was organised by Lord Romney, Lord-Lieutenant of Kent. The royal party included the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Cumberland and Duke of Gloucester, the Queen, with Princess Augusta and Princess Elizabeth, attended by Lady Harrington. A Doric-style temple was constructed to commemorate the occasion. Between 1793 and 1800 the original Mote House was demolished and a new mansion constructed, designed by Daniel Asher Alexander. At the same time the River Len was dammed to form a lake. The addition of internal roadways, walls, a boathouse and a bridge (the 'Great Bridge') over the lake stretched the financial resources of Charles Marsham, 3rd Baron Romney. Eventually the family gathered enough funds to expand the property and the park reached the size it is today, approximately . The Great Bridge was demolished and the lake itself expanded to around . At the peak of its opulence in 1888 an article in the Gardener's Chronicle described extensive gardens, exotic plants and a walled kitchen garden including orangeries, vineries and peach houses, staffed by 25 gardeners. In 1895 the estate was sold to Marcus Samuel, 1st Viscount Bearsted. The estate had included the Mote Cricket Club since 1857, and Viscount Bearsted expanded the facility, building a pavilion between 1908 and 1910. (see below). In 1929 Walter Samuel, 2nd Viscount Bearsted sold the majority of the estate to Maidstone Borough Council (then the Maidstone Corporation) for £50,000 and converted the house to an orphanage. The family still retains an interest in the park today. Between 1932 and 1941, Mote House (known then as "The Mote") was home to the Caldecott Community (now the Caldecott Foundation), a nursery organisation that had relocated to Maidstone from its original home in London following the First World War. In 1941, war forced the Caldecott Community to evacuate to Hyde House in Dorset). Mote House was commandeered by the British Armed Forces who used the kitchen garden as a headquarters and training facility during the Second World War. The Mote / Mote House was subsequently used as offices for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food before becoming a Cheshire Homes care home for the disabled. After lying empty for a number of years it was redeveloped (along with its outbuildings) as retirement apartments and cottages. The park itself was remodelled following its purchase in the 1930s and now contains a number of recreation facilities (see below). It was