Villa Maryland, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat: the Florentine villa of the Wilson family and its Harold Peto gardens
Villa Maryland is one of the most original villas on Cap Ferrat. Built in 1904 in the Florentine style, it is known above all for its gardens, laid out by the English landscape architect Harold Peto, and for the society that gathered there in the Belle Époque, from King Edward VII’s circle to a young Winston Churchill.
Built for Arthur and Mary Wilson, 1904
Villa Maryland was built in 1904 for Arthur Wilson and his wife, Mary, after whom it was named. Born in Hull, Arthur Wilson was deputy chairman of the Wilson Line, the shipping company founded by his father. The Wilsons were personal friends of King Edward VII.
The house was designed in the Florentine style by the architects Pethaux and Messiah. Set on an estate of just under ten acres, it has around thirty rooms and a cloister-like patio topped by a terrace supported on red marble columns.
The Harold Peto gardens
The villa is surrounded by gardens and patios designed by Harold Peto, one of the leading English garden designers of the period. He planted the botanical park with Mediterranean and tropical species, and the gardens were described by Country Life as among the loveliest on the Riviera.
On the sunniest wall of the villa is the Latin inscription Quod peto lumen est, meaning What I seek is light. It is also a play on the name of Harold Peto.
Receptions on Cap Ferrat
The Wilsons were well known for their grand receptions, which brought together the English community of the Côte d’Azur. Regular guests included Prince Francis of Teck, the Duke of Connaught and the Earl and Countess of Darnley.
A young Winston Churchill was also a frequent visitor, courting the Wilsons’ daughter, Muriel. The romance did not last. Muriel was also courted by the Duke of Marlborough, the Earl of Ancaster and the American Robert Goelet.
During the First World War
During the First World War, the Wilsons invited injured soldiers from the Queen Victoria Hospital in Nice to lunch and afternoon tea at the villa. The soldiers enjoyed walking in the gardens, away from the war.
Muriel Wilson and Le Clos
Arthur Wilson died in 1909. When Mary Wilson died in 1927, she left Villa Maryland to Muriel, who had married Major Richard Warde. Widowed in 1932, Muriel later moved to Le Clos, a smaller but equally elegant house within the estate, which allowed her to rent out the main villa while still enjoying the gardens.
The novelist Ford Madox Ford visited the gardens in 1923. Villa Maryland remained in the Wilson family until Muriel’s death in 1964.
Later years
The villa later belonged to the descendants of Marc Birkigt, founder of the Hispano-Suiza car company. In 2008, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie stayed at Villa Maryland.
Today, the villa is privately owned and perfectly maintained, and its gardens remain faithful to Harold Peto’s original design.
This article was written purely out of historical interest. Villa Maryland is not a real estate listing.
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