The Sales of Oatlands during 1846

1846 saw the long history of Oatlands Estate come to an end in order to pay off the debts, acquired through a lavish lifestyle and love of gambling, that exceeded even the considerable wealth of Edward Hughes Ball Hughes

Despite various attempts to sell the estate as a whole, the end finally came with the estate almost completely broken up into building lots with the exception of the large portions that made up the mansion with its grounds and St George's Hill.

This seemingly ignominious finale for the estate that had seen more than its fair share of royalty and larger than life personalities is what gave us the village that we know today. If the estate had been divided up in any other way we would have a very different Oatlands.

From 1846 the past, with all its connections, passed into history and a new future, completely different from all that had gone before, lay ahead.

Effectively, the village of Oatlands was born at the first sale on the 19th of May and as it grew and developed it did so completely independent of its larger, long established cousins on either side, Walton and Weybridge.