Records indicate that there has been a house on our Greenlands site for 500 years, although the house would have originally been much closer to the river.
Greenlands has been home to a series of notable families and individuals throughout its lifetime. These include Thomas Chaucer, son of William Chaucer; Robert D’Oyley, Sheriff of Oxfordshire in 1573; Bulstrode Whitelock, Oliver Cromwell’s Ambassador to Sweden and most recently WH Smith, who bought the existing house in 1871. Queen Elizabeth I is also known to have visited on more than one occasion, most likely when staying at her royal palace in Reading.
The site became the home of a new Administrative Staff College in 1946, first welcoming students in 1948. In 1952, after the unexpected death of Viscount Hambleden from whom the College leased the site, an opportunity to purchase Greenlands’ 30 acres arose. The College was renamed Henley Management College in 1991, and following the 2008 merger with the University of Reading became Henley Business School. Today, the world-ranked Henley MBA, The Henley DBA and our executive education programmes are delivered at Greenlands.
The Greenlands site enjoys a stunning location on the banks of the River Thames in Oxfordshire among 30 acres of beautiful parkland. The environment is perfect for quiet reflection as well as stimulating debate with other developing business minds.
The following photo’s illustrate this beautiful setting:
The main building at Greenlands is a classic design.
Winter at Greenlands is not too severe but we do occasionally get some Snow.
On a nice day, students can take advantage of the Greenland grounds and enjoy some outdoor study.
Greenlands lies on the banks of the River Thames and we can enjoy the sight of the river and the traffic on it from the gardens.
Here you can see rowers getting ready for a race.
During the Henley Regatta week, river traffic can get quite busy as you can see with this view from the Gardens.