Comarques

Captain Comarque was a French Huguenot refugee who, along with a number of others, settled in Thorpe-le-Soken in the early 18th century. Historic England confirms that he was resident in the area in 1717 but that he did not build the house. Pevsner notes the attribution to Sir Robert Taylor, an architect who worked mainly in London and the South-East of England. The building carries a brick datestone for 1755, with the name W. Whatey, who was probably the main building contractor for the house. Clement Attlee's most recent biographer, John Bew, records Henry Attlee as buying the estate in 1898, while Roy Jenkins in his biography of Attlee dates the purchase to 1897, and the draft Victoria…

The house is of two storeys, with attics, in Flemish bond red brick. One brick carries the date 1755. The style is Queen Anne. There are extensions from the 19th and 20th centuries. The house has seven bays and Pevsner notes the distinctive window style, which has been called Chinese Chippendale, and which is the main grounds for the attribution to Taylor. Comarques is a Grade II* listed building.