Over the decades Francis Dashwood constructed or renovated throughout his pleasure park, numerous classically inspired follies including the Round Temple, the Temple of Diana and the Music Temple many of which evolved during Francis Dashwood’s lifetime. An example of how existing buildings were altered, is demonstrated by the existing icehouse being remodelled between 1755 and 1759 by John Donowell to resemble Nicholas Revett’s illustration of the Tower of the Winds at Athens as Francis Dashwood wanted a main feature visible from the eastern approach to the house.
Francis Dashwood was increasingly inspired by his designs such as the “Tower of the Winds” so much so that in 1764 John Donowell was dismissed and was replaced by Nicholas Revett the architect who had been responsible for all new garden structures and who had recently returned from an expedition to Asia Minor which led to his influential publication “The Antiquities of Athens” 1762. In late 1752 Morise Louis Jolivet produced a map of Francis Dashwood’s estate and surrounding area of West Wycombe (fig 15) showing the newly completed road, the map also showed that the old road from High Wycombe had been absorbed into his estate with the extra land being used to develop the new river and lake.
The estate grounds today are promoted as the grounds of Francis Dashwood’s West Wycombe Park, which is an inaccurate statement. Francis Dashwood’s eighteenth-century estate embraced other substantial areas that contributed to the overall concept and effect. These additional areas are the village as a whole, the hill with the caves, the church and Mausoleum and the woodland to the south and eastern side, all with unique buildings and Follies that made up Francis Dashwood’s vision of West Wycombe.