The main block was destroyed by fire in 1900 but the stables and the service wing were not affected; the block was rebuilt "in the style of Wren", on the exact footprint of the previous building, in 1903. The architect was Arthur Blomfield. It was purchased by Vere Ponsonby, 9th Earl of Bessborough, in 1924. During WW II, the house sheltered orphans from Southsea. In 1939, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, then the consort of George VI, spent one night here and in 1962, Anne, Princess Royal visited Stansted House and went for a swim.