Former Prime Minister's childhood home for sale
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Grade II listed Croft House on Church Street, Morley, is the birthplace of Herbert Henry Asquith – one of Britain’s most high-profile Prime Ministers.
The period front door at Croft House, which is on the market for £435,000, has another strong connection with Downing Street.
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Hide AdThe door is a replica of the one at Number 10 and can only be opened from the inside.
Herbert Asquith was born at Croft House in 1852 to parents Joseph Dixon Asquith and his wife Emily.
The couple were politically radical, which helped inform the young Asquith’s ideals.
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Hide AdAsquith was home educated at the house until his father tragically died when Herbert was just seven years old.
He attended the Moravian Church school at Fulneck, Pudsey, for three years and was then sent to school in London before going on to study at Oxford University.
He served as Liberal Prime Minister from 1908 to 1916.
In August 1914, Asquith took Britain into the First World War – one of the most important individual prime ministerial decision of modern times.
He helped Britain’s ultimate success through his early decisions including sending the British Expeditionary Force to the Western Front.
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Hide AdSetbacks in the war effort forced him to form a coalition government with the Conservatives and Labour early in 1915. Bitter rivalries inside and between the three major parties worsened when Asquith was unable to forge the coalition into a harmonious team. War Secretary Lloyd George replaced him as Prime Minister in December 1916.
In 1925 he accepted a peerage as Earl of Oxford and Asquith. He died in 1928 aged 75.
PROPERTY FACTS
The four-bedroom, semi-detached Georgian house is currently owned by Ann Stevenson.
Her late husband Norman bought the property on Church Street, Morley, in 1946 after moving to the area following wartime service to take over the running of Hainsworth’s opticians.
He was enormously proud of the Asquith connection and he and his wife carried out a sensitive renovation of the property, which is on the market with estate agents Manning Stainton.