Toad Hall (The Wind in the Willows) facts for kids

Toad Hall is the fictional home of Mr. Toad, a character in the 1908 novel ‘The Wind in the Willows’ by Kenneth Grahame.

Description

Grahame's description of Toad Hall is sparse: "a handsome, dignified old house of mellowed red brick, with well-kept lawns reaching down to the water's edge". Its owner is in no doubt as to its merits: "'Finest house on the whole river,' cried Toad boisterously. 'Or anywhere else, for that matter.'" The hall has a "very old banqueting-hall" and a "large boat-house". Stables stand to the right of the house, as viewed from the river. An ancient passage, unknown to Toad but vouchsafed to Mr Badger by Toad's father, and of critical importance to the novel's denouement, "leads from the river bank ..., right up into the middle of Toad Hall".

Inspirations

A number of houses have been cited as the inspiration for Toad Hall. These include:

• Fawley Court in Buckinghamshire;
• Fowey Hall Hotel in Cornwall;
• Foxwarren Park in Surrey;
• Hardwick House in Oxfordshire;
• Mapledurham House also in Oxfordshire.

Gallery of claimants

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  Fawley Court, Buckinghamshire

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  Fowey Hall Hotel, Cornwall

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  Foxwarren Park, Surrey

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  Hardwick House, Oxfordshire

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  Mapledurham House, Oxfordshire