Lupton House on The English Riviera.

The earliest record of Lupton is in the Domesday Book where 4 acres of woodland were mentioned. By 1480 the Upton family had settled on the estate and the house was built at a crossroads. By 1772, the owner Charles Hayne had remodelled the house and given it a Palladian makeover. It is possible that at this time the oak that still stands in front of the house was planted.

By 1788 the house was in the hands of Sir Francis Buller  (later baronet) and he closed the crossroad and organised extensive landscaping around the property including the establishemnt of the long driveway. The property then passed to Sir Francis Yarde Buller and from him to Sir John Yarde Buller (Baron Churston of Churston Ferrers and Lupton). He was responsible for a great deal of remoddelling inside plus the establishment of terraces and an aviary outside plus the building of the gatehouses. These were all begun in 1840.

In 1910 John Reginal Lopes Yarde Buller inherited the title and property. He was a professional soldier who had seen action in the Boer War as well as India. 

In 1926 a fire destroyed the upper storey of the house and much of the interior panelling and plasterwork. It was subsequently rebuilt without the top floor. However, in 1928 a futher fire destroyed many family heirlooms stored in the stables.

In 1944 Lupton was used by US troops preparing for D Day where they were practicing at Slapton Sands.. 1000 tropps were stationed there in tents.

After the war, the property was briefly used as a hotel and then became a school. First it was Fenton Preparatory School, later Lupton House School and then from 1990 to 2004 the Garmercy Hall School. Between 2004 and 2009, the house was boarded up and then in 2009 the Lupton Trust purchased the property with the aim of making it a centre for the local community.