building located off a country lane in the middle of nowhere in Northamptonshire.
Sir Thomas Tresham was a Catholic in protestant Britain. His faith and refusal to convert to the
protestant faith resulted in significant regular fines and eventual imprisonment.
At age 15 he inherited large estates from his grandfather giving him a rather privileged start to
adult life. Between 1581 and 1605 he had paid penalties in the sum of £8,000 (£1, 240, 00.00 in todays terms)
He was imprisoned for 15 years until his release in 1593.
He designed and constructed the lodge himself using alternating light and dark limestone. He designed it
as a protestation of his faith - everything relating to the number 3 signifying the holy trinity - God the Father,
God the son and God the Holy Spirit.
The structure is three sided - the walls are 33 feet long and there are triangular windows throughout and there are
three floors to the lodge including a basement. Even the year of construction - 1593 is perfectly divisible by
three with no remainder (though it is believed that construction did not actually occur until 1594 - but that
would not have fitted in with his thinking so 1593 adorns two sides of the lodge with his initials being on the third).