West Wycombe

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Church of St. Lawrence

West Wycombe is an area due west of High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England and is the home of the West Wycombe Caves and the Italianate West Wycombe Park — a stately home accompanied by 5000 acres (20 km²) of land which was built upon in the mid 18th century by Sir Francis Dashwood, founder of the Dilettanti Society and co-founder of the Hellfire Club which was held within the caves. They were a natural formation which was excavated in the 1750s by Sir Francis Dashwood to give work to the local community, straighten the road to London and to provide him with a private meeting place for members of the secretive Hellfire Club to meet.

The 18th century Church of St. Lawrence, with its golden ball on the top of the hill, is a well-known landmark, visible for many miles due its hilltop location, visually dominating the village. The church was remodelled by Sir Francis Dashwood inside and out. The hill is known as 'West Wycombe Hill' and was an Iron Age hill fort. Also situated on the hill is the Dashwood Mausoleum, inspired by the Colosseum in Rome.

West Wycombe village was sold to the National Trust in 1929 by the Dashwood family to raise assets following that year's Wall Street Crash. The National Trust market this property under the name 'West Wycombe Village and Hill'. The property features many buildings of architectural value which were built between the 16th and 18th centuries.