trust, opening to the public for guided tours, group visits and garden openings. The property was sold in 2022 and is no longer open to the public; plans for restoration are ongoing (2024).

Site location:

3-4 Woodhayes Road, Wimbledon Common

Postcode:

SW19 4RJ

What 3 Words:

spout.origin.mops

Type of site:

Private Garden

Borough:

Merton

Open to public?

No

Opening times:

Has taken part in Open Garden Squares Weekend 2 times, most recently in 2018.

Special conditions:

Facilities:

Events:

Public transport:

Rail: Wimbledon; Raynes Park. Tube: Wimbledon (District) then bus. Bus: 200, 93.

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Google Map    
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Research updated:

13/11/2025

Last minor changes:

29/03/2026

Please check with the site owner or manager for latest news.

Southside House has a long history in the ownership of the Wharton family, with associations with many historical figures whose personal possessions remain in the house. A family member married the only heiress of Anne Boleyn, another the heiress of the Duke of Wharton and another descendent, John Pennington, was in Paris during the French Revolution and 'played Scarlet Pimpernel, snatching aristocrats from the jaws of the guillotine'. In 1750 Prince of Wales had stayed here, the room prepared for him remaining largely unchanged. Horatio Nelson and the Hamiltons were neighbours and Emma reputedly performed her 'attitudes' at Southside House. The house façade of 1687 incorporates an earlier building, and was extended and altered in 1776 (Pevsner).

The garden was largely that of Hilda Pennington-Mellor, great grand-daughter of John Pennington, and Swedish doctor Axel Munthe, who lived at Southside House in the early C20th, having married in 1910. Dr Munthe was famous for his book 'The Story of St Michele'. Southside House was later restored by their youngest son Major Malcolm Munthe. In WWII he was member of the S.O.E, working behind enemy lines in Nazi-occupied Scandinavia, and took part in the Allied landings at Anzio. Suffering from war wounds, he eventually retreated to Southside, which he painstakingly restored. The gardens comprised a series of 'rooms' linked by water and pathways, with sculptures and temples, a small grotto constructed by Belinda Eade, and the Servitors' Cemetery, where various of the family's pets are buried including a 'vast wolfhound', a black cat called Loki, and Romulo, a Roman owl. In front of the house was a reclining statue of Major Munthe's older brother Peter.

Southside House was opened to the public from 1982, following the transfer of ownership to the Pennington-Mellor-Munthe Charity Trust. Following the death of Major Munthe in 1995, Southside House continued to be operated by the Trust, opening to the public for meetings, events and tours. Fire damage to the front range of the roof required extensive restoration work between 2010 and 2011. The house was sold privately in 2022 and plans for restoration and new work are presently (2024) being formulated. It is not known whether any elements of the garden will be retained.

Sources consulted:

Barnaby Rogerson, 'Major Munthe's Garden at Southside House, Wimbledon Common' in The London Gardener Vol 4 1998-99; Southside House leaflet; https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1194026?section=official-list-entry

Grid ref:

TQ233705 (523463,170605)

Size in hectares:

Site ownership:

private ownership

Site management:

Date(s):

garden: early C20th

Designer(s):

Listed structures:

LBII*: Southside House; LBII: Coach house to north side of Southside House

On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens:

No

Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965:

No

Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931:

No

Local Authority Data

The information below is taken from the relevant Local Authority's planning legislation, which was correct at the time of research but may have been amended in the interim. Please check with the Local Authority for latest planning information.

On Local List:

No

In Conservation Area:

Yes

Conservation Area name:

Wimbledon West

Tree Preservation Order:

Not known

Nature Conservation Area:

No

Green Belt:

No

Metropolitan Open Land:

No

Special Policy Area:

Yes - Archaeological Priority Zone

Other LA designation:

None

Southside House - Photo: Sue Lovell-Greene
Date taken: 25/04/16 14:33

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