Chronological list of Dierks houses and their inhabitants
Click here to read about the book or
scroll on down the page to view the villas!
All these houses have been either built or remodelled by the architect Barry Dierks, with the assistance of Eric Sawyer as landscape designer. Eric worked on many of the parks, gardens and swimming pools of these great villas. Dates, addresses, names and professions have been added where known. There is a further list of houses, which have no images at the bottom of the page.
1926 Le Trident de L’Esquillon, Impasse Renoir, Miramar
Barry Dierks and Eric Sawyer, USA/British
New – Still Standing
In this 10 mins video interview with Somerset Maugham
the buildings and gardens of Villa La Mauresque can be seen
Video by ‘MyMaughamCollection’
1927/28 Villa La Mauresque, 52 Blvd. Général de Gaulle, St Jean Cap Ferrat
Extensively remodelled for the author Somerset Maugham, British
Remodel – Still Standing – Pool by Eric Sawyer
1928 Villa Dufour/Selvosa, 41 Boulevard Montfleury, Cannes
Remodelled for Geoffrey Williams, British
Remodel – Still Standing
1920’s Les Anges, Le Cannet
Remodelled for Sir Hugo de Bathe
who married the actress Lily Langtry in 1899
She lived in Monte Carlo, he lived in Cannes
Remodel – Still Standing
1930 Villa St Ange, Brusc (Var)
Built for Hedwige d’Ursel, Author and Belgian aristocrat
She was the protector of Belgian princes Albert and Baudouin during the 2nd World War
New – Still Standing
1930 Château de L’Horizon, Golfe Juan
Built for Maxine Elliott, American actress
Friend of Winston Churchill
A hostess who entertained widely, including the Windsors
New – Still Standing (Unrecognizable)
1932 Villa La Cava, 18-20 Avenue Général-Koenig, Cannes
Largely remodelled for Mrs Walter Grace, American
Remodel – Still Standing (Now Apartments)
1932 Casa Estella, La Baie des Milliardaires, Cap d’Antibes
Remodelled for Beatrice Cartwright, Socialite and granddaughter of
Henry Huddleston Rodgers, one of the founders of Standard Oil
She has three husbands, her eldest son, Dallas Pratt,
founded and furnished the American Museum in Britain
Remodel – Still Standing
1932 Maison des Aspres, Grasse
For La Marquise de Ganay
Sister of the Marquis de Brantes,
Remodelled
1932 Domaine de l’Oustaroun, Vence
Remodelled for Marquise de Brantes
Remodelled
1933 La Ferme St Antoine, Route de Cannes, Mougins
For William O Burton whose father founded the Bernheimer beer factory of New York. Set in a large park, the Ferme St Antoine had a réputation douteuse – William was an aspiring portrait painter who led a louche lifestyle – His small daughter, Patricia, would dance in the fountains at her father’s parties – In later years, after a quarrel with her husband, she was killed when he hit her with a silver candelabra in their New York apartment – The building is now a restaurant, catering to corporate events
Vastly remodelled – Still Standing
1933 Villa la Reine Jeanne, Cabasson, Bormes les Mimosas, Var
New for Paul-Louis Weiller, French Aviator, businessman, one of the founders of Air France, friend of Presidents, politicians and the stars
New – Still Standing
1934 Villa at Route de Grasse, Peymeinade
Remodelled Library, bathroom, patio etc. for Miss Gladys Curry, English?
Remodelled – Still Standing
1935 Villa Le Roc, Golfe Juan
Built for Lord & Lady Cholmondeley, British
New villa and separate pool house
Let to Prince of Wales and Wallis Simpson for clandestine holiday in 1936
New – Still Standing (Neglected)
1935/6 Villa Lou Viei, 10bis Ancien Chemin de Vallauris, Cannes
Remodelled for Mr and Mrs Herman Rogers, American
Extensions, arches and terrace
Firm friends of Wallis Simpson, who heard of abdication of Edward VIII
here and would soon become the Duchess of Windsor
Remodel – Still Standing
1935 Villa Tanah Mera, 64 Avenue des Pins, Cap d’Antibes
New for George Keun, Dutch
Son Gerald Kane, a decorated officer, was a hero of the Resistance
Executed Buchenwald 1944 – Awarded the Legion d’Honneur, Croix de Guerre, Médaille de la Résistance Française – From the British – a Certificate of Commendation
New – Still Standing
Click here to enjoy a short clip of Eric Dunstan
‘The man with the golden voice’
1935 Moulin de la Mourachonne, Mouans Sartoux
Extensively remodelled for Eric Dunstan, British
Traveller and announcer ‘The man with the golden voice’
Modernist Staircase – Remodel – Still Standing
1936 Villa Les Roches Fleuris, (then Le Beaurevoir),
450 Avenue Mrs L.D. Beaumont, Cap d’Antibes
Extensions for Diarmid Campbell-Johnson, Scots
Involved in the Resistance in Brives-la-Gaillarde
Honoured by a street in that town
Remodel – Still Standing
1936 Villa Lilliput, 40 Boulevard James Wyllie, Cap d’Antibes,
New for Count Antoine Sala, French/American
Art collector and ex-French diplomat
Grandson of American entrepreneur John F.A. Sanford
In 1933 married, en blanc, Laura Bache Kayser, art collector
New – Still Standing
1937 Mas de Terrafial, 3 Avenue Ziem, Cannes
New for Frederick Jurgen Price, British
Funded agents in Cannes working for the Special Operations Executive
Fled over the Pyrenees in 1943, his family were one of the two founders of Unilever
New – Still Standing
1937 Villa Sous le Vent, Cap d’Antibes, Impasse Felix, Cap d’Antibes
New for Marion Sydney Allen, American
Newly built from the basement up, Barry Dierks’s largest house
Marion’s initials are in wrought iron above the high entrance gate
The war intervened and the house was abandoned
Bought by another in 1946, General De Gaulle spent two weeks there to reflect on his future
New – Still Standing
1937 Villa Zero, 416 Chemin de la Mosquée, Cap d’Antibes
Remodelled for Duncan Orr-Lewis, British
Duncan-Orr-Lewis was married five times
During the war, his step-father, James Grant-Milne,
was shot by the Germans on the bridge going into Vence
Hailed as a Resistant
Remodel – Still Standing
1938 Villa Sansovino, (then Villa Dufour), 35 Chemin de Caldana,Cannes
Remodelled for Lord Derby, British
The 17th Earl of Derby, Conservative politician
At one time British Ambassador to France
His ancestor, the 12th Earl founded the Derby Race at Epsom England
Remodel – Still Standing
1938 Villa Henri, (then Villa Campbell, was Bourbon villa),
now Residence Rabelais, 75 La Croisette, Cannes
Remodelled for Diarmid Campbell Johnson, Scots
Enlarged and remodelled
Remodel – Still Standing (Now Apartments)
1938 Villa Aujourd’hui, 1546 Blvd. Marechal Juin, Cap d’Antibes
New for Mrs Audrey Chadwick, American
A collector of modern art, she built the first Art Deco house in Palm Beach, Florida,
Architect Maurice Fatio. Contains a Murano glass staircase. The villa was bought by film producer Jack Warner in 1949
New – Still Standing
1938 Villa Hou Zee, 365 Avenue de la Mosquée, Cap d’Antibes
New for Mrs Charlotte Ives Boissevin, American
A bijou pavilion with cabins and dressing rooms by Dierks on the land of Villa Hou Zee. The villa itself was not by Dierks
Now a dwelling
New – Still Standing
1938 Villa La Cassine, 112bis Blvd. Francis-Meilland, Cap d’Antibes
New for Comte Damien de Martel, French
Diplomat in China and Syria
Many additions
New – Still Standing
1939 Villa Ad Astra, 13 Avenue Ziem, Cannes
New for General Georges Catroux, French
Diplomat and 5-star general who joined De Gaulle in London and became
commander-in-chief of the Free French Forces during the last world war
A close friend of Barry Dierks, he wrote a warm dedication to him in his Dans la Bataille Méditerranée
The villa was confiscated and sold in 1941 but returned to General Catroux after the war
Bought later by Herman Rogers
New – Now demolished
1940 Villa la Presqu’ile de L’Ilette, (then Villa Aigue Marine),
490 Chemin de la Mosquée, Cap d’Antibes
Remodelled for Howard S. Wilcox, American
With four other architects, later interior designed by David Hicks
Remodel – Still Standing
1940 Château de Monteux, Cap d’Antibes
For societe civile. (Raymond Paternotre, politician)
Extensions
1941 The Cottage Eilenroc, 460 Avenue Mrs L–D Beaumont, Antibes
New for Mrs Beaumont, American
Along with four other architects to create a comfortable home for Mrs Beaumont as a widow – In the grounds of the magnificent Belle Epoque Villa Eilenroc which Mrs Beaumont gifted to the town of Antibes in 1982 – Mrs Beaumont would make her main home in Monte Carlo
New – Still Standing
1940 Le Clos de la Garoupe, (Villa at Château de la Garoupe)
Remodelled for Antony Norman, British
The American interior designer Elsie de Wolfe stayed here in the summer of 1936
Remodel – Still Standing
1946 The Palm Beach Casino, Cannes
Damaged by German army and Allied bombing
Restored, (minus the great swimming pool) by Barry and Eric along with five other architects – Modernised in the post war years, it lost its Moorish spikes but these are to be re-instated – The film Mélodie en Sous Sol was shot here in 1963 with Alain Delon and Jean Gabin before modernisation
Remodel – Still Standing
1951 Villa Hier, 374, Avenue Mrs L-D Beaumont, Cap d’Antibes
Remodelled for Anthony Edgar Somers, British
Grand extensions, Swimming pool
The villa was used in the film of ‘Dirty Rotten Scoundrels’ starring Sir Michael Caine
Seized by the local justice department in 2017 on suspicion of money laundering
Remodel – Still Standing
1952 Villa La Barbacane, Sea Front Antibes
Dr. Jur Weisbrod
New
1951/2 Villas at Château de La Garoupe,
La Tourelle, 1530 Chemin de la Garoupe,Cap d’Antibes
For the illustrious Antony Norman family, mine owners, journalists and politicians, British
Villa created around an original summer house and tower
Barry Dierks suggested plans for La Tourelle in another design
Built or Remodelled
Le Clos, La Folie, Le Clocher, La Tourelle
Still Standing – In Another Design
La Folie. 2nd house, Chemin de la Croê, Cap d’Antibes
New for Willoughby Norman, British
Businessman involved with Boots Chemists, among others
New – Still Standing
1955 Plan of enlargement of villa at angles of
Chemin de la Cigaronne and L’Olivette on Blvd. du Cap
Maître Suzanne Blum. Married to Paul Max Weill
1955 Pavilion at Miramar, Theoule
New for Madame Agnès Segard – still owned by same family and
built on land next to Le Trident
New – Still Standing
1956 Villa Piccola Bella, 122 Avenue de Vallauris, Cannes
Remodelled and extensions for Mrs G.L.P. Woodward – American?
Stands alongside many greenhouses
Remodel – Still Standing
1961 Bouladrome at the Villa Médy Roc, Cap d’Antibes
For Grief Robert
Villa formerly called Nelly-Rock.
Part of Chateau de Monteux garden.
Bouladrome
Plan by Barry Dierks
The Following Villas Have No Images And Were Gleaned From Various Sources,
Including A Typewritten List.
The List Was Written In 1941 By Eric Sawyer
- Villa Isabelle, 64 Avenue Docteur Raymond Picard, Cannes. Garden, many additions.
For Edmund Bleakley, British. Financier. Pulled down in 1970s. Now apartments.
- Villa les Cistes, 37 Avenue du Roi Albert 1er, Cannes.
For Mrs Nora Mary Fryer. British. Remodelled. Nurse/mistress/inheritor of Montague Stanley Napier of Napier Cars and engines. Now apartments.
- Maison des Aspres. Grasse. Remodelled.
La Marquise de Ganay. French. Now a ‘domaine’ of houses?
- Domaine de L’Oustaroun. Vence. Remodelled.
La Marquise de Brantes. American. Fate unknown.
- Villa Mon Plaisir. Boulevard Wilson. Cannes. Fate unknown.
- Domaine du Sault, Auribeau. Sitting room, dining room.
Dickie Fellowes-Gordon, Scots. Lived in during the war by Isabelle Pell. New York socialite and French Resistant. Now a lovely villa.
- (6 September!) Château de Monteaux. Quartier du Cap, Cap d’Antibes. Grand marble staircase. Large terrace. For Raymond Paternôtre et Jacqueline Thomé. French. Politician. Raymond Paternôtre was publisher of Le Petit Niçois and a supporter of Vichy France. Pulled down.
- Casa Lauretta, Mougins. Remodelled.
For Grace Moore. American opera singer. She sang at the first Cannes film festival in 1946. Died in a plane crash a year later. Fate unknown.
- Villa Medy Roc. 145, Blvd J.F. Kennedy, Cap d’Antibes.
For Robert Greif. Elaborate Bouladrome. Plan drawn up by Barry Dierks before his death in 1960. Still there.
UNDATED
Villa Toboso, 7 Allée des Oliviers, Cannes.
For Mrs Thomson (British?). Now an hotel.
The Marshalling Yards, Train Depôt, Cannes La Bocca. Attacked by Allied bombers. Restoration. With other architects. 1945?
Villa Valbelle, Cannes.
For Mrs Otis. Fate not known.
Lou Couloumbier, Cannes.
For Madame Muller Jurgens. New Build. Fate not known.
Bungalows above Monte Carlo Beach. Disappeared.
Villa Sagitta.
For Charles Corbin. Ambassador to the United Kingdom from 1933 to 1941. Anti-appeaser, but tormented by the vagaries of the war, he retired to his home in the south of France in 1941.
FROM LIST OF 1941– All Undated
Villa Sous la Madone, Roquebrune Cap-Martin.
Mrs Fairfax.
Villa Florida de Mare, St Jean-Cap-Ferrat.
For Sir Arthur du Cros. British. Dunlop group and ill-fated financier.
Villa Rangimori, La Lanterne, Nice.
For Mrs McLean.
Mas des Orangers, Biot.
For Monsieur Glorieux. French. Now a restaurant.
Domaine St. Francois, Juan les Pins.
For Madame Leray Berdeaux who, as Mrs Audrey Chadwick, American, commissioned the Villa Aujourd’hui, Cap d’Antibes, from Barry Dierks.
Domaine de Pibonson, Mougins.
For Lady Rothermere. British. Now a vineyard.
Porte des Iles, Mougins.
For Sir Francis Rose. British. An artist with a family fortune, who led a tumultuous life and died penniless.
Domaine Terres Blanches, Pegomas.
For Mrs Pringle. Fate unknown.
Villa Miraflores, Biarritz.
For Monsieur Laharrague. French. Still there.