There have long been misconceptions about the length of Michael Grace and his family’s residence at Battle Abbey and its influence on Westbury House, the home of Michael’s daughter, Margarita Grace Phipps. One common misconception is that Battle Abbey was Margarita’s childhood home, though she may have only lived there for a few months before her marriage.

In her memoirs, Halcyon Days, Peggie Phipps Boegner describes her grandfather’s fondness for Battle Abbey, where he is buried in the churchyard. This fondness, along with numerous photographs of Battle Abbey in Mrs. Boegner’s memoirs, may have contributed to the misunderstanding.

After starting his family in Peru and later moving to New York, Michael Grace relocated to England in the late 1880s to represent the Grace family’s business interests in London. By the 1890s, he leased a townhouse at 40 Belgrave Square and, for a time, Porters Park in Shenley, Hertfordshire. Likely due to a change in ownership at Porters Park, Grace then leased Battle Abbey.

The impending lease to an outsider—especially an American—from then-owner Sir Augustus Webster startled locals, as Battle Abbey and its surroundings were considered national heritage sites. A September 2, 1902, article in the Brooklyn Eagle announced Grace’s lease with the headline: “Residents of Hastings Stirred Up Against American over Fancied Restriction of Inspection.”

Other newspapers reported that Grace addressed concerns, noting he intended only to renovate the residence and install electricity, described later as a “formidable” project. Grace began residing there in January 1903 and earned goodwill by allowing tourists to visit and donating hunting proceeds to local hospitals. In November 1903, his daughter Margarita married at Saint Mary’s Church in Battle.

Michael’s lease ended after the First World War, and the residence later became Battle Abbey School. The building suffered significant fire damage in 1931.

Regarding the influence of Battle Abbey on Westbury House, photographic evidence (such as postcards) shows a Monk’s Walk and rose gardens bordered by hedges during the Grace family’s residence—elements echoed in the gardens of Old Westbury Gardens.

~Paul Hunchak, Director of Visitor Services and Public Programs