£50m London mansion sold to Russian
London's largest privately-owned stately home after Buckingham Palace has been sold to the richest woman in Russia, according to reports


Witanhurst, a 90-room Queen Anne mansion in Highgate, which has featured in many TV series and dramas, was bought last year by a property developer. It has now been sold to Elena Baturina, the wife of the Mayor of Moscow for a reported £50m.
The Grade II-listed house, which has been advertised for sale for several months on Countrylife.co.uk boasts 90 rooms including 25 bedrooms. It is set within five and a half acres in a conservation area on Highgate Hill.
The house was restored in the early 1920s by the soap magnate Sir Arthur Crosfield and since then it has hosted both royalty and musical virtuosos. The most lavish room is undoubtedly the ballroom. This spectacular space, some 70 feet long with a height of 20 feet, is panelled throughout in walnut, with carved cornices embellished with gold leaf.
Witanhurst has been sold for a report £50m
In total, Sir Arthur is reported to have spent £1 million on building his dream home, a consierable amount for the time which is equivalent to more than £20 million today.
It was valued for £32m in 2002.
See the advert for Witanhurst here
Sign up for the Country Life Newsletter
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
Country Life is unlike any other magazine: the only glossy weekly on the newsstand and the only magazine that has been guest-edited by HRH The King not once, but twice. It is a celebration of modern rural life and all its diverse joys and pleasures — that was first published in Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee year. Our eclectic mixture of witty and informative content — from the most up-to-date property news and commentary and a coveted glimpse inside some of the UK's best houses and gardens, to gardening, the arts and interior design, written by experts in their field — still cannot be found in print or online, anywhere else.











